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knew that many white people did not like any blacks.
George did not know why. The Bible said it was
wrong to hate another person – hate was a sin. And a
sin was a weakness in the eyes of God.
Then one summer day, something terrible happened in Fort Scott. A mob of white men and women
murdered a black man, and George saw everything
they did. They dragged the man out of the city jail,
beat him, and killed him right on the street. Their
faces were full of hate. George never wanted to see
those faces again. The next day, he left Fort Scott for
good.
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George went to another town in Kansas. Then he
went to another, and another, and another. He
stopped in any town where there was a school, and
where he could find work. Some of the schools
George went to were just for blacks. Some were for
both black and white children. George learned
everything he could in each school, and then he
moved on. He was sure that some day he would
finish all the grades. He knew what he would do
then. He would go to college.
As he traveled from town to town, George was
always alone. He saved enough money to buy an
accordion, and he taught himself to play it. Music
made him feel less lonely.
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