Ex—5lave Stories		P ~
( Texas )	~	 ag .~	‚ 2;‘5




~ar fish, Sorn~time ~it 1amp~r eel. De~r hard to cotch, Perches arid catfish and niudcat ea~~t to cotch, vater bird, too. Th~ck and crane. Crane 1ik~ fish. Us take bont, go ‘1on~ bayou, find nesti~s in sedg~ grass.

	“Old massa ŕllus good, He ‘low pnp~ and some to have 11,1 patch round de~r door. De~r eat ~hat ~iey raise. Some sells it. Papa raise pu~pkin and watem.~1on, He hav€~ p1ent~r bee-gum with bees. After freedom he rn~k~ rnOnt~y awnile. He sell de honey fror~ dem bees.

	“Dat plantation full cotton and corn. Us chilien sleep in d~ cotton~ house. It be so soft. In d~ quarters houses chilIen didn‘t h~ve no bed. Dey slept on tow sack on de floor. ~)~t why dem cott:n piles felt so soft.

	‘gassa h~ve special place in woors ~‘here h~ hr~ve ineanest ni~gers whip. He nv~r hir much, b~it ~artiirte cornin‘ on. Some de ~owed ones runs ~‘way to ci~rn Yan~ees. Re have to whip so:ue (3‘~n. He h~v~ stoc~cs to pu.t dey neck in when ~ďe ~hip ~em. Massa never chain he sl~wes. I seed tnlkin‘ p~rrcte. L~ass8. didn‘t havE; Oflč, but other mass~ts cUd. Dat parrot taLc. He tell ~then de nigger run away or when h~ not work.

	“Us white folks all Catholic. Us not ~o to c~irch, but ~11 chilien christen. Dat in St. Martinvi]l‘~ catholic Ch~rch. All u.s christen dere. .&±ter freedom I start go to church re~‘lar. I still does.

	UDe~T ~ give us pants till u.s ten yea‘~ old. In winter or summer C~s bore long, split tail shirt. Us never even think of shoes. After I~s twelve papa buy my first p~ir shoes. T)ey have di~mond brass piece on toe. I so ‘fraid dey wear out I won‘t wear dem.

	“De war ~oin‘ on. Us see sojers all ~e time. us hide in bresh and pl~!k1p snipe at dem. All ~ e white folks in town gang up. Dey send dere slaves out on Cypress Island. Dey do dat try keep Yankee sojers from