“How the divil do ye know what yer talking about; sure it’s his honor’s bisniss, and not yours at all, at all,” said Dunn, addressing himself to Mr. Kanapeaux, and then looking at Mr. Grimshaw.

“Mr. Kanapeaux, you must not interfere with the officers and their duty; attend to your business, and get, your book ready to register this nigger-boy,” said Grimshaw.

“Well, now, my good fellow,” continued Grimshaw, “I dislike this business very much; it don’t pay me enough for all the bother I have with it.  ’Tis just a little filtering of fees, which makes the duty of my office exceedingly annoying.  But we must respect the law.  We do these things to protect our institutions and make them as light as possible.  I might give you a great deal of trouble; I have the power, but I make it a point to consider men in your case, and we’ll make you so comfortable that you won’t think of being imprisoned.  You must understand that it is ‘contrary to law’ to come among our niggers in this way; it gives them fanciful ideas.  There’s such an infernal imperfect state of things as these abolitionists are getting every thing into, behooves us to watch the communications which are going on between, designing people and our slaves.  We are a hospitable people—­the world knows that—­and have a religious respect for our laws, which we enforce without respect to persons.  We’d like to let you go about the city, but then it’s ’contrary to law.’  Make up your mind, my good fellow, that you are among humane people, who will seek to benefit you among men of your class.  Make yourself happy—­and look upon me as a friend, and you will never be deceived.  I control the jail, and my prisoners are as much attached to me as they would be to a father.”

“It must be humanity that puts these symbols of ignominy upon my hands,” said Manuel; “that confines me in a dungeon lest I should breathe a word of liberty to ears that know it only as a fable.”

Nobody had asked him to sit down, and, feeling the effect of his sickness and fatigue, he turned around as if to look for something to rest against.  “You must not sit down,—­take off your hat!” said Grimshaw.

The poor fellow made an effort, but could not effect it with the fetters on his hands; at which, Dunn stepped up, and snatching it from his head, flung it upon the floor.  “You should learn manners, my good fellow,” said Grimshaw, “when you come into a sheriff’s office.  It’s a place of importance, and people always pay respect to it when they come into it; a few months in Charleston would make you as polite as our niggers.”

“Had you not better take the irons off the poor fellow’s hands?—­he looks as if he was tired out,” said Mr. Kanapeaux, the clerk, who again came to the door and looked upon Manuel with an air of pity.  The words of sympathy touched his feelings deeply; it was a simple word in his favour, so different from what he had met since he left the vessel, that he felt a kind friend had spoken in his behalf, and he gave way to his feeling in a gush of tears.