oods. Jes' so I had somethin' ter wear
I never tho't how hard dey had ter wuk ter mak hit.

"I lived on de Harris plantation wid dem 'til I wuz nineteen years ole
an' I allus felt lak I belonged ter dem--dey wuz so good ter me. When I
fust could 'member, Miss Cornelia would git on ole Ruben, dat wuz her
saddle horse, an' mak me git up behind her an den she'd go anywhere she
wanted ter go. 'Nough times she took me ter ole Mt Zion Church wid her.

"No nigger wuz ever 'lected on de Harris place. Ef we wuz sick er needed
sumthin' us got hit. Ef we wuz real sick de horseback doctor cum. In dem
days de doctors rid 'roun' in de country on horseback an' took medicine
wid em. Ef we warn't so sick de ole white folks cum ter see us an'
'scribed fer us. Dey use ter mak us little niggers take hoehound tea an'
fat lightwood tea fer coles. Dat lightwood tea is er good medicine, I
takes hit lots ov times now when I has er cole. Us had ter take Garlic
water--no'm, not Garlic and whiskey, but jes' plain Garlic water, an'
hit wuz a bad dose too. Dey give us candy made out'n Jerusalem oak an'
sugar, dat warn't so bad."

Uncle Manuel said when he first could remember the negroes had services
in their cabins at night. "Chairback" preachers went around from one
plantation to another holding services and much good was done. "On
Sunday evenings, our Mistess called all us little folks up to de house
an' read de Bible to us an' tole us Bible stories an' talked ter us
'bout livin' right. I 'members dat jes' as good."

When asked about the funerals and marriages when he first remembered,
Uncle Manuel said: "Dey keeps dead folks out too long now. When I wuz
comin' on, ef somebody died lak terday, dey wuz buried ter-morrer'. Dere
wuz a settin' up an' prayer service dat night, de body wuz put in er
plain home-made coffin blacked wid blackin' an' speerits turpentine, an'
when de waggin cum ter take de body ter de buryin' groun' ev'ybody went
out behin' de corpse singin' some good ole song lak 'Amazin' Grace' an'
'Hark Frum de Tomb'. Den dey went on ter de grave an' had a little
service tellin' 'bout how de departed 'un had gone ter peace an'
rest--dere warn't no long 'ictionary lak dey has now--none ov dese great
long sermons an' gwines on--ev'ybody had jes' er common funeral an' hit
wuz so much better.

"My Marster wuz a Jedge so he married all his niggers whut got married.
He married lots ov y'uther couples too. I 'members dat dey use ter cum
fe