Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1876-01-21

4 lady writer from Washington to the
Cleveland Leader says No feature Of " ash
ington affairs has interested me more than
the experiment Of ex-slaves trying the life
Of freedmen. Nearly nine-tenths OF the
colored population here have once been
slaves, and among them are. ah such bat
tered relics Of humanity. | know one poor
old woman who has not a fingeri0int or
toe-joInt that was not dislocated or broken
in her childhood by the heavy blows of a
stick or other weapon in the hands Of most
lnhuman mistres =, a mistress who was the
sister Of a murderer, and who, upon her
death-bed, away from her home, writhed in
agony Of mind because she could not gather
her old slaves about her to receive their for
giyeneSs for her brutal treatment during a
long life
Her attendant, TO sooth her feelings, wrote
to a daughter still living on the plantation a
letter that should be read TO the slaves
The daughter took the letter to the negroes
quarters and read it with fearful eyes Sobs
and groans arose all around her, and pro-
testatlons of forgiveness from all lips but
this old womans who told me the story.
She said, Indeed, Miss, looked at my poor
hands and feet and thought on my face all
jjammed out Of shape by being Hit and knock
ed against the wall, and left senseless on the
floor many's the time and thought it was
Just as well to leave the forgiylng to the
Lord, leastwise till comes TO myself, then
l suppose likely III forgive her, but
couldn't then and | can't now This was
an extreme case, no doubt but the streets
are full Of manned and stunted growths {;
of the lame, the halt, and the withered,
whose early lack OF proper food and shelter
and of suitable hours Of rest have blghted
their lives forever.
There are many stolid and uninteresting
faces among them but here and there | see
a couDtenance that thrills me, perhaps Of
some old crone, looking out upon the street
from basement stairway with snowy wool
and Scared, scanned visage, and Wake
Nicodemus' look in her wonderful, sibylline
eyes. Ny old washwoman of last year used
to sit in the glow Of my comfortable CRATE
fire, rubbing her poor rheumatic limbs, and
say, Yes, Miss, pears like dis great blessin'
of bein' free came 10 our folks little too
late in my day. Desc poor ole arms and
legs was nose wcrn out on de plantation
fore de good Lord sent massa Linkum to
make um let US 90 Don't you think,
Minnie, that it would have really better for
you, 50 old and so ignorant of earning your
own living, never to have been set free p
asked this as test question, not from any
such belief in my own mind. No. Miss,
nebber links such ting, not when Use de
bungriest and de coolest and de tiredest.
Why, don't you see, dey can't whip me no
mo- . Poor old Minnie to whom the crown
ing Joy of freedom was comprised in this one
iact-'dey can't whip me no mo-
As a laundress, truth compels me to say
that my venerable friend and retainer was
not a success. Her exhausted muscles and
half blinded eyes made it a more and more
critical problem each week in what state
my clothing would return to me, or whether,
in fact, it would return at all (; for her
clothes lines were at the mercy of her more
enterprising and alert competitors; and to
make good the Deficiencies, | being her only
lady customer, she had the knack Of bring
ing instead highly unfeminine lot of ap-
parel, with an air of pious fidelity that quite
disarmed me.