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unlawful rascal." He killed one, but I hid the others until I sold them, but I was forced to sell them against my will. A poor man named Daniels, determined to get these hogs by stratagem. He asked me what I would take for them, and he told me he would give me twenty dollars. We killed some out of the drove, and for those which were left he offered me thirteen dollars; but I did not sell them for a long time because I knew he would not pay me. He told me if I did not sell them to him, the first time he caught me when patrolling, he would whip me; but I did not mind that either; but when my mistress kept tormenting me about them, I told Daniel he might have them for thirteen dollars, to get rid of the fuss. He said, "Well, you must bring me a written permission to sell them, before I can buy them." I said, "My mistress hates the Daniels' family and won't give me a permission." "Well, Jack, get your wife Louisa to get an order from her owners." My wife got it, so I went one evening, as I was afraid he was not going to give me the money, and said, "Now, Mr. Daniels, if you have the thirteen dollars ready I have the order." He replied, “Well, let me see it." 66 No, you put the money in my hand first." Daniel replied, "No, I can't do that until I see the order." "Well, if you don't give me the thirteen dollars will you give me the order back?" He said, “Yes.” "But have you the money with you?" "Oh! Yes," replied Daniels. I then handed him the order. He then read it, and said, Well, this is as good in my pocket as ten dollars. Now, Jackson, if you interfere with those hogs I'll prosecute you-they are my hogs now." "But you promised to give me the thirteen dollars." "Ah! by George I havn't got it." Why, you told me you had." Well, so I have if you can change a one hundred dollar bill." "But I have no money, I thought you were going to give me some, and then fearing you would'nt I wanted the money first." Now, these Daniels were considered to be great liars. They were once had up before the magistrate for stealing Alex Durant's long-tailed sow; they were tried and sentenced to be whipped in the same manner as a slave; but Lawyer Moses got him out of it. But, to return to the hogs they were about to steal from me. Daniels told me to bring my wife Louisa, and he would pay her, which I did. He then put us off, telling us to come next week, and so on, week after week, till we found out it was no

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use, for he did not intend to pay us. The last time I went, on going to the gate, the dogs were barking furiously, and the old father came out, and said, with a horrid oath, "Who is that?" It's me," said I. "What do you want?" "I have brought Louisa for the money." " Well," said he, "my son ain't at home." I stood there in the dark, when the son came out and said, "Where is she? I said, "Here I am.' "Have you got your wife with you?" "Yes." "Well, I ain't got the money yet." We went away sorrowfully; he never paid us a cent of the money.

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My mistress's expressed opinion was this, "Never to give the niggers any meat; for where she was brought up a dry peck of corn and a pint of salt was all that was allowed to niggers per week." My master, her husband, did as she said, so that we were often on the verge of starvation. Nevertheless, she had a favourite dog, which she called "Old Rip," of the mastiff breed, which she continually fed with meat that we would have given anything to possess. She would tie the female slaves, who did the domestic work, to trees or bedposts, whichever was handiest, and whip them severely with a dogwood or hickory switch, for the slightest offence, and often for nothing at all apparently, but merely for the purpose of keeping up her practice. She would also make her daughters whip them, and thus she brought up her children in the way they should not go, and in consequence, when they were old they did not depart from it. Through her my mother got many a hundred lashes. Since my escape I heard of the death of my mother. My mistress had two household gods, viz., her bunch of keys, in which she manifested a peculiar interest, and her brandy bottle, which she consulted with a frequency which was most alarming, especially as when she was drunk it was her invariable practice to attack the cook (one Ann Dolly) most unmercifully with the broomstick.

CHAPTER IV.

MY YOUTHFUL DAYS.

My first employment was that of a scarecrow in the corn fields. I was driven into the field at the earliest dawn of day, and I did not leave the field till sunset. My food was a cake made by mixing Indian meal with water and

a little salt, and which was then baked in the ashes. This I had to take to the field to subsist on during the day. When I was older I had to manage the plough. Being young, I had not sufficient strength to hold the plough steadily; in consequence of which, my master used to follow me from end to end of the field, beating me over the head with a cowhide. On our way across the field one of the leashes happening to touch the mule, it kicked the plough from my hands, for which my master stripped me totally naked, and beat me till my back was covered with blood. My brothers, and indeed, all of my age shared the same fate with me. The horses were usually turned out at night into the field, and it was my duty to bring them home before daylight. The horses, however, apparently anxious to escape the hard work imposed on man and beast alike, had hid themselves in a wood which abounded with rattlesnakes. This caused me great fear as I was barefooted. After a hard hunt I succeeded in finding them. However, on my arrival home, I was tied up and beaten severely by both my master and son at the same time. I was also ox-driver, and in that capacity, I was sent to Wilson's Steam Saw Mill for planks, on various occasions. When the account was rendered, my master was surprised at the number of planks he had used, and to escape paying for the whole, he declared that I had fetched the planks for myself, which was a diabolical falsehood. I wanted no planks, and had I wanted them, I should not have got them in that way, as I should have been sure to have been found out. Nevertheless, to carry conviction that his word was true, he took me before Mr. Wilson's house, and stripped me, and gave me fifty lashes.

About this time, I fell in love with a slave girl named Louisa, who belonged to a Mrs. Wells, whose plantation was about a mile off. Mrs. Wells was a comparatively kind mistress. Shortly after, I married Louisa. Do not let the reader run away with the idea that there was any marriage ceremony, for the poor slaves are debarred that privilege by the cruel hand of their fellow-man. My master was exceedingly angry when he heard of my marriage, because my children would not belong to him, and whenever he discovered that I had visited my wife's plantation during the night, I was tied up and received fifty lashes. But no man can be prevented from visiting his wife, and the consequence was, that I was beaten on the average,

at least every week for that offence. I shall carry these scars to my grave. My wife had two children, one of whom died. But we were soon separated, as her owner removed to Georgia, and we were parted for ever.

Our clothes were rags, and we were all half naked, and the females were not sufficiently clothed to satisfy common decency.

I will now refer to the "American Camp-Meeting," which is held in tents, and is a gathering of both black and white Methodists for worship and prayer. It is continued day by day for a week; but the blacks can only attend during Saturday night and part of Sunday, having to be at work again early on Monday morning. These meetings are infested by a set of white people, who are libertine scoundrels, and attend for the purpose of seizing and carrying off by force, for their own vile purposes, the most beautiful slave girls they can see. On the father's interfering to save their daughters, they only receive a shower of blows on the head with hickory sticks. I often saw this with my own eyes, and not daring to say a word. One of these wretches, John Mulder by name, having seized a negro's wife, on their way to the camp-meeting, and threatening the husband's life with a pistol, was knocked down senseless by the enraged husband with a stick. In consequence of which, a Lynch law was made that no negro should carry a stick. It is no wonder that this is the case, for "if the blind lead the blind, they will both fall into the ditch;" and the Methodist ministers there are notorious for their villany. As an instance of the truth of this, I may mention the case of the Rev. Thomas English, of whom we have already spoken, and indeed I could give many instances too vile to speak about. It was the custom among them when conducting the Lord's Supper, to have the white people partake first, and then say to the negroes "Now, all you niggers that are humble and obedient servants to your masters, can come and partake." The negroes said among themselves "There is no back kitchen in heaven;" but if they had been overheard, they would have been whipped severely. I fear this case will be an example of the truth of our Lord's saying, "The first shall be last and the last first."

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We were now put to picking cotton. This is not so pleasant a job as might be imagined. The whole field is covered with "stinging worms," a species of caterpillar.

At the setting of the sun each slave had to bring one hundred weight of cotton, which many of the weaker slaves could not do. In consequence of this, each night there were two hours' whipping at the " ginning house." The masters would not even allow them their usual night's rest. They made them pack cotton before daylight, and as soon as twenty bales were packed they were sent off to Charleston. The cotton plant is planted in April or May, and the cotton is picked out of the pods in August. The heat of that month raises large bumps on the slaves backs; besides, the frequent infliction of the whip and the lash is almost intolerable. One slave, named "Old Prince," because he could not do sufficient work, was continually being beaten. On one occasion, he received fifty, lashes, and fifty blows with the paddle-a paddle is a board six inches broad, and eight inches long, with twelve gimlet holes in it; each of these holes raised a blister every time a blow was inflicted, which rendered it extremely painful-in a few days the skin all peeled off his lacerated body. At this time we were under the control of Burl Quiney, who murdered Old Peter, as related before. He also murdered four negroes belonging to James Rambert. Wherever he was overseer, he succeeded in murder

ing one or more negroes. He used to make the negroes shuck corn till past midnight, and they had to rise with the sun next morning to their day's work. They are not allowed a change of clothes, but only one suit for summer, and the perspiration is so great that they smell rank; thus they are robbed of comfort and cleanliness by the cruelty and avarice of their masters. They wear no shoes, and they had to work in "the New Ground," a place infested by snakes and scorpions, and they were often bitten by snakes, while 6,000,000 of lazy white men are riding about calling negroes lazy, whilst they are the laziest.

CHAPTER V.

MY ESCAPE.

A SLAVE on a neighbouring plantation had a pony; it being discovered by his mistress, she ordered the overseer, the Rev. P. Huggin, to kill it. Meanwhile, I went in the night and purchased it of the slave with some fowls. my master had just then gone out of his mind I could keep it with greater impunity, so that at length I went to

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