Terrance Maier
History 380
Joan Gittens
First Paper Assignment – Option 2
BF: Mr. Douglass what would you consider to be one of the most important traits that helped you
along the way?
FD: I credit much of my success to education. Not just reading and writing, but all sorts of
education. As you know, I spent time in the shipyard as a young boy, and calking was another
trait in which I used quite often. I did not have the formal, classroom, education like the white
children of my age, so I had to learn by different approaches. As a boy, I would go to the
shipyard. Once I realized that the letters on the different pieces of wood stood for where the
wood would go on the ship, I used it to my advantage. I knew that SF meant starboard front, so I
would tell the other boys that I knew more than they did. Once I showed them which letters I
knew, the boys would prove me wrong, but in their proving they were also teaching me other
letters. I would also point to different words and state that the word meant something which I
would make up. Once the other person would tell me what it meant I would put it in my
vocabulary.
BF: Ah yes, education. I concur. I received my share of formal education, but was not allowed to
finish my schooling due to my father taking me from school and putting me to work making
candles and soap. I was head of my class for some time. Although I enjoyed writing and excelled
in it, I was a poor student in mathematics. Possibly the most important trait I was ever taught was
the skill of debating. Debating came in quite useful in many different areas of my life. I cannot
exclude my skills as a printer though. What started off as a job with my brother, James, became a
gateway to my future, as well as creating many opportunities and connections for me. I enjoyed
the printing life, and after hearing my brother, James, praise some of my work I developed a
confidence in my writing abilities. James and I quarreled often though. After numerous fights
with James I destructed my contract with him, and as a result he made sure I would not be hired
by any other printers in Boston. This gave me the courage to travel to New York at 17 years of
age.
FD: Developing courage is something I am accustomed to! I understand as well as anyone that
moving to a new place is what it takes to better one’s situation, I attempted multiple times to
escape different masters. I had some friends with me whom were also willing, and because they
saw me as the leader of our group, I knew courage was something that must be developed and
harnessed quickly. Since I was the one who could write among the group, I created notes for all
