ers good do en see
dat dey keep demselves clean en 'spectible, en try ter keep de disease
outen 'em. Ebery Monday mornin' dey gib 'em all er little square, brown
bottle er bitters fer dem ter take dat week. Dat wuz dere medicine, but
iffen er nigger do git sick, den dey sent fer de doctor right er way en
hab de doctor ter 'zamine de sick one en sey, 'Doctor, kin you do dat
nigger eny good?' er 'Do whut yo kin fer dat nigger, Doctor, kase he is
er valuable han' en wuth muney.'

"I neber wuz sick none do in my life, but I jes nathally been kilt, near
'bout, one time in de gin when my head git cotched twixt de lever en de
band wheel en Uncle Dick hed ter prize de wheel up offen my head ter git
me loose, en dat jes nigh 'bout peeled all de skin offen my head. Old
marster, he gib me er good stroppin fer dat too. Dat wuz fer not
obeyin', kase he hed done tole all us young niggers fer ter stay 'way
frum de gin house.

"I wuzn't gwine ter be trained up ter wuk in de fiel's, I wuz trained
ter be er pussonal servant ter de marster, en sister Mattie, she wuz
gwine ter be trained up ter be er house woman, en so wuz my old woman,
Louisa, kase her mammy wuz er house woman herself fer her white folks in
South Carolina, so I rekkin dats de reason us always thought we so much
en better 'en de ginral run er niggers.

"Yes sir, Boss Man, de niggers is easy fooled. Dey always is been dat
way, en we wuz fooled er way frum Alabama ter Arkansas by dem two Yankee
mens, Mr. Van Vleet en Mr. Bill Bowman, whut I tole yo er bout, dat
brung dat hundred head er folks de time us cum. Dey tole us dat in
Arkansas dat de hogs jes layin' er roun already baked wid de knives en
de forks stickin' in 'em ready fer ter be et, en dat dere wuz fritter
ponds eberywhars wid de fritters er fryin' in dem ponds er grease, en
dat dar wuz money trees whar all yo hed ter do wuz ter pik de money
offen 'em lak pickin' cotton offen de stalk, en us wuz sho put out when
us git here en fine dat de onliest meat ter be hed wuz dat whut wuz in
de sto, en dem fritters hed ter be fried in de pans, en dat dar warn't
no money trees er tall. Hit warn't long 'fore my grandpappy en my
grandmammy, dey lef 'en went bak ter Alabama, but my mammy en us
chillun, we jes stayed on right here in Phillips County whar us been
eber since, en right en dat room right dar wuz whar us old mammy died
long years er go.

"Well, Boss Man, yo done ax me en I sho gwine ter tell yo de truf. Yes
sir, I