Again, the amount of money and lands that the Negro secured during the reconstruction period might be an interesting subject for investigation. The Negro legislator had the same privilege as the white one to sell his vote and influence. Nor could there be little doubt that he failed to use the opportunity. The following story is credited to Senator Z. B. Vance of North Carolina:[136:16] A Negro member of the North Carolina legislature was found chuckling to himself over a pile of money which he was counting. “What amuses you so?” he was asked. “Well, boss,” he replied, grinning from ear to ear, “I’s been sold in my life ’leven times, an’ fo’ de Lord, dis is de fust time I eber got de money.” During the Reconstruction period taxes became so oppressive that thousands and thousands of farms and plantations were sold at auction for taxes. In some places land became almost valueless. It is hardly to be doubted that many Negroes who got easy money through politics at this time failed to use some of it in the purchase of land. Now, what is the reason for the poverty of the Negro? Indeed, from the foregoing it must appear that poverty is a more appropriate word to use in such connection than wealth. The answer is not far to seek. It is the natural result of the Negro character, disposition, and training. The following letter is suggestive: “ . . . ‘I have done my work practically the whole summer with the exception of a few weeks that I had a trifling no account Negro, and even then I had to do the best portion of it in order to get them to accomplish anything. When they would wash and iron, those days I did everything else and they helped a little with the ironing, for if I didn’t they would never get through. They [Negroes] are absolutely worthless, and if I didn’t have small children I wouldn’t let one light within a mile of me. . . .”[137:17] A Negro who worked in the strawberry section of Delaware told the writer a few years ago that although he usually worked in the daytime he roved about every night. It happened that once, when he had been carousing as usual on the night before, that he was put to harrowing strawberries. About three o’clock in the afternoon the overseer came along and found that he was harrowing up the strawberries from one end of the row to the other,—he was so sleepy. The overseer simply told him to put his horse in the stable and go to bed, which he did. As he got some sleep, when night came he was out again for a great part of the night; and so on.