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(Lee County, Alabama)
Liza White living in Opelika, Alabama, on the Central of Ga. tracks has one of the best minds I've found yet. She lived in Harris County, Ga. near Columbus, Ga. and owned by Billy and Angeline Jones. Her mother and father were Peter and Frances Jones and had a brother and sister, Dennis and Georganne.
Their quarters were in two long rows running nearly up to the big white house on the hill and they were of logs and most of them had two rooms and a shed room to cook in. Frances was the cook at the big house and grandma did the weaving, there was a great big kitchen up there. Daddy was a bedmaker and made most of them out of poplar, and four posters.
"Grandma's name on my mother's side was Cely Thompson and on my fathers' was Phillis Jones. I had a little chair that I sat in, in the corner to keep flies off of Miss Angeline and out of the house, used a green twig. We had the most good to eat, no sich cakes now days as had then, great big thick pound cake, baked in the oven on the coals. Master fed his niggers good too.
I used to go to church with the white folks and sit in the foot of the carriage and one Sunday I seed the first shouting, it was two white ladies.
Dey wus mighty good to us niggers and fed us out of his garden. We had pretty checked homespun dresses and dyed orsenberg and pretty calico ones for Sunday and I married with just a quiet marriage, in a white lawn and Dr. Lee married me.
Master was such a good man and I did love my Mistress, they had four children, two wus such bad fighting kids. I've seen Master make them strip to they waist and whip them good and then make them go in and bathe, they wus Dave and Quit. They lived in the biggest handsomest house, white and had two or three hundred slaves and raised deer on the place too. When daylight came we had to get up but he didn't have to whip many of his slaves just when they were lazy and would not work.
We had a fine carriage and drive for Miss Angeline, she loved to read to us from de Scriptures. Whenever Master wanted to send any of the slaves off the place he had to get them passes for if he didn't the patrollers would get them and whip them thinking they were running away, they were good things sometimes for the lazy ones. Every now and den we would have some good frolics and mostly on Saturday nights and dance to the music, some one would play the fiddle, and O, that Xmas I got my first shoes, they wus buttened. I hugged them so tight and even slept with
them. The Folks sure had some big times at the cornshucking, would be two or three days hauling corn up near thecrib and invite folks from the other quarters to come and help shuck, they would holler and sing. Would sing, Youjumped and I jumped and swear by God you out jumped me, Huh, huh, round the corn Sally.
I soed a haint one time, I knowed it wus, one old man had been having the toothache so I wus going to see him andhe used to keep his jaw tied up all the time; well fore I got there I saw him coming and nearer I got to him he turnedto a man on a mule or horseback, wearing big hat and fore I got to the house he wus clear gone, and I know it wus ahaint.
Grandma used to give us tea made out of sage roots, mullin, pine tops and hoehound, and O, so bitter. We had such
pretty corn beads too.
"Ev'ey now and den we would have some good frolics, mostly on Sattiday nights. Somebody would play de fiddleand we all danced to de music. De folks sure had some big times at de cornshuckin's, too. De men would work twoor three days, haulin' de corn and pilin' it near de crib. Den dey would invite folks from other quarters to come andhelp vid de shuckin'. While dey shucked dey would holler and sing:
'You jumped and I jumped;Swear by God you out jumped me.Huh! Huh! Round de corn, Sally.'
"Granny used to give us tea made outen sage roots, mullen, pine hore-hound. Dat sho' was bitter stuff. We had purtybeads made wid corn. And I still 'members de Christmas I got my fust shoes. I just hugged dem tight and went tosleep holdin' 'em. Dey was button shoes.
"I will never forget the funniest sight to me that I every saw was when the soldiers came from war all of themcoming down the road with sticks cross they backs and holding to them with their hands all just alike and it did lookso funny. Master got religion after he come from the war. I wus at church with Mistess and seed him jump up andholler and folded his arms and flew across the floor and sang, I'm going home to my loving Jesus, I'm going hometo my loving Father.
"When we heard the Yankees were coming we hid all the meat, silver and rations in the big swamp and turned thehorses loose and all us kids hid in the bed ticks. They staid around about two or three days and would pull the manout of the bed by they toes. We just couldn't believe it when Master told us we wus free and could go anywhere wewanted to, but some of us wouldn't leave. It wus years before we had schools for the negroes.
"I married George White but didn't have any big wedding, we had three children and five grandchildren, they are soscattered and working out.
"As to Abraham Lincoln, Bless he soul. Booker Washington was a right good man.
"I joined church cause I got religion and I knowed it. I'm a Baptist.
"But I really seed a ha'nt one time. I knowed it was. De was one old man been havin' de toothache all de time; heused to keep he law tied up. I was gwine over to see him day time. Well, 'fore I got dere I seen what look like himcomin'. When I got nearer he turned to a man riding a mule and wearing a big hat. Den, 'fore he got to de house hewas plun gone. Dat's how I knowed it was a ha'nt."
(Wash. Copy, 5/27/37, L. H.)
