~xi..slave Stories	Page Three ~	73
(Texas)








~flxen we gi t s on de boat it fi ope d is way and dat scart me • I sho ‚ don ‚ t want to see no more days like dat oiie, with war and boats.

	“We fixes up a purty good bouse and quarters and gits sett3~ed up round Athens. And it ain~~ so long ‘fore a paper come make us free. Some de slaves laughi n‘ and soins cryin‘ and lt a ftmny place to be. Marse Barrow asks my stepma to stay cook and he‘d pay her same money for it. ~e stayed four ~r five years. Marse Barrow cive each he slaves somethin‘ when &ey‘s freed. Lôts of master put dem out without a thing. But de trouble with most niggers, dey hever done no managin‘ ~tnd didn‘t know how. De niggera suffered from de war, iffen dey did git freedom from it.

	“I‘s already married de 2lave way in Mobile and had three chilien. My kuisband died ‘fore war am over and I marries Las Gilmore and never has no more chIlien. I has no livin‘ kinfolics I knows of. When we come here Las done any work he could git and. bought this li‘ I house ‚ but I can‘ t pay taxes on it, but, 5h0‘ ‚ de white folks won‘ t put me out. I done git my leg cut off in a train wreck, so I can‘ t work, and I‘ e too old, noways. I don‘ t has no idea how old I is.
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