"De slave women folks what had chilluns was ’lowed to go home half hour by de sun to wash ev’y day, and ev’y Sunday morning all de little chillun had to be washed and carried to de Big House for de Mistis to inspect ’em.
"Us mostly stayed at home and didn’t go ’bout none, and effen us went to Mt. Jefferson Church us had to have a pass or de paterollers would sho’ git you. I did think dat ’Hark from the tomb in doleful sound, how careful, how careful den ought I to live, wid what religious fear’ was de prettiest thing, and I sho’ did love to hear dem sing hit. I never seed de baptising, ’ca’se I used to go to de ’Piscopal Church wid Mistis and open gates and hold de hosses. I sot in de foot of her carriage.
"Christmas dey’d give us provisions and de chillun some trash (meaning toys). Dey sho’ had good times on moonlight nights at de cornshuckings. Dey would haul de corn from de fields and put it in a big ring, and as dey shucked dey would throw it in ring and den into de crib. Sometimes dey was so much corn it would stay on de ground ’twell it rotted.
"Mr. Dickey Williams’ mother, Miss Emily, ma’ied while us was dere and my grandma cooked de cake. My daddy made de cake stand. Hit had three tiers, each one full of little cakes wid de big cake on top. Hit sho’ was pretty.
"Dey let de little niggers have all de fun dey wanted. Us played jump rope and swung in de grapevine swings mostly. Den us had rag dolls. When any of us got sick, we was give hoarhound tea and rock candy. Sometimes effen dey wasn’t looking and us got a chance us spit it out. Dey got de doctor effen us needed it.
"One of our Marsters was killed in de war and brought home and buried. He was Mr. Joe. All de silver was hid out enduring de war but de sojers never did come to our house.
"One day my daddy says, ’Hannah, Marster said us is free now to do what we want to do.’ But us stayed on two years mo’. In a few years I ma’ied Milton Heard and had a calico wedding dress and Judge Reed ma’ied us in Opelika in de ole plank court house. I didn’t have no chillun and I lives now wid my niece, Sally Thomas.
"I don’t know what I think ’bout Abraham Lincoln. I don’t know nothing 'bout him. Slavery was all right in its place, I guess, ’ca’se some needed it to make ’em work.