t I 'joy'd goin'. Mah daddy wuz a driver fer Mr. Ryan."

"I nussed fer a Mrs. Mitchell en she had a boy in schul. One summer
she went 'way. A Mrs. Smith wid 10 boys wanted me ter stay wid her
'til Mrs. Mitchell got back en I staid en laked dem so well dat I
wouldin go back ter Mrs. Mitchell's."

"I went ter Memphis en ma'ied George Grisham in 1870. He jinned de
army, as ban' leader, went ter San Antonio, Texas en I kum back ter
Mrs. Smith's en stayed 'til her mammy lost her mind. Mah husband d'ed
in Texas, fum heart truble. All his things wuz sent back ter me, en
eve'y month I got a $30.00 pension fer me en mah daughter. W'en she
wuz 16 dey cut hit down en I only git $12.00 now."

"I edj'cated mah daughter at Fisk; en she's bin teachin' schul since
1893. She buy dis place en we live tergedder. We hab good health en
both ez happy. I hab a 'oman kum eve'y Monday en wash fer us."

"De ole songs I member ez:

"Harp fum de Tomb dis Mournful Sound."
"Am I a soldier ob de Cross."

"Ole signs ez: Dream ob snakes, sign ob de'th.--Ef a hen crows a sign
ob de'th.--Sneeze wid food in mouth means de'th.--Ef a black cat
crosses de road, walk backwards 'til you git pas' whar hit crossed.
Mah parents useter tell lots ob tales but I can't think ob dem."

"Oh honey, I dunno w'at dis young peeples ez kum'n ter. Dey ez so
diff'ent fum de way I wuz raised. I don't think much ob dis white en
black mar'ages. Hit shouldn't be 'lowed."

"I 'long ter de Missionary Baptist."

INTERVIEW
MEASY HUDSON
1209 Jefferson St.
Nashville, Tennessee

"Wuz bawn' in North Carolina en I'se 90 y'ars ole in November. W'en
war broke out we kum ter Tennessee en hab bin 'yer eber since. Wuz
'yer w'en old Hood fi'rd de cannons. He said he wuz kum'n 'yer ter
Christmas dinnah, but he didn't do hit."

"Mah white folks wuz named Harshaw. Marster Aaron Harshaw d'ed en we
wuz willed ter his chilluns en dat we wuz not ter be whup'd er 'bused
in anyway. We wuz sold, but long 'fore de war mah daddy wuz freed en
mah manny wuz not freed, but kep' a slave."

"De marster's chilluns wuz small en eber New Y'ar Day, we wuz put on a
block en hired out ter de high bidduh, en de money spent ter school de
marster's chilluns."

"I wuz tole dat sum ob de white peeples wuz so mean ter dere slaves
dat de slaves would tek a pot en turn hit down in a hollow ter keep
dere whites fum yearin' dem singin' en prayin'. De Ku Klux wuz bad on
de ex-slaves at fust."

"De w