|
|
Ex-Slave, 72 Years
"Well, I tell you just like it been. Dat was an unexpectin trip when you come here dat day on I wasn' thinkin bout much dat I had know to tell you. It been kind o' put me on a wonder."
"You see, child, I never didn' see my grandfather cause when I was born, dey had done sold him away. I hear tell dat sometimes dey would take de wife from dey husband on another time dey would take de husband from dey wife on sell dem off yonder somewhe' en never didn' see dem no more neither. Yes, I she know dat cause I hear my father speak bout dat plenty times. Yes,mam, dey sold my uncle's wife away on he never didn' see her no more till after freedom come on he done been married again den. Speculators carried my mother's first husband offeon den she married again. Cose I was born of de second husband en dat ain' been yesterday."
"I hear talk bout dat didn' none of de colored people have nothin in slavery time en heap of dem wasn' allowed to pick up a paper or nothin no time. Often hear dem talk dat some of de niggers was freed long time fore dey know bout it. Hear dem say some white folks hold dem long time till dey could make out to get somethin for demselves. Don' think so. Don' think so. No,mam, don' think so. Day might been intended for dem to get somethin when dey was freed, but I never learn of nobody gettin nothin. Cose I often heard my father say some white folks thought more bout dey colored people den others on hope dem out more. Hear tell dat didn' none of dem have no clothes much den. He,mam, colored people won' bless wid no clothes much in dem days. I remember dey had to wear dose old big shoes, call brogans, wid bras all cross do toe here. Nobody don' wear nothin like dat now. Dey was course shoes. Some say pleaty of de people had to go barefooted all de time in dem days. Reckon dat would kill do people in dis day en time. Couldn' stand nothin like dat. Yes,mam, see Tom Bestick walk right cross dat field many a day just as barefooted as he come in de world on all de ground would be covered over wid ice en snow. De people get after him on he say, 'Well, I had worser den dis to go through wid in slavery time.' Say he come up dat way on he never knew no difference dem dat he had thick shoe on his foot."
"Well, you see, some of de white folke would spare dey colored people so much ration when dey knok off work on a Saturday to last dem till do next Saturday come. Ever tell dey give dem a peck of meal on a little molasses en a hog jewl on dat had to last dom all de week. Den what use a little tobacco, give dem a plug of dat on give dem a little flour for Sunday. Didn' nobody have to work on Sunday on den dey would allow den two days off for Christmas too. I tellia you bout how my white folks would do, but dom what had a rough Massa, dey just got one day. I hear dem say dey always had a little flour on Christmas. Don' know what else dey give dem, but won' nothin much. I know dat. Sho' know dat."
"I hear say two intelligent people didn' live so far apart on one never treat dey colored people right on being as dey wasn' allowed to go from one place to another widout dey had a ticket wid dem, dey would steal somethin on run away. Say do just man tell dat other man dat if he would feed his niggers right, dey wouldn' have no need to be stealin so much things. No'um, I does hate to tell dat. Cose dey say dey done it. Say de overseer would beat dem up dat never do what he tell dem to do mighty had on wouldn' be partioular bout who' dey was buried neither. Hear talk dat dey bury heap of dem in a big hole down side do woods somewhe'. Cose I don' know who' dat word true or not, but dat what dey tell me."
"Oo - oo - yes,mam, dey she whip de colored women in dem days. Yes,mam, de overseer doze it cause I hear dem say dat myself. Tell dat dey take de wives en whip de blood out dem on de husband never didn' dare to say nothin. Hear dey whip some so bad dey had to grease dem. If de colored people didn' do to suit de white folks, dey she whip dem. Ho,mam, if dey put you out to work, ain' nobody think dey gwine lay down under de bresh (brush) on stay dere widout doin dey portion of work. Yes, child, hear bout dat more times den I got fingers on toes."
"Oh, de times be worser in a way dose days. Yes,mam, dey she worser in a way. De people be wiser now den what dey used to be, but dere so much gwine on, dey ain' thinkin' bout dey welfare no time on dat'll shorten anybody days. Oh, honey, we livin in a fast world dese days. Peoples used to help one another out more on didn' somebody be tryin to pull you down all de time. When you is found a wicked one in dat day on time, it been a wicked one. Cose de people be more intelligent in learnin dose days, but I'm tellin you dere a lot of other things got to build you up 'sides learnin. Dere one can get up to make a speech what ain' got no learnin on dey can just preach de finest kind of speech. Say dey sin' know one thing dey gwine say fore dey get up dere. Folks claim dem kind of people been bless wid plenty good mother wit. Don another time one dat have de learnin widout de mother wit can get up en seem like dey just don' know whe' to place de next word. Yes,mam, I hear dat often."
"What I meant by what I say bout de wicked one? I meant when you found a wild one, it been a wild one for true. I mean you better not meddle wid one like dat cause dey don' never care what dey do. People look like dey used to care more for dey lives don dey do dese days. Dat what I meant, but you can weigh dat like you want to. You see, dere be different ways for people to hurt demselves."
"Oh, my soul, hear talk bout dere be ghosts on hants, but I never didn' experience nothin like dat. Yes,mam, I hear too much of dat. Been hearin bout dat ever since I been in a manner grown, you may say. I hear people say dey see dem, but I ain' take up no time wid nothin like dat. I have a mind like dis, if such a thing be true, it ain' intended for everybody to see dem. I gwine tell you far as I know bout it. I hear dese old people say when anybody child born wid a caul over dey face, dey can always see dem things on dem what ain' born dat way, dey don' see dem. Cose I don' know nothin bout what dat is en I is hate to tell it, but I hear lot of people say dey can see hants en ghosts all time of a night. Yes'um, I hear de older people say dat, but I don' know whe' it true or no. I know I don' see nothin myself, but de wind. Don' see dat, but I feels it."
"Oh, my God, some people believe in dat thing call conjurin, but I didn' never believe in nothin like dat. Never didn' understand nothin like dat. Hear say people could make you leave home en all dat, but I never couldn' see into it. Never didn' believe in it."
"Yes,mam, I see plenty people wear dem dimes round dey ankle on all kind of things on dey body, but never didn' see my mother do nothin like dat. I gwine tell you it just like I got it. Hear talk dat some would wear dem for luck on some tote dem to keep people from hurtin dem. I got a silver dime in de house dere in my trunk right to dis same day dat I used to wear on a string of beads, but I took it off. No,mam, couldn' stand nothin like dat. Den some peoples keeps a bag of asafetida tied round dey neck to keep off sickness. Folks put it on dey chillun to keep dem from havin worms. I never didn' wear none in my life, but I know it been a good thing for people, especially chillun. Let me see, dere a heap of other things dat I learn bout been good for people to wear for sickness. Dere been nutmeg dat some people make a hole in en wear it round dey neck. I forget whether it been good for neuralgia or some of dem other body ailments, but I know it won' for no conjurin."
"Honey, pa always say dat you couldn' expect no more from a child den you puts in dey raisin. Pa say, 'Sylvia, raise up your chillun in de right way en dey'll smile on you in your old age.' Honey, I don' see what dese people gwine expect dey chillun to turn out to be nohow dese days cause dey ain' got no raisin en dey ain' got no manners. I say, I got a feelin for de chillun cause dey parents ain' stay home enough of time to learn dem nothin en dey ain' been know no better. Remember when my parents went off en tell us to stay home, we never didn' darsen to go off de place. Den when dey would send us off, we know we had to be back in de yard fore sunup in de evenin. Yes, child, we all had to be obedient to our parents in dat day en time. I always was sub-obedient myself en I never had no trouble nowhe'. Yes,mam, when we went off anywhere, we ax to go en we been back de hour dey expect to see us. Yes,mam, chillun was more obedient den. None of us didn' sass us parents. Won' raise dat way. I remember when I was young, I used to tote water en make fire to de pot for my mother to wash plenty times. Den dey learn me how to use a hoe en when I was married en left home, won' nothin strange to me."
"No,mam, I didn' have no weddin when I was married, but everything was pleasant en turned out all right. Yes,mam, everybody don' feel so good leavin home, but I felt all right. I was married over dere in Bethel M.E. Church en served a little cake en wine dere home afterwards en dat ain' no weddin. Didn' have nothin but pound cake en wine. Had three plain cakes. Two was cut up dere home en I remember I carried one wid me over Catfish dere to de Reaves place."
Source: Sylvia Durant, ex-slave, age about 72, Marion, S.C. Personal interview by Annie Ruth Davis, Oct., 1937.
(Project 1885-1, FOLKLORE, Spartanburg Dist.4, 25 May 1937, Edited by: Elmer Turnage)
