ut nobody git drunk.
Marse sho' cut up if we do.

"Old Miss have de floors sanded, dat where you sprinkles fine, white
sand over da floor and sweeps it round in all kinds purty figgers. Us
make a corn shuck broom.

"Marse sho' a fool 'bout he hounds and have a mighty fine pack. De boys
hunts wolves and painters (panthers) and wild game like dat. Dere was
lots of wild turkey and droves of wild prairie chickens. Dere was
rabbits and squirrels and Indian puddin', make of cornmeal. It am real
tasty. I cooks goose and pork and mutton and bear meat and beef and deer
meat, den makes de fritters and pies and dumplin's. Sho' wish us had dat
food now.

"On de cold winter night I's sot many a time spinnin' with two threads,
one in each hand and one my feets on de wheel and de baby sleepin' on my
lap. De boys and old men was allus whittlin' and it wasn't jes'
foolishment. Dey whittles traps and wooden spoons and needles to make
seine nets and checkers and sleds. We all sits workin' and singin' and
smokin' pipes. I likes my pipe right now, and has two clay pipes and
keeps dem under de pillow. I don't aim for dem pipes to git out my
sight. I been smokin' clost to a hunerd years now and it takes two cans
tobaccy de week to keep me goin'.

"Dere wasn't many doctors dem days, but allus de closet full of simples
(home remedies) and most all de old women could git med'cine out de
woods. Ev'ry spring, Old Miss line up all de chillen and give dem a
dose of garlic and rum.

"De chillen all played together, black and white. De young ones purty
handy trappin' quail and partridges and sech. Dey didn't shoot if dey
could cotch it some other way, 'cause powder and lead am scarce. Dey
cotch de deer by makin' de salt lick, and uses a spring pole to cotch
pigeons and birds.

"De black folks gits off down in de bottom and shouts and sings and
prays. Dey gits in de ring dance. It am jes' a kind of shuffle, den it
git faster and faster and dey gits warmed up and moans and shouts and
claps and dances. Some gits 'xhausted and drops out and de ring gits
closer. Sometimes dey sings and shouts all night, but come break of day,
de nigger got to git to he cabin. Old Marse got to tell dem de tasks of
de day.

"Old black Tom have a li'l bottle and have spell roots and water in it
and sulphur. He sho' could find out if a nigger gwine git whipped. He
have a string tie round it and say, 'By sum Peter, by sum Paul, by de
Gawd dat make us all, Jack don't y