pened during slavery time and wuz told ter me by
father wuz this; The master had a old man on his plantation named
Jimson. Well, Jimson's wife wuz sick and had been fer nearly a year. One
day there she wanted some peas, black eyed peas; but old man Harper
didn't have none on his plantation, so Jimson planned ter steal off that
night and go ter old Marse Daniel's farm, which wuz 4 miles from Marse
Harper's farm, and steal a few peas for his wife. Well, between midnight
and day he got a sack and started off down the road. Long after while a
owl started hootin, sho-o-o are-e-e, who-o-o-o-, and it wounded jest lak
someone saying 'who are you.' Jimson got scared, pulled off his cap and
run all the way to old man Daniel's farm. As he run he wuz saying, "Sir,
dis is me, old Jimson" over and over again. Now, when he got near the
farm Old Daniel heard him and got up in the loft ter watch him. Finally
old Jimson got dar and started creeping up in the loft. When he got up
dar, chile, Marse Daniel grabbed his whip and 'most beat Jimson ter
death.

"This here story happened in Mississippi years ago, but den folks that
tell it ter me said it wuz the trufe. 'There wuz a woman that wuz sick;
her name wuz Mary Jones. Well, she lingered and lingered till she
finally died. In them days folks all around would come ter the settin-up
if somebody wuz dead. They done sent some men after the casket. Since
they had ter go 30 miles they wuz a good while getting back, so the
folkses decided ter sing. After while they heard the men come up on the
porch and somebody got up ter let 'em in. Chile, jest as they opened the
door that 'oman set straight up on that bed; and sech another runnin and
getting out of that house you never heard; but some folks realized she
wuzn't dead so they got the casket out der way so she wouldn't see it,
cause they wuz fraid she would pass out sho nuff; jest the same they wuz
fraid of her, too. The man went off and come back with postols, guns,
sticks, and everything; and when this 'oman saw 'em she said, 'don't
run, I won't bother you.' but, chile, they left there in a big hurry,
too. Well, this here Mary went to her sister's house and knocked on the
door, and said: 'Let me in. This is Mary. I want to talk to you and tell
you where I've been.' The sister's husband opened the door and let her
in. This 'oman told 'em that God had brought her to and that she had
been in a trance with the Lord. After that every one wuz always a