e.
I don' brag on myself, but if I could work like I used to, I wouldn' ax
nothin from nobody. I had a family of white people to send for me de
other week to come en live wid dem en dey would take care of me, but I
never had nobody to trust aun' Sallie wid. You see, child, she such a
helpless, poor creature just settin dere in dat bed all de time en can'
see to do one thing widout I give her my hand. Cose de government helps
aun' Sallie, but dat ain' me. En, honey, I ain' even able to stand up en
iron, I has dis rheumatism so bad. It hurts me so terrible at night, I
has to keep my foots out from under de cover. It a sort of burnin
rheumatism like. Yes, mam, it does worry me right smart."

"Oh, my Lord, I was raise down dere to old Dr. Durant plantation. Yes,
mam, dem Durants had everything right to dey hand. Never had to want for
a glass of water or nothin en didn' none of Dr. Durant's colored people
never had no trouble wid de law from de time de law take care to dis. I
remember old Massa would always kill his plantation people a cow on de
fourth of July en couldn' never count de number of hogs dey would have,
dere be so many. Honey, dey would take dem hogs up dis time of de year
from out de swamp en put dem in dey fattenin pen. Lord, Lord, de many a
time dat I been see dem take bucket on a bucket of milk to dat pen. When
my mother was dere helpin dem, dey used to been a week to a time tryin
up lard en makin blood puddin en sausage en joinin up ears en things
like dat. Yes, mam, all dey plantation niggers what been helpin dat day
set for hog killin would eat to de white folks yard. Dey would just put
two or three of dese big wash pot out in de yard en full dem up wid
backbone en haslets en rice to satisfy dem hungry niggers wid en would
bake de corn bread to de Missus kitchen. I mean dey would have hog
killin days den, too. Would have dese long old benches settin out dere
under de trees to work on--long benches, child. Some days, dey would
kill 15 hogs en some days, dey would kill 20 hogs en I mean dey was
hogs, not pigs. De number dey would kill would be accordin to how many
hands was helpin de day dey pick to kill. You see, dey would kill dem
one day en hang dem up en den dey would set de next day to cut dem up.
Oh, dey would hang dem up right out to de eyes of everybody en didn'
nobody never have no mind to bother nothin. My Lord, couldn' trust to do
nothin like dat dese days. En dey had de nicest homemade butter en