Viewing page 28 of 257

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

of Almighty God deposes and says
  "That my name is Washington Bobbitt a man of colour about thirty years of age, of sound mind and body a labourer, engaged in farming and my home is in the adjoining county of Halifax . That from the product of my labour  this present year and [[strike]] family [[/strike]] previously I have saved enough for the support of myself and family another year. That before the emancipation of my race in this county, I was the slave of Mr Kinchen Bobbitt now, and then, of the county of Warren aforesaid,-  I had for a wife a slave of Nathl Nicholson Esqr of Warren County aforesaid who died about the year 1863, and while I had her for a wife, I had and lived with no other woman as such. That by her I had a son born about the year 1855 named Thomas a slave also of the said Nicholson.
    That is the year 1866 when I was informed that I was entitled to the civil rights of a man and a citizen of the state, I  called upon the said Nicholson and respectfully demanded of him the custody of my child, as being his lawful father. He received [[?]] treated me with courtesy , acquiesced in the rightfulness of my demand but requested as a favour, that I would [[strike]] present [[/strike]] let the boy remain with him until the ensuing christmas and discharge his [[insert]] ^daily [[/insert]] duties because he had not nor could procure any person at that time to take his place. I consented to this arrangement , it being agreed by Mr Nicholson that I should come at Christmas and get him.
  A the time agreed on between us I went to Mr Nicholson to receive my child and met with the cruel revelation from him, that he would not let me have my boy, and more cruel still, that he had got the County Court of Warren to bind the boy to him until he was twenty one  years of age. Ignorance and poverty caused me to submit to this seeming cruel injustice for several months, and during which