dat called for a second
day dress, 'cause I jus' had to go to church next day and show dat man
off. Anyhow, my second day dress was blue cotton wid white lace on it,
and I wore a big white plumed hat draped down over one eye. Wid de
second day dress I wore dem same draw's, petticoat, and gloves what I
was married in. Me and Oscar's five chillun was Mary, Annie Belle,
Daniel, Cleveland, and Austin.

"My old man and all my chillun is daid 'cept Daniel, and I don't know
whar he is. I wants to git married again, but dese hyar jealious Niggers
'round hyar says if I does de giver'ment is gwine to cut off my old age
pension, and I sho' don't want to loose dat money. No Sir!

"I didn't take in nothin' 'bout Lincoln, Davis or dat man Washington.
Dem days chillun had to take a back seat. When old folks wanted to talk,
dey jus' sent chillun on 'bout dey business. One thing I does know: I'd
sho' ruther have times lak dey is now. Yessum, I sho' had.

"I jined Randolph Baptist Church in Greene County 'cause I felt de urge
and knowed it had done got to be my duty to jine up. I'se been a Baptist
ever since, and will be one 'til I die; so was all my folks 'fore me.
Folks when dey jine de church ought to live right so dey kin see de good
Lord and have a restin' place atter dey is done wid dis sinful world.
Yessum, I jined dat Randolph Baptist Church way down in Greene County a
long time ago."

Mary A. Crawford
Re-search Worker

Henderson Harris--Ex-Slave

Henderson Harris was born August 19, 1858, in Talbot County. His parents
were Frederick and Adeline Harris of Jones County, but Henderson
remembers nothing about them because they both were sold on the block
and left him when he was just a few months old.

Mr. Bill Adams, Henderson's owner, lived on a large plantation on the
old stage road between Macon and Columbus. There were about three
hundred acres in this plantation and between thirty and fifty slaves.

Mr. Adams was just a "straight out farmer, and as good a marster as ever
wore shoe leather. 'Marse Bill' was a putty hard man about business, and
meant 'skat' when he said 'skat'".

He had a white preacher and a white doctor on his plantation, and
expected all the Negroes to go to 'preachin' on Sunday afternoon, and if
any of them were sick enough to need a doctor, they had him. The doctor
came around about once a month and every slave was looked after.

The slaves were allowed Saturday afternoons, provided