chapter from the Bible. Old Aaron and George
prayed, Doll's Will told off a hymn from memory, and George repeated
one, as I think, from his own brain, putting in all the couplets he
could remember, and hunting over his brain for each one while they
were singing the last. My visitors were very much interested, and were
chiefly pleased with the earnestness and simplicity of their worship,
remarking that they were fortunate in not being bothered with
doctrine. I am afraid they didn't get much of an idea of our schools,
for the only girl they asked to spell happened to be Caroline, whom
they met in the street. She is only half-witted, you know, and didn't
do her teachers much credit. I should like to see what Mr. Paige has
to say about our doings in the _Tribune_. I asked him not to mention
the name of this plantation, for I didn't want to call the attention
of the Coffin family upon us any more than I could help. He asked me
for the names of any superintendents and teachers here, but I told him
they didn't care to be brought before the public.

I was curious to know how much cotton could be got from a certain
amount of seed. I ginned just five pounds of cotton and had thirteen
pounds of seed left, being over a peck, for it weighs forty-four
pounds to the bushel. The people were very much amused to see me gin
so long, and wondered that I had the strength for it. You know they
consider us rather effeminate in regard to strength, but I did not
find it nearly so hard work as I supposed. It is not half as hard as
mowing.

_Dec. 13._ Mr. Wells had his cotton about half ginned when there came
a posse of men from the First South Carolina Regiment, without a white
officer, to hunt after deserters on his plantation. They met the men
they wanted and shot them all three in broad daylight; one is badly
wounded and may not recover, but the others probably will. After
shooting one man they were going away to leave him, and Mr. Wells went
and took care of him and sent him to the hospital.

_Dec. 17._ The people were all at work ginning cotton, and the new
mechanic Nero, whom we found at the White place, was putting the
engine in order. This engine serves as a moral stimulus to keep the
people at work at their hand-gins, for they want to gin all the
cotton by hand, and I tell them if they don't get it done by the
middle of January I shall gin it by steam. The result will probably be
that there will be little left for the steam-engine to