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

Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery by Various 69You mebbe doan know hit, but de prisoners hyar doan git de blues so bad if de company comes on visitin'days, an' de mail comes reg'lar. We's always gittin' up somepin' ter have a little fun, so somebody gits up deJoe Moe.Yo' sees dat when a new nigger comes in he am skeerd an' has got de blues. Somebody goes ter cheer him upan' dey axes him hadn't he ruther be hyar dan daid. Yo' see he am moughty blue den, so mebbe he says dathe'd ruther be daid; den dis feller what am tryin' ter cheer him tells him dat all right he sho' will die dat [HWcorrection: 'cause] he's got de Joe Moe put on him.Seberal days atter dis de new nigger fin's a little rag full of somepin twix de bed an' mattress an' he axes whathit am. Somebody tells him dat hit am de Joe Moe, an' dey tells him dat de only way he can git de spell off amter git de bag off on somebody else. Ever'body but him knows' bout hit so de Joe Moe keeps comin' back till anew one comes in an' he l'arns de joke.Talkin' 'bout ghostes I wants ter tell you dat de air am full of 'em. Dar's a strip from de groun' 'bout four feethigh which am light on de darkes' night, case hit can't git dark down dar. Git down an' crawl an' yo'll see amillion laigs of eber' kin' an' if'en you lis'ens you'll hyar a little groanin' an' den you has gone through a warmspot.B. N.N. C. District: No. 2 [320186] Worker: T. Pat Matthews No. Words: 725 Subject: HARRIET ANN DAVESStory Teller: Harriet Ann Daves Editor: Daisy Bailey Waitt[TR: No Date Stamp]HARRIET ANN DAVES 601 E. Cabarrus StreetMy full name is Harriet Ann Daves, I like to be called Harriet Ann. If my mother called me when she wasliving, I didn't want to answer her unless she called me Harriet Ann. I was born June 6, 1856. Milton Waddell,my mother's marster was my father, and he never denied me to anybody.My mother was a slave but she was white. I do not know who my mother's father was. My mother was MaryCollins. She said that her father was an Indian. My mother's mother was Mary Jane Collins, and she waswhite--maybe part Indian. My grandfather was old man William D. Waddell, a white man. I was born inVirginia near Orange Courthouse. The Waddells moved to Lexington, Missouri, after I was born. I guesssome of the family would not like it if they knew I was telling this. We had good food and a nice place to live.I was nothing but a child, but I know, and remember that I was treated kindly. I remember the surrender verywell. When the surrender came my grandfather came to mother and told her: 'Well, you are as free as I am.'That was William D. Waddell. He was one of the big shots among the white folks.My white grandmother wanted mother to give me to her entirely. She said she had more right to me than myIndian grandmother that she had plenty to educate and care for me. My mother would not give me to her, andshe cried. My mother gave me to my Indian grandmother. I later went back to my mother.While we were in Missouri some of my father's people, a white girl, sent for me to come up to the great house.I had long curls and was considered pretty. The girl remarked, 'Such a pretty child' and kissed me. Sheafterwards made a remark to which my father who was there, my white father, took exception telling her I washis child and that I was as good as she was. I remember this incident very distinctly.My mother had two children by the same white man, my father. The other was a girl. She died in California.My father never married. He loved my mother, and he said if he could not marry Mary he did not want to