Me an' my pa an' ma, they names was Nancy an'
Henry Smith, live in a cabin with my sisters. They names was Saphronia
an' Annie. We had beds in them cabins made out of cypress. They looked
jest like they do now. Ever'body cooked on th' fire place. They had pots
an' boilers that hung over th' fire an' we put th' vittles in thar an'
they cooked an' we et 'em. 'Course we never et so much in th' cabin
'cause ever mornin' th' folks all went to th' field. Ma an' Pa was field
hands an' I worked thar too when I got big enuff. Saphronia an' Annie,
they worked to th' big house. All th' nigger chillun stayed all day with
a woman that was hired to take care of them."
When asked about the kind of food they ate, Melvin replied:
"We had enuff for anybody. Th' vittles was cooked in great big pots over
th' fire jest like they was cookin' for stock. Peas in this pot, greens
in that one. Corn-bread was made up an' put back in th' husks an' cooked
in th' ashes. They called that a ash cake. Well, when ever'thing was
done th' vittles was poured in a trough an' we all et. We had spoons cut
out of wood that we et with. Thar was a big lake on th' plantation whar
we could fish an' they show was good when we had 'em for supper.
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