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N. C. District No. 2 Worker Mary A. Hicks No. Words 390 |
Subject JANE LEE Person Interviewed Jane Lee Editor G. L. Andrews" |
An interview with Jane Lee, 81 years cld, Selma, North Carolina.
"I wus borned de slave of Marse Henry McCullers down here at Clayton on de lake an' Johnston line. My daddy wus named Andison an' my mammy wus named Caroline. Daddy 'longed to Mr. John Ellington who also lived near Clayton. I doan know de number of Mr. Ellington's slaves, but I know dat Marse Henry had six or seben.
"Marse Henry ain't had no oberseer ner no patterollers nother. He managed his business hisself an' ain't needed nobody. He whupped dem when dey needed hit but dat ain't often, not dat he ain't put de whuppin' on der what did need hit.
"I 'members de Yankees comin' good as iffen hit wus yesterday. Dey comed wid a big noise, chasin' our white folks what wus in de army clean away. Dey chase dem to Raleigh an' den dey kotch 'em, but dey ain't had much time, ter do us any damage case dey wus too busy atter de Rebs.
"De woods wus full of runaway slaves an' Rebs who deserted de army so hit wus dangerous to walk out. Marse Henry give us a speech about hit an' atter I seed one rag-a-muffin nigger man dat wus so hongry dat his eyes pop out, I ain't took no more walks.
"Atter de war we moved on Mr, Ellington's place wid daddy an' dar I stayed till I married Wyatt Lee. Wyatt wus a bad proposition an' he got shot in Fayetteville atter we had five chilluns. Wyatt tuck a woman to Fayetteville an' a man named Frank Mattiner killed him about her. Den my oldest boy went to wurk in Virginia an' a man named Rudolphus killed him 'bout a yaller gal. Both of de murderers runaway an' ain't never been ketched.
"All five of my chilluns am daid now, an' fer de past ten years I'se done ever'thing out cut cord wood.
"How does I live? Well I lives now an' den. De county gives me two dollars a month an' de house am mine durin' my life time. Mr. Parrish sold hit to Judge Brooks wid de understandin' dat hit am nine long as I live. I don't know why, none of us never 'longed ter de Parrish's ner nothin' dat I knows of."
LE
