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of WASHINGTON-WILKES by Minnie Branham Stonestreet Washington-Wilkes GEORGIA
A story of happiness and contentment on a big plantation where there were "a heap of us slaves" is told by Jane Mickens Toombs who said she was"five er six years ole when de Wah come on (1860), or maby a lit'le ol'er."
She is a bright old woman, well and spry despite the fact she "was conjured onst when I was young an' dat lef' me lame an' dis eye plum' out an' de t'other bad."
When asked about the conjuring she said: "No'm, I don't 'zackly know how t'was, but enyhow somebody whut knowed how ter 'wu'k roots' got me lame on dis side, an' my eye out, jess kase I was a decent, nice lookin' gal, an' went on 'tendin' ter my business an' payin' dem no mind. Dat's de way dey done in dem days, jess jealous of nice colored niggers. Yassum, I was sick fer nigh on ter two years an' de doctuhs never knowed what ailed me. Dey done everything dey could, but I was conjured an' dey couldn't hep' me. A doctuh-man frum up yander in New Yalk cum down here ter see his folks, an' he tried to cyore me, but doctuhs kaan't cyore conjured folks, so I had ter lay an' suffer 'til de conjure wore out. Dem whut done dat knowed dey done me wrong, but I kep' trustin' in my Lawd, an' now dey's gone an' I'se er stumblin' roun' yit. No man, I never knowed jess whut dey done ter me, but hit was bad, I kin tell yer dat, hit might Aunt Jane was born on the Gullatt Plantation on the line of Wilkes and Lincoln counties. Her Mother was Liza Gullatt and her father John Mickens who belonged to Mr. Augustus McMekin. "Yassum, my Pa was John 'Mickens an' his Marster bought him in Alabamy. All de slaves whut belonged to de McMekins called deyselves 'Mickens. I was one of fifteen chillun an' cum er long in betweenst de oldest 'uns an' de youngest sum'ers. I was named fer my Mistess Jane Gullatt whut died. Young Marse George Gullatt choosed me out, dough, an' I'd er been his'en ef Freedom hadn't er come. You know dat's de way dey use ter do back in slavery time, de young Mistesses an' Marsters choosed out de little niggers dey wanted fer their'n."
This is another case where the father and Mother belonged to different families. The father had a pass to go and come as he pleased, although his family lived a little distance away. Jane said her father's master would have bought her mother if the War hadn't come on and they were set free.
Jane told of the log cabins in the Quarters where all the negroes lived. She said they were all in a row "wid er street in de front, er wide street all set thick wid white mulberry trees fer ter mak' shade fer de chillun ter play in." They never had any punishment only switchings by their Mistess, and that was not often. They played dolls, "us had home-made ragdolls, nice 'uns, an' we'd git dem long grass plumes (Pampas grass) an' mak' dolls out'n dem too. Us played all day long every day.
My Mistess' chillun was all growed up so jess us little niggers played tergether.
"My Mother spun an' wove de cloth, an' dyed hit, but our Mistess made our clothes. My Grandma, Nancy, was de cook an' shefed all de little 'uns in de big ole kitchen whut sot out in de yard. She had a tray she put our victuals on an Uh, Uh, whut good things we had ter eat, an' er plenty of everything! Us et jess whut our white folks had, dey didn't mak' no difference in us when hit cum ter eatin'. My Grandaddy looked atter de meat, he done everything 'bout dat, an' he sho' knowed how ter fix it, too.
"De fust thing I recollects is bein' round in de kitchen when dey was makin' ginger cakes an' my Mistess givin' me de pan she made 'em in fer me ter sop hit out. Dey ain't nothin' whut smells good lak' de cookin' in dem days, I kain't smell no victuals lak' dat now. Everything was cooked on a big ole open fire place in one end of de kitchen. Dem good ole days done gone now. Folkes done got wiser an' wickeder - dey ain't lak' dey use ter be."
At Christmas Santa Claus found his way to the Quarters on the Gollatt plantation and each little slave had candy, apples, and "sich good things as dat." Aunt Jane gave a glowing description of the preparation for the Christmas season: "Lawdy, how de folks wu'ked gittin' ready fer Chris'mus, fer three er fo' days dey stayed in de kitchen er cookin' an' er bakin' - days was de bes' light bread - great big loaves baked on de fire place, an' cakes an' mo' good ginger cakes. Dey was plenty cooked up to Ias' er long time. An' another thing, dare want no cookin' on Sunday, no mam, no wu'k of no kind. My Mistess had de cook cookin' all day Fridays an' Saddays so when Sunday come dare was hot coffee made an' dat was all, everything else was cooked up an' cold. Everybody went to Church, de grown folks white and black, went to de preachin' an' den all de little niggers was called in an de Bible read an' 'splained ter dem.
"Dare was preachin' down in de Quarters, but dat was at night an' was led by de colored preachers. I recollects one night dare was a service gwine on in one of de cabins an' all us was dare an' ole Uncle Alex Frazier was up a linin' off a hymn 'bout 'Broad is de road dat leads ter Death
An' there an' here we travel.'
when in come some mens atter a colored feller whut had stole some sheep an' hogs. Dey kotch 'im, but she broke up de meetin'. In de hot summer time Uncle George Gullatt use ter preach ter de slaves out under de trees. Uncle George waz a kind of er preacher.
"My Pa didn't 'low his chillun ter go 'roun'. No'm, he kep' us home keerful lak. Young folks in dem days didn't go all over de country lak dey does now, dey stayed at home, an' little chillun was kep' back an' dey didn' know no badness lak de chillun do terday. Us never even heared de ole folks talk nothin' whut we oughtn't ter hear. Us jess played an' stayed in a child's place. When we was sick de white folks seed dat we was 'tended to. Dey use ter mak Jerusalem Oak candy an' give us. Dey took de leaves of dat bush an' boiled 'em an' den use dat water dey was boiled in an' put sugar 'nough in hit ter mak candy. An dey used plenty of turpentine on us too - plenty ov hit, an' I believes in dat terday, hit's er good medicine."
When asked about the War, Aunt Jane said she didn't remember much about it. "But dare's one thing 'bout hit I sho' does 'member, an' dat's my young Mistess Beckie's husband, Mr. Frazier, being off fightin' in de Wah, an' she gittin' er letter frum him sayin' he was comin' home sich an' sich er day. She was so happy she had all de grown slaves wu'kin' gittin' ready fer him. Den dey brung her er letter sayin' he had been kilt, an' she was in de yard when she read hit an' if dey hadn't er kotch her she'd ov fell. I 'members de women 'takin' her in de house an' gittin' her ter bed. She was so up sot an' took hit so hard. Dem was sho' hard times an' sad 'uns too. 'Course I was too small ter know much whut was gwine on, but I could tell hit was bad frum de way de older folks looked.
I recollects when dey say Freedom had cum. Dare was a speakin' for de slaves up here in town in Barnett's Grove. Dat mornin' Ole Miss sont all de oldes' niggers to de speakin' an' kep' us little 'uns dat day. She kep' us busy sweepin' de yards an' sich as dat. An' she cooked our dinner an' give hit to us herself.
I 'members de grown folks leavin' early dat mornin' in a great big waggin.
"A while after de Wah, Pa took us over to de McMekins place an' we lived dare fer a long time. He died an' lef' us an' den us had ter do de bes' we could. Col. Tolbert hired me fer ter nuss his chillun an' went over ter his place ter live."
Aunt Jane said she isn't superstitious, but likes to see the new moon clear and bow to it for good luck. She said it is better to show it a piece of money, but as she doesn't always have money handy, she "jess bows to hit nice an' polite". She keeps up with the weather by her rheumatism and the cat: "Ef I has de reumatics I knows hit's gwine ter rain, an' when de cat comes 'round an' sets washin' her face, look fer rain, kase hit's er comin'. I've heared folks say dat hit's bad luck ter stump yo' lef' foot, but I don't know boud dat. But I tell yer, when I meets er cat I allus turns er round 'fore I goes on, dat turns de bad luck er way."
When 19 years of age Jane married Albert Toombs. He belonged to the Toombs family of Wilkes county. Aunt Jane said Albert brought her many gifts while he was courting: "He warnt much on bringin' candy an' nothin' la dat ter cat, but he brung me shawls an' shoes - sumpin' I could wear." They had four children, but only one is living.
"When I was a growin' up", said Aunt Jane, "folks had ter wu'k." She worked on the farm, spun, wove, "done seamster wu'k" and knitted stockings, sox and gloves. She said she carded too, "an' in dem times ef a nigger wanted ter git de kinks out'n dey hair, dey combed hit wid de cards. Now dey puts all kinds ov grease on hit, an' buy straightenin' combs. Sumpin' dat costs money, dat's all dey is, old fashion cards'll straighten hair jess as well as all dis high smellin' stuff dey sells now."
Hunt Jane likes to tell of those days of long ago. Her memory is excellent and she talks well. She says she is living out her Miss Jane's time. "Yassum, my Miss Jane died when she was so young, I specks I jess livin' out her days kase I named fer her. But I does miss dem good ole days whut's gone. I'se hungry fer de sight ov a spinnin' wheel -does you know whare's one? Things don't look lak' dey use ter, an' as fer whut we has ter eat, dare ain't no victuals ever smelled an' et as good as dem whut dey use ter have on de plantation when I was a comin' on. Yassum, folkes has got wiser an' know mo' dan dey did, but dey is wickeder - dey kills now 'stid er conjurin' lak' dey did me."
(District 7, Adella S. Dixon, PEILL TOWNS old Slave Story"
