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"Mah mammy was Rosie Renfro, an' we' un's blong to 'Massa' Tom B. English, an' Miss Sarah. We live neah Jackson. My daddy Spencer Renfro, he blong to 'Massa' Jack Renfro, en' de Cape Road.
"Massa" English wouldn't sell us, an' 'Massa' Renfro woun' sell mah daddy, so dey jes' let mah daddy come tuh see us on Satudays.
"Our white folks, dey was all mighty nice people. Dey live in a big white house, an' dey has lotsa nice things. Mah mammy done de cookin' an' twon time she he'p weave on de loom, an' spin an' knit.
"Dey was jes' two o' us families. We livedin little ole log houses an' in tuther house dey was Ann, an' Nancy an' "Aunt Dinah".
"Den seeme like dey was a "nuddah house whar a bunch o' men stay 'at works in de fiel'. Dey was some field 'roun' de house, an' dey was a 'nudder fiel' dey call 'mile fiel'. It were a mile big, evuh way. Dey raise lot'sa wheat en' cahn an' sichlike, an' chickens an' cows, an' fruit, apples, an' peaches.
"Some o' de womans worked in de file' an' when tey comes in dey has tuh set down an' peal apples an' peaches fo' fryin' an' put'em on big racks out in de sun an' when dey's dry, put 'em in bags, an' hang 'em up fo' wintuh.
"Ah wuzn' very big at dat time, jes' 'bout fo' yeah ole, but ah rec'lect how scared we is when de sojers come by. De men folks all hide out an' so de Missus, when we wants tuh hide too, she say, "Run on out, run on out, and tell 'em nobody home". Sometime dey hide unner de bed, 'hind de trunnel bed.
"An' ah 'membuh 'Miss Betty' died. She had Pneumonya. Dar she was all pretty in huh coffin, an' dey had all de cullud folks come through de house tuh see her. Pore 'lil' Missis': Dey buried huh in Jackson.
"When a 'body's sick, if yuh hears a hoot owl near de house, er a whipperwill dat's bad luck, Ah a' way's goes out an' tries tuh chase 'em off. But ah guess of dey's gonna bring bad luck, dey's alweady brung it".
