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"Ma mithuh was Louisiana Anthony an she married an liv'd in Libertyville, Missouri, in St. Francois County. She are dead now, but ud be bout 78 if she war livin'. She my born into slavery. Ma grandmuther was Harriet Smith, an she was born in 'bout 1820 an she war bout 40 years ole wen de War begun. She was a slabe near New Madrid, Missouri, an died wen she was bout 90 yars ole. Ma grandmuthuh had 14 childr'n an wen de war ended, her master, Shap Phillips, tak one ob her girls named Phebe an put her on a hoss an took her away with him an we neber heard from her agin. We think she was taken south ta work fur som'body. When la grandmuthuh got free she an my grandfather, who worked fur another master, brought a small farm near Knob Lick, in St. Francois County, Missouri. Dey bilt dem a house an bought only 20 acres at a time an finally had 120 acres.
"I used to lay wake nights a-lis'men ta stories dat muthuh an grandmuthuh ud tel about slabery ays. I know a lot ob stories but hab furgot many ob dem. My, how she cud tell bout dose times, an dey ware true too. Wen ma grandmuthuh got married dey jus jumped ober a broomstick an dey ware consider'd man an wife. Dis ware de custom den. De master ud hole de broomstick. I ask grandmuthuh wat she ud a-done had she fall'n ober de broomstick. She say, 'Well, I didn't fall, but jump'd clear ober hit.' I member dis cause hit seexed so funny. Brogan shoes war wore then. Dey war ob rough leather and de shoes had brass toes. All de clos was wove an de only fancy clos ma grandmuthuh had ware givin ta her by de Missus.
"Shap Phillips had a good many slabes an grandmuthuh was de cook. She was very strong an cook'd in kettles bigg'r dan dey habe now. Whenever a negro slabe had a baby she had ta work rite on. If she work'd in de fiel she ud take de baby long and lay hit down in de rail fence corn'r in de sun. De baby had or only a slip. De master ud ride his hoss in de fiel an had a horse whip dat was platted, an he ud cut de slabes with dis whip wen de slabes slack'd hup. If de babies caried de muthuh had ta get de master a permishun fore she cud pick up their baby.
"De scraps from de white folk's table war all thrown into a kettle. Ma muthuh ud stan clos by an she ud grab in de kettle with both hans an eat whateber she got. Den, after all de grown slabes did dis, dey wud call 'Pot liquor time' an de childr'n ud run to de lettle an drink wat was in de bott'm ob de kettle. Wis wus generally de juice or water frumgreens. Sometime de childr'n got a piece ob cornbread. Dis was all de childr'n got is dat an of course dey war always hengry.
"De master had a polly-parrot an dese parrots ud be plac'd ta hear an watch wat de slabes did. Dey war not always seen by de slbes an wen de master was away de parrots aud member wat had happ'n'd an report it. One of de slabes was bakin' bread an she tok a pan full ob biscuits an hid it under de cushion of de chair. De ole Missus come in an was sick an she started ta sit down in de chair. De parrot was sittin' up dar an say, Missi biss?? burn you! The Missus lifted up de cushion an foun de pan o bread. She was sick and couldn't whip de slabe so she was goin' to hebe de master do it wen he came in. De slabe was mad so she tok de parrot an wrung its neck and threw it out hind de house thinkin' she had kil'd de parrot.
'De Missus had to go out dare fur somethin' an de parrot say,' Poor polly, layin' in de sun." De master den really beat de slabe wen he came in. Ma grandmuthuh knew de lady dat dis happ'n'd to in New Madrid. Ma grandmuthuh got whipp'd only onc't an de master was sorry cause she fought back. She was strong an a good work'r. Ma grandmuthuh was up fur sale on de block once an dey offer'd several thousand dollars fur her but she was a good worker an she was not sold. Wen de rebel soldiers come de slabes ud hide but wen de union soldiers com de slabes ud run to dem.
"Wen de master had company he ud tak meat skins an grease de mouths ob all de slabe childr'n. Den wen de company cam de master ud call all de slabe children in an say, 'You little rascals have been eating.' He wanted to create de. impression dat he was feedin his slabes better dan de other masters round dare.
"Grandmuthuh said dey had lots ob hoodoo business. I ask her why dey didn't hoedoe de white folks ta get dem out ob de way. She said de negroes couldn't hoodoe de white peoples cause dey had strait hair. It was somethin' bout de oil in de hair. White folks habe ta wash dere hair ta get de oil out, but negroes habe ta put oil on heir hair.
But de slabes sure could hoodoo each other. Somebody who wanted ta hoodoo somebody else wud tak snakes an frogs an pulverize um an put de stuff in a bottle. Dey den dug a hole in de groun under de step anouried de bottle in de hole. When de person (for whom the hoodoo was intended) took a step ober dis spot dey wud habe pains in deir legs. Ma grandmuthuh cud see de an akes come up inside deir legs an dey had to cut a hole in deir legs ta let de snakes out. Sometimes dey ud get a person ta take de snkes an frogs from a person, and den de person who put de hoodoo under de step or proch ud lose deir charm and die. Ma grandmuther say she saw many a frog an snake come out ob a person's mouth. He slabes were turrible ta each other. All such as dis went on in de dose days. This here hoodoo business still goes on down in Mississippi. I'm shure glad I don't live down thar. Ma cousin got into an argument with a negro girl down thar an they coulden't settle hit. So she (my cousin) wrote to somebody who wrote back an tole ma cousin all bout this here other girl such as her amount of insurance, etc."
