was made out of big pine knots what would burn a
long time. Us felt mighty big when us was 'lowed to hold dem torches.
When dey got done shuckin' all de corn, dey had a big supper, and Honey,
dem was sho' some good eatments--barbecue of all sorts--jus' thinkin'
'bout dem pies makes me hongry, even now. Ma made 'em, and she couldn't
be beat on chicken pies and sweet potato pies. Atter dey done et and
drunk all dey wanted, Marse Jim would tell 'em to go to it. Dat was de
word for de gen'ral to start up de dancin', and dat lasted de rest of de
night; dat is if dey didn't all fall out, for old time corn shuckin'
breakdowns was drag-outs and atter all dem 'freshments, hit sho' kept
somebody busy draggin' out dem what fell out. Us chillun was 'lowed to
stay up long as us wanted to at corn shuckin's, and sometimes us would
git out and try to do lak de grown-up Niggers. Hit was de mos' fun.

"Dey went huntin' and fishin' and when dey cotch or kilt much, dey had a
big supper. I 'members de fus' time I ever cooked 'possum. Ma was sick
in de bed, and de mens had done been 'possum huntin'. Ma said I would
jus' have to cook dem 'possums. She told me how to fix 'em and she said
to fix 'em wid potatoes and plenty of butter and red pepper. Den she
looked at me right hard and said dat dey had better be jus' right. Dat
skeered me so I ain't never been so I could eat no 'possum since den.
Yessum, dey was cooked jus' right, but cookin' 'em jus' once when I was
skeered cured me of de taste for eatin' 'possum.

"Us chillun didn't git out and go off lak dey does dese days. Us stayed
dar on de plantation. In winter us had to wear plenty of clothes, wid
flannel petticoats and sich lak, and us stayed in by de fire. Big boys
had clothes made out of jeans, but little boys wore homespun shirts. On
hot days us jus' wore one piece of clothes, a sort of shirt what was
made long and had a yoke in it.

"Dey made me use snuff to cure my sore eyes when I was little, and I
never could quit usin' it no more. When I was 'bout 15, Ma and Pa moved
to Athens and I went to wuk for Mr. Joe Webb's fambly. I wukked for 'em
for 30 years and raised all deir chillun. Dey was all mighty good to me
and seed dat I had plenty of evvything. I would still be dar, but de old
folkses all done died out and gone to dey rest and de younguns done
married and lef' here.

"I was wukkin' right in de house wid 'em when I 'cided to git married.
Yes Ma'am, I sho' done had one swell