arster Jim Roberts wus his name. He would take his niggers an strip
there clothes to dere waist an' lay dem 'cross a barrel an beat dem 'til
the blood run. Den he would pore salt water on de sore places."

"Oh 'member one time he tied two wimmen by dere thumbs to a limb of a
tree for blessin' out the missus."

"Us had plenty to eat and plenty to wear, calico dresses an' brogan
shoes. Sometimes dere misses would give the wimmen some of her old
clothes".

"All de niggers on Marster Charlie's plantation had to work in de field
'cept Malindy Lu, a Mulatto nigger gal. Marster Charlie kept her in de
house to take care of Missus Jane, dat wuz Marster Charlie wife."

"One thing 'bout de mulatto niggers, wuz, dey thought dey wuz better
than de black niggers. I guess it wuz 'cause dey was half white. Dere
wuz a bad feelin' 'tween the mulatto slaves an de black ones."

Asked, how did the slaves marry? She replied, "Ah jest don't 'member
seeing any marry 'cause ah wuz so small. Ah wuz jest eleven years old de
time of de war but ah' members hearing some of dem say dat when two
slaves wanted to git married dey would hafta get permission from dere
marster. Den dey would come 'fore de marster an' he would have dem to
jump over a broom an den 'nounce dem married."

"When de Yankees come thru" de white folks told us to go down to de
swamp an hide cause dey would git us. When de war wuz over de white
folks told us we wuz free."

"Marster Terrell gave my mammy an pappy a oxcart an mule an a bushel of
meal. Den my pappy an mammy come got me an my sister an' brother. Den we
come from Randolph, Alabama to Georgia."

"Sometimes I wish I wuz back in slavery, times is so hard."

Mrs. Washington's chief concern now is getting her old-age pension.

PLANTATION LIFE AS VIEWED BY AN EX-SLAVE

GREEN WILLBANKS, Age 77
347 Fairview Street
Athens, Georgia

Written by:
Mrs. Sadie B. Hornsby
Athens

Edited by:
Mrs. Sarah H. Hall
Athens

and
John N. Booth
District Supervisor
Federal Writers' Project
Residencies 6 & 7
Augusta, Georgia

Sept. 19, 1938

Fairview Street, where Green Willbanks lives is a section of shabby
cottages encircled by privet hedges.

As the visitor carefully ascended the shaky steps to his house a mulatto
man, who was sitting on the veranda, quickly arose. "Good morning," he
said, "Yes mam, this is Green Willbanks. Have a seat in the swing." The
porch furniture was comprised of a chair, a swing, and