ack in his chair with a smile of satisfaction on
his face. He was seated on the narrow porch of his little cabin with the
bright sunshine beaming down upon him. But his blind eyes could not
notice the glare from the sun. His wife and daughter appeared from
around the corner of the house and took their places near him to hear
again the story that they had heard many times before.

"My white folks lived in Beaufort, South Ca'lina, an' that's whar I was
born," Melvin continued. "My old Miss, I called her Miss Mary, took care
of me 'till I was eight year old. Then she give me back to my ma. You
see, it was this a-way. My ma an' pa was sold in Beaufort; I don't know
whar they come from before that. When I was born Miss Mary took me in
th' big house with her an' thar I stayed, jest like I told you, 'till I
was eight. Old Miss jest wanted me to be in th' room with her an' I
slep' on a pallet right near her bed. In the daytime I played in th'
yard an' I pick up chips for old Miss. Then when I got most big enuff to
work she give me back to my ma.

"Then I live in a cabin like the rest of th' niggers. Th' quarters was
stretched out in a line behind Marse Jim's house. Ever' nigger fam'ly
had a house to theyselves. Me an' my pa an' ma, they names was Nancy an'
Henry Smith, live in a cabin with my sisters. They names was Saphronia
an' Annie. We had beds in them cabins made out of cypress. They looked
jest like they do now. Ever'body cooked on th' fire place. They had pots
an' boilers that hung over th' fire an' we put th' vittles in thar an'
they cooked an' we et 'em. 'Course we never et so much in th' cabin
'cause ever mornin' th' folks all went to th' field. Ma an' Pa was field
hands an' I worked thar too when I got big enuff. Saphronia an' Annie,
they worked to th' big house. All th' nigger chillun stayed all day with
a woman that was hired to take care of them."

When asked about the kind of food they ate, Melvin replied:

"We had enuff for anybody. Th' vittles was cooked in great big pots over
th' fire jest like they was cookin' for stock. Peas in this pot, greens
in that one. Corn-bread was made up an' put back in th' husks an' cooked
in th' ashes. They called that a ash cake. Well, when ever'thing was
done th' vittles was poured in a trough an' we all et. We had spoons cut
out of wood that we et with. Thar was a big lake on th' plantation whar
we could fish an' they show was good when we had 'em for supper.
Sometimes we go