The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1885-08-07
First Glimpse Of Freedom.

1861 says Joseph +. Perry Of In
dianapolis, 'that the twenty-first Ohio
regiment was down in West Virginia,
in the Kanawhar river region. The regi-
ment was composed of men gathered
up promiscuously in the Black Swamp
region of Ohio. There were n ortwc
companies of gray-haired men, toe
old to bear arms, who had gone into
the service TO fight for principle-not
merely to put down the rebellion, but
to emancipate the slaves. They were
very religious, and they would hold
prayer meetings at night. They would
pray for the freedoms of the slaves,
and that the negroes insight ~havecqual
rights with the white people. Their
prayers were very interesting to us
young fellows, who'd go thereabout to
listen to them, because they were asking
orsomething morethan theissue ofthe
war promised at that time; but every
thing that those oldfellows asked came
about afterward, and it is out ofthose
results that this incident that Pmteil-
ing you about came to a conclusion
We camped one day near a little'town
called Red Bank, on the KanawhR,and
after our coffee had been prepared we
found that we hadn't a spoonful OF
sugar I'm camp. There were a loB ct
negro Cabins over on a hillside OPP
posite our camp, and / agreed to go
over and try to get some sugar from
the negroes. There was but thirteen
cents in money in the whole camp, but
I took that and started over with 81
tin can to get the sugar. / entered
one of the cabins and found buxomA
..earo Woman with two little pick
aninnies hanging to her linsey dress.
They drew off into a corner OF thecab-
in, half frightened, when / went in, but
told them that they needn't be afraid,
that | only wanted. to get some sugar,
and that / had the money to pay for
it.
"'I'se kindly feared % you 'uns, said
the negro woman; 'mastah told me
not to have anything to do with you
Yankees, cause you'se gwine to take
us off to Cuby and sell MS toget money
to carry on the wah
"tMy good woman, | said to her,
giving her a little blarney, because |
wanted the sugar, you don't under
stand what this war is about. We,
Yankees are fighting for you, and if
this war comes out the w0y we want
it to, you will be free, and you won't
have any master, and VIII have allthe
rights the white people have. Your
little boy will be sent tn school, and
he will have just as good q chance to
become governor Of Virginia as any
white boy
".Fo' de Lord, you don't say sol
she exclaimed.
Invent onto tellher then about how
the black people were just as good as
the white, and how they would be benz
Gifted il We were victorious. Before |
quit talking she brought onb an old
can ard gave me what sugar 4 waited.
She didn't want to take the money,
but | told her she's BETTER and she &C
cepted it. 1t was only an incident of
the day, and after | had told the boys
in camp how / had got the sugar, !
thought no more about the matter.
i had forgotten it entirely until about
three wears ago, when / was returning
from the city hospital onenight, whenl
the car stoppedfor an oldnegro woman
with a basket of clothes, Twas sitting
near the door and helped to lift the
basket into the car. She sat down be-
side me and remarked: Mighty cold
tonight. Don't have any such cold
weather down whar my ole home Is
Where was your old homer IN
quired.
AT the little town Of Red Bank,
down on the Kanawha river, in Yves
Virginyah.'
"fDid you live in a little cabin, with
a well beside it, and opposite q big
white house, | asked her.
" Right dar was whar Lived
"sAnd do you remember when the
Yankee soldiers camped over In the
meadow near your cabinY
{" Deed / do sir. | remember that
mighty we'll
/" DO you remember a young soldier
with a brass horn strapped to his
shoulder and a small sword at his side,
coming over to buy some sugar.
I" sIshould say lido. Remembers dat
young man mighty well. He spoke the
irstgood words lever heard about the
colored people. Hetold me that | was
to be free, and my little boy might be
president some day. Why, he gave me
thirteen cents. / kept that money
ever since for luck. and I've got it,
right herel' and the old woman drewf
from her bosom a small, dirty purse,
from which she took the coins that 4
had given her for the sugar twenty
years before.
"Do you think you would know
that young fellow il you should ever
see him AGAIN.
@sDeed / would. I'd know that
young man the minute / set eyes on
him.
"sWell, Auntie, I'mthatyoung man
"sFor the Lords sake, honey she
exclaimed, and threw her arms about
ma r. xvac q. funpv scene