"'Put on my long white robe,
Put on de golden crown,
Put on de golden slipper,
And forever be Jesus' lamb.'
"But I likes 'nother song better, like dis:
"'Herodias go down to de river one day,
Want to know what John Baptist have to say,
John spoke de words at risk of he life,
Not lawful to marry yous brudder's wife.'
"Not dat am 'nough. If I's here much longer, yous have dis old woman dancin'."
[William M. Thomas]
William M. Thomas, 87, now residing at 514 Hayes St., Fort Worth, Texas, was born a slave of Dr. Frank Thomas, in Lauderdale County, Miss. William's father was sold when William was a baby and his mother mated with another slave. It was seven years after they were freed that the family left their master and moved onto a tract of land. William stayed with them until he was twenty-four, then worked twelve years in Galveston, as a stevedore. He farmed until 1910, then worked as a mortar man at the Purina Mills in Fort Worth until 1931. He and his wife receive a $13.00 monthly pension.
"I knows 'zactly how old I is. Massa done give my mammy de statement. He do dat for all he niggers when dey freed. I's borned May 17th, in 1850, and dat make me eighty-eight next May. Dat's on Massa Doctor Frank Thomas's plantation, over near Meridian, in Mississippi. Dere forty-four slave families on he place and he own 'bout seven hunerd acres land, so him have plenty pasture, wood and field land. De money crop was cotton, of course.
"My mammy and sis was in de place and my step-pa. My pappy am sold and took to Texas when I's so li'l I don't 'member him. After dat, mammy done took another man.
"All de slaves live in quarters 'cept de house servants, and dey live in servants' quarters, and dere's where I's de lucky nigger. My mammy am cook for massa and I's round de kitchen what 'twas plenty of good eats. And I plays with massa's two boys, 'twas Frank and Lawrence.
"I's so li'l 'fore surrender I never really works, 'cept to be de errand boy. I fetches eggs and sich. Massa have lots of chickens and us fetch in high as a thousand eggs in one day sometimes. Us have eggs to eat, too. Massa Thamas am awful good and dere am never de holler 'bout feedin'. I bet none dem niggers done live so good after dey free.