wuk jus' to
start de year right and us feasted dat day on fresh meat, plenty of
cake, and whiskey. Dere was allus a big pile of ash-roasted 'taters on
hand to go wid dat good old baked meat. Us allus tried to raise enough
'taters to last all through de winter 'cause Niggers sho does love dem
sweet 'taters. No Mam, us never knowed nothin' 'bout Santa Claus 'til
atter de war.

"No Mam, dere warn't no special cornshuckin's and cotton pickin's on
Marse Alec's place, but of course dey did quilt in de winter 'cause dere
had to be lots of quiltin' done for all dem slaves to have plenty of
warm kivver, and you knows, Lady, 'omens can quilt better if dey gits a
passel of 'em together to do it. Marse Alec and Marse Lordnorth never
'lowed dere slaves to mix up wid other folkses business much.

"Oh Lord! Us never played no games in slavery times, 'cept jus' to run
around in a ring and pat our hands. I never sung no songs 'cause I
warn't no singer, and don't talk 'bout no Raw Head and Bloody Bones or
nothin' lak dat. Dey used to skeer us chillun so bad 'bout dem sort of
things dat us used to lay in bed at night a-shakin' lak us was havin'
chills. I've seed plenty of ha'nts right here in Athens. Not long atter
I had left Crawfordville and moved to Athens, I had been in bed jus' a
little while one night, and was jus' dozin' off to sleep when I woke up
and sot right spang up in bed. I seed a white man, dressed in white,
standin' before me. I sho didn't say nothin' to him for I was too
skeered. De very last time I went to a dance, somepin got atter me and
skeered me so my hair riz up 'til I couldn't git my hat on my haid, and
dat cyored me of gwine to dances. I ain't never been to no more sich
doin's.

"Old Marster was powerful good to his Niggers when dey got sick. He had
'em seed atter soon as it was 'ported to him dat dey was ailin'. Yessum,
dere warn't nothin' short 'bout our good Marsters, 'deed dere warn't!
Grandpa Stafford had a sore laig and Marse Lordnorth looked atter him
and had Uncle Jim dress dat pore old sore laig evvy day. Slaves didn't
git sick as often as Niggers does now days. Mammy Mary had all sorts of
teas made up for us, 'cordin' to whatever ailment us had. Boneset tea
was for colds. De fust thing dey allus done for sore throat was give us
tea made of red oak bark wid alum. Scurvy grass tea cleant us out in the
springtime, and dey made us wear little sacks of assfiddy (asafetida)
'round our necks to keep off lo