ticello, happen 'long one day, see my
pappy and give a thousand dollars for him, to dat speculator. I thank
God for dat!

"Dr. Furman, my old marster, have a brudder called Jim, dat run de
Furman School, fust near Winnsboro, then it move to Greenville, S. C.

"My mistress name Nancy. Her was of de quality. Her voice was soft and
quiet to de slaves. Her teach us to sing:

'Dere is a happy land, far, far 'way,
Where bright angels stand, far, far 'way,
Oh! How them angels sing!
Oh! How them bells ring!
In dat happy land, far, far 'way!'

"Dere was over a thousand acres, maybe two thousand in dat old Furman
place. Them sawmill folks give $30,000.00 for it, last year.

"My pappy and mammy was field hands. My brudders and sisters was:
Liddie, Millie, Ria, Ella, Harriet, Thomas, Smith, and Marshall. All
dead but me and Marshall.

"I was fifteen when de Yankees come thru. They took off everything,
hosses, mules, cows, sheep, goats, turkeys, geese, and chickens. Hogs?
Yes sah, they kill hogs and take off what parts they want and leave
other parts bleedin' on de yard. When they left, old marster have to go
up into Union County for rations.

"Dat's funny, you wants to set down dere 'bout my courtship and weddin'?
Well, sir, I stay on de old plantation, work for my old marster, de
doctor, and fell head over heels in love wid Carrie. Dere was seven more
niggers a flyin' 'round dat sugar lump of a gal in de night time when I
breezes in and takes charge of de fireside cheer. I knocks one down one
night, kick another out de nex' night, and choke de stuffin' out of one
de nex' night. I landed de three-leg stool on de head of de fourth one,
de last time. Then de others carry deir 'fections to some other place
than Carrie's house. Us have some hard words 'bout my bad manners, but I
told her dat I couldn't 'trol my feelin's wid them fools a settin'
'round dere gigglin' wid her. I go clean crazy!

"Then us git married and go to de ten-acre quarry wid Mr. Anderson. I
work dere a while and then go to Captain Macfie, then to his son, Wade,
and then to Marse Rice Macfie. Then I go back to de quarry, drill and
git out stone. They pay me $3.50 a day 'til de Parr Shoals Power come in
wid 'lectric power drills and I was cut down to eighty cents a day. Then
I say: 'Old grey hoss! Damn 'lectric toolin', I's gwine to leave.' I
went to Hopewell, Virginia, and work wid de DuPonts for five years. War
come on and they ask me to work o