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"Aunt" Sallie (80 yrs. old, and "Uncle" Robert live with their grandson. A daughter lives nearby. They like to tell of the days when they were children:
"Land o' de libbin, my maw, she was one o' de Hughes and Giles niggers. She used to lob to set down by de five an' sell us younguns 'bout de times what de had done dat on de big ribber. (River). Our plantation, she used to say, was de one what de white folks called Mr. Drury. But when was maw real young, jes big enough to wait on de fine white ladies, she was put on de "block", you nos what dat was, and sold to Marse "Matt" Wallace. Marse Matt took it into his head dat he was a gwine to a place that dey calls Arkansas. His white folks, specially his wife's, dem suz de Kengs, dey riz up an put forth mighty powerful objections, yet a long time he was jus unsettled in be mind bout zactly what he really was a gwine to do.
"Peers to me like my maw lowed dat he sorter kept his intentions secret when he had rightly make up be mind bout de whole business. In dem days, dere we'nt no trains like dere is now. Everybody had to ride in wagons, and de white ladies, dey allus rid in fine carriages. De chilluns, dey rid wid de wimmen folks. Our Marster, he rid high steppin' horse, cept on de Sabbath, when he rid wid de missus to meetin' house out on de creek. (Brown's Creek).
"Anyhow, one cold mornin' not long fore Christmas and jus atter Thanksgiving' us not out fore day, or dat is, my maw and paw did, kaise I wus not born till we got to Mississippi River.
Dar was fo' in de white folks carriage --- I is heered Maw tell it a thousand times, over and over --- In de carriage dar was Missus; and de fo' chilluns, Jeanette, Clough, winter and Ida. Marse Matt, he rid de horse right by de side o' de carriage. Paw --- de call him 'Obie', he drive a waggin wid all de little nigger chaps in it dat was too little to walk. De big nigger boys and gals dat was at strong, dey walked. De roads was jus narrow little trails wide enough fer de carriage and de waggin to git through de lims o' de trees. Dey would hit you in de face iffin you didn't duck 'em, so maw allus lowed. Dey had pack mules dat fetched along de supplies, fer dey had to spen' de night in de thick woods what nebber had been cut. All kinds er varmints used to git atter dem and maw lowed dat dey was scared when dey set camp, and she used to tremble mo' den she slep. When she did sleep, she lowed dat she drempt de awful varmints was a gittin' atter her. De missus, she was scared at night too. Marse Matt, he lowed he warn't one bit scared, but maw sat dat Missus say he jump powerful in he sleep sometimes.
"Marse Matt had done set a task of so many miles fer dem to travel from sun-up to sundown, but maw lowed dat dey nebber did hardly git dat far. De pack mules would git short winded, and sometime de carriage horses, dey would git late; or one o' de waggin wheels would take and break; or it was allus some bad luck or follerin atter dem. Den Marse Matt, he lowed dat he didn't believe in no travelin' signs, and cause o' dat, maw lowed dat dey had de worsest kind o' luck. Dat is de reason dat de train did not git no further than "Promoter" County, Miss. (Mr. Wallace really went to Como, Desoto County, Miss., verified by Mrs. J. Clough Wallace).
It took dem fo' weeks to reach 'Promotor'. Dar dey set up de new home. Maw lowed dat dey was called tender feeted pioneers by dem what had got dar ahead of dem. Peers like maw loved dat dey stayed dar five year. Anyway de fus year, a lot o' de niggers tuck all manner o' ailments and dey died. De Missus, she kept full o' cold in dat log house. Day had bed a fine house here, you nos de house what Miss Roberta Wallace libe in, well, dat was de one, cepin it was not as fine as Miss Roberta got it now. Anyway, maw and paw, day didn't like it no better dan missus, cepin dey was skeered to speak dere minds. Finally, de Marster, be tuck down sick, and in spite o' all dat Missus do fer him, saw lowed he kept a growin' worser and worser till he tuck and died one bad night. Missus 'Dandy' de Marster allus called her, had got no broke down wid sorry and sorrow, dat she was nigh to death's door, herself, then de marster died, saw said. For dat reason, dey kept it from her fer two weeks. Dey thought dat she was gwine to have de neumonia, like him, but she started to gittin' well fore she tuck be neumonia. Maw said dat dey used all o' de ole nigger remedies on de Missus dat dey knowed and fer dat reason dey brung her through. Maw is told me dem remedies but I so ole now, dat I jus remembers dem. If Bob was at himself he could give you some. You come by here some day when de moon is right and den Bob'll be in his right mind to tell you some o' dem.
"De Missus, she come back powerful slow, and it was mite nigh Thanksgiving when she got strong. It was so cold dat she used to low how she wish fer her paws big warm fire, and de Carolina sunshine. So one bad morning, she took and got a letter from her paw in Union. He axed her to fetch us all back here to Union.
It had done tuck de letter over three weeks to git to her. Long fore de Marster had died he had gib up hope er gwine to Arkansas. When dat letter rive, maw lowed dat de Missus she tuck and started to cryin'. All dat day she cry and read it over an over. De very next morning she called up all us. I was born den, and maw lowed dat I was a carrin' a sugar tit in my mouf and dat I had de cooter bones round my neck. Course I disremembers all cept dat what I is been told over and over. When maw and paw went out dar, dey had one little chile. He was six years ole when dey got back here. One had done tuck and died fore dey lef here. Den me and my sister, we was born in Miss.
"Dat was one glad day fer us, kaise Missus lowed dat she was a gwine back to her paw in Union. All de niggers, dey started to dancin and a hollerin' like dey was wile. Maw lowed dat some folks dat libbed three miles away tuck and come to see us. Some o' dem called us slackers, er sometin' kaise we was a leavin'; but others, maw lowed, dat dey wished dey could go as fer as Georgia wid us. But I is nebber liked Georgia myself. Missus gib de orders fer us to begin packin' and maw said dat de way dem niggers worked was a dyin' sin. De Missus, she sell her mules and other stock, kaise we was a gwine to ride all de way back on de railroad train. It had jus broke through to Miss. Some o' de ole niggers lowed dat dey was feered to ride on dem things, bein as dey was drawed by fire. Dey thought de debbil, he was a workin' in de inside of dem. Maw lowed dat if de Missus was not feered she would not Be. De Missus was feered bout dem dat was not gwine to ride on de train, but when she lowed dat dey could jus stay in Miss. Maw said dat dey nebber did hear no mo' bout dem bein feered o' de train.
'Naw and paw allus tole me bout de things what If did on de train. I was so young dat I jus remembers anything about dat. She lowed dat she tuck de cooter bones from my neck fore we started to de trains. Maw lowed dat when de train come up. dey was so scairt dat we did not want to git on till she did. All de niggers was looked up to when day got back here, saw loved, kaise no niggers in Union had ebber rid on de train ceptin dem dat had rid for as Alston, and day was so fee dat you could count des on your hand.
"Missus 'Dandy' come right back to her paw's house. He was Mr. Clough Meng. Missus Dandy's little boy. Clough, was big enough to go to school when day got back. It was Christmas when day got to 'Promotor' County. and it was Christmas when us rive back.
"Then my paw, 'Obie' was a courtin, a nigger put a spell on his kaise he was a wantin' my ma too. De nigger got a conjure bag an drapped it in de spring what my paw drunk water from. Be was laid up on a bed o' rheumatism for six weeks. Dey all knowed dat he was conjured. He could not even set up when his victuals was fetched to him. So his brother knowed who had put de spell on his. He tuck and went to another old conjure man and axed him to take dat spell off'n paw. De conjure man lowed to paw's brother dat a grapevine growed over de spring, and fer him to go dar and cut a piece of it six feet long and fetch it to his house at night. When he tuck it to de conjure man's house, de conjure man, he took de vine in a dark place and does somethin to it --- de Lawd knows what. Den he tole my paw's brother to take it home and give it to paw. De man what put de spell on pas. I mean do nigger what had it does, be come often and set down by paw and ax him what was ailen him.
Our conjure man, he tole paw dat de nex time de man come an' set down by his bed, for him to raise up on his lef elbow and rech down by his bed and take dat piece o' grapevine and hit de nigger over de head and face. Den atter he had done dat, our conjure man lowed dat paw could den rise up from his bed o' rheumatism.
"It wont long before de nigger come to visit my paw. My paw, he axed him real nice like to have a seat. His maw had done put a chair by de bed, so dat he could set down wid his face toward paw. Atter he and paw got to talkin, paw reched down an' axed him to have a look at de grapevine dat he was gaine to smoke fer his ailment. Dat nigger, he lowed to my paw dat it was not a goin to do his rheumatis no good. Jus as he lowed dat, paw, he ris up on his lef shoulder and elbow and wid his right hand he let loose and come down over dat nigger's face and forehead wid dat grapevine. Dat nigger, he jump up and run out o' dat house a hollerin' kaise he knowed dat paw and done got de spell off him. My paw got up de next cay and dey lows dat he nebber did have no mo' rheumatis."
