The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1891-06-30
A TALE OF SLAVERY.

FAh SAN AN06AO Ah hAu ASOSN 4SAAo W. AAAu
Capture in Darkest Africa.
Memphis APreal.ArdldHehe.
NEhat is your name?" asked Station
keeper Buntick OF the negro prisoner
who was landed up against the ruling
at the police station shortly after mid
night this morning.
"My name is Will Brown"
The station-keeper entered that on
the register and proceeded:
married or single?"
married"
GLOW old are your"
"Nirety-seven, sab"
81 say, how old are your
AN ] say, ninety-seven years old.
sah."
"Why, that fellow must be crazy"
said the stRtionkeeper. "He don't look
to be more than thirty.
"Well, sab, l don't 'zactly know how
old l am, but l have been told by my old
masters that l must be about ninety
seven. Liss'n hcah: De dark day was
on Sunday at 10 o'clock in the day. De
stars fell on Thursday morning. My
oldest son was 'zactly twelve years old
on that day."
"The dark day was in '3S il 1 amt
mistaken" Mr.. Burdick figured, land if
what the negro says is true he must be
pretty nearly one hundred years Of
age"
The prisoner, VIII Brown, did not
look old. His skin, dark as coal, is not
wfnkled, and lie steps as lively rs a
young man, but he told such story as
convinced those who heard him that he
had not overstated his age. He talked
with peculiar pronunciation and said
in substance:
~ was brought to this country from
Africa when was not more than so
high" measuring about two feet from
the floor. chad been out in the woods
eating berries with my mother and
about forty other blacks, and all went
ourselves surrounded by lot OF white
men and blacks who had guns. We
had never seen guns before in our lives.
We we're put aboard sailing vessel
with hundreds of others, and it took us
little over twelve months to make the
trip to New Orleans, where we landed.
We were all taken to Richmond, Va,
and was sold to Mr.. Barclay, who
left me in the slave-yarls there for over
two years go that l would get more CIV
ilized. My mother was sold to man
who took her to the country. She was
SO ferocious and savage that he could
do nothing with her, and lie had to
shoot her. 1t required more than two
years to civiliZe me. rememberit was
two years staid in the slaye-yard,
because on each Christmas they gave
me red liquor. They said that
was what they caught us
with. But about two weeks after the
second red liquor day they put me in
wagon with Others to take me ont to
sell. | was bought by John MCGEE,
who lived in South Alabama, between
Selma and Camden. don't know how
much he paid for me, but l was consid-
cred cheap because | was not well civil
lized. Mr.. MCGEE kept me off and on
for twenty years working in the fields.
/ ran away and hid, once for eleven
years, and again for seven years. Then
/ was sold to a New Orleans man named
Burnside, WHO put me to work on his
cane farm near Baton Rouge. lie did
not give much for ME because was
considered bad, and could not speak
good English. They used to pull out
my tongue with their fingers to make
me speak. 1t was only within the last
six or seven years that have been able
to speak well. got n wife who took
some interest in me and taught me to
speak pretty well. can't remember
the language spoke in Africa.
II worked for Burnside for about
twelve years, and was bought by Gen
pral Bedford Forrest, of Memphis.
When he was building the railroad
near here 1.-THE Birmingham roadD he
brought inc to work on it. l have been
his slave ever since"
"But the Birmingham road was built
in the seventies. and YOU were set free
long before that. "You can't be his
slave now. Don't you know the war is
over?"
~ don't know nothing about no war
nor no getting free, l know Bedford
Forrest was the last man that bought
me"
lie continued: az was a fag.bearer
at New Orleans in the time OF Andrew
JackSon's war. Us niggers all fought
then. Here was New Orleans" indi-
eating with his finger, "and here was
breastworks Of cotton, and here was us
niggers in front, We were in the front
OF the fight. l was flNg-bearer OH
Washington street when Mars Jackson
marched past"
THow many times have you been
OOrrin1 ~ VINE ngknl
"TwicC."
"lSw many children have your"
"Well, my wife is in poor health now,
and l wish you would let me of so
could go and attend to her, cause there
is no ono in the house with her. But,
not counting that, / have seventeen
and most OF them are alive"
The ancient African is under arrest
for assault to kill, charged in the war
rant to have been committed upon