to tell ‘bout what us done dein days, ‘cept play and eat. Dein what was big ‘nough had to wuk.

	~	“Lordy, Misse It‘s lak dis: I is a old Nigger, and I done been here ror many years, but dese last few years I sho‘ has been a sick man, and now I can‘t git things straight in my mind lak dey was den. I knows us lived in log houses what had great big chimblies made out of sticks and mud. Why, dem fire-P places was ‘bout eight feet wide, and you could put a whole stick of cord wtod on de fire. • Us slept on high-Pup old timey beds what had big posties and instead of springs, dey had stout cords wove ‘cross to hold de mattress. De last time I slept on one of dem sort of beds was when I was a little boy, sleepin‘ wid my Ma. Pa ~nd Ma was both field hands. Ma‘s mammy was de onhiest one of my grandmas I ever seed. lier name was Ca‘line and she lived wid Grandpa Abe on another plantation. Ma‘s sister, my aunt Ca‘Iine was cook up at our Old Marster‘s big house.

	“Money? Yessurn~ Dey ginime a little money now and den for totin‘ water to de field, sweepin‘ de yards, and a million other things dey used to raake me do. De most dey ever gimrne was 50 cents. I never spent none of it, but jus‘ turned it over to my Ma. Chillun warn‘t ‘lowed to spend money den lak dey does now, ‘cause dey had evvythlng dey needed anyhow. Old Marster, he give us plenty somepin t‘eat, such as it was. Dere w~ lots of cornbread,a little meat now and den, collards, whip-poor-will peas and dein unknown peas ~iat was most big as a dime, and black ‘lasses dat was lallyho.
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2.