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~-sLÄ:vE STORIES
	!ItjL~ BI4~Ç	Page 1.	~	32






	Wi11iau~ Black of 919 south Arch Street, Hannibal, MISSOUri, is one of the few ex~.slaves living in Marion County. ~e is now about eighty-4»ive years old, and has lived his entire life in Marion, Monroe, and Rails Counties. In ~aatting about his life and ecperiences he says:

“My mother and. father come from Virginia. I dontt know how old I is, but I have had one birthday and the rest is aniversities. I think I is about eighty-~five. I was born in slavery and when I was eight years old was bonded out to Sain Briggs of N~w London. Mr. 1~riggs was a good. master and I didn‘t have a whole lot to do. ~1y job was to take his children to school and go after dem of an evening. In the mean time I just piddled around in de fields.

	“In de evening when de work was done we would sit ‘round and play marbles and sing songs. We made our songs up as we went along. Sometimes dere would be a corn 8hUckiflt and dat is when we had a good time, but we always shucked a lot of dat corn.

	“I did not go to school any and today I do not even have de

sense ~ writing at all. Unless some one guides my hand I cannot	P
~	. !




make a mark. I wish I wasn‘t so old.now so I could go to school
	and learn how to read. and write .	.	~