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down an scattered some leaves an twi~8 ovah it. She told me nevah, nevah to tell about it and I nevah did until now. She showed me a big white card with writin‘ on it an‘ said it say“This is a Union Plantation“ an‘ put it on a tree so the Yankies wouldn‘t try to find de gold and slivers. But I never ~saw. any Yankie squads own around • ‚‘ Ihen de wah wuz ovah, de mis sie nevah tell me dat I wuz free an‘ I kep‘ on workint same as befoh• I oouldfr~t read or write an‘ to me all money coins ~niz a cent, big copper cents, dey ‘wuz all alike to me. De slaves wuz not allowed any learnin an‘ if any books, papers or pictures .wuz foun‘ among us we wuz whippe4 if we couldn‘t explain where dey cuni from. Mah sistah an‘ brother own foh nie an tell me I am free and take me with them to Mastah T~xies‘ place where dey workin. Dey had a big dirmah ready foh me, but I wuz too excited to eat. I worked foh Mastah Maxie too, helpin‘ with de horses an‘ dom‘ chores. Mammy cum‘ an wuz de cook. I got some clothes and a few cents an‘ travelers give me small coins foh tending dore horses an‘ I done done odd jobs here an dere.

	I wanted some learnin but dore ~uz no way to git it until a white man cleared a pÏa~e in de woods an‘ put up branches to make shade. He read books to us foh a while an‘ den gave it up. A Uvly white woman, Missy Hoistottle, her an‘ s name wuz Dave ‚ read a book to me an ‚ I remember do s tor le s to dis day. It v~uz called “White an‘ Black.“ Some of de stories made me cry.

	After wanderin about dom work where I could git it I got a job on de C an O Railroad workin‘ on de tracks. In lvIidd].eport, dat‘s near Pomeroy, Ohio I v~z married to Gertie Nutter, a widow with two ohillun, an clore wuz no moah chilluns. After nah wife died I wandered about workin‘ on railroads an‘ in coal mines an‘ I wuz hurt in a mine near Zanesville. Felt like mah spine wuz pulle d out an I cou].dn ‚ t work any moah ‘ I cum to nah neice ‚ s home here in Zaneeville. I got some compensation at first, but not now. I get some old