y had fresh meat, cake, syrup puddin' and plenty of good sweet
butter what she 'lowanced out to her slaves at Christmas. Old Marster,
he made syrup by de barrel. Plenty of apples and nuts and groundpeas was
raised right dar on de plantation. In de Christmas, de only wuk slaves
done was jus' piddlin' 'round de house and yards, cuttin' wood, rakin'
leaves, lookin' atter de stock, waitin' on de white folks and little
chores lak dat. Hard work started again on de day atter New Year's Day.
Old Marster 'lowed 'em mighty little rest from den 'til atter de craps
was laid by.

"Course Marster let his slaves have cornshuckin's, cornshellin's, cotton
pickin's, and quiltin's. He had grove atter grove of pecan, chestnut,
walnut, hickor'nut, scalybark, and chinquapin trees. When de nuts was
all gathered, Old Marster sold 'em to de big men in de city. Dat was why
he was so rich. Atter all dese things was gathered and tended to, he
give his slaves a big feast and plenty to drink, and den he let 'em rest
up a few days 'fore dey started back to hard wuk.

"I never seed but one marriage on Old Marster's plantation, and I never
will forgit dat day. Miss Polly had done gimme one of little Miss Mary's
sho' 'nough pretty dresses and I wore it to dat weddin', only dey never
had no real weddin'. Dey was jus' married in de yard by de colored
preacher and dat was all dere was to it.

"Ma used to tell us if us didn't be-have Raw Head and Bloody Bones would
come git us and take us off. I tried to see him but I never did. Grown
folks was all time skeerin' chillun. Then us went to bed at night, us
used to see ghosties, what looked lak goats tryin' to butt us down. Ma
said I evermore used to holler out in my sleep 'bout dem things I was so
skeered of.

[HW sidenote: Home remedies]

"White folks was mighty good and kind when deir slaves got sick. Old
Marster sont for Dr. 'Pree (DuPree) and when he couldn't git him, he got
Dr. Brown. He made us swallow bitter tastin' powders what he had done
mixed up in water. Miss Polly made us drink tea made out of Jerusalem
oak weeds. She biled dem weeds and sweetened de tea wid syrup. Dat was
good for stomach trouble, and us wore elder roots strung 'round our
necks to keep off ailments.

"Mercy me! I'se seed plenty of dem yankees a-gwine and comin'. Dey come
to our Marster's house and stole his good mules. Dey tuk what dey wanted
of his meat, chickens, lard and syrup and den poured de rest of de syrup
out o