The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1899-06-23

| young lnafStef. Jim ASkcw, an is siStah
had or 'visiorper tic prop'ty. Young Jim,
he tuck dc home place an dc niggahs, an
he gin his sistah notes TO- what he couldn' t
LAY in cash, IN dc OIL place run long jcs'
es it allus had, 'crpt'n dat young Jim, he
loved fas' bosses mighty well.
Il got ter be CT fino blacksmith by dat
time, an dc plantahs f'om miles roun'
come ter dc Askcw plantation ter git dey
shopwo'k done So one day went to my
young narster an made er 'posal to i'm.
Hit was shotly il ter he was ma ed ter Miss
Baker, what come f'om down in Greene.
posed ter wo'k out my freedom, an as he
was fccln mighty good long dem times
he greed dat if I'd do dc plantation wok
he'd gimme all dc wo'k outside an lemme
pay him tic money, an alter I'd paid i'm
cr t'Ollsan' dollahS, den l mought have my
freedom.
Well sab, | sot out to wo kin, an I
VOL cd night an day. Bout dc same time
l tuck ter 1lyin roun' Ailsic, dats de ole
'omrrn dar, hut she WIS es likely err gal
es evah you seed in dem days, an she wus
er house gal an didn't hat ter wo'k in do
ficls, an dc yuddcr gals Gey wus kim er
| jealous an fling up dey noses at my gal
Ca Sc dey say she t'ink she bettah dan dey
wus.
TO bout five ycihs, up I'd paid young
marster nigh on ter scbcn hund' ed dollahs
ON my freedom. axcd him time an ergin
ter gimme er shown TO wat I'd paid, but
| he latf an say dat don't need no showin
TO dc wo'd NV an Askew wus es good Is
his bon. But l WIS kim or Uneasy Ca 80
young marstcr love bosses SO well, but I
KEEP on at w0'k.
Las dcy got up or race at Monroe an
not'n mus do young marster but no mus
enter dc races wild Black Mabel, his fine
t'rcc-ycah- wat he'd trained on dc
| plantation. He come ter me, an he say dat
ef I'd put up $500 or dc money at I'd
| paid him on dc race I'd be sho' ter win,
an den he'd gimme my free papahs. 1 tole
| Ailsie bout it, an she shuck her head an
| beg me not ter resk it,
| But young marster, he KEEP dingdongin
at me twcl greed ter put up de money
Hit looked so sho' dat l WIS jes' carried
erway wild dc notion cr savin all dat time
ut hard wok, an, sides, he promus ne
dat could wo'k out Ailsic's freedom an
dat we coulu have er little cabin an er
| patch, an l could do dc blacksmith wO'k
right ON, an we'd have good time longs
| W" lived, an he free ter do es we please
| well, sab, de day er de races come on,
an l knocked off IN went ter see Black
Mabel win. / ncvah shall 70 git dat day.
| Young marster wouldn't trus' no one ter
| ride de mare, but rid her himself. didn't
see none er de res or dc bosses. My eyes
| Tus fixed on Black Mabel es sne oarted
| off ahead err dc yuddcrs an way she went
like tic win, an my heart wus in my
mout' cs she tu' ned de las quahtah pos
on dc home stretch, sailin long lax er
| blackbird
Den sump'n happened. She shied-
| reared straight up an run jam inter dc
| fencc-young marster shot ovah her head,
| an tlar WIS or smash NV rails, an den
| didn't see no mo- Wen l come ter my
| senses. | WIS er kneclin down side or
| young marStcr an holm his head on my
| knee. but he nevah spoke ergin. Black
| Mabel had ter be shot. Young marstcr
VII; tuck home, but he died dat night, an
| den rickcrlcctcd dat all my money WIS
| gone an dc plantation wus broke up.
| You sec, young marster had got inter
| debt, an dc prop'ty had ter be sol. Well.
| W en- dc sale day come, l didn't have no
| shown fo' my money, an l WIS bid OIL by
| one CT dem gol' mine men f'om Dahlonegy,
| He had hcerd bout my bein or good blaek-
| sniff. an he wanted me ter keep de ner-
| chincry in repair
'.Ailsic WIS bid off by er cotton plantah
| f'om sou'wcs' Gcorgy, an we parted dat
| night ter meet no mo- TO- or long, long
time. Iwo'kc fo' de gol mine man bout
| or yeah, wen tuck co'ago, ono day, an
toll him bout w at 'greemcnt I'd had wild
my young marster. He WIS er Boston
man, IN dough he liked money mighty
well, he wasn't es hard h rated cs some CT
| dem men in dc mines His name wus Mr.
mn hn ityrpnl tor Gimme all dat
could make outside an ter low me ter
pay fo' my freedom in de same way, only
wus ter pay twelve hund'c dollahs dat
| time.
"Well, sab, l started out ergin. /
wo'kcd night an day an Sundays didn't
know hit wus er sin den, yo' sec-but hit
tuck me bout nine ycahs tcrwo'k ont my
freedom. Dat WIS i'll 1857, an wen Mr..
Dempsey made out my papahs, he gimme
er good suit cr clo'es an two five dollah
gol'pieces, alter toll him dat 1 wus gwine-
ter s'arch TO my los gal Ailsie an Sot
out ter fin her
Dem WIS troublesome times, an hatf
ter have or pass ter git f'om place ter
place, ca SC de patrollcrs had been put out
on count or dc upStjr, an dcy'd take up
any niggah W at didn't have er shown an
SCH him ter Jail. But at las got down
ter Baker county, an l foun, after long
s'archin, dat Ailsie WIS on dc Walker
plantation, on Flint rivah, in dc sickly
country, an | Sot out TO dat place,
den l 'quircd roun an foun dat Mr..
Walker lived mt Arlington, M 1 went dar
an foun dat he'd gone off ter bo gone some
time. l sut down side er de road an
fought an fought wat ter do. Las I
tuck hat an went up ter tic house an aycd
ter sec dc missiS- She WIS or good womaR>
an she come out inter dc back yahd wey
WIS, an toll her all bout me an Ailsic,
an ! showed her my papahs, an she knowcts
sump'n 'hout Mr.. Dempsey, an she tnf
me ter go ter de Kitchen an git Sump'n ter
eat TN ter come ter see her In de mawnin.
"Dcn, sab, my HAT gun ter git light.
l didn't sleep or wink dat night, t'inkin
an t'inkin bout wat rs gwine ter tell dc
missis in do mawnin. Well, wen she See
me mex mawnin, she ak me eff l wus
willin ter wo'k out Ailsic's freedom, an
say WIS. She say dat Ailsie wus sickly
an dat wo'kin in de flels didn't gree wild
de gal an dat she'd take her in de house
an dat / could see Mr.. Walker W 'en he
come back an dat she'd use her 'fluence
wild him ter mex do 'rangements.
II can't tell you how felt wen f,is'
seed Ailsie, all boiler eyed an fever broke.
alter hein so long in de cotton flels an she
fotch up in de house f'om or chile. Binneby
Mr.. Walker come home, an he greed ter
let mo have Ailsie fo' five hund ed dollahs,
sccin, NV co'sc, dat she wa MT fit TO- much
an WIS cs good as dead anyhow, an he
gimme leave ter set up my blacksmith shop
on lot wat no had on do big road, jes'
outside or town.
"Dar, in dat shop. lived an wo'ked 70,
six ycahs. Dc wife folks didn't gimme
much wo'k TO- de fus' yeah or two case
dey wus ergin free niggers, hut bimeby
made 'em see dat I was in yearnes', an
Miss Walker, she tuck or int'res' in me,
an finally, jes es dc Yankees com t'roo
Georgy, paid Mr.. Walker dc las or de
money, an me n Ailsie started back ter
Walton county.
1--WE got cs fur es Albany wen we seed
do niggers all takin on, an wen We axcd
EN- what dcy mean, dey say dat all de
slaves wus freed an dat Mr. Linkum done
made er Proclamation, an dat dey didn't
hat ter wo'k TO- de vito folks no mo-
less III dey wanter Den hit seem ter me dat
I'd ben lax OF Jacup, de man dat Miss
Walker toP us bout down in Arlington,
Id sarved my time TO my own an my
wife's freedom, an heah it had come bout
dat we wus freed anyhow.
$50 we como hcah an bought dis little
patch an built dis cabin, an l KEEP up my
shopwo'k, an Ailsio got er place es or cook,
an wwc paid TO dis ere little place, an
ives had some happy times, alter all
got too oil ter wok in dc shop now, an
Ailsie's too oil ter go out an cook, so We
jes' raise er little crap, an some shotes an
chickens, an weave baskits an foot mats
an SIGH things, an we gifts long Vesy we'll"
st Louis Globe Democrat
Csordnn,s Courora