on de other end en us chillun would give dem
a shove dat would send dem flyin round fast as I could say
mighty-me-a-life. My blessed a mercy, child, it would most bout knock de
sense out dem what been on dere. Yes, mam, everybody would be crazy to
ride on de flyin mare. All de neighbor's chillun would gather up en go
in de woods en jump en shout bout which one turn come to ride next. I
tellin you, dem was big pleasures us had in dat day en time en dey never
cost nobody nothin neither."

"Well, Mr. Brown, he was mighty good to his colored people, so I hear my
parents say. Would allow all his niggers to go to de white people church
to preachin every Sunday, Cose my father, he was de carriage driver en
he would have task to drive de white folks to church on a Sunday.
Yes'um, dem what been belong to Mr. Brown, dey had dey own benches to
set on right up dere in de gallery to de white people church, but I hear
talk dat some of dem other white people round bout dere never wouldn'
let dey colored people see inside dey church no time. Lord, I talk bout
how de people bless wid privilege to go to church like dey want to in
dis day en time en don' have de mind to serve de Lord like dey ought to
no time. Cose dere a man comes here every Sunday mornin in a car en
takes me out to church. Ain' no kin to me neither. He late sometimes en
de preacher be bout out wid de sermon, but I goes anyhow en gets all I
can. Look like de Lord bless me somehow, cripple up as I is, I say."

"De shake! Oh, I remember it well cause I been a grown girl den.
Everybody thought it was de Jedgment en all de people was runnin out en
a hollerin. I thought it was de last myself en I livin here to tell de
people, I was sho scared. I been out to de well bout 12 o'clock de next
day en I could see de water in de well just a quiverin. Lord, Lord, dat
water tremble bout four weeks after dat. Such a hollerin en a prayin as
de people had bout dat shake. No'um I was livin down dere to Tabernacle
den en dere wasn' none of de houses round us destroyed. No, child, won'
no harm done nowhe' dat I knows of only as a heap of de people been so
scared, dey never didn' grow no more."

"Yes'um, I think bout here de other night dat I had make you a promise
to fetch you up some of dem signs de olden people used to put faith in.
Dere one sign bout if you hear a dog howl or a cow low round your house
on a night, it a pretty good sign you gwine lose somebody out dat house.
I finds dat