Editorialana. 99
A daughter of Mr. Nichols, the
anti-slavery man, is yet living, and
gives in a letter to me interesting
facts. She says:
"My father and mother became
earnest anti-slavery advocates in
1841, and from that time until the war,
the colored people knew my
parents as friends, and our home was a
refuge. When old enough,
probably about the year '48 or '49, I
became greatly interested in the
black people, who came quietly to our
kitchen door after dark and left
before daylight; often we children did
not know who our callers were,
but we soon understood 'the back door
knock,' the look exchanged be-
tween mother and father, and the anxious
mysterious atmosphere that
pervaded the home, until father had word
from the next 'station.' I
remember one morning before light,
hearing a noise down stairs. I
crept to the kitchen to find a big black
man and woman, for whom break-
fast was being prepared. I was quickly
taken back to bed.
"I, one evening overheard father
telling mother 'he had found a half
killed darkey in the cornfield,' who
must get some supper and sleep,
and he would see Mr. - , and get him off before daylight. I did
not see the man."
E. G. Coffin who aided in the arrest of
the United States marshals
for the assault on Sheriff Layton, was a
nephew of Levi Coffin of Cin-
cinnati. At the head of the underground,
he aided hundreds of slaves
on their way north. He was a Quaker. E.
G. Coffin often drove the
underground 'express,' from South
Charleston to Mechanicsburg, and had
secretly taken the slave Addison White
there in 1855. For this and other
service he now states:
"The outbreak of the war itself,
was all that saved me from a term
in the state penitentiary, over which I
afterward presided as warden."
AUTHORITIES.
Geo. H. Frey, Sr., E. G. Coffin, James
H. Pyles, Chas. H. Pierce,
Walter Pierce, Mrs. D. A. Johnson, Mrs.
Belle Nichols Rebuck, Ver-
sailles, Indiana. As to arrests, The
Springfield Nonpareil, issue 1857.
THE CENTRAL OHIO VALLEY HISTORICAL
CONFERENCE.
During the Summer and early Fall of the
past year (1907) a number
of Cincinnati gentlemen interested
directly or indirectly in history in
general and Ohio Valley history in
particular formulated a plan for hold-
ing what was designated as the Central
Ohio Valley Historical Confer-
ence. The purpose of this plan was to
bring together for the opportunity
of discussion and mutual acquaintance and
co-operation all writers, schol-
ars, teachers and others engaged in the
field of history and all societies,
whose object might be, in whole or part,
the promotion of history, gath-
ering of material, presentation and
dissemination of the same. Patriotic
societies were included in the scope of
the project. The chief, if not
original, protagonist of this idea was
Professor Isaac J. Cox, of the de-
partment of history of the University of
Cincinnati. Professor Cox sub-
mitted the plan to the Executive
Committee of the Cincinnati Historical
Teachers' Association, which
organization gave the idea enthusiastic sup-
port. General and special committees
were appointed and many patriotic