James: A Novel

Jim hears a rustling in the bushes and then the sound of his name. It is Norman, who has also run away from the minstrel troupe. Norman tells him that Emmett was furious when he found Jim missing and threatened to beat and then hang Jim. Jim proposes that Norman sell Jim to make money. Jim will then escape. Although this was the Duke and the King’s plan, they were not trustworthy and Norman is. Jim hopes that they can make enough money to buy their families. Although Norman is wary of the idea, he agrees.

Jim and Norman come to a small hamlet. They meet the local constable and Norman tries to persuade him to purchase Jim. The man declines but tells them the owner of the local sawmill may be interested.

The two men proceed to the mill. The owner, Henderson, agrees to buy Jim for $350. Norman has told the man that Jim’s name is February, even though he was born in June. This is because Jim’s name is on his flyer and because the two men understand the racism of enslavers: Henderson thinks it is both hilarious and a sign of the inherent lower intelligence of enslaved people that they would choose February as a name for a baby born in a different month.