verything was in a
bustle--always there was slashing and whipping. I remember when Boss
made a change in our overseer. It was the beginning of the year. Riley,
one of the slaves, who was a principal plower, was not on hand for work
one Monday morning, having been delayed in fixing the bridle of his
mule, which the animal, for lack of something better, perhaps, had been
vigorously chewing and rendered nearly useless. He was, therefore,
considerably behind time, when he reached the field. Without waiting to
learn what was the reason for the delay, the overseer sprang upon him
with his bull whip, which was about seven feet long, lashing him with
all his strength, every stroke leaving its mark upon the poor man's
body, and finally the knot at the end of the whip buried itself in the
fleshy part of the arm, and there came around it a festering sore. He
suffered greatly with it, until one night his brother took out the knot,
when the poor fellow was asleep, for he could not bear any one to touch
it when he was awake. It was awful to hear the cracking of that whip as
it was laid about Riley--one would have thought that an ox team had
gotten into the mire, and was being whipped out, so loud and sharp was
the noise!

I usually slept in the dining room on the floor. Early one morning an
old slave, by name of "Uncle Jim," came and knocked at the window, and
upon my jumping up and going to him, he told me to tell Boss that Uncle
Jim was there. He had run away, some time before, and, for some reason,
had returned. Boss, upon hearing the news, got up and sent me to tell
the overseer to come at once. He came, and, taking the bull whip, a
cowhide and a lot of peach-tree switches, he and Boss led Uncle Jim back
into the cow lot, on the side of the hill, where they drove four stakes
in the ground, and, laying him flat on his face, tied his hands and feet
to these stakes. After whipping him, in this position, all they wanted
to, a pail of strong salt and water was brought, and the poor fellow was
"washed down." This washing was customary, after whippings, as the
planters claimed it drew out all the soreness, and healed the lacerated
flesh.

Upon one occasion, the family being away, I was left extra work to do,
being set to help three fellow slaves lay off the rows for planting
corn. We did not get them quite straight. The deviation we made from the
line was very little, and could scarcely be seen, even by an expert; but
the least thing