More and more Nat gave himself up to a life of the spirit and to communion with the voices that he said he heard.  He once ran away for a month, but felt commanded by the spirit to return.  About 1825 a consciousness of his great mission came to him, and daily he labored to make himself more worthy.  As he worked in the field he saw drops of blood on the corn, and he also saw white spirits and black spirits contending in the skies.  While he thus so largely lived in a religious or mystical world and was immersed, he was not a professional Baptist preacher.  On May 12, 1828, he was left no longer in doubt.  A great voice said unto him that the Serpent was loosed, that Christ had laid down the yoke, that he, Nat, was to take it up again, and that the time was fast approaching when the first should be last and the last should be first.  An eclipse of the sun in February, 1831, was interpreted as the sign for him to go forward.  Yet he waited a little longer, until he had made sure of his most important associates.  It is worthy of note that when he began his work, while he wanted the killing to be as effective and widespread as possible, he commanded that no outrage be committed, and he was obeyed.

When on the Sunday in August Nat and his companions finished their conference, they went to find Austin, a brother-spirit; and then all went to the cider-press and drank except Nat.  It was understood that he as the leader was to spill the first blood, and that he was to begin with his own master, Joseph Travis.  Going to the house, Hark placed a ladder against the chimney.  On this Nat ascended; then he went downstairs, unbarred the doors, and removed the guns from their places.  He and Will together entered Travis’s chamber, and the first blow was given to the master of the house.  The hatchet glanced off and Travis called to his wife; but this was with his last breath, for Will at once despatched him with his ax.  The wife and the three children of the house were also killed immediately.  Then followed a drill of the company, after which all went to the home of Salathiel Francis six hundred yards away.  Sam and Will knocked, and Francis asked who was there.  Sam replied that he had a letter, for him.  The man came to the door, where he was seized and killed by repeated blows over the head.  He was the only white person in the house.  In silence all passed on to the home of Mrs. Reese, who was killed while asleep in bed.  Her son awoke, but was also immediately killed.  A mile away the insurrectionists came to the home of Mrs. Turner, which they reached about sunrise on Monday morning.  Henry, Austin, and Sam went to the still, where they found and killed the overseer, Peebles, Austin shooting him.  Then all went to the house.  The family saw them coming and shut the door—­to no avail, however, as Will with one stroke of his ax opened it and entered to find Mrs. Turner and Mrs. Newsome in the middle of the room almost frightened to death.  Will