,a ,slave ,girl's ,story   ,being an    
,autobiography of       ,,kate          
,,drumgoold4       ,,brooklyn--,,new    
,,york4            #ahih     ,,chapter  
,i   ,once a slave girl1 ,i have        
endeavored to fill the pages with some  
of the most interesting thoughts that my
 mind is so full of1 and not with       
something that is dry4  ,this sketch is 
written for the good of those that have 
written and prayed that the slaves might
 be a freed people1 and have schools and
 books and learn to read and write for  
themselves2 and the ,lord1 in ,his love 
for us and to us as a race1 has ever    
found favor in ,his sight1 for when we  
were in the land of bondage ,he heard   
the prayers of the faithful ones1 and   
came to deliver them out of the ,land of
 ,egypt4  ,for ,god loves those that are
 oppressed1 and will save them when they
 cry unto him1 and when they put their  
trust in ,him4  ,some of the dear ones  
have gone to the better land1 but this  
is one of the answers to their prayers4 

,we1 as the ,negro ,race1 are a free    
people1 and ,god be praised for it4 ,we 
as the ,negro ,race1 need to feel proud 
of the race1 and ,i for one do with all 
my heart and soul and mind1 knowing as  
,i do1 for ,i have labored for the good 
of the race1 that their children might  
be the bright and shining lights4 ,and  
we can see the progress that we are     
making in an educational way in a short 
time1 and ,i think that we should feel  
very grateful to ,god and those who are 
trying to help us forward4 ,god bless   
such with their health1 and heart full  
of that same love1 that this world can  
not give nor taketh away4  ,there are   
many doors that are shut to keep us back
 as a race1 but some are opened to us1  
and ,god be praised for those that are  
opened to the race1 and ,i hope that    
they will be true to their trust and be 
of the greatest help to those that have 
given them a chance4  ,there are many   
that have lost their lives in the far   
,south in trying to get an education1   

but there are many that have done well1 
and we feel like giving ,god all the    
praise4  ,i was born in ,old ,virginia1 
in or near the ,valley1 the other side  
of ,petersburg1 of slave parents1 and ,i
 can just call to mind the time when the
 war began1 for ,i was not troubled then
 about wars1 as ,i was feeling as free  
as any one could feel1 for ,i was sought
 by all of the rich whites of the       
neighborhood1 as they all loved me1 as  
noble whites will love a child1 like ,i 
was in those days1 and they would send  
for me if ,i should be at my play and   
have me to talk for them1 and all of    
their friends learned to love me and    
send me presents1 and ,i would stand and
 talk and preach for some time for them4
  ,my dear mother was sold at the       
beginning of the war1 from all of her   
little ones1 after the death of the lady
 that she belonged to1 and who was so   
kind to my dear mother and all of the   
rest of the negroes of the place2 and   
she never liked the idea of holding us  

as slaves1 and she always said that we  
were all that she had on the earth to   
love2 and she did love me to the last4  
,the money that my mother was sold for  
was to keep the rich man from going to  
the field of battle1 as he sent a poor  
white man in his stead1 and should the  
war end in his favor1 the poor white man
 should have given to him one negro1 and
 that would fully pay for all of his    
service in the army4 ,but my ,god moves 
in a way unknown to men1 and they can   
never understand ,his ways1 for ,he can 
plant ,his footsteps on the ,north1 the 
,south1 the ,east1 the ,west1 and       
outride any man's ideas2 and how        
wonderful are all of his ways4 ,and if  
we1 as a race1 will only put our trust  
in ,him1 we shall gain the glorious     
victory1 and be a people whose ,god is  
the ,god of all this broad earth1 and   
may we humble ourselves before ,him and 
call ,him1 ,blessed4  ,i told you that  
my white mother did not like the idea of
 calling us her slaves1 and she always  

prayed ,god that ,i should never know   
what slavery was1 for she said ,i was   
never born to serve as did the slaves of
 some of the people that owned them4    
,and ,god1 in ,his love for me and to   
me1 never let me know of it1 as did some
 of my own dear sisters1 for some of    
them were hired out after the old home  
was broken up4  ,my mother was sold at  
,richmond1 ,virginia1 and a gentleman   
bought her who lived in ,georgia1 and we
 did not know that she was sold until   
she was gone2 and the saddest thought   
was to me to know which way she had     
gone1 and ,i used to go outside and look
 up to see if there was anything that   
would direct me1 and ,i saw a clear     
place in the sky1 and it seemed to me   
the way she had gone1 and ,i watched it 
three and a half years1 not knowing what
 that meant1 and it was there the whole 
time that mother was gone from her      
little ones4  ,on one bright ,sunday ,i 
asked my older sister to go with me for 
a nice walk and she did so1 for she was 

the one that was so kind to the rest of 
us--and we saw some sweet flowers on the
 wayside and we began to have delight in
 picking them1 when all at once ,i was  
led to leave her alone with the flowers 
and to go where ,i could look up at that
 nice1 clear spot1 and as ,i wanted to  
get as near to it as ,i could1 ,i got on
 the fence1 and as ,i looked that way ,i
 saw a form coming to me that looked    
like my dear mother's1 and calling to my
 sister ,frances to come at once and see
 if that did not look like my dear      
mother and she came to us1 so glad to   
see us1 and to ask after her baby that  
she was sold from that was only six     
weeks old when she was taken from it2   
and ,i would that the whole world could 
have seen the joy of a mother and her   
two girls on that heaven-made day--a    
mother returning back to her own once   
more1 a mother that we did not know that
 we should ever see her face on this    
earth more4 ,and mother1 not feeling    
good over the past events1 had made up  

her mind that she would take her        
children to a part of this land where   
she thought that they would never be in 
bondage any more on this earth4  ,so she
 sought out the head man that was placed
 there by the ,north to look after the  
welfare of lately emancipated negroes of
 the ,south1 to see that they should    
have their rights as a freed people4    
,this gentleman's name was ,major       
,bailley1 who was a gentleman of the    
highest type1 and it was this loving man
 that sent my dear mother and her ten   
little girls on to this lovely city1 and
 the same time he informed the people of
 ,brooklyn that we were on the way and  
what time we should reach there2 and it 
seemed as though the whole city were out
 to meet us4 ,and as ,god would have it1
 six of us had homes on that same day1  
and the people had their carriages there
 to take us to our new homes4  ,this    
,god-sent blessing was of a great help  
to mother1 as she could get the money to
 pay her rent1 which was ten dollars per

 month1 and ,god bless those of my      
sisters who could help mother to care   
for her little ones1 for they had not   
been called home then1 and ,god be      
praised for all that we have ever did   
for her love and comfort while she kept 
house4  ,the subject was only a few     
years old1 when she saw her heart so    
fixed that she could not leave me at my 
mother's any longer1 so she took me to  
be her own dear1 loving child1 to eat1  
drink1 sleep and to go wherever she     
went1 if it was for months1 or even     
years2 ,i had to be there as her own and
 not as a servant1 for she did not like 
that1 but ,i was there as her loving    
child for her to care for me1 and       
everything that ,i wanted ,i had2 truly 
do ,i feel grateful to my ,heavenly     
,father for all of those blessings that 
came to me in the time that ,i needed so
 much of love and care4  ,this dear     
lady1 ,mrs4 ,bettie ,house1 my white    
mother1 died at the beginning of the war
 and then the time came for poor me to  

go to my own dear mother again for      
awhile1 and soon the time came for us to
 be parted asunder1 where we did not see
 one another any more until after the   
war of #ahfe4 ,and we all thought that  
mother was dead1 for we did not hear any
 tidings of her after she had reached   
the far ,south4  ,i shall never forget  
that lovely ,sunday morning when ,i saw 
my dear mother returning again to her   
own native home and her own dear ones   
once more1 but mother would not go to   
the house with us1 as she did not want  
to take the law in her own hands4 ,so   
she told sister and ,i where she was    
stopping and told us to come to her     
after we had told the gentleman where we
 lived1 and ,i went to him and told him 
that mother had come back and wanted to 
have us to come where she was staying4  
,he1 ,mr4 ,house1 did not want us to go1
 and ,i took my oldest sister and       
marched out to go where mother was and  
he did not like that freedom1 and he    
tried to find which way that we had gone

 to the place1 but he did not find us1  
and we had been to the place where the  
people were that had homes1 and that    
they would kill us at first sight1 and  
that was all that ,i wanted to see1 and 
,i did not find one thing true of their 
sayings4  ,mother now has to tell the   
gentleman where to find all of her own  
dear ones whom ,god in ,his love for had
 kept for her1 and she should have been 
very grateful to ,him that her life had 
been prolonged and all that she had left
 alive were still alive1 awaiting for   
her to return1 and finding that her     
children were all over in different     
places1 and now she has to tell where to
 find them1 through the help of the     
,lord4 ,and when she had gone for them  
and was told that some of her own were  
dead1 she said that she would go and dig
 up their bones2 but they were not dead1
 as was said1 and she sent the soldiers 
after them and sometimes they were told 
the same as mother was1 and some of the 
little ones had to be sent for two or   

three times before they were brought4   
,my oldest sister knew where they all   
were1 so she could help to get the rest4
  ,one of my sisters who lived at the   
same place where we were living was     
detained and the soldiers had go three  
times before they could get her1 for    
they said that she had died since we had
 left1 for ,i would not stay at the     
place as he1 ,mr4 ,house1 did not want  
us to go on ,monday to see my mother1 on
 whom ,i should look to1 as she had come
 to claim her own4 ,i told my oldest    
sister that we would leave1 and my      
sister ,annie was at one of ,mr4        
,house's sons1 who found that we were   
going to see mother and she came with   
us1 so that left three there yet2 that  
was sister ,lavinia and the baby1 sister
 ,rosa1 and they let mother have the    
baby1 as it was a sickly child2 and she 
had to send there three times before she
 could get sister ,lavinia1 and the last
 time the soldiers1 with horses1 went1  
and the ,house's took off all of her    

clothing and put them into water to keep
 them from taking her1 and they had to  
take blankets and wrap her in them1 and 
bring her to mother1 and she took sick  
from that time from the long ride1 and  
getting cold she nearly died4  ,one they
 hid in the garden2 one they put in the 
cellar1 and so these were hard times for
 mother and us1 who were in the road one
 night walking to find some place to get
 out of the rain and let those wet      
garments get dried1 for it was so dark  
that we could not see a hand before us4 
,but after all the hard trials we       
reached this lovely city1 where there   
are those that love and fear ,god1 and  
who love the souls of the negro as well 
as those of the white1 the red1 the     
yellow or brown races of the earth1 for 
we have ever found some of the people   
who do not forget us day or night in    
their prayers1 that ,god will send a    
blessing to us as a race4  ,to my story 
of a life of slavery3  ,my dear mother  
had a dear husband that she was sold    

from also1 and he1 not knowing that he  
should ever see my mother any more1 as  
the times were then1 he waited for a    
while and then he found him another     
wife1 and when mother came and found    
that he was married to another she tried
 to get him1 but she could do nothing   
about it2 so having to leave him behind 
to look after the last one and her      
family1 although it seemed hard for her 
to do so4  ,my mother had a large family
 to take care of1 but the ,lord was good
 to her and helped her1 for she had laid
 some of them away1 and then there were 
ten little girls to care for4 ,my       
brother was lost to us and to mother    
also1 as he was sent to the war to do   
service for his owner1 and we did not   
know if he was alive or not1 and he was 
my mother's only boy1 as this is a girl 
family that you do not see or hear of   
every day1 for that made seventeen girls
 to have battle through life had they   
all have lived to this time4            
,,chapter ,,ii   ,my mother did not know

 where my brother was before she was    
sold1 for we heard that he had tried to 
get over to the ,northern side and had  
been taken to ,richmond1 ,va41 and put  
into ,castle ,thunder1 and that was the 
last that we heard of him during the    
war4 ,when1 to our surprise1 we were on 
our way ,north we learned that he was   
going to school2 that the ,northern     
people had teachers there in the ,south 
to teach them to read and to write2 and 
he learning that we had gone ,north made
 himself ready and came on1 but he did  
not know where to find us1 so getting a 
place to work1 and the same time telling
 those that he worked for that his      
people were here somewhere1 they found  
mother and got her to go to the place   
where he was1 and sure enough there was 
her dead and lost boy1 and the joy and  
love that came to that dear1 loving     
mother and her only son on that day will
 never be known on this side of the     
grave1 as they have both gone to the    
land of the blest1 for my brother never 

used any bad language in his life1 and  
when he took the ,lord for his own1 it  
was his meat and his drink to live for  
,him and to follow where ,he led1 and he
 died a true child of the ,king4  ,a few
 years later and mother's name was      
enrolled in the ,lambs' ,book of ,life1 
for she gladly answered to the roll call
 and fell asleep in the arms of ,jesus4 
,well1 my first place was in ,adelphi   
street1 with a family by the name of    
,hammond1 and ,i was there to help do   
the work1 and when they found that ,i   
liked to work so well they wanted me to 
do so much that ,i left that place and  
got me another1 for ,i did not get out  
to church or to ,sunday-school1 and that
 was not the way that ,i had been       
trained1 for when ,i was three years old
 my white mother had taken me to church 
with her on horseback4  ,well1 ,i said  
that ,i saw these children going to     
school on every week day but ,saturdays 
and on ,sundays to ,sunday-school1 and  
,i there at work as if it were not the  

,lord's day1 and ,i never shall like to 
work on that day as ,i was born on      
,sunday morning4  ,well1 ,i left there  
not knowing what to do1 and a white lady
 took me in and told me to stay there   
until ,i could get another place1 and ,i
 helped her girl on the next day to     
finish all of the work and ,i made ready
 to look for a place1 and ,god did help 
me to find one and ,i shall never forget
 ,him as long as ,i live1 for that was  
with a fine family and they showed me   
love at once and ,i showed them love in 
return4  ,they were members of the      
,washington ,avenue ,baptist ,church1   
and a more beloved family never lived4  
,this was the ,bailley family--,mr4 and 
,mrs4 ,bailley1 ,miss ,abbey ,bailley1  
,mr4 ,bailley's sister1 a young lady in 
her teens1 ,miss ,ella ,bailley1 and a  
nice boy by the name of ,johnny         
,bailley1 and they were a nice family   
and they took me to church on ,sunday   
morning and sent me to ,sunday-school in
 the afternoon with their children1 and 

what a heaven it seemed to me from the  
place where ,i was living at first4  ,i 
shall always remember my dear white     
mother1 of whom ,i spoke of in the first
 part1 and whom ,i shall call your      
attention to in many more pages of this 
little ,life ,book1 and shall always    
remember her with love and the kindest  
feeling4 ,she was a member of the true  
,methodist ,church and was never seen by
 her darling child from the ,house of   
,god since ,i could remember1 for ,i was
 with her at all times on the family    
horse1 ,kimble1 and when ,i got large   
enough to ride alone she bought me a    
fine black that had all the metal that a
 horse could have1 and his name was     
,charlie ,engrum1 and she paid a large  
price for him1 and he was the grandest  
horse ,i ever saw1 and it was my delight
 to be near a horse or horses when ,i   
was a child1 for ,i did not have any    
fear of any kind of horse1 and ,i would 
take a ride the first thing in the      
morning1 even before ,i would have my   

breakfast1 and my dear white mother     
would save it for me as she knew that ,i
 would have that ride first2 for it     
always made her feel proud to see how   
well ,i had learned to ride1 and she was
 the one that had taught me how to ride1
 for she had me on the horse when ,i was
 three years old and from that time     
until she went home to come out no more 
forever4  ,i was two and a half years1  
as near as ,i can remember1 when my own 
slave mother's house was burned to the  
ground1 and ,i shall never forget that  
,saturday night4 ,my mother's husband   
had gone to a dance and mother was there
 alone with her little ones1 and we all 
came near getting burned up4 ,we were   
all asleep when ,i awoke and found the  
house in a blaze4 ,i did not know enough
 or ,i was so much scared that ,i did   
not call to my mother1 but ,i think that
 she heard me when ,i rolled out of the 
bed1 and she was out of the bed quick as
 could be and getting the feather beds  
she threw them out of the door and got  

the children and threw them out1 and    
she1 finding that she did not have them 
all1 said1 ,my ,god6 ,i have not all of 
my little ones2 and she ran in the house
 to look and she found me under the bed1
 for ,i saw so much fire that ,i was    
getting out of it1 and ,god be praised  
that ,i was saved from that fire1 and ,i
 have not had the time to run after any 
fires since1 for that fire was all the  
fire ,i want4  ,i had not to stay there 
then1 for the time is near at hand when 
,i shall go to my white mother's to     
live1 for she is in ,tennessee and will 
come home soon to be with her darling   
child2 and when she shall start again ,i
 shall go1 and now the times are all    
well for me as then1 but the time has   
come that the ,lord has called her away 
from her child to be with ,him1 and how 
could ,i live without her8 ,and she was 
to leave her sick child there for her   
own mother to care for1 and ,god will   
raise up friends in this lonely world to
 look after those that cry unto heaven1 

believing that ,he is a hearer of the   
true prayer4 ,i shall always remember   
that ,saturday afternoon when ,i was    
lying so sick when my dearly beloved    
white mother took so sick1 and they had 
the doctor there for me1 and he had to  
see after her the same time1 and she was
 getting so much worse all the time and 
the doctor had not any hopes of her1 and
 they took me from the room where she   
was1 to a room upstairs and she had them
 to take me down to look at her once    
more4 ,that was on ,sunday and on       
,monday she heard the call to her to    
come up to that blessed land where she  
should be forever with the ,lord and her
 dear husband4  ,what a glory it must be
 for those that have washed their robes 
and made them white in the blood of the 
,lamb4  ,i can call to mind when she the
 blessed one1 that ,i call my white     
mother1 went to get me some shoes and a 
fine hat1 and the one that sold them    
told her1 as she looked at a hat ,i     
wanted1 that its price was twenty       

dollars1 but ,i was not thinking of the 
prices then as ,i do now1 and ,i cried  
to have that hat and did not want any of
 the others1 and he told my white mother
 that was too much for to spend on a hat
 for me1 but she told him nothing would 
cost too much for her to get for me1 and
 she got that fine hat for me and he had
 his money2 so you can see how much she 
loved me4 ,and now that dear one is gone
 from me1 and it seemed the dearest one 
on this earth1 and ,i did not think then
 that ,i could have lived without her   
whom ,god had given to me for this      
world1 but ,god1 in ,his wonderful love 
for me and to me1 raised up friends for 
me and helped me to find favor in the   
sight of all the people1 for they seemed
 to love me for her sake1 and ,i did not
 get well for a long time4  ,this       
subject came to this dear lady1 ,mrs4   
,bettie ,house1 when but three years    
old1 and from the day she came to that  
house she walked in her footsteps1 for  
she1 ,mrs4 ,house1 could not move1 but  

she was right in the way2 and when she  
used to set me down for my play at      
certain times in the day1 when she was  
going in her room for prayer1 she would 
find me near before she was through2 and
 if ever there was a loving woman she   
was one1 and ,i own my love to ,god for 
such a one as she was to care for me all
 of those nights of watching by my bed1 
while the angels watched from above to  
see that ,i should rise from that bed   
and live to be a woman that would live  
for ,god and bless ,his name in all the 
earth1 knowing that ,i am tempted and   
tried on every hand4 ,but trusting in   
,his omnipotent power ,i shall reach the
 land of the blest where that dear one  
has gone to come out no more forever4   
,well1 to my story3  ,dear public1      
hoping that this little life will be    
read with the greatest love for         
humanity1 and ,i am sure that if you    
have any love for the ,god of heaven you
 can not fail to find a love for this   
book1 and ,i hope you will find a       

fullness of joy in reading this life1   
for if your heart was like a stone you  
would like to read this little life4  ,i
 had many a hard spell of sickness since
 the death of this lady and the doctors 
said that ,i could not live beyond a    
certain time1 but every time they said  
so ,doctor ,jesus said she shall live1  
for because ,i live she shall live also2
 and ,he came to me and laid ,his strong
 arm around me and raised me up by the  
power of ,his might1 and to see the     
salvation of our ,god in the land of the
 living4 ,and to-day ,i can praise ,his 
name for ,his wonderful love to the     
children of man4  ,i told you that my   
brother was the oldest child of eighteen
 and he was in his teens when he was    
sent to the war2 and it was a great     
thing to him when he found himself in   
the hands of a people that were so kind 
and good to him and showing such love   
for him1 after being knocked around by  
those he had been staying with1 and it  
seemed like a heaven to him2 and he did 

learn fast1 and he felt so glad to learn
 to read and to write1 and he would sit 
at nights when he was through with his  
daily toil and write1 so that he could  
let some one look at it and see how well
 he was getting along1 and ,i saw how   
anxious he was to get an education4 ,i  
asked my lady to let him come there and 
wait on the table1 and have time to go  
every day to school1 and she did so1 and
 he would go to ,no4 #a ,school to ,mr4 
,c4 ,dosey1 and he did nicely in his    
studies1 and ,god be praised that he had
 that much to take home with him1 and ,i
 shall always feel glad that ,i gave him
 that much4  ,i was thinking of my dear 
brother when the news reached me that he
 was in this city1 and ,i can never tell
 any one how glad that ,i was to see the
 only boy that my mother ever had1 for  
we all loved him dearly1 as he cared for
 all the rest of the children and it was
 no more than natural that we should2   
and my mother thought so much of him    
that she often would say if we were all 

boys she would not have to worry1 for   
boys could do so much better than girls4
 ,but ,i think that she found that the  
girls were the best in her old age1 for 
if one could not be near her the other  
would1 and if there is a time in the    
life of a parent it is when they are    
helpless1 and a boy is not any good to  
care for a sick parent and they have to 
go without care4  ,but ,god be praised  
for all of the love and honor that was  
bestowed on mother before she went home1
 for ,god has told us to honor our      
fathers and our mothers that their days 
may be long upon the land which the     
,lord1 thy ,god1 giveth thee2 and we can
 not do them enough honor for the love  
and the all night watching that we have 
when we are babies1 and if we have all  
of the love and care that ,i had1 ,i am 
sure that a mother has her hands full2  
and when now ,i think of the care and   
the worry that it was to take care of my
 sick body1 ,i can not help telling some
 one of it1 that they may feel as       

grateful as ,i feel1 for ,god did give  
them love for me1 and if there is one   
that should feel grateful it is this    
feeble-bodied slave girl1 for ,i was    
such a slave to sickness1 and ,god was  
so good to raise me1 even me1 and ,i    
will say1 praise ,his name4  ,i was     
telling you of my white mother being so 
true to the attendance in the services  
of ,god1 and ,i only wish that you would
 have known her as ,i did1 for she was  
more like one of the heavenly host than 
she was like us1 who are such sinful    
creatures4 ,now1 it seems like sometimes
 that we have not much love for the ,one
 who had so much love for us that ,he   
gave all the dear ,one that ,he had to  
bring us to ,himself1 that we should    
taste of those joys which ,he has for   
those who have washed their robes and   
made them white in the ,blood of the    
,lamb4  ,the ,lord helped me to find    
love and favor with all after my white  
mother was gone from this earth1 when ,i
 felt that ,i would soon follow the     

darling one to the blessed mansion2 and 
,i would look to see her come to me1 and
 ,i went as soon as ,i was well to the  
house and lay on the steps1 and it was  
not until we had left the dear old place
 before ,i could be kept from there2 and
 ,i wish that the whole world could have
 seen how much she was like an angel1   
and ,i would to ,god she could see me   
to-day2 it would do you good4 ,lord1    
lead me on day by day1 and help my      
feeble life to be formed like her's1 for
 when ,i think how she used to watch by 
my bed at nights1 while the angels      
watched by my bed from on high to see   
that ,i should rise2 and is not ,god the
 ,one that ,i should serve8 ,and ,i love
 to serve ,him and honor ,him1 for ,he  
is my all in all2 for she has shown me  
how great her love was for me and all of
 humanity1 and ,i love to think of her  
love and to know how wonderful it would 
be to see her sweet face on this green  
earth1 and it does seem to me as if ,i  
could almost see her by thinking of her 

so much4  ,i have said that we came to  
this lovely city in the year of our     
,lord #ahfe1 and in that year ,i went to
 live with a good family that were      
members of the church1 where the ,lord  
spoke peace to my soul1 under the       
preaching of the ,rev4 ,david ,moore1   
then the beloved leader of the noblest  
band of ,god's children on this earth1  
and a more beloved people never lived4  
,they were always on the lookout for any
 strangers that might come in the       
church2 and they soon found me out as ,i
 was a stranger in the ,monday night    
meeting4 ,the dear pastor came to me the
 first one1 for he did not stop to think
 whether ,i was an ,african or what     
nation ,i had come from1 but he saw in  
me a soul1 and he wanted to find out if 
there was any room for ,jesus to live or
 what ,i should do with ,jesus1 or what 
should ,i do for ,him1 who had done so  
much for me2 and my poor heart was ready
 and waiting for some one to come to its
 rescue4 ,it was then and there that ,i 

yielded my life and my all to the one   
that can save to the uttermost all that 
come unto ,him by the ,lord ,jesus      
,christ4  ,i followed my ,lord and      
,master in the ,jordan in the year of   
our ,lord #ahff1 and those sweet moments
 have never left me once4 ,as the years 
go by they seem to be the more sweet to 
my sinful soul1 and ,i am trying to wing
 my way to these bright mansions above1 
where ,i shall meet those dear ones who 
have gone before4  ,i have had some of  
the darkest days of my life while on    
this voyage of life1 but when it is dark
 ,jesus says1 ,peace1 be still and fear 
not1 for ,i will pilot thee4  ,and then 
my heart can sing3      ,jesus1         
,saviour1 pilot me       ,over life's   
tempestuous sea1     ,unknown waves     
before me roll1       ,hiding rocks and 
treacherous shoals4     ,chart and      
compass come from ,thee1       ,jesus1  
,saviour1 pilot me4  ,i know that ,he   
has led me through paths seen and unseen
 and has been my pilot1 for we have been

 called to pass through many a dark     
trial1 but ,god has been able for it    
all4  ,my dear mother had four of her   
children called home to heaven within a 
short time4 ,some of them left her for  
the land of love in the same month1 and 
there seemed like nothing but ,god's    
displeasure on us1 but it was ,god's    
love to us1 for we know that they are   
safe from all harm and danger in this   
world of sin and distress4 ,some of them
 ,i never saw more after landing in this
 city1 but ,i shall see them and know   
them when ,i shall have fought the      
blessed battle on this side1 and the    
victory shall be on the ,lord's side4   
,then ,i can sing with the angels above3
      ,crown ,him1 ,crown ,him1 angels4 
,crown ,him1 ,crown ,him1 ,king of      
,kings4     ,crown ,him1 ,crown ,him1   
angels4     ,crown ,him1 ,crown ,him1   
,crown the ,saviour ,king of ,kings4    
,what joy there will be to crown ,him as
 our ,heavenly ,king and to know that we
 are the inhabitants of that kingdom4   

,,chapter ,,iii   ,i was baptized by the
 ,rev4 ,david ,moore1 the pastor of the 
,washington ,avenue ,church1 who is one 
of the best beloved ones on this earth1 
for he never overlooked me in the time  
that my soul needed the ,lord ,jesus    
,christ to save me from my sins and make
 me a child of the ,king1 which makes me
 what ,i am to day4 ,i bless ,god that  
he ever put it in my dear mother's mind 
to come to this place1 for she was not a
 ,christian1 and the heaviest burden    
that ,i have carried was praying for one
 that was the head of the great family  
where she should have been a leader of  
her dear ones to the ,lamb of ,god1 that
 taketh away the sins of the world4 ,but
 ,god be praised for a little one to    
lead so many1 for of all the people of  
mothers there was not one that knew of  
this love of ,god1 and how many were the
 souls given for me to work for4 ,i told
 my mother that ,i had found ,jesus and 
was going to follow ,him4 ,she said4 ,my
 child1 you are too young4 ,i am afraid 

that you will not hold out4 ,and ,i     
said1 ,mother1 if ,i should look to     
myself ,i should fail1 but ,i look to   
,jesus4 ,i have given my life and ,he   
can hold me in the power of ,his might  
and can keep me from failing2 so ,i can 
not go against your will1 but ,i must   
follow ,him1 for you know how ,he has   
saved me from sickness so many times1   
and now the time has come for me to pay 
my vows unto ,him for making me ,his    
own4 ,i went forward in the way that ,he
 marked out for me and then to pray that
 she might be saved4  ,my grandma was   
almost one hundred years old1 and when  
she heard that the ,lord had saved me   
and that ,i was praying for her she saw 
her own sins and asked me to come on to 
visit all of my people1 and ,i1 getting 
ready1 got my oldest sister to go with  
me4 ,i found that the way was opened for
 work1 as there we began the work1 and  
they were looking to see something that 
they would never see in this world1 and 
sweetly they were all brought to the    

,saviour4 ,grandma went home to carry   
the good news and some of the rest have 
gone with the same good news4  ,later   
years some of my sisters came and some  
did not come4 ,then some got tired and  
went back to the world1 but ,i have no  
joy like the joy there is in the ,lord4 
,my dear mother found the peace in      
,jesus before she went to that land of  
song4 ,when the ,lord sent the death    
angel to call her name she was ready to 
answer1 ,here am ,i ready to go in1 to  
come out no more4  ,my mother left us on
 the #bhth day of ,february1 #ahid1 in  
the triumph of faith in the ,lord ,jesus
 ,christ4 ,what a blessed thought that  
,i shall soon be with her on the other  
side of the river to help her ,crown    
,him ,lord of all4  ,to my story3  ,the 
subject of this sketch1 as ,i said1 was 
born again under the preaching of ,rev4 
,david ,moore1 of the ,washington       
,avenue ,baptist ,church1 which is one  
of the noblest churches of this city1   
and it has some of the best people in it

 of any church in the world1 for there  
is more done for those in need in other 
lands4 ,when ,i became a member of that 
church ,i could not read in any book1   
for ,i did not know a letter4 ,there was
 a gentleman in the church by the name  
of ,mr4 ,lansberry1 who finding that ,i 
was one of those that was going to      
learn1 went to a store and bought me a  
,first ,reader and gave it to me1 and ,i
 did not lose any of my time at nights4 
,i went to the meetings every night and 
came back and got a lady1 who was a     
sister of ,mr4 ,bailey1 to be my        
teacher1 and sometimes she used to be so
 very sleepy that she could not keep her
 eyes open and ,i would shake her and   
say that my lesson was to be learned1   
and it was always well learned4 ,then ,i
 went to the ,sunday-school to let my   
,sunday-school teacher hear it on       
,sundays1 and he1 ,mr4 ,ward1 always    
said that he was sure that ,i would     
learn so fast ,i would soon catch up    
with his ,bible ,class4 ,it was not long

 before ,i could lay my ,reader down and
 take my lessons in the ,bible1 and ,i  
can bless ,god for all of this1 for the 
love and the kindness that ,i received  
of all that knew me was a token of ,his 
great love for me1 and ,i know that ,he 
was near me all the time to bring me    
nearer to the ,light4 ,my mind was then 
fixed that ,i should some day go to     
school and ,i could not rest night or   
day ,i was so anxious to go to school2  
but my dear mother could not send me4   
,she had poor health and no one to help 
her to take care of the younger         
children1 and ,i had to work and do the 
best ,i could with my books1 hoping that
 the time would come that ,i should see 
myself sitting in some school studying1 
the same time asking mother to let two  
of the other children go to school every
 day4 ,she did let them go for awhile1  
but some one came and wanted her to let 
them go to work out again and she let   
them go out to work3  ,well1 ,i said    
that ,i would go to school some day1 and

 they had a fine time laughing at my    
high ideas and ,i let them laugh all    
that they wanted to1 but ,i worked hard 
and long to get the means that ,i might 
be able to go1 as ,i said1 to some pay  
school1 where ,i could not be stopped at
 any time4 ,when ,i was almost ready to 
leave for some school the smallpox took 
me1 and ,i was laid aside for three or  
four years2 that is1 ,i was not well1   
and thought that my plans were all      
broken4 ,i still trusted in ,god1 for ,i
 knew that ,he would do all things for  
me as long as ,i put my trust in ,him4  
,well1 as time rolled on ,i found myself
 improving slowly and ,i was then living
 with a dear1 good lady by the name of  
,miss ,l4 ,a4 ,pousland1 who is one of  
the loveliest ladies that ever lived1   
for she loves me to-day as a mother1    
though she is in eightieth odd year and 
is doing well for an old lady4  ,we were
 living in ,south ,oxford street when ,i
 took sick of the smallpox and she did  
not want me taken away from there1 as   

she wanted to take care of me herself1  
but ,i felt that it would be too much   
for her to wait on me1 so the doctor    
said that it was only a heavy cold that 
,i had taken and would be all right in a
 week or so4 ,but ,i knew that ,i had a 
fever of some kind1 so ,i asked that ,i 
might go to my mother's house1 and she  
sent for the carriage and ,i went home4 
,when ,i had reached my mother's ,i felt
 somewhat better1 only to grow worse all
 the time1 and my eyes getting so that  
,i could not see when it was day or     
night4 ,i had a nurse that knew all     
about the disease and a good doctor that
 the city health doctor let take charge 
of the case after he had been out there 
to see me3 and knowing that the case was
 taking1 that no one should get it he   
let me remain at home for nine days1 and
 then ,i went to the hospital and was   
there till the symptoms were well dried4
  ,when the doctor found out that ,i was
 able to come out he1 ,dr4 ,schenck1    
wrote to my lady to send a carriage out4

 ,she did so at once and ,i was at my   
mother's for awhile1 and then my lady   
came to see me and told me how the woman
 did the people in the house1 so ,i told
 her how bad my limbs were1 and she said
 that if ,i could go home with her and  
tell her what to do1 she would get on   
without the woman and let her go4 ,my   
mother made me ready in a little while  
and ,i was soon at the dear old home1   
#cdd ,carlton avenue4  ,god be praised  
for the way he has led me since ,i was  
three years old until this day1 for it  
was ,his hand that taught me to remember
 all of these long years4 ,i have in my 
mind the time at the old home when they 
put me on the fine dressing table in    
front of the large mirror1 while the    
,rev4 ,mr4 ,walker baptized me in the   
name of the ,father and the ,son and the
 ,holy ,ghost1 according to the         
,methodist tests in those days1 and ,i  
always thought that was to give me my   
,christian name2 but when the ,lord had 
spoken peace to my soul ,he led me to   

follow in his footsteps1 and ,i gladly  
followed ,him to be buried to the       
world--that is1 to be put out of sight1 
and that is what the word means4 ,i have
 found it to be one of those times when 
the ,father was pleased with ,his own   
dear beloved ,son1 and ,i know that ,he 
will be pleased whenever we do please   
,him1 for ,god so loved the world of    
sinful men that ,he gave ,his only      
begotten ,son that whosoever believeth  
in ,him should have everlasting life1   
for ,god sent not ,his ,son into the    
world to condemn it1 but that through   
,him all might believe in ,him and have 
everlasting life4  ,i wish that ,i could
 know that the whole world was receiving
 this life1 and that we all could help  
to crown ,him1 as the angels are        
crowning ,him1 the ,king of ,kings and  
,lord of ,heaven and of this earth4  ,it
 is a blessed hope to know that ,god is 
love1 and they that worship ,him must   
worship ,him in spirit and in truth4  ,i
 joined the church in #ahff and began to

 try and follow in this good old way    
that leads from earth to glory1 and it  
has not always been a path of the       
sweetest flowers1 but ,i have never     
failed to find my all in the ,lord      
,jesus ,christ4  ,he led me on day by   
day1 and after awhile ,i found that ,he 
had led me to go away from home that ,i 
might get ready for the work that my    
heart was so full of1 for every time    
that ,i saw the newspaper there was some
 one of our race in the far ,south      
getting killed for trying to teach and  
,i made up my mind that ,i would die to 
see my people taught4 ,i was willing to 
go to prepare to die for my people1 for 
,i could not rest till my people were   
educated4 ,now they are in a fair way to
 be the people that ,god speaks of in   
the ,holy ,word1 as ,he says that       
,ethopia shall yet stretch forth her    
hand and all nations shall bow unto her4
 ,i long to see the day that the        
,ethiopians shall all bow unto ,god as  
the ,one that we should all bow unto1   

for it is to ,him that we all owe our   
homage and to be very grateful to ,him  
for our deliverance as a race4 ,if we   
should fail to give him the honor due   
there would a curse come to us as a     
race1 for we remember those of olden    
times were of the same descent of our   
people1 and some of those that ,god     
honored most were of the ,ethiopians1   
such as the ,unica and ,philop1 and even
 ,moses1 the law-giver1 was of the same 
seed4  ,and not long ago darkness hung  
over the face of this race and ,god     
moved upon the face of this dark earth  
and the light came forth4  ,how         
wonderfully solemn and yet grand are    
these inspired thoughts and words of a  
race whose ,god is so loving and        
forgiving1 and we1 contemplating the    
grand mystery of the world beyond this  
vale of tears1 for ,god does preserve   
all that ,he has planted on this earth4 
,no subject can surely be a more        
delightful study than the history of a  
slave girl1 and the many things that are

 linked to this life that man may search
 and research in the ages to come1 and  
,i do not think there ever can be found 
any that should fill the mind as this   
book4  ,this is a perfect representation
 of things as ,i can remember them1 and 
to think how wonderful are these most   
beneficent streams of ,god's providence 
to all those of our race that have      
prayed that their loving children might 
feel the warm streams of an education   
flowing through every child4 ,tens of   
thousands of miles1 ,north1 ,south1     
,west and ,east1 ,god has thrown ,his   
mantle of love all around us1 and it is 
that which should make us love and fear 
,him1 who is able to destroy both soul  
and body2 for ,his searching eye rests  
on all of the negro race1 to see what   
use they are going to make of their time
 and talent1 and ,i hope that nature    
will teach them that all of our talent  
belongs to the great ,god who gave us   
our being4  ,nature awakens in our being
 a feeling that we must lay at ,his feet

 that we may get the blessed approval1  
for we are so changeable1 but ,god is   
unchanging4 ,he is omnipotent1 and all  
else is transition4 ,yet ,god rules the 
oceans1 the mountains1 the valleys1 and 
all that walks the broad earth4  ,well1 
now ,i shall tell you something more of 
my working in the ,city of ,brooklyn4 ,i
 lived with the ,bailey family the first
 year1 and when they went away in the   
summer1 as all of the rich used to do1  
,i stayed in the house for the summer   
and they went across the ocean and were 
away for some time4 ,the next year ,i   
did not like to stay in the house alone1
 so ,mrs4 ,bailey got me a place with a 
nice friend of hers1 and when she came  
home1 thought that she was going to have
 me to come back to live with her but ,i
 stayed with her friend as there were   
but three in the family and the work was
 not hard1 and it gave me more time to  
study1 and ,mrs4 ,stafford's son1       
,willie1 was so glad to have me as his  
pupil that ,i had not any trouble to get

 my lessons ready for him4 ,he went to  
school every day and he could not get   
through his head how it was that ,i     
could not go to school every day as he  
did4 ,his mother told him how it was and
 his eyes would fill with tears and he  
would ask his mother and father to let  
him stay at home on ,sundays to read the
 ,bible to me while ,i should get the   
dinner ready1 and they would let him    
stay1 for he wanted to see me going to  
the ,house of ,god on ,sundays as they  
did and was willing to have anything to 
eat that ,i might have the opportunity  
of attending the church and             
,sunday-school4 ,his mother would let me
 go to the ,sunday-school on every      
,sunday1 for they were good people and  
were of the kind that delighted in their
 help and they were members of the      
,church of ,the ,messiah1 and they were 
a very happy family4 ,they did not think
 that anything was too good for my      
enjoyment and that is the reason that ,i
 stayed with them and did not go back to

 the lady as she wanted me to do4 ,i    
could not tell which seemed to love me  
most1 and then her son was so willing to
 teach me1 as ,miss ,abbie ,bailey had1 
so ,i made up my mind that as ,i had    
more time there for study ,i would      
remain1 and ,i had some of the best days
 of my life when ,i began to learn so   
fast1 and he would bring me before his  
mother and father that they might hear  
me recite my lessons and see how well ,i
 was doing under him as my teacher4     
,they felt the more glad to see how much
 he was interested in teaching me4      
,later on in years ,i was taken sick    
with the smallpox and was carried away  
to the hospital4 ,he was taken sick     
while ,i was away and his mother said   
that he would call for me about the last
 one on this earth1 and she tried to    
find me1 but she did not know where ,i  
was for some time after his death1 and  
then she felt so bad to think that he   
was gone and did not see me1 for he     
always loved to be with me that he might

 hear me sing1 as ,i was always on the  
wings of song if ,i were at my work2 and
 that is the way that ,i have been all  
of my life4  ,when ,i got well of the   
smallpox1 as ,i said1 ,i went back to   
the place where ,i was living when ,i   
took the malady1 and there ,i tried to  
work1 but was very feeble for a long    
time and under the doctor's care all of 
the time and spending more than ,i could
 make1 for some of the doctors charged  
me two dollars a visit1 and that will   
use up a poor person's earnings very    
soon4  ,but all of this time ,i kept in 
mind the idea that ,i should save every 
cent that ,i could that ,i might send   
myself to school some day4 ,that day did
 come when it seemed as dark as any     
night ,i had ever seen1 when ,i should  
go away to boarding school and spend    
that little and should not have enough  
to finish2 but ,i went1 taking the ,lord
 as the guide of my life1 and the way   
began to grow bright before me and ,i   
could see all the clouds rolling away   

and the brightness shining forth4 ,i    
went to ,washington1 ,d4 ,c41 and       
entered the ,wayland ,seminary1 under   
the leadership of ,professor ,g4 ,m4 ,p4
 ,king1 of ,bangor1 ,maine1 with his    
other teachers and professors under him2
 all of whom are a noble band of        
teachers4 ,and the way the ,lord did    
help me in my studies is a blessing to  
the dear ones that ,i had under me for  
the eleven years that ,i was in the     
school work1 and the way they           
progressed4  ,i said that ,i attended   
the ,wayland ,seminary for three years1 
of eight months1 making it in all of my 
stay there twenty-four months1 which may
 seem long to some1 but it seems short  
to me1 though ,i am very glad that ,i   
had that much time there for it was a   
fountain of blessing to my soul4  ,i    
left ,washington1 ,d4 ,c41 in the year  
of #ahgh and came to ,brooklyn and went 
to work again to earn money to go off to
 school1 and when ,i did go it was      
another school in the ,blue ,ridge1     

,alleghany ,mountains1 where the very   
air of heaven seemed to fan the whole   
hill sides1 and there never was a more  
lovely place on this earth for one to   
learn a lesson1 for we could see the key
 to all lessons where nature had        
designed for a grand school of learning4
 ,at this place was to be found one of  
the best schools of learning that has   
been built by man4 ,and ,i think of the 
hundreds and thousands of teachers and  
preachers and lawyers and doctors that  
these two schools have turned out in the
 different parts of this country1 and   
many of them are in other parts of the  
world4  ,and all of this has been done  
through the churches1 and ,god be       
praised for those that have given of    
their means4  ,at ,harper's ,ferry ,i   
spent four years and they were years of 
hard labor1 but they were just as sweet 
as they could well be1 for the ,lord    
went with me and ,i found favor with all
 of the teachers4 ,when ,i had spent the
 first eight months there ,i learned to 

have the greatest love for my beloved   
teachers1 and when the time came for me 
to leave the teachers ,i thought that my
 poor heart would break4 ,though ,i was 
coming to my own people in ,brooklyn1 ,i
 felt that ,i was leaving my best       
friends on the earth and so did all of  
the students4  ,well1 now the ,summer   
had passed and gone and the ,fall came  
when ,god permitted all of the loving   
ones to come together once more to take 
up the cares of studies again4 ,so the  
time of the winter season was always a  
blessing to all1 and some found it the  
happiest time of their lives1 for they  
found ,jesus precious to their souls and
 could study so much better than they   
could before4     ,,chapter ,,iv        
,there were sometimes as many as sixty  
or seventy brought to the knowledge of  
the ,truth1 and sometimes we had to go  
out of the class-room into the          
prayer-room1 for the ,lord was among us 
in the ,spirit's power4  ,when in #ahhf 
,i went out for good1 that ,i might be  

of some use to my own people ,i started 
in the strength of the ,lord1 and ,he   
did give me the greatest victory as a   
school teacher1 for all of the people   
sought me to take their children in my  
school and give them a start4 ,i had my 
hands full of work1 but ,i let them come
 in for the ,board always sent them to  
me find out if ,i could find room and   
time1 and ,i always made the time for   
when scholars find that a teacher loves 
them they will do any amount of hard    
studying4  ,and so the time rolled on1  
with everything to make me feel like    
hard work1 in the strength of the       
blessed ,lord4  ,i was three years old  
when ,i was leaving my own dear mother's
 home to go to my new mother's home1 or 
,i should say to my white mother's home1
 to live with her1 and ,i left my       
mother's as happy as any child could    
leave her own home1 for this lovely lady
 was always at my mother's to see me    
ever since ,i could remember anything1  
and she was the joy of my little life   

and ,i seemed to be all the joy of her  
sweet life4 ,she had learned to love me 
from the time that ,i came into the     
world4  ,she had watched me in my cradle
 and longed for the day to come when ,i 
should be able to walk1 for she knew    
that ,i would follow her everywhere she 
should go4 ,she said to all of the      
friends around that if ,i should live to
 remember her that would be all that she
 would ask4  ,and so she read her       
blessed ,bible and prayed until she saw 
her prayers answered1 and then she went 
to her home in glory1 where she has     
watched and waited and longed to see the
 good old ships of those who have washed
 their robes and made them white in the 
,blood of the ,lamb4  ,i can never tell 
any one how many happy hours that ,i    
had1 for the only trial that ,i had was 
that of sickness1 which caused me to be 
of a great care to her all of her life4 
,it was her delight to wait on me and to
 have her cousin1 the doctor1 to be     
always ready to come at any moment she  

should send for him4 ,he was a good     
doctor by the name of ,sims1 and ,i     
always liked him1 too1 until ,i had the 
typhoid fever and ,i had to take some   
oil4 ,i did not like to take it and he  
held my hands so that they could pour   
that in me1 and he and ,i fell out4  ,my
 white mother used to give it to me1 but
 she did not let me know what she was   
giving me1 for she put some molasses in 
the oil and cooked them1 so ,i should   
not know4 ,i would not have known if ,i 
had not seen her one night have the old 
bottle in her hand putting the oil in   
the kettle1 which she was making ready  
for me1 and ,i looked up and saw what it
 was and1 as young ones will do1 did not
 want to take molasses and butter which 
,i had been taking so long1 for ,i had  
to take it on every night or ,i could   
not speak4  ,later on she moved from the
 place where she was and bought another 
farm where it was not near the water1 as
 the doctor thought that was not a good 
place for me to be1 and ,i was not sick 

so much as ,i had been at the former4   
,the first hard spell of sickness on    
this farm was the fever that ,i was sick
 of at the time that she took sick of   
the yellow jaundice1 and she turned as  
yellow as anything could be4 ,she went  
home with that awful malady1 thinking of
 me and of what my future should be in  
,god's hands1 to love and bless the     
world in which ,i should live if it     
should be the will of ,him who knows the
 future of all the people that live on  
this earth4  ,so ,god has been a father 
and a loving mother and all else to me1 
and sometimes there has been enough of  
trials in this life to make me almost   
forget that ,i had this strong arm to   
save me from these trials and           
temptations2 but when ,i fly to ,him ,i 
find all and in all in ,him4  ,he is my 
rock and my hiding place in the time of 
trials1 for a child that had all of the 
love and comfort of a queen was now left
 to her own dear mother1 who had so many
 more and had to work so hard to take   

care of us all that ,i have seen sit up 
all night long working for her little   
ones4 ,i used to feel sorry to see her  
sitting up alone at her work4 ,i would  
get up out of the bed and sit with her  
till daylight2 for ,i was always near   
mother after the dear one had been      
plucked from this earth to await my     
arrival4  ,i have found that learning is
 to refine and elevate the mind1 so we  
should cultivate our hearts and minds   
and live to bless those we meet4 ,we    
should neither flatter nor despise those
 that are rich or great4  ,it was not   
long after this dear one had been called
 away before we were all in different   
places1 and to share the fate that comes
 to those that are left behind those    
that have been good and kind4 ,then the 
time is coming that mother is to be     
taken from the whole family of little   
ones and they are to be left in the     
hands of others4 ,that is one of the    
saddest times of life for children when 
they do not know if they shall ever see 

her face on this green earth any more2  
and if to-day we should hear the cries  
of those little lambs it surely would   
break the heart of a stone1 for remember
 that we have the same feelings for our 
mothers as any race of people and our   
hearts will melt as easily as the       
richest ones on this earth4  ,but ,god  
in ,his great love to us meant that we  
should see the return of our dear mother
 to her own and that he would send her  
and the children out of the ,land of    
,egypt as ,he did of old when ,he had   
tried to teach the rulers how wrong it  
was to sell and buy human flesh1 and    
this was one of those awful sins that   
had to be repented of by those that     
could and would not see the truth4 ,when
 the wrath of ,god came upon them and   
took all of the slaves away from them   
they could see nothing but tears and    
curses to the ,god of ,heaven1 and some 
of them cursed the earth1 the stars1 the
 moon4 ,the negroes that had prayed so  
hard to ,god said that was the cause of 

the war1 for they could see something in
 their prayers that seemed to reach up  
to heaven1 and the answer had come for  
their deliverance4  ,is not this a great
 ,god who can hear the prayers of the   
faithful ones when they pray8 ,do not we
 owe our lives and our all to this great
 and good ,god the ,father1 ,god the    
,son and ,god the ,holy ,ghost8 ,and if 
we should fail to recognize ,him we     
should have a worse sin fall on us than 
ever any one race had4  ,well1 to my    
story3  ,my brother ,james was my       
mother's oldest child4 ,he was sent away
 to the war to keep his master at home1 
and we did not hear from him for a long 
time1 but we made up our minds that if  
he did not get killed he would go over  
to the ,northern side as soon as he     
should get the chance1 though we did not
 see him to tell him to do so1 for all  
of my mother's children were like       
herself in the love of freedom4 ,my     
mother was one that the master could not
 do anything to make her feel like a    

slave and she would battle with them to 
the last that she would not recognize   
them as her lord and master and she was 
right4  ,my brother did try to get away1
 but he was caught and locked up in     
,richmond1 ,va41 and for a awhile we    
heard them say that he would be killed1 
but ,god was there to help him1 so he   
came out all right and went to work on  
the breastworks1 and when he did try    
again he got over on the ,northern side4
 ,they almost caught him again1 but as  
the ,lord was his leader at night1 he   
made his escape1 and to hear him tell of
 that river that he crossed and how he  
walked on the water and he was so scared
 that he did not know he got wet2 but ,i
 know that he did get wet1 though4 ,he  
said the ,lord carried him over the     
river without letting him get wet4 ,i am
 sure that ,i could not help laughing at
 my brother to hear of such a thing1 for
 there never was a time that ,i have    
read of since the time of ,peter that   
any one was called to walk on the water4

 ,the ,lord was there ,himself to show  
,peter how small his strength was when  
he trusted in his own strength1 and     
,peter would have failed entirely if his
 ,lord and ,master had not been there4  
,and so it would have been with my dear 
brother4 ,he would have been taken by   
the ,southerners1 and that would have   
been his last trial on this side of the 
grave4  ,my sister ,frances was hired   
out and we did not see her from one     
,christmas to the other1 for she was a  
good way off where she could not get    
home4 ,she was treated very badly by    
some of those where she lived and her   
limbs had been sprained so that she     
could hardly move on them4 ,when later  
on the ,lord had it so arranged that she
 was taken home to live1 where she could
 be cared for1 she soon got better and  
was able to go about helping mother1    
with the rest of the children1 for my   
brother who had to help her to care for 
the children was gone1 and she was all  
the help that my mother had1 for ,i was 

not large enough to do much and had not 
been put to mind the children4  ,the    
gentleman that my dear brother belonged 
to was a ,methodist and a minister4 ,he 
did not want to go to the war and so he 
sent my poor brother to defend what     
belonged to him1 and he did not get the 
good of it after all1 for my brother was
 determined that he would gain his      
freedom if he could and he tried and did
 not get tired of trying4  ,then my     
sister ,annie was given to the          
gentleman's married son and she was not 
with us1 and sister ,tempy ,green was   
with the minister1 and she was one of   
the dead ones that mother had a time to 
get4 ,maggie1 ,susie1 ,martha and ,mary 
were at the same place where mother was 
sold from1 and she went and got them at 
once4 ,it was like a dream to them to   
see how far she had been sold and to see
 her back there again4  ,sister ,lavinia
 was at the same place where ,i was and 
she was treated very badly by the man's 
own daughter1 for she would whip her    

without cause4 ,sister ,rosa was at the 
same place and she was three and a half 
years on mother's return4 ,as ,i told   
you1 she was six weeks old when mother  
was sold and that made it three years   
and three months that mother was gone   
from her own native home to a part of   
the country where she did not know any  
one1 not even the great ,god who had    
been so good to her all of those years  
when she was gone2 and all of her whole 
life ,god was watching over her and     
giving to the world one child who was to
 help to educate the down-trodden race  
which was1 through ,abraham ,lincoln1 to
 be ,god's leader for the children that 
were in ,egypt in the ,south1 and ,god  
with this leader and the race1 they came
 through fire and smoke1 and now they   
can see the light of another day4 ,some 
of the race say that they are sometimes1
 in their thoughts1 ashamed that they   
belong to a race that has been in       
bondage1 but ,i have never felt that    
way1 for ,i am glad that things have    

been as they were1 for ,god has moved in
 a way that is unknown to men and ,his  
wonders ,he has performed1 and has      
planted ,his footsteps in the ,south1   
the ,west1 the ,east and in the ,north1 
and is watching the people and asking   
them what doors are they opening for the
 ,ethiopian4  ,father ,abraham is       
calling to the ,ethiopians to know what 
has been the result of the great        
emancipation1 and can we not send the   
echo back with a jubilee1 that we are   
marching on in education in double file1
 and longing to see the day that not one
 of your sons and daughters of this     
broad earth but what shall learn to read
 and write2 though it may bless the     
earth with a tenfold blessing that they 
will not forget to bless ,god with a    
hundred fold4  ,three cheers for this   
great ,emancipator4  ,and while he may  
sleep yonder1 forgotten may be by some1 
his name has a green spot in my heart   
and shall ever keep green while on this 
side ,i stay4  ,and there is another one

 who sleeps yonder whom ,i shall not    
forget and that is ,father ,john ,brown1
 whose ashes are as dear to me as the   
apple of mine eye2 and how can ,i forget
 him after four years of study at the   
dear old place where he was taken from  
and hanged1 because he saw the wrath of 
,god upon the nation and came forth to  
save his people4  ,another one who will 
ever be shining bright in the hearts and
 minds of the whole negro race1 and what
 shall ,i say of him who led us to the  
greatest victory the world has ever     
known--,ulysses ,s4 ,grant1 the loved of
 all nations and the pride of all lands2
 he whom the world admires1 to call the 
blessed1 who mourned for this land to   
see the end1 and ,god did help him in   
ways that man knew not1 save himself and
 his ,god4  ,and there is another dear  
one that ,god will help me to remember  
with all of the love and gratitude1 and 
it makes me feel sad as ,i have to speak
 of her once more and it may be that ,i 
shall have to speak of her many times1  

as she was the one that brought me on to
 this lovely city1 and that is my       
mother1 who has gone to that land of    
song where there is no more of sickness 
or sorrow and where ,god will dry every 
tear4  ,there is another ,i remember and
 that is ,father ,charles ,sumner1 who  
for years wrote and also fought and     
spoke1 as never man spoke1 for the race 
and the ,civil ,rights ,bill1 that it   
might not die1 but it should be a rock  
for the defence of the race4  ,and there
 is another that ,i shall not leave out 
of this book1 for if ,i did the book    
would be incomplete1 and that is        
,frederick ,douglass1 the greatest of   
men among the negro race of this country
 or of any land on the globe4 ,he wrote 
and spoke and went all over to try to do
 all he could for his race1 and who     
could forget such men as these8 ,i would
 say in true lines1 may the earth fail  
to move sooner than ,i forget those     
noble lives4 ,honored be their memories 
and honored be their ashes1 for their   

lives shall live in the memories of all 
coming generations and their ashes will 
make rich the soil whereon they lie4    
,may ,god give us some more of such men 
as these for they are few1 and we need  
so many now to go forth and speak the   
truth4  ,and there is dear ,doctor      
,david ,moore1 that my pen1 ,i fear1    
would fail to move1 if ,i did not do him
 honor4 ,he was beloved and honored to  
the last day of his stay in the         
,washington ,avenue ,baptist ,church1   
and it was on account of sickness that  
he had to leave this city and go up in  
the northern part of this ,state that he
 might be able to preach the ,word1 and 
,god did make him well after he had left
 ,brooklyn2 and his work has been       
crowned with great success4  ,god did   
use him in this city to ,his own glory  
in saving men1 women and children from  
the very door of sin and the dread of   
the life which is to come4 ,and may the 
,god of ,heaven and the ,ruler of this  
earth be with him as he comes near the  

,jordan to make its waters calm1 and    
enter in the gate and hear the blessed  
,well done1 good and faithful servant1  
enter thou in the joys of thy ,lord4    
,j4 ,d4 ,fulton is one that will have   
one of the highest places at ,god's     
right hand1 for he started out to look  
after the ,ethiopian's rights when he   
was only seventeen years of age4 ,what  
can be said of a long life like his1    
that has written and traveled and spoke 
to such large crowds of hearers in the  
interest of the race which ,i represent4
 ,how ,i have seen those silvery locks  
fly as his warm heart melted to tears as
 he pleaded for the down-trodden of the 
,ethiopians2 and if ,god has ever heard 
a prayer ,i know that ,he hears the     
prayer of this dear good man1 for ,i    
have seen the answer come in mighty     
power1 in many ways1 to the saving of   
precious souls1 and the way that he     
wrote about the negro in this country   
and its problem4  ,he was called to the 
,hanson ,place ,church to preach and he 

worked hard1 with ,god's help1 and      
improved the church and many were       
brought to the ,saviour through the     
,word1 such as the ,lord will own and   
bless at the last day4  ,doctor ,fulton 
is one of the best men on this broad    
earth to love and labor for humanity and
 ,i do not think that my race1 the noble
 ,ethiopians1 should ever forget him as 
long as ,god shall spare his life4 ,when
 the time shall come when the dear      
blessed one shall be called to the world
 above1 and that active form is stilled 
in death and when that silvery voice is 
no longer heard in the defence of the   
down-trodden ,ethiopians and the        
oppressed of any land1 that he will hear
 the ,well done1 good and faithful      
servant1 enter thou into the joy of thy 
,lord4  ,and to think of one who has    
written so long never more to wield the 
pen in the cause of the church and      
,god's children is a sad thought to the 
writer1 for she has loved him as a      
father and he shall ever have a green   

spot in my heart for ,i shall never     
forget his kind words to me in my lonely
 hours4  ,dr4 ,j4 ,d4 ,fulton's first   
wife was one of the loveliest women that
 ever lived1 for ,i have been to their  
house to dine with the family and ,i    
found that ,mrs4 ,sarah ,fulton and     
family were the same that they were in  
the church4 ,there was the sweetest home
 that ,i ever saw in all my life1 for   
the father and the mother were all love1
 and then take ,miss ,jennie1 the eldest
 child1 and she was a lovely girl1 and  
there was ,miss ,nellie1 another lovely 
girl1 and ,sadie1 the youngest girl1 and
 she was her father all the way1 and the
 boy ,justin1 who came to the family    
while ,i was away4 ,i think he has a    
large heart like his dear father1 and ,i
 do know that if he only is a good man  
like his father ,god will own and bless 
him4  ,dr4 ,fulton's second wife1 ,aunt 
,laura1 was a lovely woman1 for we all  
learned to love her when her first      
husband was living4  ,miss ,l4 ,a4      

,pousland was one of the best ladies ,i 
have seen in this city1 for it was from 
her house that ,i went to the ,wayland  
,seminary in #ahge1 and to her love ,i  
owe a love of gratitude1 and to all that
 may come to me as worldly goods ,i     
shall always think of ,miss ,l4 ,a4     
,pousland and of her love to me when ,i 
was getting ready for school and the    
letters full of love to me all the time 
while ,i was prosecuting my studies4    
,oh1 how she longed to see me out in the
 world doing my ,master's will and      
helping to teach1 for she is a ,boston  
lady1 and they are a learned people and 
like to see all others learn1 and that  
is the way1 like the old ,pilgrim       
,fathers were1 that there should be a   
grand common level for all after them4  
,to my story of child in ,house's       
family3  ,this ,mr4 ,john ,house had the
 largest sum offered to him for a girl  
as ,i was that was ever offered for any 
one and he would not accept the whole   
world of money1 on account of the one   

that had loved me and cared for me1 for 
he well knew that after all of those    
prayers that he would be sinning2 and he
 would not have had my mother sold away 
from her children if his brother would  
have let him know it in time4 ,he went  
away to attend court and to his surprise
 found that my mother was sold4 ,he came
 home at once to let us know of it1 and 
he was the one that called in my sister 
,frances and sister ,annie and sister   
,rosa1 for the two oldest that ,i speak 
of fell to a dead brother who had drank 
himself to death1 and these were sold to
 pay for his drink4 ,he had been dead   
for some time and those that he owed now
 came in to get their pay1 which was    
their only chance2 and the money that   
they got did not do them much good1     
thanks to ,god1 for it was in the time  
of the war and the money was of the     
,confederate money1 and it was during   
the great struggle when this money was  
called in never more to be the money of 
these ,united ,states1 for this ,union  

needs the kind of money that will be    
good in all lands1 and ,i am glad that  
the people can see it now as they never 
saw it before4     ,,chapter ,v   ,i am 
glad that the dear ,lord has laid it in 
my heart at this time in life to let the
 world hear something of a life that    
they will all be filled with a love for 
one whom it has been a delight to meet  
at any and all times4  ,mrs4 ,sarah     
,potter1 who is a beloved and dear lady1
 who is the bright morning star of the  
,washington ,avenue ,baptist ,church1   
and who is one of the brightest lights  
that this city has or ever will have1   
for she is all over this city looking   
after the needy ones1 comes from a noble
 family and all of the family have been 
foreign missionaries4 ,she has been a   
home missionary for many years and ,god 
has blessed her and her labors1 and her 
dear father was doing missionary work in
 ,india for fifty years1 and ,god       
blessed his work there4 ,now that his   
dear work has been finished in this     

world and he has gone to his reward1 his
 works do follow him1 for the number    
that have been saved through his        
preaching eternity will tell4  ,his form
 will no more walk out on the field of  
battle for the ,lord1 and who can fill  
the place of such a life-work as this   
child of the ,king has filled8 ,and to  
go home to his beloved and blessed      
,master with his arms full of blessed   
sheaves2 and as we think of him1 how we 
wonder in our daily walks if we shall go
 to the ,saviour with our hands full or 
shall we go empty-handed and thus to    
meet our ,saviour so2 not one soul with 
which to greet ,him1 must we            
empty-handed go8  ,i have heard of ,mr4 
,mason as one of the first to go among  
the ,coreans1 and ,i have seen some of  
them1 that have taken the ,lord for     
their all and in all1 come to this land 
of ours to fit themselves for the       
blessed work among their own people4    
,god be praised for such a man as ,dr4  
,mason and all of his loving children1  

who have had the same spirit that their 
father had1 and he was filled with the  
,holy ,ghost and with the power of the  
,lord4  ,mrs4 ,sarah ,w4 ,potter was the
 beloved wife of a sea captain1 ,mr4    
,william ,potter1 and he owned a ship   
that sailed the ,indian ,ocean1 and he  
was washed overboard one night while his
 wife1 ,mrs4 ,potter1 was sick1 and she 
did not know that he had a watery grave 
until the next day4 ,they had one son1  
who is now married1 by the name of      
,frank1 whom ,i held as an idol1 as he  
always called to me when in trouble1 for
 his dear mother taught him the love of 
the ,bible1 and he would not fight any  
boy1 let them do him as they would4 ,he 
knew that ,i would go after the boys for
 blocks1 as ,i was one of those soldiers
 that was not afraid to fight4 ,as he   
grew older ,i told him that he had to go
 out into the world to fight his way and
 ,i wanted him to begin it at once1 and 
he did learn to battle for himself4 ,he 
married a lovely girl by the name of    

,miss ,katie ,harvey and they have two  
children1 the eldest a girl and the     
youngest a boy1 which is the lovely     
little man of the home4  ,i have seen   
that mother sit up at nights waiting for
 her son to come that she might ask a   
blessing on him before he should sleep1 
and how could that boy go astray after  
all these prayers and entreaties8 ,may  
he lead his lambs to the blessed        
,master1 and have the ,well done1 good  
and faithful servant1 enter thou into   
the joys of thy ,lord4  ,to my story of 
work in the ,city of ,brooklyn3  ,the   
lady1 ,miss ,l4 ,a4 ,pousland1 whom ,i  
spoke of in the preceding pages1 is the 
place where ,i found myself living in   
#ahge1 after twelve or thirteen years of
 service4 ,it was there that ,i met     
,mrs4 ,sarah ,potter4 ,she has been all 
of a mother to me to give me all the    
encouragement she could bestow on me4   
,for all of this kindness ,i am more    
than grateful to my ,heavenly ,father1  
for ,i know that all goodness comes from

 ,him4 ,he surely has shown ,his love to
 her in sparing her to see me go from   
her home to ,washington to school and   
spend three years and then go to        
,harper's ,ferry and spend four years1  
and to see me out in the world teaching 
for eleven years1 and to break down     
while at my post and now at home to     
serve in another way4 ,is not this not  
,god's love to me1 as a poor1 humble    
servant of ,his8 ,i should never forget 
to give the love and honor due ,him4    
,god knows my heart and ,he will bless  
the work in my hands1 as the writer of  
this book4  ,when ,i found that ,i could
 get through school in a given time as  
,i had studied hard1 if ,i had the      
money1 ,i told ,miss ,l4 ,a4 ,pousland1 
that ,i would not be there to work any  
more1 as ,i had a place in ,saratoga    
,springs for the ,summer4 ,she felt bad 
to lose me1 but as she knew that ,i     
could make more money for three months  
at the ,springs she wanted me to have my
 heart's desire1 so ,i came on from     

school and went to see her and then made
 ready for the ,springs1 getting one of 
my sisters to go with me and taking such
 things as we could4 ,we were there too 
soon and we had to wait for work1 and ,i
 went around and made myself known to   
the white people4 ,they soon called on  
me to come and do work for them1 and the
 first was a ,mrs4 ,carpenter1 a good   
lady4 ,she then got her married daughter
 to have me to work for her family and  
they were a fine family4 ,her daughter's
 husband was a grand studio man on      
,broadway1 doing a good business4 ,then 
she sent me to another friend of hers1  
and my sister and ,i could live for a   
while4 ,when the rush came ,i did not   
forget the one who had helped me1 but   
went to her two days out of a week1 for 
she had her house filled with boarders1 
and the ,summer was all a blessing to   
her and her family4  ,there was ,mrs4   
,purdy1 who was another one of my       
friends1 for ,i did work for her laundry
 for three years1 and she said whenever 

,i came to the ,springs and wanted work 
to come to her2 if the house was filled 
there was room for me4 ,so you see how  
,god did open the way for me in that    
strange and lonely place1 where there   
are so many that go there for the       
,summer looking for work4 ,i went out of
 the house where we were stopping and   
got the washing and brought it home to  
my sister1 for she would not go out of  
the house as she had not been from the  
place where she lived before4 ,i got her
 to go with me to help me with the work1
 and it was coming in so fast ,i had to 
get a white lady to help us to get      
through1 for the colored people said    
that we would not get work as the laws  
were passed to keep the ,new ,york      
workers out1 and ,i told them that they 
would have to pass laws to keep the rich
 people of ,new ,york from coming there 
to board if they should keep the workers
 out2 so ,i did not hear to that1 and   
found the way for ,i had the will1 and  
where there is a will there is always a 

way4 ,so much for the first ,summer4    
,well1 the second time ,i went up alone4
 ,i say alone1 ,i mean that my sister   
did not go1 but the ,lord did go with me
 that ,summer1 for ,i did not go to the 
house where my sister and ,i was for    
they tried to discourage us the first   
time4 ,i always mark one that is an     
enemy to me and shake the dust off of my
 feet and let the ,lord do for that one 
what ,he thinks is best4  ,well1 for the
 third year ,i was there with the ,lord 
and ,he was surely there with me4 ,i did
 not do any work on the ,lord's ,day1   
but tried to teach them4 ,when they made
 me an offer of larger pay for the work 
done on the ,lord's ,day1 ,i told them  
that in six days the ,lord made the     
heavens and the earth and ,he rested on 
the seventh day1 and ,i felt that if ,he
 needed rest on that day ,i was sure    
that ,i must have rest4 ,so the ,sunday 
work was not carried on any more in that
 laundry4 ,he said that the ,lord had   
sent me to that laundry for the         

bettering of all in it4 ,the gentleman  
was from ,philadelphia and his name was 
,mr4 ,cheek4  ,so you see how the ,lord 
preached ,his word through me1 a feeble 
one of the dust1 and what can not the   
,lord help us to do if we only trust in 
,him and if we strive to live for ,his  
honor and glory while on this side of   
,jordan8  ,mrs4 ,purdy had one daughter1
 and a lovely girl in music1 and her    
name was ,kittie ,purdy4 ,she was sought
 to play everywhere as she was a fine   
player1 and everyone thinks her a very  
pretty girl4 ,her mother is a perfect   
lady1 for she used to be so kind to her 
help4 ,she never was late in any of her 
meals for the help and she always sat   
down with us and eat with us4 ,she was  
as jolly as any one at the table and she
 always called me her bird1 for ,i was  
on the wing of song from the time ,i    
began my work until my work was         
finished1 and then ,i would start home  
as happy as any one could be4 ,then ,i  
would be the first to greet her in the  

mornings always and she used to say that
 ,i brought to her a great deal of      
comfort each hour and drove all of her  
business cares away4 ,i used to feel    
glad that ,i1 although a working girl1  
could be of some love and comfort to    
some one1 and it makes me feel glad     
to-day that ,god in ,his love to me and 
for me can own such a feeble one4  ,my  
next start was for ,asbury ,park to do  
work for ,mrs4 ,haseltine1 another      
lovely lady1 who was a ,boston lady and 
whom ,i learned to love as a mother4 ,i 
worked for her two years and was to have
 worked for her the third year if she   
had not taken sick at the time she did4 
,a gentleman came on from ,philadelphia 
and she got me to work for him and ,i   
found him a fine gentleman4 ,i praise   
,god for all that came to me while ,i   
was pursuing my studies1 and to-day ,i  
do feel like saying1      ,blessed      
assurance1 ,jesus is mine1     ,oh6 what
 a foretaste of glory divine2     ,heir 
of salvation1 purchase of ,god1         

,born of ,his spirit1 washed in ,his    
blood4     ,this is my story1 this is my
 song1     ,praising my ,saviour all the
 day long1     ,this is my story1 this  
is my song1     ,praising my ,saviour   
all the day long4  ,to my story3 ,mrs4  
,haseltine1 ,i said1 had to go to the   
,saratoga ,springs for the ,summer and  
she used to let me hear from her1 but my
 work in school was so great that ,i    
lost sight of her and ,i do not know if 
she is in ,florida or not4 ,wherever she
 is ,i love her and she has my heart4   
,she did all that she could all the time
 that ,i worked for her to let me do    
extra work for the boarders so that ,i  
might earn money outside of what she    
paid me1 and the ladies used to come to 
the laundry and talk to me1 for some of 
these ladies went to school as ,i did   
and some of them waited at the large    
hotels in the ,summer time to pay their 
board4 ,the gentleman that had ,mrs4    
,haseltine's house took me in at evening
 time to entertain the guests1 and they 

all helped me4 ,when ,i came home to    
make ready for school ,i was at our own 
church one evening when dear ,dr4 ,j4   
,d4 ,fulton was giving us one of his    
grand lectures1 and he gave me time to  
sing1 read and speak4 ,the church took a
 grand collection for me1 which amounted
 to seventeen dollars and seventy-three 
cents4 ,i was better fixed that year    
than ,i had been at any year since ,i   
had been going to school1 for ,i had    
worked all of the ,summer and would not 
spend any of my money as ,i wanted it   
all for school1 but the ,evil one came  
and stole it from me and ,i was left    
without a dollar1 and ,i had the heavy  
heart one is sure to have when they need
 money as ,i did4 ,then ,i had to borrow
 money to leave for the school1 and you 
may think how one feels after a         
,summer's work1 and to have some one    
else to use the money that has not been 
gotten with their own labor4  ,well1 ,i 
did not know what ,i should do1 so ,i   
made up my mind that ,i had done all    

that lay in my power--that is1 ,i had   
earned the money1 and some one had taken
 it from me and ,i was left to go       
without4 ,so ,i took the ,lord for it1  
and could not board as ,i had done1 but 
,i bought some little things to use and 
boarded myself1 and ,i was up sometimes 
at the late hours of night1 when all of 
the people were asleep1 cooking for the 
next day1 that ,i might not be late at  
school4 ,so you can see how loving ,god 
was to me4  ,my life in school was one  
of joy to me and to my mother and       
sisters and brother and brothers-in-law1
 and all of the time that ,i was in     
school they were sending me their mites 
to help me along4 ,my sister1 ,mrs4 ,e4 
,f4 ,rodwell and ,mr4 ,g4 ,w4 ,rodwell1 
and my sister1 ,mrs4 ,annie ,lindsey and
 ,mr4 ,f4 ,p4 ,lindsey were the ones    
that never for once forgot me1 and at   
,christmas time ,i was like a child     
looking for something4 ,everybody was   
good to me4 ,praise the ,lord for all of
 the love that came to me in the time of

 need4  ,well1 my work ended in #ahhf1  
though ,i taught in #ahhe1 and had the  
blessing of ,god with me in this school4
 ,there were twenty-five out of the     
school brought to the knowledge of the  
truth1 such as the ,lord will own and   
bless at the last day4 ,god be the      
glory4 ,amen and ,amen4  ,the place was 
,woodstock1 ,shenandoah ,county1 ,va41  
and ,i was called from that school to go
 ,west where they needed me to teach in 
a place where the teachers had made the 
pupils almost hate to go to a school4   
,my heart was in that work1 which no one
 liked1 so ,i went there trusting in the
 ,lord4 ,i lost that place1 but they got
 me another one where they built me a   
new house1 and the ,lord did bless me in
 this place1 although ,i was not able to
 go to the ,baptist ,church only once a 
month1 for there was not any nearer than
 ten or fourteen miles4 ,when the next  
year came ,i helped the people build a  
church and it was all paid for before ,i
 left there4 ,how ,god did pour out ,his

 spirit there in the salvation of souls1
 and ,he did add unto the dear church   
such as will be saved at the day when   
,he shall come to make up his jewels2   
and ,i can praise ,his name for such a  
,saviour4  ,well1 to my story3 ,as a    
teacher in the same place for eleven    
years1 or ,i should say ,i was connected
 with the same school for that length of
 time1 and all the way the ,saviour led 
me4 ,sometimes it was not all flowers   
and sweetness1 but in it all ,i can see 
the hand of the ,blessed ,one2 and it   
used to make me say to myself1 ,praise  
the ,lord1 ,oh1 my soul1 and all that is
 within me praise ,his holy name6       
,after being there for sometime ,i was  
taken sick and was there sick and could 
not teach my school for that ,winter4   
,it made me feel very bad1 but my good  
,dr4 ,ford said that he thought all of  
the county were sorry to learn of my    
illness and all were losing a good      
teacher4 ,i would not be able to do any 
school work for sometime to come as the 

nerves were all overworked1 and that had
 brought on other troubles which were of
 a dangerous nature4 ,so my heart was   
heavy indeed1 and if ,i had not had my  
hope built in ,jesus ,christ ,i would   
not have stood1 for ,i felt that all    
other ground was to me a sinking sand4  
,i stayed there all of the ,winter and  
then came on home to ,brooklyn1 and the 
,lord was so good to make me well2 ,i   
went back to my work and taught all that
 ,winter1 and when my school was out ,i 
then went down to the county seat1 which
 is ten miles from the station and is   
about fourteen from my school1 where ,i 
spoke of4  ,hinton is a lovely little   
town on the ,chesapeake and ,ohio       
,railroad and in the ,blue ,ridge and   
,alleghany ,mountains1 and is one of the
 greatest places on the road1 as all of 
the trains from the ,west1 ,east1 ,south
 and ,north stop there4 ,it is a lovely 
town and they have a roundhouse there   
where they build locomotives4 ,they have
 a fine ,y4 ,m4 ,c4 there4 ,there are a 

number of men employed at this place4   
,they have two nice ,baptist ,churches  
and a ,baptist ,mission1 two ,methodist 
,churches1 one ,episcopalian1 one       
,congregational1 one ,presbyterian and  
one ,roman ,catholic and one college1 a 
number of private schools and a number  
of public schools and the county is     
doing a good work in education1 and to  
the ,lord be all the praise for all of  
this good work4  ,hinton ,i said was a  
lovely place4 ,like ,harper's ,ferry1   
that ,i spoke of in the preceding       
chapter1 it is situated on ,camp ,hill  
in a lovely place1 between the ,potomac 
,river on one side and the ,shenandoah  
,river on the other1 and it has two of  
the most beautiful bridges ,i ever saw4 
,when you see the trains coming and     
going it looks lovely4  ,the ,wayland   
,seminary is in a lovely spot on        
,meredian ,hill1 between ,fifteenth and 
,sixteenth streets1 and you can see all 
over the ,city of ,washington4 ,it is   
lovely to behold with all of its fine   

buildings and art galleries1 though ,i  
do not like it as well as ,harper's     
,ferry1 for ,i was not well the whole   
time ,i was there and ,i had so much    
better health at the ,ferry4 ,i bless   
,god that ,i made the change when ,i did
 or ,i might have been gone to my long  
home before ,i had the time to see so   
much of ,god's love to me in the way ,he
 has led me through paths that ,i did   
not see then4 ,i can truly say unto     
,him1 ,lord1 ,thou hast been my dwelling
 place in all of these years of trial   
and has been my rock in a weary land and
 my shelter in the times of storm4      
,well1 ,i came home last ,october a year
 ago1 #ahie1 and made up my mind to stay
 for the time being4 ,some of the people
 found out that ,i was here and they    
sent for me to come to see them4 ,i went
 to ,mrs4 ,murphy's the next week and ,i
 was there nearly a year and found that 
,i could not do much lifting1 so ,i did 
not feel well for quite a while1 and ,i 
had a heavy day of it the last time that

 ,i was there4 ,so ,i told her daughter 
,i should not come any more as ,i had   
gone early that ,i should get home      
early4 ,it was nearly six o'clock when  
,i stopped4 ,they are a lovely family of
 four men and four girls1 all of whom   
are are very fine indeed2 two sons      
married1 and children1 and one daughter 
married and she has two little ones4    
,miss ,josephine is a school teacher4   
,miss ,alice is the housekeeper1 as the 
mother is not very well at times4 ,one  
of the lovely girls is a ,sister in a   
convent4  ,i also did work for her      
daughter1 ,mrs4 ,nellie ,chester1 and   
she is a lovely woman4 ,i had to lose   
her work as she had to get her a girl4  
,i also worked for fine families by the 
names of ,mrs4 ,handford and ,mrs4      
,taylor1 but they went away from this   
city4     ,,chapter ,,vi   ,i am now    
doing work for a lovely family by the   
name of ,mrs4 ,coddington1 as her       
husband has died not long since1 and he 
was a nice man and they have two lovely 

girls that teach school4 ,i also work   
for ,mrs4 ,white1 who is a lovely lady1 
and all of her family4  ,at the ,pells  
and the ,powells4 ,mrs4 ,pell is a      
lovely woman1 with two children1 one a  
lovely young lady and full of the       
sweetest music the ear ever heard1 for  
,i do not think that there ever was any 
one that could play sweeter music than  
her4 ,the other is a boy1 a nice        
youngster of promise4  ,mrs4 ,powell is 
the sister of the first ,mrs4 ,pell and 
she has one daughter1 who is a ,mrs4    
,pell1 whom ,i have to call ,mrs4 ,e4   
,pell to let each one know which one ,i 
mean4 ,there are other ladies in the    
mansion that are very nice to me4 ,mrs4 
,pell ,no4 #a is the head of the house  
and is a fine lady1 and in telling you  
of those that ,i have worked for and ,i 
am doing work for ,i mean to tell that  
it is by the day that ,i work for some  
of them2 as you will see as you read    
this that ,i have had very few places   
where ,i lived out by the month1 and    

staying a good while in a place4  ,i did
 work for ,mrs4 ,johnson1 but as her    
business is not so good at times she has
 me whenever she can feel as if she can 
spare the money4 ,so this little life of
 mine has been almost locked up in a    
nutshell1 and ,jesus has come to me in  
the spirit's power that ,i should tell  
the world of ,his wonderful love to me a
 poor sinner of the dust4 ,and what can 
not the ,lord do for those who put their
 trust in ,him8 ,we feel like saying to 
the blessed ,one1 how amiable are all of
 ,thy works1 oh ,lord1 and our eyes are 
seeing ,thy salvation in many parts of  
the earth4  ,i can remember the first   
time that it was my pleasure to hear    
dear ,dr4 ,j4 ,d4 ,fulton4 ,it was on   
,thanksgiving ,day when he first came to
 this city to preach at the ,hanson     
,place ,church1 as their pastor4 ,the   
,rev4 ,david ,moore had him to preach   
the ,thanksgiving sermon at the         
,washington ,avenue ,baptist ,church1   
and we were all delighted at hearing him

 on that day4 ,i loved him on hearing   
that sermon1 for ,i felt the spirit     
power on that day1 through his          
preaching4 ,i shall always think of the 
,doctor and his loving family1 for we1  
as the negro race1 have not such a      
friend on earth as ,dr4 ,fulton4 ,i am  
not afraid to say it to his dear honor  
as he is not dead1 and ,i wish every    
negro knew him as ,i do for then they   
would all feel toward him as ,i feel4 ,i
 hope that he will long live to tell the
 truth as he has in days gone by2 and if
 he was in this city where the evil is  
so strong1 we should hear him sounding  
the watchword1 and that is the reason   
that those that loved the ways of sin   
did not like him1 for they felt that he 
had cause to trouble them while they    
were yet in their sins4  ,but ,i hope   
that the day will come when ,i shall    
hear him again in this city1 and ,i hope
 that ,god will give him long life and  
that he may see the travel of his soul  
and be satisfied1 for ,i know that he   

tries to do ,god's will in this love    
that he has for humanity and that is why
 the ,lord will bless him in all the    
work that his hands find to do4  ,i was 
not at home when he left this city and  
,i felt sad when ,i found that he was   
gone1 for we shall ever miss him4 ,my   
prayer is to ,god that he may live to a 
good old age and that when he shall be  
called to come up higher that he may be 
caught up in the air to meet his ,lord  
and ,master and all of those that have  
gone on before1 and be ready to ,crown  
,him ,king of ,kings and ,lord of       
,lords4     ,progress of ,church ,work  
,a speech to a crowded church1 in the   
year of our ,lord #ahhh1 in ,talcott1   
,summers ,co41 ,w4 ,v4 ,i was asked to  
have this published out there1 but ,i   
wanted to have it brought to my home in 
,brooklyn4 ,i was into so much work out 
there1 and my people were not there to  
see what the ,lord did help me to do3   
,dear friends1 we are here to-night to  
commemorate this grand occasion1 and our

 watchword is ,onward and ,upward to the
 ,prize6  ,this is a time that we should
 all shout the ,jubilee and to send the 
glad tidings to all the world and to let
 all the nations know that we are on our
 march to that happy land of song4      
,dear friends1 let us look for a few    
moments and think of the time when you  
had not a church where you could worship
 ,god4 ,i told you that ,god would give 
you this lovely place1 where no one     
could drive you out1 and to see what    
great things ,he has done for you in a  
little time1 and how great things can   
,he not do if we will only trust ,him8  
,we have those of our race that have    
held places of greatest trust and ,god  
bless them in those places4 ,why should 
we give up the fight and lay our armor  
by when there is so much for us to do8  
,no1 no1 we can not and we will not lay 
the grand old armor down1 for the ,lord 
is on our side and we shall surely      
conquer if we look to ,him whose arm is 
so large and strong4 ,then let us take  

fresh courage and march on until we     
reach the goal1 and then we shall be    
glad and rejoice for the ,lord has      
spoken good to ,his people1 the         
,ethiopians4  ,oh1 ye colored people1   
why not take this as yours and begin now
 to rejoice ye in your own race and feel
 proud of the race1 but not ones that   
can dance the best on the ball-room     
floor1 for there is very little in that 
when it is all summed up in a whole4    
,let us thank all the good people who   
have shown any love to us while we have 
been in this work of building and may   
they all find favor in the sight of     
,god4 ,you have a dear good pastor who  
is willing to give his life to the ,lord
 and the church4 ,let us take fresh     
courage and march into ,his service1 for
 we shall gain if we only trust in ,god 
and do the right ,he will help us to    
persevere4  ,time would fail me and my  
pen would fail to move if ,i should try 
to enumerate all of the blessings that  
have come to us as a race4 ,i hope that 

we1 as the hated negro race1 will make a
 fresh start from this night and do all 
that we can to forward the work in this 
church1 and ,god will send us a         
blessing4     ,etiquette of ,young ,men 
,i was wondering a few days since if the
 men of the present day had lost the    
respect that men used to have for the   
women4 ,i was carried back to the year  
of #ahhd while in school with so many of
 the young men of my own race1 when ,i  
saw so much of the respect that they    
showed to us girls and that was what    
caused me to write this to their honor4 
,i think that true etiquette is one of  
the greatest blessings that young men   
can have for the women1 for it is to    
them that we look to for the protection 
and love1 and if we fail to find it in  
them where shall we look8 ,this is one  
of the greatest fortunes that one can   
have1 and it is that which makes a young
 man what he ought to be4 ,we1 as the   
women1 need so many of such ones and the
 world needs them fully as much1 and the

 ,god who made them looks for more and  
when he does not find it in the dear    
creatures that ,he has made it makes    
,him feel sad4  ,i found a number of    
young men that used to attend the       
,wayland ,seminary that had the greatest
 regard for the girls1 and ,i could not 
but notice them in this respect and     
their kind acts while there1 although ,i
 was not in the same classes with them1 
but ,i never saw them make any          
difference while ,i was in school4 ,i   
always found good friends among them and
 ,i never saw a young man meet one of   
the young ladies but they lifted their  
hats1 and that made the people of       
,washington1 ,d4 ,c41 always speak of it
 in the kindest terms4 ,one never loses 
anything in this way1 and their virtues 
are greater than gold4  ,when the       
weather was very bad one day and ,i was 
coming from school and a young man saw  
me fall down1 he came to help me home   
and ,i felt very grateful and ,i feel   
that wherever that young man shall go he

 will have favor in the eyes of all1 and
 ,god will be his leader for he has made
 a good beginning4     ,school ,life    
,while at the ,harper's ,ferry school ,i
 found the loveliest teachers that ever 
were in a school4 ,professor ,brackett1 
the head of the school1 is a fine       
gentleman1 and his wife1 ,mrs4 ,w4      
,brackett1 is a lovely lady and she is  
one of the finest teachers that ever    
lived4 ,she has three nice children1 two
 of them are girls and one boy1 who is a
 young man by this time1 for ,i have not
 seen him since he went to ,maine to    
attend school1 which is the ,bates'4 ,it
 is a fine school of ,latin1 and a      
number of the students went to that same
 school4  ,mr4 ,w4 ,p4 ,curtis was one  
of the professors4 ,he was my           
,sunday-school teacher and he was fine4 
,mr4 ,d4 ,m4 ,wilson was a dear         
professor1 whom we loved4 ,miss         
,caroline ,franklin was a lovely teacher
 and we all loved her4 ,miss ,c4        
,brackett was one of the lovely         

teachers1 and one whom every one of the 
other teachers loved1 for she was one of
 the finest readers that ever lived1 let
 it be man or woman4 ,they used to have 
her read nearly every afternoon when the
 school was out1 and sometimes they     
would call to ,professor ,curtis to read
 to the school4 ,he was a very good     
reader1 but ,miss ,c4 ,l4 ,franklin was 
the grand trainer of the whole school4  
,they had a grand reading circle there  
at nights for the rich of the ,ferry1   
and she was the one to do the fine      
reading4 ,all of the noble people of the
 place loved her and she will ever be   
loved and remembered by all who knew    
her4 ,she is now in ,washington1 ,d4    
,c41 teaching1 and the people have      
learned to love her as we did4 ,i do not
 think that any one could help loving   
her for her love and fidelity to the    
race which she represents4  ,miss ,c4   
,l4 ,franklin's mother1 who is a lovely 
woman whom we all love as a mother1 for 
she had many of the students at her     

house to board1 like ,mrs4 ,william     
,lovett1 and she was so very kind to all
 of them that she will be remembered by 
us all1 for we love those in our school 
life that would say a kind word to us4  
,it was to help us along in our daily   
toil4  ,mrs4 ,julia ,robinson was one of
 the lovely ladies at the ,ferry1 also1 
and all of the teachers boarded there4  
,she has a number of the students that  
board with her and she is much beloved4 
,mrs4 ,bell was one of the ladies that  
kept boarders and she is much beloved4  
,mr4 ,w4 ,m4 ,bell is one of the        
teachers and all love him as a teacher4 
,mr4 ,j4 ,trinkle1 who keeps one of the 
halls in the ,summer time has a number  
of boarders1 and does well all of the   
,summer months and in the ,winter he    
teaches in or near the ,ferry4 ,with it 
all they are all doing what they can to 
help to forward the interest or an      
education in all of that section1 and ,i
 really think that part of the country  
will show a larger percentage of those  

that have been educated through the     
churches than could have been taught in 
the public schools1 for the terms are so
 very short that it is hard for the     
people to get a start4  ,but ,god has   
wonderfully blessed the teachers that   
have been sent on there from the ,north 
to look after the interests of the      
negroes4 ,they love the work of the     
school-room1 and it is their meat and   
their drink daily to give away what they
 have received4 ,the ,word says that it 
is more blessed to give than to receive1
 and we are always ready to receive from
 the hands of our earthly friends1 and  
it is much greater to receive from ,god4
  ,mr4 ,thomas ,lovett has two lovely   
little girls1 named1 respectively1      
,florence1 the eldest1 and the other    
,shoelett1 and they are very smart4 ,mr4
 ,lovett has built a hill-top house in a
 lovely place4 ,it is filled in the     
,summer time1 while he has music for the
 boarders4 ,that makes it pleasant      
during the warm weather of the ,summer  

months1 and it is one of the loveliest  
places that can be found on the ,b4  ,o4
 ,railroad1 and the white people go     
their from all parts4  ,i had the       
pleasure of stopping there on my way    
home in #ahie1 and it did my soul good  
to find such a fine house built by one  
of the colored gentlemen and one that ,i
 had known1 for ,i was at his mother's  
boarding house for the whole time that  
,i was at the ,ferry4 ,he was teaching  
school then in the ,winter time and     
looking after his mother's business in  
the ,summer time4 ,so ,i am glad that   
some of my people are trying to make an 
honest living4 ,he is one among the many
 at the ,ferry that are keeping boarding
 houses2 and ,i am thankful for all that
 comes to us as a race4 ,i hope1 as ,i  
have often heard dear ,dr4 ,fulton say  
that he wanted to see the race go       
forward1 and ,i pray that the time is   
not far distant when all of the friends 
of the negroes shall see them making men
 and women of themselves1 and then the  

grand problem will be solved4 ,then we  
shall be glad1 for ,i am grieved night  
and day for my own people1 and ,i feel  
so grateful to ,god for letting me see  
and to know that ,i have such a good    
friend as ,dr4 ,fulton is4 ,he shall be 
loved by me as long as ,i live1 and ,i  
hope that he will ever be loved by all  
that shall read this life of mine1 for  
he has been a father to me and ,i am one
 that always remembers a kindness as    
long as any one will do one for me4 ,god
 will bless those that will think of me 
in love4  ,as this day has been one of  
quiet to me ,i have wondered what it    
would be to me if ,i could look into    
those bright mansions above and see my  
two mothers' faces4 ,what a joy there   
would be at the sight of them seeing me 
and of me seeing them1 and we all       
singing1      ,holy1 holy1 holy1 ,lord  
,god ,almighty4       ,early in the     
morning our songs shall rise to ,thee2  
,holy1 holy1 merciful and mighty1       
,casting down their golden crowns around

 the glassy sea4  ,and what a glory it  
will be for all that have washed their  
robes and made them white in the blood  
of the ,lamb2 and ,i know that two      
darling mothers have washed their robes 
and made them white1 and to ,god be all 
the praise for the great love that ,he  
has shown to poor me1 who feels so      
lonely on this lovely ,lord's day4 ,how 
much have ,i found in ,his service1 too1
 and if ,i could be able to go there    
to-night ,i feel that ,i should be      
blessed1 but ,i have to stay at home    
to-night as ,i have not been well for a 
month or more4 ,i feel grateful as can  
be that ,i could be out this morning1   
and ,i will pay vows unto my ,god as    
long as ,i shall live1 for ,he is my    
rock and my hiding place in the time of 
trouble4 ,i have had a storm of them and
 it is to ,him ,i fly to shield my soul 
from the evil one1 and knowing as do how
 many hard spells ,i have had1 it is    
right for me to be as careful as ,i can1
 taking the ,lord for my healer4 ,how   

,he has blessed me so many times when   
there were no other hopes for me to     
build on1 ,i have found that ,i could   
trust in ,his almighty power4  ,i shall 
not forget the kind care of ,dr4        
,matthews1 of this lovely city1 whom    
,god gave to me when ,i was very low and
 the three times a day that he paid his 
visits to see how ,i was getting along4 
,he was so kind in his words to comfort 
me and to give my mother cheer ,i shall 
always think of him kindly1 for the snow
 was so deep that a horse could not     
travel very well and he had to walk it  
three times a day4 ,i had not my white  
mother then to care for me1 but my own  
mother did what she could for me and ,i 
know that she has her reward in heaven  
for all that she has ever done for me in
 the times when ,i needed the most care4
  ,there is good ,dr4 ,reeves1 a good   
,quaker doctor1 and ,i had to have him  
to attend me4 ,he was very kind and     
gentle in his treatment of me and ,i am 
very glad that ,i found such a friend in

 him1 for he was like a father to me8 ,i
 shall not overlook dear ,dr4 ,warmsley1
 who was a good doctor to me and he was 
kind as he could be1 and ,i shall not   
forget him1 although ,i have not seen   
him for a long time4  ,what shall ,i say
 of the last doctor that ,i was under   
out ,west1 and that is ,dr4 ,j4 ,w4     
,ford1 who was so kind to me as a       
stranger4 ,he would come when he was    
sent for4 ,it made no difference what   
time of day or night4 ,it might be you  
would find him on his way where he was  
sent for and sometimes he would be on   
the road all night long1 for he is the  
best doctor in the county1 and ,i was   
going to say the best in the ,state of  
,west ,virginia4 ,they all send for him2
 far and near1 where they have any      
fever1 and he is so good in fevers1     
through the ,lord1 he is sure to bring  
them out of if they do as he tells them4
 ,may the ,lord give him a good long    
life to do the will of ,him who is the  
greatest doctor after all4 ,and if we   

only put our trust in ,him we shall find
 that ,he will make our sick bed easy   
for us and ,he will carry us all the way
 while we are sick1 for ,he has borne   
our sorrows and sickness4  ,to my story 
as a school girl3 ,it was full of sweet 
love and regard1 for ,i gained favor    
with all of the teachers and professors 
and all of the pupils4 ,the ,lord be    
praised for all of this love and joy    
that came to me in my school days4 ,then
 the love that came from the ,washington
 ,avenue ,baptist ,church of sending me 
the sum of twenty or thirty dollars to  
help me in paying my expenses was of the
 greatest love for one in a school1 as  
,i wanted to pay as ,i went1 and then   
the ,sunday-school would send me their  
money1 one of the dear1 loving favors of
 ,god's love1 and naming each time from 
which the money came and sending it     
through the ,board at ,chicago4 ,then   
,mrs4 ,conley or ,mrs4 ,connell sent it 
to me and the ,board sent the same way  
when my own beloved church sent me      

money4 ,it was in the time of ,mrs4     
,sarah ,fulton and she did not forget me
 when ,i was in school4 ,the ,mission   
,band of our church sent me some money  
every year after the first year that ,i 
went to school4 ,sometimes it was to the
 answer of my prayers that the money    
came at the time ,i needed it to pay my 
board and ,god be praised for those who 
from the bottom of their hearts         
contributed in the grand and good work  
of education4 ,for all that ,i shall do 
in this life to help some one that needs
 help1 ,i shall think of the ,lord's    
love to me and try and do what ,i can to
 bring them to the ,lamb of ,god that   
taketh away the sins of the world1 and  
to ,god ,i owe my life and my all1 and  
if ,i should fail to love and honor ,him
 ,i know that ,he will not remember me  
before ,his dear ,father in heaven4     
,mr4 ,william ,lovett1 the father of a  
large family1 is one of the finest      
gentlemen anywhere around the whole     
country1 and is much beloved by all who 

know him4 ,the white people who board   
with him in the ,summer time all liked  
him1 for he was so nice and quiet4 ,he  
has a large family of girls and boys and
 all are smart4 ,he sent two of them to 
the ,hillsdale ,college when they had   
finished at the ,ferry1 and one was     
,john ,lovett1 who studied law1 and the 
other one1 ,miss ,etta ,lovett1 was a   
fine school teacher and a music teacher4
  ,i have just learned that the last one
 of the girls has married1 and that is  
the youngest of the family4 ,they all   
have good partners for life1 which does 
not come to all large families4 ,god    
bless such a father and mother1 who have
 taken such good care of the training of
 their children4  ,mr4 ,john ,lovett was
 one of the teachers of whom ,i shall   
speak of1 as ,i boarded in their house  
for four years4 ,a more lovely woman    
never lived than his mother4 ,she is    
known far and wide as one of the best   
ladies to keep boarders and she has a   
lovely family of girls and boys4 ,mr4   

,thomas ,lovett is a doctress1 who is   
one of the finest ladies that lives4    
,she is from the ,north and she has some
 of the best people of the ,northern    
cities that she waited on1 and they love
 her to-day for the kind care that she  
had for them4  ,miss ,emma ,carter is   
one of the teachers1 and ,miss ,lizzie  
,sims1 ,miss ,frances ,sims1 ,mr4       
,burrell and ,mr4 ,c4 ,h4 ,plummer2 and 
of later years ,miss ,mary ,brackett has
 gone there as one of its teachers and  
there are others that have gone there as
 teachers4 ,the dear good work is going 
on in the strength of the ,lord and ,i  
hope that ,he will still bless his work4
 ,the same that ,i said of ,miss ,c4 ,l4
 ,franklin ,i will say of ,miss ,lulia  
,brackett1 who is married now and is    
still one of its beloved teachers4 ,she 
loves the work of teaching the negroes  
better than her own life and all that   
she has in ,maine4 ,god bless those dear
 teachers1 as they labor there for my   
own dear people whom ,god has blessed in

 getting an education4  ,miss ,lulia    
,brackett married a ,mr4 ,loughtner1 who
 is a school master for the whites at   
the ,ferry1 and who is a fine school    
teacher and whom the people like very   
much4 ,it is a joy to meet him on his   
way to his school-house4  ,mr4 ,william 
,bell is one of the the teachers whom we
 all love dearly1 and he taught school  
outside for a while before he came to   
teach at the college4 ,he had the       
greatest success as a teacher4 ,may ,god
 bless those faithful ones as they are  
far from their homes1 family1 friends   
and loving ones4  ,i had the pleasure of
 working for a fine family in ,brooklyn 
by the name of ,davis1 and ,i found them
 all a lovely family4 ,i had the        
pleasure of going away in the country   
one ,summer to a place called           
,flemington1 ,n4 ,j41 and we had a fine 
time as it was his father and mother's  
home1 and they had a dairy farm and all 
of the nice things that one finds in the
 country4 ,i was not well while there as

 it was low land1 and one of their      
daughters was not well1 so ,i feeling   
that ,i would be better to come home    
they got ready and come on home1 and ,i 
left them and went to my home where ,i  
could rest4 ,in the ,fall ,i was so much
 better that ,i was able to go back out 
,west and take up my work again4 ,when  
,i had finished my public school ,i     
taught a pay school for the ,summer and 
had a large number of scholars1 and they
 progressed well4 ,some of them would go
 without their food all day to study    
extra lessons4  ,it would be all of a   
joy to the whole world to have seen how 
well all of the girls1 boys1 young men  
and young ladies did in all of the      
schools where ,i have had the pleasure  
of teaching4  ,i have never taught in   
any school with any other teacher or    
teachers1 and ,i was so much more       
blessed1 for all teachers have a way of 
their own4 ,the new teacher always makes
 so much change in a school and in the  
pupils1 ,i found that to do good work in

 school ,i should stay long in one      
place1 that ,i might bring the scholar  
near to me4 ,sometimes ,i have had it   
rough1 but in it all ,i can see the hand
 of ,god leading me to do all that ,i   
could to help forward the great cause of
 education in those parts where there   
was so much need4  ,i have just learned 
that the ,rev4 ,j4 ,d4 ,fulton has had a
 stroke and ,i cannot tell how he is at 
this time1 but ,i can not do any work   
until ,i hear from him1 as ,i have had  
my mind on him for some time1 as he was 
somewhere in ,massachusetts and ,i had  
not heard from him for some time4 ,the  
last time that ,i heard from him he was 
not well1 and ,i knew that he was so    
great for working that ,i feared he     
would break down4  ,so ,i wrote to ,mrs4
 ,wamsley1 his daughter1 and shall wait 
to hear how he is1 for ,i know she will 
let me know at once as she is there with
 her father4  ,i have heard from her and
 he is better1 thank ,god1 and not dead1
 as so many thought1 for he does so much

 work that no one thought that he could 
get over it4  ,and here on this #bjth   
day of ,january ,i fell sick myself and 
have not been able to take up my work   
until the #dth day of ,march1 and once  
more in the strength of the ,lord ,i    
have taken up this work and hope to push
 it as fast ,i can1 and ,i hope to      
finish it in the near future if the     
,lord wills4 ,i hope that all who will  
may have the pleasure of knowing of     
something of the joys and of the sorrows
 that have crowned this little life of  
mine1 but in and through it all ,i have 
seen the blessed hand of ,him who is    
wise4  ,march #dth1 #ahig4         99   
99       99       99       99           
,transcriber's ,note3 ,the following    
errors in the text have been left       
uncorrected from the original4  ,page   
#h3 the ,house's took off ,page #af3    
formed like her's ,page #di3 all of whom
 are are very fine ,page #eh3 like a    
father to me8 ,page #fj3 ,mr4 ,thomas   
,lovett is a doctress1 who is one of the

 finest           ladies that lives4    
,page #fa3 one of the the teachers