e was permitted to eat as much as he
could, but was forbidden to take anything home. When some one was
fortunate enough to catch a possum or a coon, he had a change of food.

On Sundays the slaves were permitted to have a religious meeting of
their own. This usually took place in the back yard or in a building
dedicated for this purpose. They sang spirituals which gave vent to
their true feelings. Many of these songs are sung today. There was one
person who did the preaching. His sermon was always built according to
the master's instructions which were that slaves must always remember
that they belonged to their masters and were intended to lead a life of
loyal servitude. None of the slaves believed this, although they
pretended to believe because of the presence of the white overseer. If
this overseer was absent sometimes and the preacher varied in the text
of his sermon, that is, if he preached exactly what he thought and felt,
he was given a sound whipping.

Mr. Brown was a kind person and never mistreated his slaves, although he
did furnish them with the whip for infractions of rules such as
fighting, stealing, visiting other plantations without a "pass", etc.
Ward vividly recalls that one of the soundest thrashings he ever got was
for stealing Mr. Brown's whisky. His most numerous offenses were
fighting. Another form of punishment used in those days was the stocks,
such as those used in early times in England. Serious offenses like
killing another person was also handled by the master who might hang him
to a tree by the feet or by the neck, as he saw fit.

Few slaves ever attempted to escape from Mr. Brown, partially because of
his kindliness and partically because of the fear inspired by the pack
of blood hounds which he kept. When an escaped slave was caught he was
returned to his master and a sound beating was administered.

As far as marriage was concerned on the Brown estate, Mr. Brown, himself
placed every two individuals together that he saw fit to. There was no
other wedding ceremony. If any children were born from the union, Mr.
Brown named them. One peculiarity on the Brown estate was the fact that
the slaves were allowed no preference or choice as to who his or her
mate would be. Another peculiarity was these married couples were not
permitted to sleep together except when the husband received permission
to spend the night with his wife. Ward is the father of 17 children
whose whereabouts he does not