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disposed to be kind and just to their former slaves, but there are some whose conduct towards this unfortunate race is both dishonest and cruel, not to say barbarous — As an instance of the latter spirit I will relate a most outrageous piece of villainy that was perpetrated some four miles from this place on last Saturday evening when I was at Surry Court House on my return from Richmond.

On said evening a white man named Phil Williams called at the house of a well-behaved negro named Tom King and asked him to accompany him down the road — Tom did so and soon found soon found himself in the presence of four other persons — viz — Evans Partridge, George Gilliam and Charles Hood of Sussex County and a certain George Clements of Southampton. They first charged him with having made disparaging or false statements in regard to the character of Williams, then stripped him to the waiste, forced him to lie down on the ground on his belly, and gave him one hundred and fifty lashes, and only stopped whipping him when he had acknowledged all they asked him to acknowledge — Williams, Partridge and Gilliam were those who laid on the lashes, but the other two stood near by and gave these men their countenance.

After whipping Tom they proceeded to his house and took from it his sister-in-law Tempe King — a young colored woman big with child, lifted up her clothing in a most indecent and shameful manner, and gave her a severe whipping on her naked body.

The next morning Tom came to my Office to report, but I was not there — On my arrival yesterday evening however I was informed of the occurrence, and to day Tom returned and on examining his person, I found his back covered with great welts, the 

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