Slave Interview	Page 5
	Viola B. Muee	FEC
Jacksonville., Florida .	.


	Charles *ae still a carriage driver when freedom came. He had. opportunity to aee and hear many thinge aböut the ‘ s private life . When the news o~ the advance o±~ the Union Army came, Mr.~ Hall carried his money to a. secluded spot and buried it in an Iron pot so that the soldiers who were con— fiscating a].]. the property and money they could, would not get his money. The slave owners were required to notify the slaves that they were free so Mr. Hall sent hie eon Sherard to the cabins to notify all the slaves to come Into ~ his presence and there he had his eon to tell them that they were fr~JThe Union soldiers took much of the slave owners‘ property and gave to the slaves telling them that if the owners‘ took the property back to write and tell them about it; the owners only laughed because they knew the slaves could not read nor write. After the soldiers had gone ~ the timid and scared slaves gave up moat of the land; some few however, fenced in a bit of land. while the soldiers remained in the vicinity and they managed to keep a little of the land.

	Many of the slaves renamed with the owners. There they worked for small monthly wages and took whatever was left of ca8t off clothing and food and whatever the sold miesue“ gave them. A pair of old pants of the maete~ was highly prized by them.

	Charles Coates was glad to be free. He had been well taken oare of and looked younger than 37 years of age at. the close of slavery. He had not been married; had been put upon the block twice to be sold after belonging to Mr. Hall. Each time he was