'Teeth and tongue brung me here, and teeth and tongue will bring you
here.' He run to de house and told his Master dat he found a terrapin
dat could talk. Dey went back and he asked de terrapin what bring him
here and it wouldn't say a word. Old Master didn't like it 'cause he
went down there jest to see a common ordinary terrapin and he told de
nigger he was going to git into trouble fer telling him a lie. Next
day the nigger seen de terrapin and it say de same thing again. Soon
after dat dis nigger was lynched right close to de place he saw de
terrapin."

Master John Booker had two niggers what had a habit of slipping across
de river and killing old Master's hogs and hiding de meat in de loft
of de house. Master had a big blue hog and one day he missed him and
he sent Ned to look fer him. Ned knowed all de time dat he had killed
it and had it hid in his loft. He hunted and called "Pig-ooie, Pig."
Somebody done stole old Master's big blue hog. Dey couldn't find it
but old Master thought Ned knowed something 'bout it. One night he
found out Ned was gonna kill another hog and had asked John to go with
him. He borrowed John's clothes and blacked his face and met Ned at de
river. Soon dey find a nice big one and Ned say, "John, I'll drive him
round and you kill him." So he drove him past old Master but he didn't
want to kill his own hog so he made lak he'd like to kill him but he
missed him. Finally Ned got tired and said. "I'll kill him, you drive
him by me." So Master John drove him by him and Ned knock de hog on de
head and cut his throat and dey load him on de canoe. When dey was
nearly 'cross de river Old Master dip up some water and wash his face
a little, then he look at Ned and he say, "Ned you look sick, I
believe you've got lepersy." Ned row on little more and he jump in de
river and Master had a hard time finding him again. He had the
overseer whip Ned for that.

I think Lincoln was a wonderful man. Everybody was sorry when he died,
but I never heerd of Jeff Davis.

Oklahoma Writers' Project
Ex-Slaves

10-19-38
1,876-words

DELLA FOUNTAIN
Age 69 years
McAlester, Oklahoma

I was born after de War of de Rebellion but I 'member lots o' things
dat my parents told me 'bout slavery.

My grandmother was captured in Africa. Traders come dere in a big boat
and dey had all sorts of purty gew-gaws--red handkerchiefs, dress
goods, beads, bells, and trinkets in bright colors. Dey would pull up
at de sho