‚~
‚-. ( ~
she was my young flhi8treSß ~ ABC‘ß me 8ayin‘ em long wid her. I say, ‘Miss Betty, I smell ginger bread, can‘t I go git a piece?‘ She say,
‘Betty -~ I‘m so sorry I name you ter me. I wish I ‚ Then you naine Mary Betty an‘ give me nother name ~‚ down agin to sayin‘ the ABC‘s, I be lookin‘ off. goin‘ to be a idiot.‘ I say, ‘That what I vanter wanter be • ‚ I dn‘ t know what a idiot was then. “I took up crocheting. Misa Cornella cut me seine quilt pieces.

‘Betty that‘s her talent‘ bout me. Miss Betty say, ‘If she goin‘ I want her to be mart‘ Miss Mary lernt my sister Mary fast.
named Mary.‘ I say,

Miss Betty git n~e

She say, ‘Betty, you be ~. zactly what I
She

to be
say mine
	“~Lhen I was bout fifteen I was golner to the nigger school. I wanted to go to the white school wid Mise Mag. Miss Betty say, ‘Betty, that white woman would whoop you every day. ‚ I take my dinner in a bucket and go on wid Mary• I‘d leave fore the teacher have time to have my lesson and git in late. The teacher said, ‘Betty, Miss Cornelia and Miss Betty say they want you to be smart and you up an‘ run off and come in late, and do all sorts er ways. Ain‘t you shamed?‘

	“They had a big entertainment. Miss Betty learned me a piece to say poetry. I could lem it from sayin‘ it over wid Miss Betty. They bought ~ and Mary our f~ist calico dresses. I lack to walked myself to death. I was so proud. It had two ruffles on the bottc.~i of the skirt and a shash tied at the waist behind. We had red hats wid streamers hanging down the back. The dresses was red and black small checks. Mary lernt her piece at school. We had singing and speeches and a big dinner at the school clos in‘.

	“Mr. Yohu Moore went to war and was killed at the beginnin‘ of the first battle soon as he got there. They had a sayin, t~f0l1 won‘t last as long as 3~ohn Moore when he went t o war.‘