ions, black
pepper an' boiled eggs. Some of de folks used cheese too in dis
dressin'.

"De griddle cakes wus flour an' meal mixed, put on a big ole iron
griddle on de fireplace an' flipped over two times. Ashe cake wus made
of either meal or flour, wrapped in a damp cloth an' cooked in de hot
ashes on de h'ath. Taters wus cooked in de ashes too an' dey wus good
like dat. I'se heard mammy say dat de slave chilluns uster bake onions
dat way.

"Fish, dem days, wus dipped in meal, 'fore dey wus cooked, 'cept cat
fish; an' dey wus stewed wid onions.

"Cornmeal dumplin's wus biled in de turnip greens, collards, cabbages,
an' so on, even ter snap beans, an' at supper de pot licker wus eat
wid de dumplin's. Dat's why de folks wus so healthy.

"Speakin' 'bout sweets, de blackberry or other kind of pie wus cooked
in a big pan wid two crusts. Dat made more an' wus better ter boot.
Cakes wus mostly plain or had jelly fillin', 'cept fer special company.

"From the first I could 'member de white folks an' niggers alike ain't
had much ter eat. A heap of our rations wus vege'ables, squirrels,
rabbits, possums an' coons. We drunk parched meal water fer coffee an'
we done widout a heap of things, but atter awhile we got richer, an'
Marse James got some money for something from de No'th, so dey got
'long all right.

"When I wus twelve we moved ter Wake County, out near Wendell an' when
I wus thirteen I married Sam Wright, an' we got along fine till he dies
'bout ten years ago. We ain't had but three chilluns but we lived
through a heap of bad depressions.

"What we needs mostly am law an' justice. Why hit wus better when de Ku
Kluxes had law, dey tells me. Now-a-days de nigger fights on de streets
like dogs. Back den de bossman seed to hit dat dar wus law an' order in
de town an' in de country too fer dat matter, an' dem wus de good ole
days."

EH

N.C. District: No. 2
Worker: T. Pat Matthews
No. Words: 1,017
Subject: DILLY YELLADAY [TR: or YELLADY?]
Story teller: Dilly Yelladay
Editor: Geo. L. Andrews

[TR: Date stamp: JUL 24 1937]

DILLY YELLADY [TR: or YELLADAY?]
909 Mark Street

"Yes sir, I 'members 'bout what my mammy tole me 'bout Abraham Lincoln,
Grant, an' a lot of dem Yankees comin' down ere 'fore de surrender.
Frum what dey tole me Sherman knowed de south like a book 'fore he come
thro' last time. Dat he did. Yankees come thro' dressed like tramps an'
dey wu