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Harrisonburg, V.a. Oct. 15th 1869

Rev. R. M. Manly,
Richmond, V.a

Dear Sir,

Can you do anything towards rendering justice to a colored man who has probably been imposed on by a white? There is now no agent of the Freedman' Bu., and I know not where to go for aid. The circumstances are these.

A colored man named Anderson Smith, wishing to sow some wheat, bought eleven (11) bushels yesterday about twelve oclock of a white man who came along with some to sell. The man had a "two horsed-wagon", sold the wheat for 1.05 a bushel, rec'd the money for the same, and passed on. Smith did not ask his name, never saw him before, and knows nothing more about him.

This morning a white man named Head came to his house accompanied by a constable, stated that last night five bushels of his wheat were stolen from his barn, that he had "tracked it" by Smith's house to the house of another colored man named "Fields", that he got a 'search warrant' and searched Fields house but found no wheat, then came back to his (Smith) asked him if he had any wheat. Smith said "yes". (Before I go on allow me to state what I should have done before. Before they (Head and the constable) came this morning Anderson, Smith's brother, John Smith, - the two live together - bought five bushels of wheat of a Mr Ott, a white citizen here, 

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