e gentlemen, one must admit, but the regular run of them were
trash--commoner than the 'poor white trash'--and, if possible, their
children were worse than their daddies. The name, 'overseer', was a
synonym for 'slave driver', 'cruelty', 'brutishness'. No, sir, a Nigger
may be humble and refuse to talk outside of his race--because he's
afraid to, but you can't fool him about a white man!

And you couldn't fool him when he was a slave! He knows a white man for
what he is, and he knew him the same way in slavery times."

Concerning the punishment of slaves, the Reverend said:

"I never heard or knew of a slave being tried in court for any thing. I
never knew of a slave being guilty of any crime more serious than taking
something or violating plantation rules. And the only punishment that I
ever heard or knew of being administered slaves was whipping.

I have personally known a few slaves that were beaten to death for one
or more of the following offenses:

Leaving home without a pass,

Talking back to--'sassing'--a white person,

Hitting another Negro,

Fussing, fighting, and rukkussing in the quarters,

Lying,

Loitering on their work,

Taking things--the Whites called it stealing.

Plantation rules forbade a slave to:

Own a firearm,

Leave home without a pass,

Sell or buy anything without his master's consent,

Marry without his owner's consent,

Have a light in his cabin after a certain hour at night,

Attend any secret meeting,

Harbor or [HW: in] any manner assist a runaway slave,

Abuse a farm animal,

Mistreat a member of his family, and do

A great many other things."

When asked if he had ever heard slaves plot an insurrection, the Parson
answered in the negative.

When asked if he had personal knowledge of an instance of a slave
offering resistance to corporal punishment, the Reverend shook his head,
but said:

"Sometimes a stripped Nigger would say some hard things to the white man
with the strap in his hand, though he knew that he (the Negro) would pay
for it dearly, for when a slave showed spirit that way the master or
overseer laid the lash on all the harder."

When asked how the women took their whippings, he said:

"They usually screamed and prayed, though a few never made a sound."

The Parson has had two wives and five children. Both wives and three of
his children are dead. He is also now superannuated, but occasionally
does a "l