u ain't never whip my little nigger.' Dey never did.

"I's jus' 'bout five year old when us make de trip to Texas. Us come
right near Woodville and make de plantation. It a big place and dey
raise corn and cotton and cane. We makes our own sugar and has many as
six kettle on de furnace at one time. Dey raise dey tobacco, too. I's
sick and a old man he say he make me tobacco medicine and dey dry de
leafs and make dem sweet like sugar and feed me like candy.

"I 'member old marster say war broke out and Capt. Collier's men was
a-drillin' right dere south of Woodville. All de wives and chillen watch
dem drill. Dey was lots of dem, but I couldn't count. De whole shebang
from de town go watch dem.

"Four of the Goolsby boys goes to dat war and dey call John and Ziby and
Zabud and Addison. Zabud, he git wounded, no he git kilt, and Addison he
git wounded. I worry den, 'cause I ain't see no reason for dem to have
to die.

"After us free dey turn us loose in de woods and dat de bad time, 'cause
most us didn't know where to turn. I wasn't raise to do nothin' and I
didn't know how. Dey didn't even give us a hoecake or a slice of bacon.

"I's a June bride 59 year ago when I git married. De old white Baptist
preacher name Blacksheer put me and dat nigger over dere, Edgar Bendy,
togedder and us been togedder ever since. Us never have chick or chile.
I's such a good nuss I guess de Lawd didn't want me to have none of my
own, so's I could nuss all de others and I 'spect I's nussed most de
white chillen and cullud, too, here in Woodville.

420177

SARAH BENJAMIN, 82, was born a slave of the Gilbert family, in
Clavin Parish, Louisiana. In 1867 she married Cal Benjamin and they
settled in Corsicana, Texas, where Sarah now lives.

"I is Sarah Benjamin and is 82 year old, 'cause my mammy told me I's
born in 1855 in Clavin Parish in Louisiana. Her name was Fannie and my
pappy's name Jack Callahan. There was jus' three of us chillen and I's
de oldest.

"Marse Gilbert was tol'able good to we'uns, and give us plenty to eat.
He had a smokehouse big as a church and it was full, and in de big
kitchen we all et, chillen and all. De grown folks et first and den de
chillen. Did we have plenty of possums and fish by de barrels full! All
dis was cooked in de racks over de fireplace and it were good.

"Our clothes was all homespun and de shoes made by de shoemaker. Old
marse wanted all us to go to church and if dey d