Litchfield Enquirer

CAPTURE OF RUNAWAY SLAVES

During the whole of Sunday, Monday and yesterday, very great excitement has prevailed in this city and Georgetown, arising out of the fact that many citizens of the two places have been deprived of their servants, and its being ascertained that they had been taken on board a suspicious vessel which had brought wood to this city, and left the wharf at the foot of Seventh st. on Saturday night, and set sail down the river.

Although among the missing slaves were about eighteen or twenty from Georgetown, it was also ascertained there were more than thirty belonging to citizens of Washington.

The citizens of Georgetown determined on Sunday to give chase to the piratical schooner - and having procured the steamboat Salem, Capt. Baker, the pursuers, about 30 in number, armed with muskets and other weapons, left Georgetown at 10 o'clock, and as quickly as possible followed the schooner down the Potomac. There were various reports in the city on Monday night that the runaway slaves had been captured, after a desperate struggle, in which 7 of their number were killed - but none of these reports were true. Nothing was known of either the fugitives or their pursuers until about 7 o'clock yesterday morning when the Salem arrived at our steamboat wharf, bringing with her the schooner, the fugitives, and the white men who were of the , and a person named Daniel Drayton of Philadelphia, who had chartered her.

It appears that the Salem discovered the schooner (called the Pearl) lying in Cornfield harbor, at the mouth of the Potomac, about two o'clock on Monday morning. The fugitives, seventy-seven in number, were fast asleep below, and Edward Sayres, the captain, Chester English, a white boatman, and Daniel Drayton were also below. The Salem being immediately run along-side the Pearl, the Georgetown party almost instantaneously boarded her, fastened down the hatches, and secured the fugitives and the white men on board. The movement was a rapid and successful one, and all on board the Pearl were thus made prisoners without bloodshed, although it was evident that the slaves would have resisted if there had been any chance of escape.

On the arrival of the Salem and the schooner at the steamboat wharf yesterday a large number of persons were assembled, some of whom used very threatening language toward the white men who were brought up prisoners - and if the latter escaped without serious personal injury, it was owing to the prudence and firmness of the guard by whom they were attended, and their being quickly conveyed to jail in a hack, which was pressed into immediate requisition.

We called at the jail yesterday, after the safe lodgement of the prisoners and the fugitives, and we learned from the commitment of Justice Williams, who went down the Potomac in the Salem with the pursuing party, that Edward Sayres, Chester English, and Daniel Drayton, have been committed for further examination on the charge of aiding slaves to escape from their owners.

The fugitives consist of 38 men 20 women, and 13 children. They are now all in prison.

We learn that a final examination of the parties now in confinement will take place to-day at 1 o'clock, at the jail, before Justices Williams and Goddard.