how?' I 'lows, 'Uncle Ben, it is a great matter of life and death
dat I wishes to consult wid you over'. He clear his throat and spit in
de fire and say, 'Wait, I'll come if it's dat urgent.' I took him under
a tree so dat no dew wouldn't drap on his head and give him a cold. I
said, 'I want to marry your daughter, uncle Ben.' He say, 'Which one is
dat dat you wishes, Sir?' 'De purttiest one, Carrie,' says I; 'dat is,
if you ain't got no objection.'

"Befo' I axed fer Carrie I was loving two gals, but of course I drapped
de other'n after uncle Ben give me a favorable answer. Me and Carrie
married at Miss Twitty Thompson's house. Dat whar uncle Ben had raised
Carrie. Carrie's missus give her a good wedding supper wid chicken, ham,
turkey, cake and coffee, and tater salad. Seventy-five people is what
Miss Twitty let Carrie ax to dat supper. All dem niggers was dere, too.

"I had on a grey suit wid big stripes in it. Carrie had on a white dress
and a white veil. We used dat veil to keep de skeeters off'n our first
two babies. It made de best skeeter net. We married one Sunday morning
at 'leven o'clock and had dinner at twelve; give de preacher twenty-five
cents. Never no one give us no presents. We stayed at my pappy's house
fer years. He give us a bed, a bureau and a washstand. Carrie's folks
give us de bed clothes, and dats what we started on. Jesse, tell de
gentleman what you did at my wedding."

"I stood wid Green," said Jesse Stevenson, "and I had on a brown suit
wid grey stripes gwine up and down it. Atter de ceremony all de gals
wanted to swing me and Green, but Carrie grabbed him and shake her head
and grin; so I got all de swinging."

Green said, "Me and Carrie never went no whar atter our marriage. We
stayed on wid my pappy and worked. We been doing well ever since."

=Source:= W. M. Green (71); Jesse Stevenson (71), Rt. 1, Gaffney, S.C.
Interviewer: Caldwell Sims 8/23/37

Project #-1655
Phoebe Faucette
Hampton County

Approx. 390 words
FOLKLORE

ADELINE GREY 82 YEAR OLD
Ex-Slave

Adeline Grey seemed in good health as she sat before her granddaughter's
comfortable fire. She spoke quietly, with little excitement, and readily
recalled events of her early childhood.

"I was a girl when freedom was declare, an' I kin remember 'bout de
times. My Ma used to belong to ole man Dave Warner. I remember how she
used to wash, and iron, an' cook for de white folks durin' slavery