nds, which helped him to go on de boat
without bein' question'. When he got here he gone on de water-front an'
ax for a job on a ship so he could git to de North. He got de job an'
sail' wood de ship. Dey search de island up an' down for him wood
houndogs en w'en it wus t'ought he wus drowned, 'cause dey track him to
de river, did dey give up. One of his master' friend gone to New York en
went in a store w'ere Pas wus employed as a clerk. He reconize' pa is
easy is pa reconize' him. He gone back home an' tell pa master who know
den dat pa wusn't comin' back an' before he died he sign' papers dat pa
wus free. Pa ma wus dead an' he come down to bury her by de permission
of his master' son who had promised no ha'm would come to him, but dey
wus fixin' plans to keep him, so he went to the Work House an' ax to be
sold 'cause any slave could sell e self if e could git to de Work House.
But it wus on record down dere so dey couldn't sell 'im an' told him his
master' people couldn't hold him a slave.

People den use to do da same t'ings dey do now. Some marry an' some live
together jus' like now. One t'ing, no minister nebber say in readin' de
matrimony "let no man put asounder" 'cause a couple would be married
tonight an' tomorrow one would be taken away en be sold. All slaves wus
married in dere master house, in de livin' room where slaves an' dere
missus an' massa wus to witness de ceremony. Brides use to wear some of
de finest dress an' if dey could afford it, have de best kind of
furniture. Your master nor your missus objected to good t'ings.

I'll always 'member Clory, de washer. She wus very high-tempered. She
wus a mulatta with beautiful hair she could sit on; Clory didn't take
foolishness frum anybody. One day our missus gone in de laundry an' find
fault with de clothes. Clory didn't do a t'ing but pick her up bodily
an' throw 'er out de door. Dey had to sen' fur a doctor 'cause she
pregnant an' less than two hours de baby wus bo'n. Afta dat she begged
to be sold fur she didn't want to kill missus, but our master ain't
nebber want to sell his slaves. But dat didn't keep Clory frum gittin' a
brutal whippin'. Dey whip' 'er until dere wasn't a white spot on her
body. Dat wus de worst I ebber see a human bein' got such a beatin'. I
t'ought she wus goin' to die, but she got well an' didn't get any better
but meaner until our master decide it wus bes' to rent her out. She
willingly agree' since she wusn't 'round missus. She