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The traders were calm when they took us - they have had practice and know what they are doing. We were chained, each to the other by hands and feet and made to walk the long road. I knew where we were going - a nine day walk to the coast where we would be sold to the white men. This was the time to escape but there was no chance. On the first day my partner in chains fell to the floor, twisting and foaming at his mouth. The traders saw his weakness and kicked and whipped him all the way to the coast. Any chance for me to run disappeared then. If I had worked in the goldmine or even in the fields I might have walked easier. The heat, weight of the metal, insects and distance hurt so much. I was almost happy when we felt the sea breeze and saw the blue of the water. The white of the sails on the white men's ship was less comforting.
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