een
18 and 30 always bring the most money. The auctioneer he stand off at a
distance and cry 'em off as they stand on the block. I can hear his
voice as long as I live.

If the one they going to sell was a young Negro man this is what he say:
"Now gentlemen and fellow-citizens here is a big black buck Negro. He's
stout as a mule. Good for any kin' o' work an' he never gives any
trouble. How much am I offered for him?" And then the sale would
commence, and the nigger would be sold to the highest bidder.

If they put up a young nigger woman the auctioneer cry out: "Here's a
young nigger wench, how much am I offered for her?" The pore thing
stand on the block a shiverin' an' a shakin' nearly froze to death. When
they sold many of the pore mothers beg the speculators to sell 'em with
their husbands, but the speculator only take what he want. So meybe the
pore thing never see her husban' agin.

Ole' Massa always see that we get plenty to eat. O' course it was no
fancy rashions. Jes corn bread, milk, fat meat, and 'lasses but the Lord
knows that was lots more than other pore niggers got. Some of them had
such bad masters.

Us pore niggers never 'lowed to learn anything. All the readin' they
ever hear was when they was carried through the big Bible. The Massa say
that keep the slaves in they places. They was one nigger boy in Newton
who was terrible smart. He learn to read an' write. He take other
colored children out in the fields and teach 'em about the Bible, but
they forgit it 'fore the nex' Sunday.

Then the paddyrollers they keep close watch on the pore niggers so they
have no chance to do anything or go anywhere. They jes' like policemen,
only worser. 'Cause they never let the niggers go anywhere without a
pass from his master. If you wasn't in your proper place when the
paddyrollers come they lash you til' you was black and blue. The women
got 15 lashes and the men 30. That is for jes bein' out without a pass.
If the nigger done anything worse he was taken to the jail and put in
the whippin' post. They was two holes cut for the arms stretch up in
the air and a block to put your feet in, then they whip you with cowhide
whip. An' the clothes shore never get any of them licks.

I remember how they kill one nigger whippin' him with the bull whip.
Many the pore nigger nearly killed with the bull whip. But this one die.
He was a stubborn Negro and didn't do as much work as his Massa thought
he ought to. He been lashed