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Archie Hoa~itz, Field Vlorker
Federal ‘lriters‘ Project
Lake County .. District #1
Gary, Indian~i


I weah tbout siX yeahs old, Mahstah Everett give me to Tony ~b~nks as a weddin‘ present when he married mahstah‘s daughtah Becky. Becky would‘n let Tony rrhip her slaves who came from her f~thah‘s plantation. ‘They ah my prophty,‘ ~he say, ‘ant you caint whip dem.‘ Tony whipt his othah slaves but not Becky‘s.“

	“I remeinbah“ he continued, “how they tied de slave ‘rour~d a post, wit hands tied togedder ‘round the post, then a hixaky lash his back wid a snakeskir~ lash ‘tu hizn back were cut c~nd bloodened,

the blood spattered“ gesticulating with his unusually large hands, l‘an‘ hisn back all cut up. Den they‘d pouh salt watah on hem. Dat

dry and hahden and stick to hem. He nevah toke it off ‘till it heal. Sometimes I see marhstah Everett hang a slave tip—toe. He tie him up so he stan‘ tip-toe ant leave him thataway4

	“I be twenty.-one wehn wah broke out. Mahstah Eubanks say to me, tYohall done need to run ‘way ifn yohall want to jine up wi~ de ah~ny.‘ He say, tDeh would be a fine effin slaves run off. Yohall don‘ haf to run off, go right on and I do not pay dat fine.‘ He say, ‘‘nlist in de ab.tny but don1 run off.‘ Now I walk thirty-.five mile from Glasgow to Bowling Green to dis place - to de ‘niistin‘ place — from home fouh mile .. to Glasgow ~ to Bowling green, thirty~ five mile, On de road I meet up with two boys, so we go on. Dey run ‘way from ~entucky, and we go together. Then saine Bushwackers come down de road. We‘s scared and run to the woods and hid. As we run tru de woods, pretty soon we heerd chickens crowing. V~e fill ouah pockets wit stones. We goin‘to kill chickens to eat. Pretty soon we heerd a man holler, ~You come tround outta der‘~ and I see a white man and come out • Ee say, ~ Wha t yoh a Il d o in ~ t I turn ‚ round
and say, tWell boys, come Ofl boys.‘ ant the boys co~ out. The man