## Introduction  
Nicholas Said (originally known as Mohammed Ali ibn Sa'id) published his autobiography in 1873. Previous studies have recognized the significance of this autobiography, presenting it as an African Muslim/American Muslim slave narrative or the work of a 'Carolinian immigrant'. Departing from earlier approaches, this study highlights the vivid details of slavery in Africa described in the autobiography, and suggests that Said's life experiences and his observations on slavery constitute an important contribution to the historiography of the subject. Also, this study indicates that the narrative was more than that of an African Muslim/American Muslim slave or a 'Carolinian immigrant'.  
Nicholas Said was initially known only through a ten-page article that appeared in The Atlantic Monthly in 1867 (Unknown author, 1867; Austin, 1984, 1997). Although Allan D. Austin and others who commented on that article wrongly assumed that Said did not produce a full-length book during his lifetime (Tabish et al., 2005, pp. 214-218), it became clear by 2001 that he had, in fact, published an autobiography in 1873 (Said, 1873). This particular 224-page narrative, on which I draw primarily in this study, was written largely to showcase the accomplishment of an African and to inspire other Africans to similarly undertake 'systematic efforts in the direction of mental culture and  
improvement' (Said, 1873, p. v). It includes a preface and thirteen chapters dealing with different topics. Also included in the book is a supplementary chapter on Bladen Springs in Alabama.