"I stayed at marster's house eight months, den hired out at ten dollars a month. Dat was de fus' money I ever made and I didn' want to go to school, 'cause I wanted to make dat money. Dat looked like big money to me. I was proud to have it, 'cause I could git what I wanted. I cain't read or write to this day.
"I was married to General Thompson, and he'd been a slave too, in Alabama. Yes, General was his given name. I was 16 years old when I married and a white preacher married us durin' a 4th of July celebration. Yes, we had a big time and a good time.
"We come to Texas later and my husban' farmed on the Brazos. We had eight chillen, and two of 'em is livin.' My husban' died and I buried him, den I took up with a Horace Foster, and he was nothin' but a gambler. I lived with him 'bout 8 years, but he never would marry me, so I lef' him."
[Penny Thompson]
Penny Thompson, 86, now living at 1100 E. 12th St., Fort Worth, Texas, was born a slave to Calvin Ingram, in Coosa Co., Alabama. In 1867 Penny was brought to Tyler, Texas, and several years later she married Ike Thompson and moved to Fort Worth.
"Do I 'member slavery days? Yes, suh! How could I forgit dem? For an old person I has good 'collection. I's 10 year old when de war start and my massa am Calvin Ingram. My mammy and pappy was a weddin' present to Massa Ingram from his pappy. Mammy give birth to 15 chilluns, but I never saw any of my brothers and sisters, 'cause they all born on Massa Ingram's pappy's plantation 'fore he give my mammy to Massa Ingram.
"De plantation dat Massa Ingram have was 200 acres or mo'. Him own 'bout 20 grown-up slaves, and on dat place dey raises 'bout everything we eats and wears, includin' de vinegar and de peach brandy. Everybody am 'signed to dey duties and my mammy am chief cook for de big house. I he'ps her and feeds chickens, gits eggs and totes water.
"De treatmen' couldn't be better. Massa am de bestes' and de kindes' fellow dat ever live. He am in Heaven, for sho', but de missy mus' be in Hell, for she sho' was a debbil. Massa have de fight with her lots of times 'bout de treatment of us, but he wouldn't let her 'buse us.
"We'uns was never hongry for food, 'cause we have lots of meat, chickens and eggs and cornmeal and 'lasses and honey. De hams is smoked on de place and dey am de hams, white man, dey am de hams! Den massa have a big cellar jus' full of everything and I never forgit de big, brass key what lock dat cellar. Dere was de jams and de jellies and de preserves, and de massa give us somethin' of all of dat. Him makes de gran' peach brandy and every mornin' we could have two fingers in de glass. 'Twas de same at night. Dere was somethin' else was reg'lar every mornin' and night and dat am de prayer. He calls all us together and says de prayers. I often thinks of dat brandy and de prayers, two times every day.
"As for de whuppin,' dere wasn't any on massa's place. Him have only one nigger what am unruly and dat am Bill McClure, and a bigger thief never lived.