ucks niggers aint got no sense nuf ter do fancy things.
Sometimes I tended de chilluns.

"Yah, yah, I sho do member Abraham Lincoln. My Missus and Massa did not
like Mr. Lincoln, but pshaw, all de niggers did. I member him, I seed
him once, soon after I was freed.

"Pshaw, dey was hard times durin de war, my Missus and sum of de nigger
gals and de chilluns hae to stay in the woods several days ter keep way
from de soldiers. Dey eat all de chickens and kilt the cows and tuk de
horses and we sho scairt out dar wid dem varmints roving roun.

"Nigger aint got no business being sot free, niggers still oughter be
slaves. Us niggers did not hev to bother bout de victuals sor nuthin.

"Wen my Missis called us niggers gether and told us we was free I was as
happy as a skinned frog but you seed I didn't have any sense. All
niggers are fools. Now she says, she did, you can all stay here en work
en we will pay you foh your work, or you can work foh some body else,
but I hev raised you hones, and don't you steal, and work foh nuf money
so you wont hev to steal it if youse gits hongry and haint got no money
to buy vittals jus you ask de white folks foh hit and dey will giv hit
to youse. Oh how I miss my Missis and Massa so much. Wish I hed dem now.

"Shucks on dese niggers and dar ways now. I lef de plantation my old
Missus and Massa home and got on a steam boat on de Ohio Ribber and
nursed de chillun foh de Captain and he's wife on dat boat foh about two
year. An den He, He, He, a nigger don got much sense, Miss Fannie an Mr.
Harry Campbell whot paid me foh my work on de boat gives Five Dollars
foh de work en I'se didn't hev sense nuf ter know what ter do wid dis
money. So I goes ter de store en buys me a cedar tub and filled hit wid
candy. Miss Fannie gave me back de money foh de tub an den I ate nuf
candy ter git sick and den Miss Fannie took de candy back to de store
and she got my money back, she did.

"But shucks, I did not no whot ter do wid de money. Wen I lef Miss
Fannie I rode to Henderson on a log raft en wen I got dar dey was a big
circus and sum one was sayin, "de perade be here directly, He, He, He, I
didn't no whot dey meant, big ignorant fool dat I was and still is, en
wen I seed de elephants and de uther varmints I ran like a big pop-eyed
fool nigger cause I never seed such things. Dat day on de road in town I
met my ole Missus McElroy en she had me ter help her wid de chilluns and
tuk me ter de circus and wen I