De Yankees come take de cattle and went
'way with dem. I kin sho' rec'lect when dose sojers come and de road was
full goin' day and night. De Yankees find a lot of Confed'rate sojers
close to Duson, de other side of Rayne and dey captures lots and brung
dem back by dere.

"After while it all over and dey told us we free, but my mama kep'
working for old missus after freedom, 'cause old marster, he kilt in dat
war. Den old missus die and left three li'l chillen, but I don't know
what happen to them, 'cause us go to another place and I plow and Mary
she he'p pick cotton.

"I git marry at 20 and my first wife de French gal. We marry by de
priest in de church. Us have so many chillen us have to keep a map to
account for all dem, dere was 19 in all. We stays in Louisiana long
time, den come to Texas.

420296

LAURA CORNISH was born on the plantation of Isaiah Day, near
Dayton, Texas. She "reckons I's 'bout twelve or maybe thirteen
years old when all de cullud folks was made free." Laura's memory
is poor, but she made an effort to recall slave days. She lives at
2915 Nance St., Houston, Texas.

"Lawd have mercy 'pon me, when you calls me Aunt Laura it seems jes'
like you must be some of my white folks, 'cause dat what dey calls me. I
mean Papa Day's chillen and dere younguns, when dey comes to see me. But
it been de long time since any of dem come to see old Aunt Laura, and I
reckon dey most all gone now.

"You know where Dayton is at? Well, dat's where Papa Day's plantation
was at and where I's borned. I don't know when dat am, 'zactly, but when
all de cullud folks was made free, I reckons I's 'bout twelve or
thirteen years old.

"Mama's name was Maria Dunlap and daddy's name was Saul. Mamma was de
seamstress and don't do nothin' but weave cloth on de spinnin' wheel and
make clothes. Daddy from Lake Providence, I heared him say, but I don't
know where at dat is. He do all de carpenter work. I has five sisters
and two brothers, but dey heaps older dan me and I don't know much 'bout
dem.

"We 'longs to Papa Day, his name Isaiah, but us all call him Papa Day,
'cause he won't 'low none he cullud folks to call him master. He say us
is born free as he is, only de other white folks won't tell us so, and
our souls is jes' as white, and de reason us am darker on de outside is
'cause us is sunburnt. I don't reckon dere am anybody as good to dere
cullud folks as he was.

"Miss Martha, he