But those pleasant times didn't last too long. I often saw slaves beaten and sometimes killed. Life was especially hard for nice looking slave women who caught the master's eye. They would get whipped severely for being caught with other slave men that they liked themselves . No one was ever punished for these crimes. I also noticed that the slaves who were the easiest to whip got the most whippings. I began to question things: "Why am I a slave? Why are some people slaves and others masters." Especially when I knew of other Blacks who were not slaves and would hear of other slaves who ran away and were never caught.