wife. I settled on some
land and we cut some trees and split them open and stood them on end
with the tops together for our house. Then we deadened some trees and
the land was ready to farm. There was some wild cattle and hawgs and
that's the way we got our start, caught some of them and tamed them.

"I don't know as I 'spected nothin' from freedom, but they turned us out
like a bunch of stray dogs, no homes, no clothin', no nothin', not
'nough food to last us one meal. After we settles on that place, I never
seed man or woman, 'cept Govie, for six years, 'cause it was a long ways
to anywhere. All we had to farm with was sharp sticks. We'd stick holes
and plant corn and when it come up we'd punch up the dirt round it. We
didn't plant cotton, 'cause we couldn't eat that. I made bows and
arrows to kill wild game with and we never went to a store for nothin'.
We made our clothes out of animal skins.

"We used rabbit foots for good luck, tied round our necks. We'd make
medicine out of wood herbs. There is a rabbit foot weed that we mixed
with sassafras and made good cough syrup. Then there is cami weed for
chills and fever.

"All I ever did was to farm and I made a livin'. I still makes one,
though I'm purty old now and its hard for me to keep the work up. I has
some chickens and hawgs and a yearling or two to sell every year.

420173

AUNT PINKIE KELLY, whose age is a matter of conjecture, but who
says she was "growed up when sot free," was born on a plantation in
Brazoria Co., owned by Greenville McNeel, and still lives on what
was a part of the McNeel plantation, in a little cabin which she
says is much like the old slave quarters.

"De only place I knows 'bout is right here, what was Marse Greenville
McNeel's plantation, 'cause I's born here and Marse Greenville and Missy
Amelia, what was his wife, is de only ones I ever belonged to. After de
war, Marse Huntington come down from up north and took over de place
when Marse Greenville die, but de big house burned up and all de papers,
too, and I couldn't tell to save my life how old I is, but I's growed up
and worked in de fields befo' I's sot free.

"My mammy's name was Harriet Jackson and she was born on de same
plantation. My pappy's name was Dan, but folks called him Good Cheer. He
druv oxen and one day they show me him and say he my pappy, and so I
guess he was, but I can't tell much about him, 'cause chillen then
didn't kno