JAMES CAMPBELL, 86; SLAVE IN WEST VIRGINIA. OHIO #127

     WELL, I WAS BORN IN MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA, ON JANUARY 15 1852, JUST
A FEW MILES FROM UNION, WEST VIRGINIA.
     MY MAMMY WAS DINNAH ALEXANDER CAMPBELL AND MY PAPPY WAS LEVI CAM BnLL jND3T
HEY BOTH CAME FROM MONROE COUNTY.  THAT IS ABOUT THE ONLY PALCE I HEARD THEM SPE
AK ABOUT.
     ,HERE WAS LEV , FL;Y<, HENRY, NOAH, AND MAN.Y, JUST *YHALF BROTHERS AND SI
STERS, BUT I NEVER KNEW NO DIFFERENCE BUT WHAT THEY WAS MY SISTERS AND BROTHERS.
     WHERE WE LIVED?  ON MARSE JOHN ALEXANDER'S FARM.  HE WAS A GOOD MARSE, TOO.
  ALL MARSE JOHN WANTED WAS PLENTY OF WORK DONE AND WE DONE I,,  O;,2 O ,HnRE6WA
S NO TROUBLE ON OUR PLANTATION.  I NEVER RECOLLECT ANYONE GETTING WHIPPED OR BAD
 TREATMENT6FROM8HI*.  I DO REMEMBER THAT SOME6OF ,HE N  !HS2S Y3,((YWAS TREA
TED PRETTY MEAN, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER MUCH ABOUT IT CAUSE I WAS LITTLE THEN.
     >HERE DID I SLEEP?  I NEVER FORGIT THAT TRUNDLE BED ,HAT I2s  PTI  .
     MARSE JOHN'S PLACE WAS A KIND OF STOCK FARM AND I DID THE MILKING.
YOU ALL KNOW THAT WAS EASY LIKE SO I JUST KEEP BUSY MILKING AND GOT OUT OF THE H
ARD WORK.  ANOTHER THING I LIKED TO DO WAS PICK BERRIES, THAT WAS EASY TOO, SO I
 DONE MY SHARE PICKING.
     MONEY?  LAWSY CHILD, I NEVER DONE SEEN ANY MONEY UNTILL AFTER I CAME tO GAL
LIPOLIS AFTER THE WAR.  AND NOW I LIKE TO HEAR IT JINGLE, IF I JUST HAD TWO CENT
S, I WOULD MAKE IT JINGLE.
     WE ALL HAD PLENTY AND GOOD THINGS TO EAT, BEANS, CORN, POTATOES,-Mn O S jND
 HOT MUSH, CORN BREAD; WE JUST SAW WHITE FLOUR ONCE rN A WHrLE.
     YES MAM, WE HAD RABBIT, WILD TURKEY, PHEASANTS, AND FbH. I'M TELLING YOU,
 THAT RIFLE PAPPY HAD SURE COULD KILL THE GAME.
     ANOTHER GOOD OLD TIME WAS MAPLE SUGAR MAKI G TrM(,-  St$Y   nE& TNIGHT BY
 LIME STONE BURNING.  YES, I HELPED WITH THE MOLASSES AND ALL THE TrmE&I6f S3 HI
NKING ABOUT THEM HOT BISCUITS, HAM MEAT, CORN BREAD AND MOLASSES.
     WE-LIVED rN A C BrN-ON-MjSE-JOqN'SPLACE.  THERE WAS NOT MUCH IN THE CABIN
 BUT MY MAMMY KEPT IT MIGHTY CLEAN.  SAY, I CAN SEE THAT OLD FIRE PLACE WITH THE
 BIG LOGS BURNING RIGHT NOW, AND SMELL THAT GOOD COOKING, ALL DONE IN IRON-POTS
 AND SKILLETS.  AND ALL THE COOKING AND HEATING WAS DONE BY wOoD,6fHY&INEVER SA
W A LUMP OF COAL ALL THE TIME I WAS THERE.  WEALL HAD TO CUT SO MUCH WOOD AND PI
LE IT UP TWO WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS, AND THEN WHEN OUR PILE WAS CUT, THEN OUR
WORK WAS DONE, SO WE JUST HAD A GOOD TIME.
     WE ALL WORE JEANS CLOTHES, JUST PANTS AND A JACKET.  rN THE2SuMmnR6fECHILD
REN ALL WENT BAREFOOT, BUT IN THE WINTER WE ALL WORE SHOES.
     OLD MARSE JOHN AND HIS FAMILY LIVED IN A BIG FINE BRICH qOUSE. MARSE JOHN
HAD THESE CHILDREN, MISS BETTY AND MISS ANN AND THERE WAS MARSE MIKE AND MARSE J
OHN.  MARSE JOHN, HE WAS SORT OF SPOILED LIKE.  HE WENT TO THE WAR AND RAN
AWAY FROM HARPER'S FERRY AND CAME HOME JUST SCARED TO DEATH.  HE GOT HIMSELF A P
AIR OF CRUTCHES AND NEVER WENT BACK.  MARSE JOHN USED THEM CRUTCHES UNTIL AFTER
THE WAS WAS OVER.  THEN THERE WAS OLD MISSY KIMBERTON, THE GRANDMOTHER.  SHE WAS
 PECULIAR BUT PRETTY GOOD, SO WAS MARSE'S CHILDREN.
     OLD MARSE JOHN HAD ABOUT TWENTY SLAVES SO THE WORK6W SNOT SO BAD ON NONE O
F US.  I CAN JUST SEE THEM OLD BINDERS AND HARROWS NOW, THAT THEY USED THEN.  IT
 WOULD SURE LOOK FUNNY USING THEM NOW.
     I ALWAYS GOT UP AT6FOUR6OC OCK IN ,HE R
                                            I G  OGET IN THE COWS AND I DIDN
'T HURRY NONE, CAUSE THAT TAKE IN THE TIME.
     OUR MAMMY NEVER ALLOWED THE OLD FOLKS TO TELL US CHILmRnN2SCjRY2StOrI S&  O
UT HANTS AND SUCH LIKE SO THERE ARE NONE FOR ME TO REMEMBER.
     TRAVELLING WAS RATHER SLOW LIKE.  THE ONLY WAY WAS IN OX CARTS OR ON qOSE
BACK.  WE ALL DIDN'T HAVE MUCH TIME FOR TRAVELLING.  OUR MARSE WAS TOO GOOD TO T
HINK ABOUT RUNNING AWAY.
     NONE OF MY FAMILY COULD READ OR WRITE.  I LEARNED TO READ AND WRITE AFTnR I
 CAME NORTH TO OHIO.  THAT WAS THE BIGGEST THING I EVER TACKLED, BUT ITMADE ME
THE HAPPIEST AFTER I LEARNED.
     WE ALL WENT TO SUNDAY SCHOOL AND MEETING.  YES MAM, WE HAD tO6wOKON
SUNDAYS, TOO, IF WE DID HAVE ANY SPARE TIME, WE WENT VISITING  ON SATURDAY
     I REMEMBER ONE OF THE NEIGHBOR BOYS TRIED TO RUN AWAY AND THE PATROLS GOT H
IM AND FETCHED HIM BACK AND HE SURE DID GET A WALLOPING FOR IT.  THAT TOOK
ANY SUCH NOTION OUT OF MY MIND.  THEM PATROLLERS KEPT US SCARED TO DEATH ALL THE
 TIME.  ONE, HENRY JONES, RAN OFF AND WENT CLEAN UP NORTH SOME PLACE AND THEY-NE
VER DID GET HIM.  COURSE, WE ALL WAS SURE POWERFUL GLAD ABOUT HIS ESCAPING.
     WE WERE NEVER ALLOWED OUT OF THE CABIN AT NIGHT.  BUT SOME TIMES THEOLDER
ONES WOULD SNEAK OUT AT NIGHT AND TAKE THE HORSES AND TAKE A LITTLE RIDE.  AND
 MAN IT WOULD HAVE BEEN JUST TOO BAD IF OLD MARSE JOHN HAD CAUGHT cHnm.   H T6fA
S SURE HEAPS OF FUN FOR THE KIDS.  I REMEMBER HEARING ONCE THE OLD FOLKS
TALKING ABOUT THE WAY ONE MARSE DONE SOME BLACK BOYS THAT DID SOMETHING WRONG.
 HE JUST MADE THEM BITE THE HEADS OFF OF TOBACCO WORMS;  MYSnLF&I6wOulDRATHER T
AKE A LICKING.
     ON CHRISTMAS DAY, WE WOULD GET FIRE CRACKERS AND DRr K2kr n<,,3 H TWAS
ALL.  THAT DAY WAS ONLY ONE WE DIDN'T WORK.  ON SATURDAY EVENINGS WE WOULD MOLD
CANDLES, THAT WAS NOT SO BAD.
     THE HAPPIEST TIME OF MY LIFE WAS WHEN CAPTAIN TIPTON, A YANKEE SOLDIER, CAM
E AND
 TOLD US THE WAR WAS OVER AND WE WERE FREE. CAPTAIN TIPTON SAI :"yOU&jrE cHE
BOYS WE DID THIS FOR."  WE SURE DIDN'T LOSE ANY TIME GETTING AWAY; NO MAM.
     WE WENT TO LEWISBURG AND THEN UP TO CHARLESTON BY WAGON jND THnN  O K3 (EG
VERNMENT BOAT, GENERAL CROOK, AND IT BROUGHT US HERE TO GALLIPOLIS IN 1865.  THA
T OHIO SHORE SURE LOOKED PRETTY.
     I AM SURE THANKFUL TO MISTER LINCOLN FOR6>HAT8HE DID6oOR  SFOLKS, BUT THAT
 JEFF DAVIS, WELL I AIN'T SAYING WHAT I AM THINKING.
     THAT IS JUST LIKE THE WORLD, THERE IS LOTS OF GOOD AND LOTS OF BAD IN IT.
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