434

whip a slave at will. 4e had so many slaves he dId not know ail their names. His fortune was his slaves. He did not sell slaves and he did not buy many, the last ten years pre.ceeding the war. He resorted to raising his own slaves.

	“When a girl became a woman she was required to go to a man and become a mother. There was generally a form of marriage. The master read a paper to them telling them they were man and wife. Some were married by the master laying down a bro om and the two slav e ~ man and woman wou id jump over it. The master would then tell them th~y were man and wife and they could go to bed together. Master would some— times go and gèt a large hale hearty Negro man from some. other plantation to go to his i~egro woman. He would ask the other master to let this man come over to his place to go to his slave girls. A slave girl was expected to have children as soon as she became a woman. Some of them had children at the age of twelve and thirteen years old. Negro men six feet tall went to some of these children.

	“Mother ~ said there were cases where these young girls loved someone else and would have to receive the attentions of men of the master‘s choice. This was a general custon~. This state of affairs tended to‘ loosen the morals of the Negro race and they have never fully recovered from its e.~fTect. Some slave women would have dozens of men. during their life. Negro women. who had had a half dozen mock husbands in