is a different situation, so we would like that permit that has expired retak-- our recourse is to revo, and we can move forward with the additional permit. is that clear? >> it is for a clear. -- it is very clear. when you purchase a house, you purchase it with the assumption it was a single family dwelling? >> it said on known -- unknown. >> it seems to state it was a one-family dwelling. >> but was of dated a few months ago, because i did some research, -- it was updated a few months ago, because i did some research, and they determined it was a single family dwelling instead of on k unknown. >> when you purchase it, it said unknown? so they have done a defacto merger. we will work that out. >> the permits they polled to make it legal to units, none of the work was done. >> thank you. >> good evening superior del -- good evening. i would like to run through the history of this issue. historically, there has been an illegal units. in 2007, a few months later, the variance was granted, and a permit was issued to do the work but was required end to the elias -- that was required to lega

>> guest: a million moving to four million by the time of the revo--of the civil war. c-span: now i remember a figure you had in here of 197 free blacks--197,000 free blacks. >> guest: right. right. there are about 500,000 by the end of my period. c-span: by the end of your period? >> guest: mm-hmm. c-span: could have the s--they have the same rights as everybody else? >> guest: no. their s--their citizenship is circumscribed very definitely, again, depending upon the states. they could not serve in the militia, and this often prevented them from voting. it was really a catch-22. they couldn't vote because they couldn't serve in the militia. and also the--they were often in the--in court action. they couldn't be witnesses against a white person, which was very difficult for people in business, because if they didn't have a bill paid to them, they didn't have the same access to the courts. in other free blacks, their lives, their civic personality was circumscribed dramatically. c-span: you write that washington irving coined the phrase 'the almighty dollar.' >> guest: