as happy in slavery, and dat
dey had de worst tribulations after freedom, but I knows dey didn't
have no white master and overseer lak we all had on our place. Dey
both dead now I reckon, and dey no use talking 'bout de dead, but I
know I been gone long ago iffen dat white man Saunder didn't lose his
hold on me.

It was de fourth day of June in 1865 I begins to live, and I gwine
take de picture of dat old man in de big black hat and long whiskers,
setting on de gallery and talking kind to us, clean into my grave wid
me.

No, bless God, I ain't never seen no more black boys bleeding all up
and down de back under a cat o' nine tails, and I never go by no cabin
and hear no poor nigger groaning, all wrapped up in a lardy sheet no
more!

I hear my chillun read about General Lee, and I know he was a good
man, I didn't know nothing about him den, but I know now he wasn't
fighting for dat kind of white folks.

Maybe dey dat kind still yet, but dey don't show it up no more, and I
got lots of white friends too. All my chillun and grandchillun been to
school, and dey git along good, and I know we living in a better
world, what dey ain't nobody "cussing fire to my black heart!"

I sho' thank de good Lawd I got to see it.

Oklahoma Writers' Project
Ex-Slaves

MORRIS SHEPPARD
Age 85 yrs.
Fort Gibson, Okla.

Old Master tell me I was borned in November 1852, at de old home place
about five miles east of Webber's Falls, mebbe kind of northeast, not
far from de east bank of de Illinois River.

Master's name was Joe Sheppard, and he was a Cherokee Indian. Tall and
slim and handsome. He had black eyes and mustache but his hair was
iron gray, and everybody liked him because he was so good-natured and
kind.

I don't remember old Mistress' name. My mammy was a Crossland negro
before she come to belong to Master Joe and marry my pappy, and I
think she come wid old Mistress and belong to her. Old Mistress was
small and mighty pretty too, and she was only half Cherokee. She
inherit about half a dozen slaves, and say dey was her own and old
Master can't sell one unless she give him leave to do it.

Dey only had two families of slaves wid about twenty in all, and dey
only worked about fifty acres, so we sure did work every foot of it
good. We git three or four crops of different things out of dat farm
every year, and something growing on dat place winter and summer.

Pappy's name was Caesar Sheppard and Mammy's name wa