her on their death. She de real owner of
everything.

"Just to show you, Boss, how 'twas with Mars Sam, on' how contrary an'
fractious an' wicked dat young white man was, I wants to tell you
'bout de time dat Aunt Hannah's little boy Mose died. Mose, he sick
'bout er week. Aunt Hannah, she try to doctor on him an' git him well
an' she tell old mis' dat she think Mose bad off an' orter have de
doctor. Old mis', she wouldn't git de doctor. She say Mose ain't sick
much, an' bless my Soul, Aunt Hannah she right. In a few days from
then Mose is dead. Mars Sam, he come cussin' an' tole Gabe to get some
planks an' make de coffin an' sont some of dem to dig de grave over
dere on de far side of de place where dey had er buryin'-groun' for de
niggers. Us toted de coffin over to where de grave was dug an' gwine
bury little Mose dar an' Uncle Billy Jordan, he was dar and begun to
sing an' pray an' have a kind of funeral at de buryin'. Every one was
moanin' an' singin' an' prayin' and Mars Sam heard 'em an' come
sailin' over dar on he hoss an' lit right in to cussin' an' rarein'
an' say dat if dey don't hurry an' bury dat nigger an' shut up dat
singin' an' carryin' on, he gwine lash every one of dem, an' then he
went to cussin' worser an' 'busin' Uncle Billy Jordan. He say iffen he
ever hear of him doin' any more preachin' or prayin' 'round 'mongst de
niggers at de grave-yard or anywheres else, he gwine lash him to
death. No suh, Boss, Mars Sam wouldn't even 'low no preachin' or
singin' or nothin' like dat. He was wicked. I tell you he was.

"Old mis', she ginrally looked after de niggers when dey sick an' give
dem de medicine. An' too, she would get de doctor iffen she think dey
real bad off 'cause like I said, old mis', she mighty stingy an' she
never want to lose no nigger by dem dyin'. How-some-ever it was hard
some time to get her to believe you sick when you tell her dat you
was, an' she would think you just playin' off from work. I have seen
niggers what would be mighty near dead before old mis' would believe
them sick at all.

"Before de War broke out, I can 'member there was some few of de white
folks what said dat niggers ought to be sot free, but there was just
one now an' then that took that stand. One of dem dat I 'member was de
Rev. Dickey what was de parson for a big crowd of de white peoples in
dat part of de county. Rev. Dickey, he preached freedom for de niggers
and say dat dey all should be sot free an' gived