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about a year ago, and was leased in lots of an acre and a quarter (1 1/4) by Mr. Cook, the owner, to the freedmen, for one (1) year at give dollars ($5.00) per lot: but a very small proportion of the rent has been paid, and the owner was unwilling to lease to the same parties for the present year. The freed people have refused to pay the back rent, or to leave the premises. Some injudicious and ignorant persons had advised them to remain upon the lands, as a matter of right, and had thus fomented considerable discontent and bad feeling. Upon a number of other farms in the neighborhood of Yorktown, which were formerly in possession of the Bureau, viz, the Dr. Powers' farm, Saunders' farm, Warren farm, Jones farm and Winn farm there are at present about seven hundred (700) freedmen (in the aggregate) collected. These farms have all been restored, and the owners are desirous to have the freedmen removed.

I visited the camps on the Cook and Powers farms, went into many of the cabins, and conversed with the peoples. I did not find so much evidence of destitution as I expected: on the contrary, the people were well dressed, and appeared to have sufficient food and fuel.

There is probably a surplus colored population of five hundred (500) in this immediate locality, but from conversations with residents and officers, I became satisfied that there is sufficient employment for their surplus laboring class in the adjoining 

Transcription Notes:
---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-11-10 16:55:49 ---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-11-11 09:49:17 replaced 'based' with 'leased',