2.	16
in the kitchen, ~at different places owin to what you be workin at when the bell rung. Big bell on a high post,

	My ma‘s name was Sina &~tton. She come from Virginia in a nigger traders drove when she was sixteen years old and Miss Prances husband bought er. She had nine ehilden whut lived. I am de yoangest.~ She

died jes berore de war broke out, Till that ti~ie I had been trained a house girl . My ma. wa~ e. field hand. Then when the ~ men all went to the army I plowed. I plowed four years I recken, till de surrender. Howd

~ I know it was freedom? A strange woman ~ I never seed fore, coiae runhin down where we was all at work. She say loud as she could “Hay freedor~. You is free.“ Everything toe out fer de house a~ soldiers was lined up. Dats whut they corne by ter. Course dey was Yankee soldiers settin the colored folks all free,~ Everybody was ~ettin up his clothes and leaving. They didn‘t know whah des goin.. 3e8 soatterin round. I say give ‘ein somethin. They was so mad cause they was free and leavin and nobody to work the land. The hoes and st~ck was rnost~y all done gone then~ V~hite folks sho had been rich but all they had was the land. The smoke house s had ~ been stripped and stripped. The cows .all been took oft‘ cept the scrubs. Folks plowed ox and glad to plow one.

	Sometime ~e had a good time. I danced till I joined the church. ~e di‘ t have no ni ~ger churches that I knowed till after freedom, Go to the white folks church. We danced square dance jess like the white folks long time ago. The niggers baptized after the white folks down at the pond. They joined the white folks church soraetiriies. The saine wonian on the place sewed Cor de ~ niggers ‚ made some thin~8 for Miss Frances. I recollects that. She knitted and seed about things.