"He used golden seal, a medicine found in places here, very costly, worth $7 to $8 a pound now. I don’t know what he used dem all for, but I do remember of him getting dem in their proper season, and kept dem always on hand.
"For sore throat or quinsy, he had some sort of tea. He used onion tea, too. He took an onion, roasted it in its hull in ashes, squeezed out de juice and added a little sugar and gave it to de patient. For rheumatism, he used poke root, dried it and put it in whiskey. De only thing dat is good for rheumatics. There were many more remedies, but I can’t recall them now."
*Interview with "Aunt" Ann Stokes,* *91 Years old, Caruthersville, Missouri.
One of the most interesting characters of all Pemiscot County today is an old negro called "Aunt" Ann Stokes. She was born a slave "out hyar at Cottonwood Pint in 1844, a year of high water". Nineteen thirty-six brings her to her ninety third year; all of which have been spent in Pemiscot County, except for an occasional visit to relatives. In the early years of her life she was known as "a good hard workin’ nigger". Now she takes things more quietly, especially since she has lost her eyesight and can only hear when you shout very loudly. All day long she does very little, just "sits and rocks." For a very old woman she is certainly fine looking. Most old people are usually wrinkled. Aunt Ann looks to be only in her sixties.
A sort of creepy feeling comes to one in the presence of this old negro. She always leans close to you as she speaks, lays her hand on your arm, now and then pointing her finger. Once and awhile she smiles showing her few remaining teeth in Graiae fashion. She speaks slowly in a high voice not at all shaky. Every story she tells is glorified and exaggerated. She is anxious to talk and likes to have visitors. Never does she fail to mention her first "schoolin’"; she tells, "I learnt my alphabet in de middle ob a field unnerneath a ’simmon tree. My cousin teached me, you know we weren’t ’lowed to hab books in dem days. They didn’t want us to know nothin’". When you mention the War Between the States, you have hit a favorite subject of hers. Especially, does she pride herself on her war stories.