hirts and pants
made from de looms. Us kept dem clean't and ironed jes' like de Marster
and de young marsters done their'n. Den us wore a string tie, dat de
white folks done let us have, to church. Dat 'bout de onliest time dat a
darky was seed wid a tie. Some de oldest men even wore a cravat, dat dey
had done got from de old marster. Us combed our hair on Sunday fer
church. But us never bothered much wid it no other time. During slavery
some o' de old men had short plaits o' hair.

"De gals come out in de starch dresses fer de camp meeting. Dey took dey
hair down out'n de strings fer de meeting. In dem days all de darky
wimmens wore dey hair in string 'cep' when dey 'tended church or a
wedding. At de camp meetings de wimmens pulled off de head rags, 'cept
de mammies. On dis occasion de mammies wore linen head rags fresh
laundered. Dey wore de best aprons wid long streamers ironed and
starched out a hanging down dey backs. All de other darky wimmens wore
de black dresses and dey got hats from some dey white lady folks; jes'
as us mens got hats from our'n. Dem wimmens dat couldn't git no hats,
mostly wore black bonnets. De nigger gals and winches did all de
dressing up dat dey could fer de meeting and also fer de barbecue.

"At night when de meeting dun busted till nex' day was when de darkies
really did have dey freedom o' spirit. As de waggin be creeping along in
de late hours o' moonlight and de darkies would raise a tune. Den de air
soon be filled wid the sweetest tune as us rid on home and sung all de
old hymns dat us loved. It was allus some big black nigger wid a deep
bass voice like a frog dat ud start up de tune. Den de others mens jine
in, followed up by de fine lil voices o' de gals and de cracked voices
o' de old wimmens and de grannies. When us reach near de big house us
soften down to a deep hum dat de missus like! Sometime she his't up de
window and tell us sing 'Swing Low Sweet Cha'ot' for her and de visiting
guests. Dat all us want to hear. Us open up and de niggers near de big
house dat hadn't been to church would wake up and come out to de cabin
door and jine in de refrain. From dat we'd swing on into all de old
spirituals dat us love so well and dat us knowed how to sing. Missus
often 'low dat her darkies could sing wid heaven's 'spiration
(inspiration). Now and den some old mammie would fall out'n de waggin a
shoutin' Glory and Hallelujah and Amen! After dat us went off to lay
down fer de night.