Summary

Chapter 21

Henry B. Northup, a distinguished lawyer from whom Solomon and his family take their name, is a major actor in the events to come. The letter to Perry and Parker arrives in September, during which time Henry is consulted. New York law provides for the freeing of enslaved free men based on two facts. It must be a fact that the individual is indeed a free man and that the individual is wrongly held in bondage. By November, the Governor takes up the case. Northup is appointed to go to Washington in December to handle things. There, Northup meets with elected officials from Louisiana, the Secretary of War, and a member of the Supreme Court. Senator Soule of Louisiana especially insists that this wrong must be made right. Letters are given to Northup, who then journeys to Marksville, Louisiana, where he learns...