"I had nine brothers and sisters, and they wus: Monroe Henderson; he wus the House servant, Jefferson, Ida, Felia, Laura, Izora, and I don' 'member the other two; guess they died when they wus babies, but all we was named the same names as Mars Pinter kids; and we played with them, hear me! we played with them.
"Then when I wus big 'nuf I wus put to cardin' wool and cotton, we wusn't paid no money for our work we didn' need none; we had ever'thin' we needed, and plenty of good stuff to eat, and good warm cloths to ware.
"Them 'nigger' boys wus so proud to 'long to Mars Pinter that they would break up white rocks and scatter them on the turn-pike, and make nice, white shiny walks for Misses. When the carriage was ordered out for a drive, first mammy walk out with a white cloth, rub it over the carriage—huh; better not find a speck of dirt on the carriage.
"Mammy allus taught all her white and dark children, when interin' the presence of elders, to make your' 'obedience', (bow), and then, sit quiet.
"Men, them days wore long hair too, but sometime they cut it off, if it got too long and hot. They would turn a milk crock down over their haid and even it off some.
"We didn' know nothin' much about the war, we didn't want to leave Marse, and that wus all the difference it made us. I do 'member 'Ol' Jeff Davis, come to 'Marse' and say: 'Gib me them niggers and I will carry them down to Fort Pillow and hide them in the cave until this is over'; then 'Marse' run them off, and said: 'better not put any of my people in a cave, they worked for me and made all my money: I gwine to do right by these people.'
"Where we lived we never heard tell of a 'form school, never needed nothin' lake that; didn't know what one wus.
"One thing I does 'member well, and would like to know if anyone else was there and 'members it. I went with my 'Missie Pinter' to see them hang John Brown, he was a 'Whig'; they brought him from the Culpeper County Court House, in Virginia, and hung him to a beechwood tree, at Harper's Ferry; on the bank of the James River. Now they sing 'Hung him to a sour apple tree', but that ain't right. I saw it and I know.
"I said a while ago we wusn't paid no money, but I did know what it wus 'cause 'Marse' never put lock or key on his cellar-door, and he kept food and his money in small barrels down there and we could play wif it and never once did anyone try and take any of it.
"I learned to iron too, and there wus two women stood there ironing every day, they sho' could make them purty lace 'broidery underskirts stand alone.