Once，theslavesofHell\'sBottomprotestedtoVanderwater。ItwasthetimeoftheyearwhenhespentseveralmonthsinKingsbury。Oneoftheslavescouldwrite；itchancedthathismothercouldwrite，andshehadsecretlytaughthimashermotherhadsecretlytaughther。Sothisslavewrotearoundrobin，whereinwascontainedtheirgrievances，andalltheslavessignedbymark。And，withproperstampsupontheenvelope，theroundrobinwasmailedtoRogerVanderwater。AndRogerVanderwaterdidnothing，savetoturntheroundrobinovertothetwooverseers。ClancyandMunsterwereangered。Theyturnedtheguardslooseatnightontheslavepen。Theguardswerearmedwithpickhandles。ItissaidthatnextdayonlyhalfoftheslaveswereabletoworkinHell\'sBottom。Theywerewellbeaten。Theslavewhocouldwritewassobadlybeatenthathelivedonlythreemonths。Butbeforehedied，hewroteoncemore，towhatpurposeyoushallhear。
Fourorfiveweeksafterward，TomDixon，aslave，hadhisarmtornoffbyabeltinHell\'sBottom。Hisfellow-workmen，asusual，madeagranttohimfromthefund，andClancyandMunster，asusual，refusedtopayitoverfromthefund。Theslavewhocouldwrite，andwhoeventhenwasdying，wroteanewarecitaloftheirgrievances。AndthisdocumentwasthrustintothehandofthearmthathadbeentornfromTomDixon\'sbody。
NowitchancedthatRogerVanderwaterwaslyingillinhispalaceattheotherendofKingsbury——notthedireillnessthatstrikesdownyouandme，brothers；justabitofbiliousness，mayhap，ornomorethanabadheadachebecausehehadeatentooheartilyordrunktoodeeply。Butitwasenoughforhim，beingtenderandsoftfromcarefulrearing。Suchmen，packedincottonwoolalltheirlives，areexceedingtenderandsoft。Believeme，brothers，RogerVanderwaterfeltasbadlywithhisachinghead，orTHOUGHT
hefeltasbadly，asTomDixonreallyfeltwithhisarmtornoutbytheroots。
IthappenedthatRogerVanderwaterwasfondofscientificfarming，andthatonhisfarm，threemilesoutsideofKingsbury，hehadmanagedtogrowanewkindofstrawberry。Hewasveryproudofthatnewstrawberryofhis，andhewouldhavebeenouttoseeandpickthefirstripeones，haditnotbeenforhisillness。Becauseofhisillnesshehadorderedtheoldfarmslavetobringinpersonallythefirstboxoftheberries。Allthiswaslearnedfromthegossipofapalacescullion，whoslepteachnightintheslavepen。Theoverseeroftheplantationshouldhavebroughtintheberries，buthewasonhisbackwithabrokenlegfromtryingtobreakacolt。Thescullionbroughtthewordinthenight，anditwasknownthatnextdaytheberrieswouldcomein。AndthemenintheslavepenofHell\'sBottom，beingmenandnotcowards，heldacouncil。