Page:Fifty Years in Chains, or the Life of an American Slave.djvu/56

54 It is the custom throughout all the slave-holding States, amongst people of fashion, never to speak of their negroes as slaves, but always as servants; but I had never before met with the keeper of a public house, in the country, who had arrived at this degree of refinement. I had been accustomed to hear this order of men, and indeed the greater number of white people speak of the people of color as niggers.

We remained at this place more than two weeks; I presume because my master found it cheaper to keep us here than in town, or perhaps, because he supposed we might recover from the hardships of our journey more speedily in the country.

As it was here that my real acquaintance with South Carolina commenced, I have noted with more particularity the incidents that occurred, than I otherwise should have done. This family was composed of the husband, wife, three daughters, all young women, and two sons, one of whom appeared to be about twenty, and the other, perhaps seventeen years old. They had nine slaves in all, one very old man, quite crooked with years and labor — two men of middle age — one lad, perhaps sixteen — one woman with three children, the oldest about seven, — and a young girl of twelve or fourteen, The farm, or plantation, they lived on, contained about one hundred and fifty acres of cleared land, sandy, and the greater part of