It was a long time since I had taken a walk out of doors, and the fresh air revived me.  It was also pleasant to hear a human voice speaking to me above a whisper.  I passed several people whom I knew, but they did not recognize me in my disguise.  I prayed internally that, for Peter’s sake, as well as my own, nothing might occur to bring out his dagger.  We walked on till we came to the wharf.  My aunt Nancy’s husband was a seafaring man, and it had been deemed necessary to let him into our secret.  He took me into his boat, rowed out to a vessel not far distant, and hoisted me on board.  We three were the only occupants of the vessel.  I now ventured to ask what they proposed to do with me.  They said I was to remain on board till near dawn, and then they would hide me in Snaky Swamp, till my uncle Phillip had prepared a place of concealment for me.  If the vessel had been bound north, it would have been of no avail to me, for it would certainly have been searched.  About four o’clock, we were again seated in the boat, and rowed three miles to the swamp.  My fear of snakes had been increased by the venomous bite I had received, and I dreaded to enter this hiding place.  But I was in no situation to choose, and I gratefully accepted the best that my poor, persecuted friends could do for me.

Peter landed first, and with a large knife cut a path through bamboos and briers of all descriptions.  He came back, took me in his arms, and carried me to a seat made among the bamboos.  Before we reached it, we were covered with hundreds of mosquitos.  In an hour’s time they had so poisoned my flesh that I was a pitiful sight to behold.  As the light increased, I saw snake after snake crawling round us.  I had been accustomed to the sight of snakes all my life, but these were larger than any I had ever seen.  To this day I shudder when I remember that morning.  As evening approached, the number of snakes increased so much that we were continually obliged to thrash them with sticks to keep them from crawling over us.  The bamboos were so high and so thick that it was impossible to see beyond a very short distance.  Just before it became dark we procured a seat nearer to the entrance of the swamp, being fearful of losing our way back to the boat.  It was not long before we heard the paddle of oars, and the low whistle, which had been agreed upon as a signal.  We made haste to enter the boat, and were rowed back to the vessel.  I passed a wretched night; for the heat of the swamp, the mosquitos, and the constant terror of snakes, had brought on a burning fever.  I had just dropped asleep, when they came and told me it was time to go back to that horrid swamp.  I could scarcely summon courage to rise.  But even those large, venomous snakes were less dreadful to my imagination than the white men in that community called civilized.  This time Peter took a quantity of tobacco to burn, to keep off the mosquitos.  It produced the desired effect on them, but gave me nausea and severe headache.