Dis here chile is all I got lef'." The "Chile"
referred to was a woman about 69. "My fust chap was born in slavery. Me
and my husband lived on diffunt plantashuns till after Freedom come. My
Ma and my Pa lived on diffunt places too. My Pa uster come evy Sadday
evenin' to chop wood out uv de wood lot and pile up plenty fur Ma till
he come agin. On Wensday evenin', Pa uster come after he been huntin'
and bring in possum and coon. He sho could get 'em a plenty.
"Ma, she chop cotton and plow, and I started choppin' cotton when I wuz
twelve years old. When I was a gal I sure wuz into plenty devilment."
"What kind of devilment?"
"Lawdy Miss, evy time I heayd a fiddle, my feets jes' got to dance and
dancin' is devilment. But I ain't 'lowed to dance nothin' but de
six-handed reel.
"I uster take my young Misses to school ev'y day, but de older Misses
went to boadin' school and come home ev'y Friday an' went back on
Monday. No ma'am, I never learn to read and write but I kin spell some."
"Nancy, did you go out at night and were you ever caught by the patrol?"
"No, ma'am, I never wuz caught by de patterol; my Pa wuz the one I was
scart uv.
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