$8,000 of Jeff Davis fodder what de white folks
th'owed 'way atter de War. Us chillun picked it up and played wid it.

"What did us have t'eat? Oo-o! Dey give us plenty good victuals. Dere
was bread and meat; peas, greens, and other vegetables; all de milk us
wanted, and sometimes dere was good old gingercakes made wid sorghum
syrup. As for me, I laked fried fat meat and cornbread cooked in de
ashes better dan greens and sweet things any old time. All de cookin'
was done in great big open fireplaces dat was plum full of ovens,
skillets and all sorts of long handled pans and things. Gentlemen! Dat
pot would bile down wid dem peas in it 'fore you knowed it if you didn't
watch it close. Dere never was no other bread good as what us baked in
dem ovens and in de ashes.

"'Possums! You jus' makes my mouth water, talkin' 'bout 'possums. Folks
thought so much of deir 'possum dogs dem days dey fed 'em 'til dey was
jus' fat and lazy. Dey cotched de 'possums, singed and scraped de hair
off of 'em, finished dressin' 'em and drapped 'em in de pot to bile 'til
dey was tender. Den dey put 'em in bakin' pans and kivvered 'em over wid
strips of fat meat and baked 'em jus' as nice and brown, and if dey had
good sweet 'tatoes, dey roasted 'em in de ashes, peeled 'em, and put 'em
on de big old platters wid de 'possums. Rabbits was plentiful too and I
loves 'em 'til dis good day. Most of de young tender rabbits what dey
cotched was fried, but if dey brung in some old tough ones dey was
throwed in de pot wid a piece of fat meat and biled 'til dey was done.
Squirrels was cooked jus' lak rabbits. Dere was plenty of fish down dar
in Greene County whar us lived, but I never did eat 'em. Slaves would
wuk all day and fish all night, but you never did ketch Dosia foolin'
'round no fish ponds. Slave famblies was 'lowed to have little gyarden
patches if dey wanted 'em. I ricollect how I used to go to de gyarden in
de winter and cut down collards atter frost had done hit 'em and fetched
'em to de house to be biled down for dinner.

"What us wore in summer? Well, it was lak dis--little Nigger chillun
didn't stay out of de branch long 'nough to need much clothes in hot
weather, but in de winter dey give us dresses made out of coarse cloth
wove on de loom right dar on de plantation. Some of dem dresses was red
and some was blue. De cloth was dyed wid red oak bark and copperas, and
dey used indigo what dey raised on de place to dye de blue cloth. De
wa