The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-03-29

he said 10 "A Sun reporter, and II twas line
I'd be up and around. but I'm gittin' along in
years and people mustn't expect me to gtt
around like ] used to. There amt nothin'
the matter with me 'cept old age, but II the
COOL Master calls, I'm ready-ready at any
time to obey His call.
ITS some time since ] was born" he went
on with n chuckle, but about the only thing
! can't remember is the number of the house
my folks lived in. / guess it's because there
wasn't any number. Dec. 22. 1856, was the
day / was born. and my fathers house was
on Murray street. where there wasn't any
thing but woods and water and a house or
two. About the first / can remember is when
| was : years old and my father, Henry Free
man, died. ] don't recall how old he was
when lie died. but none of my folks lived To
a great age. and | nave lived to SEQ all my
brothers and sisters and my own children
pass away.
well, as l was sayin'. I was seven years old
and us boys used 10 go down to James slip.
which was then what we called out of town.
and there we fished. We caught sunfsh most
~. The best thing | remember about fishing
DAYS is that one day two OF us caught a big
turtle and sold It at the City Hotel at the Bat
terry for So. We was the richest darkies in
New York that day. and ! remember wanted
was i most motley I'd ever seen. The IS
wasn't in hard money. remember: there WASN'T
AMY gold snw and a%y, si nnS II The them ssn d @no b st ,ssst The
turtle, paid US IN old shinplasters. or CONT.
nsntal tn mop I%S va Thst Il 81 r Top Seen h @ost G"ia % Ss.
cause tho boys that worked pickin' stone
for the road in those days got six csntsa
times that followed the Revolution. After
day strippin' tobacco. and l began chewin' and
sin"kin' when | was nine years old. I've
for'n long tilnr-nOt since | was 30 wears old.
A chew nov goes very well, and ! take a drop
Of spirits when the doctor thinks ] need II.
but / remember my hrst chew and smoke;
In them days that / ever saw; CSiored folks
didn't have any any way. one day a ship
brought a lot Of knives and forks and dishes
for old Gen; Storm: wha lived down ut the
the new tangled ,hinxs the old General got.
aud people from al around went to see EN-:
airs. and git;in' to he an nri.tocrat, but guess
they was jealous. ,tolGrcd folks always eat with
W NII ni9 k nnSIic " IL k EGriF % "'G Gcrept TiT'o'IiGui hut / re-:
member about the knives and forks the Old
General GOT amd i m "i '"1 Th SI"''i ,fh m1 Won
was ''r G%IHin y 9a''H HAT. ,Nfd "t'V tv A, tihas
S %", I never syrT was va ST hi, /" n"i we Servant" va didn't WORK
in his family, and / never saw hin, but once.
i W1s , or rc : }'"Fi "E wos sh" "i,h alr' in ! aTty' Han Hail
Park or on the old parade ground NJ, at Wash
in-ton pnrk; ! don't remcnher which, Hs
could lear his voice u mile of. lie talked so
loud. I'm 10 years old, Eoin, on ~; and
my mcnI'ry for things amt rs strong as twas.
but. & od lordy, remember George. He
looked Just about IKE his picture; o.a,u
bound ont to col. Huntington, a rich man
who owned II fine plaCe here on staten Island.
liable. When / came of age | hired out as g
%ioatman At 81 a week and Loardi Af,erward
long a tine ! thought ii qd never go higher.
get muddlcl on datc- and things s3metimesi
a" "T' 81. In 'G thcm DAY. lots Of wSRsliSH,; vessels
started right out here from Snug Harbor. and
whatlcrs. and finally I shiprcd aboard the old
whnlcr ontario Capt. ,for,ihhm owned ana
learned to cook when working for Col; Hunt
iuItou and was steward Of the Ontario.
f]nct'rirs A. Constable Hook at makes such
smells drove ZEN out II business. think IN
remember them Constable Hook smells after
I'VE ell, the war oflNle cOnc on; was
big s%trnplin' younS man thrl., anu we uSea 10
came. When peace was declared there was
the gr"ate't lot Of hrrworks ana nontires l
ever saw. Every house, most ~ town was
lit up from top Ia bottom. and the Young men g
The ny. went ar%nmd L.oEin' for h@nsgs saat
sirh places there wouldn't IL a whole pane @
giars lett IN the Windows They thought mat
nrcr wcri Iirkrd Tie British oughtn't to have
ANY windows. There was moro patriotism
u rh,, rr",rds Al sailors Snug IIarbor show
that Freeman entered snug ilnrb"r in 1887,
aud was then - years OF age. Al The doctors
in the LG~uiItl say tAAt Freeman, 10 undoubt-
edly as uA ~ lac claims to he, CARPENTER Decker.
on" OF lls Lr,t lrieuus ia the institution, says
that hU himself ,ulac to SING lhrDnr thirty
three yrn"s ago, AMI tnnl trrrin4h d"es not
within a few years the cid man was able TO read.
hut Lee has LON the use ut only one eye, n GAIA
Tnct having tnIuel IN the right eye, and he
ducH not Uitrmpt 10 read. lie has a constant
friend IN the chaplain, VIA" visits MN daily;
That Freeman - Cooked ulpn as IN historical
. Character and celebrity ut lAo institution Is at
tested rs the attention lo receives. lie has q
lnr.c. well lighted room all to himself, and
Freeman lad thirteen brothers aud sisters,
and all are zone. Some .i,cd tu a great age,
freruau's vii" MAS &c ella Freeman, aud she
died over forty years ago, ~" vas 10 years
old, She hud six children, one daughter aud
nve sons, and all are dead. VI" has number
less grandchildren and graf grandchildren
Just now there are many inmates OF the in
~stitutiun who say that Froeman Will he seen
walking about the grounds when the carm
days come, lie loves 10 sit IN "a chair overlook
ing tue Kin Won KUN aud watch the yesss- pasa.