~— 5torieS Prom. Ex~.S1aves
5rn....
16
over arid puke in a gully. De buzzards would stay in dat gully and. lap up dem drunkards‘ puke. One rii8ht a old man went in a drunkard‘s sleep In de bar-room. De bar tender s~oved him out when he got ready to close, and he rolled up against dis here rail dat I am te1lin~ you about. He ‘lowed dat next morning when he woke up, two buzzarde was settin~g on his shirt front eating up his puke. He said, ‘You is too soon‘, and grabbed one by de le~ and wrung his head off. But beTh‘ he could git its head Wrung off it had done puked his own puke back on him. He said dat was de nastiest thing he evei~ ~ot into, arid dat he never drunk no more liquor. Dem days is done past arid gone, arid it ain‘t nobody hardly knows Pacolet used to be called Buzzard Roost.

“Lawd have mercy, white folks ~ Here I is done drapped plumb off‘ri my subject; butaoldman‘s mind will jes‘ run waa‘ry at

tirnes.Me and Joê, Alex‘s son, went to see de of~icer ‘bout gitting Joe‘s pa buried. He ‘lowéd dat ~tlex‘s bödy was riddled wid bullets; sàwe tookhim and put his bones arid a little rotten flesh dat dem buzzards had left, in de box ~ve made, arid fetched it to de sIte and buried him. Nobody ever seed Alex but me, Joe, and dat gal dat went atter dem calves. Us took shovels and throw‘d his bones in de box. When we got de top nailed on, we was both sick. Nor, things like dat don‘t come to pass. I still thinks of de avvful days and creeps runs all over me~~yet. ~

	MAll thy brothers, sisters, mother and Lather is done gone. And I is looking to leave beTh‘ a great while. I is trying every da~ to git ready, Lawd. I been making ready for years. Smart mens tries to make you live on, but dey can‘t git above daath. Tain‘t no use.“

Source:	Jesse Rice (8Q),-~Littlejohn, St., Gaffriey, S.C.

IntervIewer:	Caidwell Sims, tJiaion, S.C. 1/8/38