Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves, Volume II, Arkansas Narratives, Part 3

by United States. Work Projects Administration

“No sir, Boss Man, we don’t know nuthin’ ’bout who our pappy wuz. Dar wuzn’t no niggers much in slabery times whut knowed nuthin’ ’bout dey pappys. Dey jes knowed who dey mammys is. Dats all dey knowed ’bout dat. Us neber hab no pappy, jes er mammy whut wuz name Emily Green.

“Boss Man, yo see how black I is en kinky dat my hair is en yo can see dat me en sister Mattie is sho pure niggers wid no brown in us. Well, yo know one thing, Boss Man, en dis is sho whut my mammy done tole us er heap er times, en dat is dat when I wuz born dat de granny woman runned ter old mis en tell her ter cum en look at dat baby whut Emily done gibed birth ter, and dat I wuz nigh ’bout white en hed straight hair en blue eyes, en when old mis seed me dat she so mad dat she gib mammy er good stroppin kase I born lak dat but hit warn’t long atter I born ’fore I gits black, en old mis see den dat I er pure nigger, en den she tell mammy dat she sorry dat she stropped her ’bout me being white en er habin blue eyes en straight hair. No sir, Boss Man, I jes don’t know how cum I change but dat sho is whut mammy did tell us. Sister Mattie, she know dat.

“Yes sir, Boss Man, I kin tell you all er bout de old slabery times, en cordin ter whut I’se thinkin’, en fer as me myself is, wid de times so tight lak dey is now days wid me, and all de time be er stud’in’ ’bout how ter git er long, hit wud be er heap better fer hit to be lak hit wuz den, kase us neber hed nuthin ter worry ’bout den cept ter do dat whut we wuz tole ter do, en all de eatin’ en de cloes wuz gib ter us. Our marster trained us up right, fer ter do our wuk good en ter obey whut de white folks sey en ter sho be polite to de white folks, en atter us lef old marster den our mammy she trained us de same way, en we is always polite, kase manners is cheap.

“All de nigger chillun in slabery time wore slips, bofe de gals en de boys. Dere wuzn’t no breeches fer de little ones eben atter dey git old enuf ter wuk en go ter de fiel’s, dey still wear dem slips, en dey used ter feed us outen dem big wooden bowls whut dey mix de bread up in, wid sometimes de pot-likker, en sometimes mostly wid de milk, en de chillun, dey go atter dat grub en git hit all ober dey faces en dey hands en dey slips en er bout de time dey git through eatin’ de old mis she cum out en when dey through old mis, she hab ’em ter wash dey hands en faces nice en clean.

“On dem Sundays dat de marster want all de niggers ter go ter church fer de preachin’, he send dem all de order ter wash up good en clean en put on dey clean cloes en git ready fer de preachin’, en fust ter cum up dar whar he waitin’ ter see dat dey look good en nice en clean, en when us git up dar ter de house lookin’ fresh en good, de marster’s folks, dey talk lak dis ter one er nudder; dey sey: ‘Look er here at my nigger, Henry, dat boy is lookin’ fine. He is gwine ter be er big healthy man en er good wukker,’ en atter dey all done looked all de niggers ober dey tell ’em ter be gwine on ter de church en dey go on en sit in de bak behine all de white folks en hear de white man preach. Dar wuzn’t no nigger preachers in dem days dat I ever seed.

“Now I know dat yo has heard of dem paddyrollers. Well, I tell yo, Boss Man, dem paddyrollers, dey wuz bilious. Dey wuz de mens whut rid out on de roads at night ter see dat all dem niggers whut wuz out en off dey marster’s places hed er pass from dey marsters. Dem paddyrollers, dey wud stop er nigger whut dey find out at night en sey, ‘Boy, whar yo gwine? En is yo got yo pass?’ En de Lawd help dem niggers whut dey cotch widout dat pass. Iffen er nigger be cotch out et night widout de pass writ down on de paper frum he marster, en dem paddyrollers cotch him, dat nigger sho haf ter do sum good prayin’ en pretty talkin’ er else dey tek him ter whar dey got four stobs drove down in de groun en dey tie he hans en feet ter dem stobs en den ware him out wid er big heaby strop. De mostest reason dat sometimes de niggers out at night is on account dey courtin’ some gal whut libes on some udder place. When yo see de paddyrollers er comin’ en yo ain’t got no pass writ down on de paper en yo don’t want ter git er stroppin, den de onliest thing fer yo ter do is ter run en try ter git on yer marster’s place ’fore dey git yo, er try ter dodge ’em er somepin lak dat. Iffen de paddyrollers got dem nigger hounds wid ’em when de nigger break en run, den de onliest thing dat de nigger kin do den is ter wuk de conjure. He kin wuk dat conjure on dem hounds in seberal different ways. Fust, he kin put er liddle tuppentine on he feet er in he shoe, en er lot er times dat will frow de hounds off de track, er else, iffen he kin git er hold er some fresh dirt whar er grabe ain’t been long dug, en rub dat on he feet, den dat is er good conjure, en mo dan dat iffen he kin git ter catch er yearlin calf by der tail en step in de drappins whar dat calf done runned er long wid him er holdin’ on ter de tail, den dat is a sho conjure ter mak dem hounds lose de track, en dat nigger kin dodge de paddyrollers.

“Lak I sey, Boss Man, ’bout de onliest thing dat de niggers in slabery time wud lebe de place at night fer, wud be dey courtin’, en mostly den on er Wednesday er Saturday night, so I gwine ter tell yo how dey sometimes dodge de paddyrollers whilst dey courtin’ dere wimmens at night. Yo see, mos’ all de wimmens, dey be er wukkin at night on dey tasks dat dere old mis gib ’em ter do, er weavin’ er de cloth. Dese wimmens wud be er settin’ ’roun de fire weavin’ de cloth en de nigger be dar too er courtin’ de gal, en all ter once here cum dem paddyrollers, some at de front door en some at de back door, en when de wimmens er hear ’em er comin’, dey raise er loose plank in de flo whut dey done made loose fer dis bery puppus, en de nigger he den drap right quick down ’neath de flo twix de jists, en de wimmens den slap de plank right bak in place on top er de man ter hide him, so iffen de paddyrollers does come in dat dey see dat dere ain’t no man in dar. Dat wuz de way dat de niggers used ter fool ’em heap er times.

“I ’members dem days well when de War gwine on yit I neber did see no Yankee mens er tall, en de closest dat us eber cumbed ter see de Yankees wuz dat time when old marster hed de horn blowed ter signal de niggers ter git de kerrige hosses en de milk cows off ter de woods kase he had done heard dat de Yankees wuz er cumin, but dey missed us en dem Yankees, dey neber find old marster’s place. I seed some of our sojer mens do, once, atter us lef old marster en go ter Montgomery wid our grandpappy. Dese sojer mens, dey come in ter town on de train bak frum de War whar dey been fitin fer so long, en dey happy en singin’, dey so glad dat peace done ’clared. Hit wuz er whole train full er dem Fedrit sojers, en dey wimmens en chilluns all dere er huggin’ en er kissin’ ’em ginst dey git off de train en gibin ’em cakes en sich good things ter eat.

“Yes sir, Boss Man, de niggers wuz treated good in slabery times en wuz trained up right, ter wuk, en obey, en ter hab good manners. Our old marster, he neber wud sell er nigger en he feed ’em good, en dey lub en ’spected him. Yo sho hed better ’spect him, en iffen yo didn’t dat strop wud be er flyin’. All er old marster’s niggers wuz good multiplyin’ peoples. Dey sho wuz, en dey raise big famblies. Dats one thing whut er woman hed ter be in dem days er she sho be sold quick. Iffen she ain’t er good multiplier dey gwine ter git shut er her rail soon. Day tuk extra pains wid dem good multiplyin’ wimmins too en neber gib dem no heaby wuk ter do no mo dan weavin’ de cloth er sich roun de place.

“Whilst our old marster, he neber sell no niggers, de speculators, dey hab ’em fer sale er plenty, en I has seed ’em er passin’ in de road en er long string er gwine ter de place whar de sale gwine ter be. ’Fore dey git ter de sale place dey roach dem niggers up good jes lak dey roach er mule, en when dey put ’em on de block fer de white mens ter bid de price on ’em den dey hab ’em ter cut de shines en de pidgeon wing fer ter show off how supple dey is, so dey bring de bes’ price.