a
chimbly made out of sticks and mud. Dem homemade beds what us slep' on
had big old high posties wid a great big knob on de top of each post.
Our matt'esses was coarse home-wove cloth stuffed wid field straw. You
know I laked dem matt'esses 'cause when de chinches got too bad you
could shake out dat straw and burn it, den scald de tick and fill it wid
fresh straw, and rest in peace again. You can't never git de chinches
out of dese cotton matt'esses us has to sleep on now days. Pillows? What
you talkin' 'bout? You know Niggers never had no pillows dem days,
leaseways us never had none. Us did have plenty of kivver dough. Folkses
was all time a-piecin' quilts and having quiltin's. All dat sort of wuk
was done at night.

"Pappy's Ma and Pa was Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Jacob. Day was field
hands, and dey b'longed to Marse Obe Jackson. Grandma Lucy and Grandpa
Toney Murrah was owned by Marse Billy Murrah. Marse Billy was a preacher
what sho could come down wid de gospel at church. Grandma Lucy was his
cook. Miss Sadie LeSeur got Grandma Lucy and tuk her to Columbus,
Georgy, and us never seed our grandma no more. Miss Sadie had been one
of de Vinson gals. She tuk our Aunt Haley 'long too to wait on her when
she started out for Europe, and 'fore dey got crost de water, Aunt
Haley, she died on de boat. Miss Sarah, she had a time keepin' dem
boatsmens from th'owing Aunt Haley to de sharks. She is buried in de old
country somewhar.

"Now Missy, how was Nigger chillun gwine to git holt of money in slavery
time? Old Marse, he give us plenty of somepin t'eat and all de clothes
us needed, but he sho kep' his money for his own self.

"Now 'bout dat somepin t'eat. Sho dat! Us had plenty of dem good old
collards, turnips, and dem sort of oatments, and dar was allus a good
chunk of meat to bile wid 'em. Marse Ike, he kep' plenty of evvy sort of
meat folkses knowed about dem days. He had his own beef cattle, lots of
sheep, and he killed more'n a hunnert hogs evvy year. Dey tells me dat
old bench dey used to lay de meat out on to cut it up is standin' dar
yet.

"'Possums? Lawd, dey was plentiful, and dat ain't all dere was on dat
plantation. One time a slave man was 'possum huntin' and, as he was
runnin' 'round in de bresh, he looked up and dar was a b'ar standin'
right up on his hind laigs grinnin' and ready to eat dat Nigger up. Oh,
good gracious, how dat Nigger did run! Dey fetched in 'possums in piles,
and dere was lots of rabb