olk mistreated they slaves, but ours never mistreated
us. They was a man lived in callin' distance, on the next plantation,
who worked his slaves day and night and on Sunday for a rarety. You
could hear 'em coming from the field about 12 o'clock at night, and they
had to be back in the fields by daylight. They couldn't get off on
Saturday nights like everbody else. Whenever he bought their clothes, it
was on Sunday when they warn't workin'. He was mean, but he was good
about buyin' for 'em, new shoes or a suit or anything of the like they
said they needed.

"Marster had overseers, but he wouldn't let 'em whip his slaves
unmerciful. They always whipped us just as your mamas whips you now.

"Bob Lampkin was the meanest slave owner I ever knowed. He would beat
his slaves and everybody else's he caught in the road. He was so mean
'til God let him freeze to death. He come to town and got drunk and when
he was going back home in his buggy, he froze stiff going up Race Creek
Hill. White and colored was glad when he died.

"His slaves used to run away whenever they got a chance. I 'member he
had a real pretty gal on his place. She was light brown and was built up
better than anybody I ever saw. One of the overseers was crazy about
her, but her mother had told her not to let any of 'em go with her. So
this old overseer would stick close 'round her when they was workin',
just so he could get a chance to say somethin' to her. He kept followin'
this child and followin' this child until she almost went crazy. Way
afterwhile she run away and come to our house and stayed 'bout three
days. When my marster found out she was there, he told her she would
have to go back, or at least she would have to leave his place. He
didn't want no trouble with nobody. When that child left us she stayed
in the woods until she got so hungry she just had to go back. This old
man was mad with her for leavin', and one day while she was in the field
he started at her again and when she told him flat footed she warn't
goin' with him he took the big end of his cow hide and struck her in the
back so hard it knocked her plumb crazy. It was a big lake of water
about ten yards in front of 'em, and if her mother hadn't run and caught
her she would have walked right in it and drowned.

"In them times white men went with colored gals and women bold. Any time
they saw one and wanted her, she had to go with him, and his wife didn't
say nothin' 'bout it. Not only th