Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States

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Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery by Various 24I warn't glad at de surrender, case I doan understand hit, an' de Allen's keeps me right on, an' whups me wuserden dan eber.I reckon I wuz twelve years old when my mammy come ter de house an' axes Mis' Allen ter let me go spen' deweek en' wid her. Mis' Allen can't say no, case Mammy mought go ter de carpet baggers so she lets me go ferde week-en'. Mammy laughs Sunday when I says somethin' 'bout goin' back. Naw, I stayed on wid mymammy, an' I ain't seed Mis' Allen no mo'.ACDistrict: No. 2 [320151] No. Words: 733 Worker: Mary A. Hicks Subject: EX-SLAVE STORY Story Teller:Charlie Barbour Editor: Daisy Bailey Waitt[TR: Date Stamp "JUN 7 1937"][HW: A (circled)]EX-SLAVE STORYAn interview on May 20, 1937 with Charlie Barbour, 86 of Smithfield, N. C. Johnston County.I belonged ter Mr. Bob Lumsford hyar in Smithfield from de time of my birth. My mammy wuz namedCandice an' my pappy's name wuz Seth. My brothers wuz Rufus, William an' George, an' my sisters wuzMary an' Laura.I 'minds me of de days when as a youngin' [HW correction: youngun'] I played marbles an' hide an' seek. Darwuzn't many games den, case nobody ain't had no time fer 'em. De grown folkses had dances an' sometimesco'n shuckin's, an' de little niggers patted dere feets at de dances an' dey he'p ter shuck de co'n. At Christmaswe had a big dinner, an' from den through New Year's Day we feast, an' we dance, an' we sing. De fust onewhat said Christmas gift ter anybody else got a gif', so of cou'se we all try ter ketch de marster.On de night 'fore de first day of Jinuary we had a dance what lasts all night. At midnight when de New Yearcomes in marster makes a speech an' we is happy dat he thanks us fer our year's wuck an' says dat we is good,smart slaves.Marster wucked his niggers from daylight till dark, an' his thirteen grown slaves had ter ten' 'bout threehundred acres o' land. Course dey mostly planted co'n, peas an' vege'ables.I can 'member, do' I wuz small, dat de slaves wuz whupped fer disobeyin' an' I can think of seberal dat I got. Iwuz doin' housewuck at de time an' one of de silber knives got misplaced. Dey 'cused me of misplacin' it onpurpose, so I got de wust beatin' dat I eber had. I wuz beat den till de hide wuz busted hyar an' dar.We little ones had some time ter go swimmin' an' we did; we also fished, an' at night we hunted de possum an'de coon sometimes. Ole Uncle Jeems had some houn's what would run possums or coons an' he uster take weboys 'long wid him.I 'members onct de houn's struck a trail an' dey tree de coon. Uncle Jeems sen's Joe, who wuz bigger den Iwuz, up de tree ter ketch de coon an' he warns him dat coons am fightin' fellers. Joe doan pay much mind heam so happy ter git der chanct ter ketch de coon, but when he ketched dat coon he couldn't turn loose, an' fromde way he holler yo' would s'pose dat he ain't neber wanted ter ketch a coon. When Joe Barbour wuz buriedhyar las' winter dem coon marks wuz still strong on his arms an' han's an' dar wuz de long scar on his face.
Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery by Various 25I 'members onct a Yankee 'oman from New York looks at him an' nigh 'bout faints. 'I reckon', says she, dat amwhat de cruel slave owner or driver done ter him'.Yes mam, I knows when de Yankees comed ter Smithfield. Dey comed wid de beatin' of drums an' de wavin'of flags. Dey says dat our governor wuz hyar makin' a speech but he flewed 'fore dey got hyar. Anyhow, welibed off from de main path of march, an' so we ain't been trouble so much 'cept by 'scootin' parties, as my olemissus call' em.Dey am de darndest yo' eber seed, dey won't eat no hog meat 'cept hams an' shoulders an' dey goes ter desmoke house an' gits 'em 'thout no permission. Dey has what dey calls rammin' rods ter dere guns an' deyknock de chickens in de haid wid dat. I hyard dem say dat dar warn't no use wastin' powder on dem chickens.Dey went ober de neighborhood stealin' an' killin' stock. I hyard 'bout 'em ketchin' a pig, cuttin' off his hamsan' leave him dar alive. De foun' all de things we done hid, not dat I thinks dat dey am witches, but dat dey hasa money rod, an' 'cides dat some of de slaves tol' 'em whar marster had hid de things.Yes 'um, I reckon I wuz glad ter git free, case I knows den dat I won't wake up some mornin' ter fin' dat mymammy or some ob de rest of my family am done sold. I left de day I hyard 'bout de surrender an' I fared rightgood too, do' I knows dem what ain't farin' so well.I ain't neber learn ter read an' write an' I knows now dat I neber will. I can't eben write a letter ter Raleigh'bout my ole man's pension.I 'members de days when mammy wored a blue hankerchief 'round her haid an' cooked in de great house.She'd sometimes sneak me a cookie or a cobbler an' fruits. She had her own little gyardin an' a few chickensan' we w'oud ov been happy 'cept dat we wuz skeered o' bein' sold.I'se glad dat slavery am ober, case now de nigger has got a chanct ter live an' larn wid de whites. Dey won'tneber be as good as de whites but dey can larn ter live an' enjoy life more.Speakin' 'bout de Ku Klux dey ain't do nothin' but scare me back in '69, but iffen we had some now I thinksdat some of dese young niggers what has forgot what dey mammies tol' 'em would do better.MH:EHN. C. District: No. 2 [320249] Worker: Mary A. Hicks No. Words: 678 Subject: MARY BARBOUR PersonInterviewed: Mary Barbour Editor: Daisy Bailey Waitt[TR: No Date Stamp]MARY BARBOUREx-Slave StoryAn interview with Mary Barbour 81 of 801 S. Bloodworth Street, Raleigh, N. C.I reckon dat I wuz borned in McDowell County, case dat's whar my mammy, Edith, lived. She 'longed ter Mr.Jefferson Mitchel dar, an' my pappy 'longed ter er Mr. Jordan in Avery County, so he said.'Fore de war, I doan know nothin' much 'cept dat we lived on a big plantation an' dat my mammy wuckedhard, but wuz treated pretty good.
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Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States

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