Incidents in the life of a slave girl.: Written by herself. Edited by L. Maria Child.

Childhood.
assisted by her two oldest children. Tlie business
proved profitable; and each year she laid by a little,
which was saved for a fund to purchase her children.
Her miaster died, and the property was divided among
his heirs. The widow had her dower in the hotel,
which she continued to keep open. M{y grandmotlher
remained in her service as a slave; but her children
were divided among her master's children. As she
had five, Benjamin, the youngest one, was sold, in
order that each heir might have an equal portion of
dollars and cents. There was so little difference in
our ages that he seemed more like my brother than
my uncle. He was a bright, handsomle lad, nearly
white; for he inherited the complexion my grandmother had derived from Anglo-Haxon ancestors.
Though only ten years old, seven hundred and twenty
dollars were paid for him. His sale was a terrible
blow to my grandmother; but she was naturally hopeffil, and she went to work with renewed energy, trusting in time to be able to purchase some of her children.
She had laid up three hundred dollars, which her
mistress one day begged as a loan, promising to pay
her soon. The reader probably knows that no promise
or writing given to a slave is legally binding; for,
according to Southlern laws, a slave, being, property,
can hold no property. When my grandmother lent
her hard earnings to her mistre's, she trusted solely
to her honor. The honor of a slaveholde,r to a slave!
To this good grandmother I was indebted for many
comforts. M{y brother Willie and I often received
portions of the crackers, cakes, and preserves, she
made to sell; and after we ceased to be children we
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