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Writes Letter On His 75th Birthday.
Langley Correspondent Gives Brief History of His Life,
Struggles For An Education.
This is Sunday, the 22nd day of January, 1928, and is the 75th birthday of
this writer. According to the record in the Bible, I was born in Carrol
Parish, Louisiana, Jan. 22nd 1853. (I) was brought up without an education
as far as book learning was concerned. I got what little I ever had by
picking up scraps of old newspapers, reading what I could get together of
them and would sometimes get hold of an almanac and would read that. I
finally got a Blue Back spelling book and an arithmetic (book) and finished
up my education. So you all can give a pretty close guess at my education.
I drifted north with my father's family during the Civil War and about the
year of 1872 I found myself in the north part of Pike county and am now
living about seven miles from where I first stopped, where I find good
health and good people, no frog ponds, no mosquito dins and alligator pools,
but plenty of squirrels and old field rabbits. We are expecting the Sheriff
and his force to pay us mountain folks a visit now in a few days to take up
what loose change we have and maybe some that is not loose. This letter is
concluded Monday morning. Mrs. Sarah Bankston, wife of W.S. Bankston, of
Newhope, departed this life Sunday at 2:20 o'clock p.m. Aunt Sarah as she
was generally known and called was about 77 years old and has been in poor
health for several years, and was a sister of this writer. Burial will be
this afternoon at what is known as the Lowery Grave yard.
Pete Jones
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Pike County Courier, Volume 40, Number 4, January 27, 1928, page 1,
column 5.
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