on Street,
Raleigh.

I wuz borned in Union County to Sarah an' Henderson Tomberlin. My
mother belonged to Mr. Moses Coverson, an' my pappy belonged to Mr.
Jackie Tom Tomberlin. I stayed wid my mammy, of course, an' Marster
Moses wuz good ter me. Dey warn't so good ter my mammy, case dey makes
her wuck frum sunup till sundown in de hot summertime, an' she ain't had
no fun at all. She plowed two oxes, an' if'en yo' has eber been around a
steer yo' knows what aggravatin' things dey is.

De oberseer, whose name I'se plumb forget, wuz pore white trash an' he
wuz meaner dan de meanest nigger. Anyhow I wuz too little ter do much
wuck so I played a heap an' I had a big time.

My mammy, died 'fore I wuz very old an' missus kept me in de house. I
wuz petted by her, an' I reckon spoiled. Yo' knows dat den de niggers
ain't neber eat no biscuits but missus always gimmie one eber meal an'
in dat way she got me interested in waitin' on de table.

I wuzn't old enough ter know much, but I does 'member how de fambly hid
all de valuables 'fore de Yankees come, an' dat Marster Moses in
pickin' up de big brass andirons hurt his back an' dey said dat dat wuz
de cause of his death a little while atterwards. Anyhow de andirons wuz
saved an' dar warn't no trouble wid de Yankees who comed our way, an'
dey ain't hurt nobody dar.

Dey did kill all de things dat dey could eat an' dey stold de rest of
de feed stuff. Dey make one nigger boy draw water fer dere hosses fer a
day an' night. De Yankees wuz mean 'bout cussin', but de southern
soldiers wuz jist as bad. Wheeler's Cavalry wuz de meanest in de whole
bunch, I thinks.

De Ku Kluxes wuz pretty mean, but dey picked dere spite on de Free
Issues. I doan know why dey done dis 'cept dat dey ain't wantin' no
niggers a-favorin' dem nigh by, now dat slavery am ober. Dey done a heap
of beatin' an' chasin' folkses out'n de country but I 'specks dat de
Carpet Bagger's rule wuz mostly de cause of it.

I married Daniel Coverson, a slave on de same plantation I wuz on, an'
forty years ago we moved ter Raleigh. We had a hard time but I'se glad
dat he an' me am free an' doan belong ter two diff'ent famblies.

AC

N. C. District: No. 2 [320212]
Worker: Mary A. Hicks
No. Words: 914
Subject: Ex-Slave Story
Story Teller: Willie Cozart
Editor: Daisy Bailey Waitt

[TR: No Date Stamp]

EX-SLAVE STORY

An Interview by Mary A. Hicks with Willis C