B00DSGY9XW EBOK Read Online Free PDF

it?” Sissy asked.
    “About two hundred acres” I replied.
    We continued looking at the various bucks that were going to be offered. While Sissy’s eyes seemed to fall on the larger more muscular slaves, mine fell to the more normal range. As we made our way through the groups of sellers we finally ran back into father.
    “Well?” Father asked.
    “Well?” I responded.
    “Samuel and I found several worth bidding on. Did you fine another wench that interests you?” Father asked.
    It hadn’t occurred to me that I’d not told father that it was a buck I was interested in.
    “Not especially, but we’ll see what comes across the block. Let’s get closer they are about to start the auction.” I said.
    We made our way to the central auction block, there were two lines. The main line that everyone seemed so interested in was the one with the large field hands, the strong males who were obviously better workers. The second line was mostly women and children. There were some adolescents and a few uncles in the line as well a hand full of bucks that seemed defective. Some were just really small, others had limbs missing or were scared from multiple whippings. The auction got under way and they began bringing the niggers through. It was the first auction that I’d ever been to so I was a little nervous. The auctioneer was talking really fast and it was hard to keep up with what was happening. They would bring a slave from the main line, followed by one from the second line. Sometimes they would bring up a wench and a child or two and sell them as a set in order to bring a higher price and move the auction along faster.
    I waited and watched as slave after slave was brought through and sold. The larger bucks sold quickly, some for as little as six hundred while others sold for more. The large buck that Sissy was eyeing earlier that day sold for thirteen hundred dollars. I was surprised by the prices. I thought I would wait. I was hoping that as the day went on, people would leave and the prices would come down.
    The morning turned to afternoon and the auction was still running. Some of the people had left as I had thought they might, but not as many left as I’d hoped. Father had purchased two of the larger bucks. He’d spent fifteen hundred dollars so far. Finally they brought up a young buck from the line with the women and children. He looked to be maybe eighteen to twenty years old and had already experienced the whip a time or two. I watched as the first bid came at one hundred dollars, followed by another for a hundred and fifty. Then there was silence except for the auctioneer asking for higher bids.
    “Going once” The auctioneer said. “Twice”
    “Two hundred” I said.
    The entire crowd of people turned and looked at me. I guess they hadn’t expected to hear the voice of a woman bidding on slaves. The fact was that there were only a handful of women even attending the auction and I was clearly the youngest.
    “Rebekah?” Father asked.
    Samuel looked at me with a puzzled look on his face.
    “Two hundred from the young lady in the blue dress!” The auctioneer said. “Two fifty? Do I hear two fifty?”
    Maybe the other bidders were too shocked to continue bidding, maybe they didn’t think the buck was worth two fifty, but the next thing I remember hearing was the voice of the auctioneer saying sold.
    “Rebekah, why did you bid on that buck?” Father asked.
    “Because I wanted him” I said.
    “Why?” He asked.
    “I’m not sure” I replied.
    Father looked at me with puzzled disbelief. Samuel smiled as if he were trying not to laugh at me and Sissy just kept her head down.
    “Samuel, go with her to claim him” Father ordered.
    I followed Samuel to the small desk to the side of the auction block. We waited in the small line until we were up.
    “Number 318” Samuel told the man at the desk. He pulled out a deed of ownership and asked Samuel to sign.
    “Shouldn’t I be the one to sign it?” I