I was on the train with mama today when I saw a white man with a sling on his arm. I couldn't see his face too well there was something covering it. He was with a black man I think it was his slave. I never seen a man and his slave so close like that. When I asked mama why she said not all the men know how to handle their slaves. Then I asked her if he hits his slave sometimes, like daddy does. She said all slaves have to be hit so they can keep being good slaves. She said if you become too nice to them they forget they are slaves and stop doing their work. I don't think that's true. After daddy brought me Nina he never hit her for a long time and she still did everything i think. Daddy was nice to her but mama didn't like her when I asked why she said because nina was no good and nina was trying to steal mama's place. When I ask mama if nina can come on the train with us to go places mama always got mad. But if the man on the train can bring his slave I don't know why mama don't bring ours. I like nina and I wish she could come places with us. I wonder why that man had his arm in a sling. Hopefully it's not broken when Jeremy our other slave broke his arm mama and daddy got really mad. I don't want his mama and daddy to be mad at him too.
(From a small white (slaveholding) child's journal on the day she saw William and Ellen Craft on the train.)
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