The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-07

| 101Xa WHxko lGXQ6EkGHC6 g00t&kEcu AutN tation and the niGgers were allowed th'
 monopoly of chicken raising"
 Uncle Jack" was good Methodis and didn't believe much in water sx I cept to iengtheh the staying qualitiel of hia jug and hoasted once, in tenn peranoe meeting. that if let alone, h,
 would aoon have all the niggers and ''f
 right smarth of the white men drink
 ing pure water at 10 cents q quarti
 Ills religion. in slave days, didn't cost
 him cent. The niggers were i'm. mune from "assessment.v and. in thif
 respect. the Methodist nigger and the Baptist nigger were on a level.
 | But way back in those days the white Baptfsts were strenuously, op-
 posed to 'assessment." Of iete years
 we are being gently led up to- fl
 uon' ana "apportionment," our lead
 CTS having. at length. discovered that
 rose by any other name win smell
 While Uncle Jacks religion sdidn't cost him . cent. ft is supposed that he
 yielded up to the circuit rider quite
 . number Of 'yellow legss as 6 pen-
 ance for nodding fin n>church.
 For years and years, In that neigh-
 borhood we were all (whfte and black)
 Methodists and Baptists of one sort | and another and "baptism. was the leading subject of difference and dis- cussion and Uncle Jack used to sspute''
 with the other niggerB at Sunday gath
 erings--just like white Christian.
 Like all good Methodfsts he ''stood up" for his preacher and insisted that he
 was the smartest one of all. But . young fellow. east of 6s, began cru- sade in the school houses and taught | that 1t was easy to be born again
 --ail you had to do was to be bap- tized and Uncle Jack hearing him ale
 most Tell from grace" and wanted to
 it and the matter rested there till years afterwara.
 When the war was over fn the great upheaval of. Southern society. the nig- gers separated from the white church.
 es and "set up" for themselves. This gave. . chance for display of ecciesiastical talent ana Uncle Jack Enlarging his chicken business some, he increased In wealth and his wife and daughters became the leaders of coloFed society," As a 'freedman" he entered upon the study of politics and got to be the head of the local Union Leagues" This necessitated attending county of wonderful things coming to the poor freedmen and having faith be- yond the mustard seed proportion he looked forward with lively hope to
 the early possession of "forty acres At one of the meetings he met aman fresh from. the North whose heart was
 bleeding so for the poor Africans he had secured thousands of walking sticks of great value, inasmuch as one of them stuck into the ground would secure to the one who put it there the quarter section in which it stood. Like one of our leading nowadays Southern Senators, Jack concluded to get a quar- ter section for each one of his chill dren--thoss at hofne and gratuatously scattered in every quarter" in the vie cinity.
 Uncle Jack invested ail his money in walking sticks and placed them ad- vantageously, but the deed to the land was like the s1ettsr that was looked for. !.
 \ About this time a strange man ap- peared in the western part of the eoun- ty preaching and teaching that the nee groes who had been baRtixed in slavery must be baptized again. and that those who had been "sprinkled'' had never been baptized at all. and that all, all must come and be baptized of him in "Big Swamp''--af . dollar A head,
 Uncle Jack gathered up his home children and those in adjoining plan tations, and his dear wife. Cindy. and and were baptized in that historic stream after turning loose thirty or forty dollars to Ben, the Baptizer.
 Soon thereafter a philanthropist from the bleak and chilly North, with Q heart overfiowing with love to the wards of the nation.r came into our midst Awithl- a Magic Unguent for straightening the poor coiored mans hair, at dollar straight. and Uncle Jack was out thirty or forty dollars more to this friend of the Black man. With so many Northern friends look ing, after his material, spiritual and personal appearance interests he found it hard Go make buckle and tongue meet" but, like that good woman of the Scriptnres. of whom 1t is said. she hath done what she could" he did his best.
 He was, perhaps. three score and ten years old before he was permitted to enjoy the great right preservation or all other rights" This happened in | February, 1868. General Swayne had ordered e three days election to ratify only at county sites. Uncle Jack start ed on Sunday evening and got to the voting place before the polls were opened on Monday.
 As he had missed voting all the years of his life, he thought to make up time and voted "earIy and often" every day of the three. Big Swamp Creek was overfowing from source to mouth and the thousands of niggers on the other side could not get to the election and General SMayne, fearing the rejection of the Constitution, thoughtfully con- tinued the election for three days longer. Upon this, Uncle Jack rode to the next county site and, like a good Republican, industriously voted the balance of the week.
 Uncle Jack died in the Republican faith. but. mirabile dlctul years after he Lad gone to that country from wl' esq bourne no traveller retusnS' ne feL Ipto the habit of turning up at every election and voting the Demo- l cratic tlcket at various precincts of iLe | two counties In which, while living, ls | hal been SO industrious as a Rspab!i- can as he had ''reddished" in both, un- oil he was eliminated by the grand | father clause" and the poll tax require | ment.
 I nave been minute in the prominent l details of Jacks life, anl tho salient | features of-his character that even he | who reads without interest, may see | and know that this good man was en- titled to the unusually extravagant | tribute of respect that was paid him | in his dreamless sleep.
 He went away on Monday rscrning. l On the evening os the Sunday before, | when the Iengthentng shadows betoK- eed the closing day, he requested to be | placed where he could sce-tae glorious | sun setting beyond tho western hills, | and see the chicNens on the ro3st once |