After which the overseer
would talk. When communion was given the overseer was paid for staying
there with half of the collection taken up, some time he would get 25?.
No one could read the Bible. Sandy Jasper, Mr. Ashbie's coachman was the
preacher, he would go to the white Baptist church on Sunday with family
and would be better informed because he heard the white preacher.
"Twice each year, after harvest and after New Year's, the slaves would
have their protracted meeting or their revival and after each closing
they would baptize in the creek, sometimes in the winter they would
break the ice singing _Going to the Water_ or some other hymn of that
nature. And at each funeral, the Ashbies would attend the service
conducted in the cabin there the deceased was, from there taken to the
slave graveyard. A lot dedicated for that purpose, situated about 3/4 of
a mile from cabins near a hill.
"There were a number of slaves on our plantation who ran away, some were
captured and sold to a Georgia trader, others who were never captured.
To intimidate the slaves, the overseers were connected with the
patrollers, not only to watch our slaves, but sometimes for the rewards
for other slaves who had run away from other plantations. This feature
caused a great deal of trouble between the whites and blacks. In 1858
two white men were murdered near Warrenton on the road by colored
people, it was never known whether by free people or slaves.
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