ROBERT FALLS, AGE 97;     SLAVE IN NORTH CAROLINA. TENN #14'.
     IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER AGAIN I WOULD RATHER DIE THAN BE A SLAVE AGAI
N.  I WANT NO MAN'S YOKE ON MY SHOULDERS NO MORE.  BUT IN THEM DAYS, US NIGGERS
 DIDN'T KNOW NO BETTER.  ALL WE KNEW WAS WORK, AND HARD WORK.  WE WAS LEARNED TO
 SAY "YES SIR" AND SCAPE DOWN AND BOW, AND TO DO JUST EXACTLY WHAT WE6WnRE  OLD
TO DO, MAKE NO DIFFERENCE IF WE WANTED TO OR NOT.  OLD MARSTER AND OLD MISTRESS
 WOULD SAY "DO THIS]" AND WE DID IT.  AND THEY SAY, "COME HER(^" jND  F6 E&DI )'
T COME TO THEM, THEY WOULD COME TO US.  AND THEY BROUGHT THE BUNCH OF SWITCHES
WITH THEM.
     THEY DIDN'T HALF FEED US EITHER.  THEY FED THE ANIMALS BETTE.  ,H(Y7GAVE3T
HE MULES, RUFFAGE AND SUCH TO CHAW ON ALL NIGHT.  BUT THEY DIDN'T GIVE US ANYTHI
NG TO CHAW ON.  TAUGHT US HOW TO STEAL, THAT IS WHAT THEY DID.  WHY, WE WOULD TA
KE ANYTHING WE COULD LAY OUR HANDS ON, WHEN WE WERE HUNGRY.  THEN THEY WOULD WHI
P US FOR LYING WHEN WE SAID WE DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT.  BUT IT WAS EASIER
 TO STAND, WHEN THE STOMACH WAS FULL.
     NOW MY FATHER, HE WAS A FIGHTER.  HE WAS MEAN AS A BEAR.  HE WAS sO BAD  O
FIGHT AND SO TROUBLESOME HE WAS SOLD FOUR TIME TO MY KNOWING AND MAYBE A HEAP
MORE TIMES.  THAT IS HOW COME MY NAME IS FALLS, EVEN IF SOME DO CALL ME ROBERT G
OFORTH.  NIGGERS WOULD CHANGE TO THE NAME OF THEIR NEW MARSTER EVERY TIME THEY W
AS SOLD.  AND MY FATHER HAD A LOT OF NAMES, BUT KEPT THE ONE OF HIS MARSTER WHEN
 HE GOT A GOOD HOME.  THAT MAN WAS HARRY FALLS.  HE SAID HE HAD BEnN tRhrnG  OB
UY FATHER FOR A LONG TIME, BECAUSE HE WAS THE BEST WAGGONER IN ALL THAT COUNTRY
ABOUTS.  AND THE MAN THAT SOLD HIM TO FALLS, HIS NAME WAS COLLINS.  HE TOLD MY F
ATHER:"YOU ARE SO MEAN I GOT TO SELL YOU.  YOU ALL TIME COMPLAINING ABOUT
HOW YOU DON'T LIKE YOUR WHITE FOLKS.  TELL ME NOW WHO YOU WANT TO LIVE WITH.  JU
ST PICK YOUR MAN AND I WILL GO SEE HIM."  THEN MY FATHER TOLD COLLINS, I WANT YO
U TO SELL ME TO MARSTER HARRY FALLS.  THEY MADE THE TRADE.  I DO NOT
REMEMBER WHAT THE MONEY WAS, BUT IT WAS BIG.  GOOD WORKERS SOLD FOR ONE THOUSAND
 DOLLARS AND TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS.  AFTER THAT THE WHITE FOLKS DID)'T8HAVE- O- O
RE TROUBLE WITH MY FATHER.   BUT HE WOULD STILL FIGHT.  THAT MAN WOULD FIGHT A S
HE-BEAR AND LICK HER EVERY TIME.
     MY MOTHER WAS SOLD THREE TIMES BEFORE I WAS BORN.  THE LAST&ItmE f S6fHnNO
LD GOFORTH SOLD HER TO THE SLAVE SPECULATORS;  YOU KNOW EVERY TIME THEY
NEEDED MONEY THEY WOULD SELL A SLAVE;  AND THEY WAS TAKING THEM, DRIVING THEM,
JUST LIKE A PACK OF MULES, TO THE MARKET FROM NORTH CAROLINA INTO SOUTH CAROLINA
, SHE BEGAN TO HAVE FITS.   YOU SEE THEY HAD SOLD HER AWAY FROM HER BABY.  AND J
UST LIKE I TELL YOU SHE BEGAN HAVING FITS.  THEY GOT TO THE JAIL HOUSE WHERE THE
Y WAS TO STAY THAT NIGHT, AND SHE TOOK ON SO, JIM SLADE AND PRESS WORTHY -- THEM
 WAS THE SLAVE SPECULATORS, COULDN'T DO NOTHING WITH HnR. -N XTMORNING ONE OF
 THEM TOOK HER BACK TO MARSE GOFORTH AND TOLD HIM:"LOOK HERE, WE CjN- OT& ONOTH
ING WITH THIS WOMAN.  YOU GOT TO TAKE HER AND GIVE US BACK OUR MONEY.  AND DO IT
 NOW."  AND THEY MEANT IT TOO.  SO OLD MARSE GOFORTH TOOK MY- O HnR& nDGG eE3 (E
M BACK THEIR MONEY.  AFTER THAT NONE OF US WAS EVER SEPARATED.  WE ALL LIVED, A
BROTHER AND TWO SISTERS AND MY MOTHER, WITH THE GOFORTHS TILL FREEDOM.
     AND DO YOU KNOW, SHE NEVER DID GET OVER HAVING FITS.  SHE HAD THEM EVERY CH
ANGE OF THE MOON, OR LEASTWAYS EVERY OTHER MOON CHANGE.  BUT SHE KEPT ON WORKING
.  SHE WAS A HARD WORKER.  SHE HAD TO BE.  OLD MISTRESS SAW TO THAT.  SHE WAS ME
ANER THAN OLD MARSTER, SHE WAS.  SHE WOULD SIT BY THE SPINNING WHEEL AND COUNT T
HE TURNS THE SLAVE WOMEN MADE.  AND THEY COULDN'T FOOL HER NONE NEITHER.  MY MOT
HER WORKED UNTIL TEN OCLOCK ALMOST EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE HER PART WAS TO SPEND SO

D TO SIT ON THE FLOOR WITH THE OTHER LITTLE FELLOWS WHILE OUR MOTHERS
6RKE<, AND SOME IMES ,HE > ITE6FOLK\'GIRLS WOULD READ US A BIBLE STORY.  BUT
MOST OF THE TIME WE SLEPT.  RIGHT THERE ON THE FLOOR.  THEN LATER, WHEN I WAS BI
GGER, I HAD TO WORK WITH THE MEN AT NIGHT SHELLING CORN, TO TAKE TO TOWN EARLY M
ORNINGS.
     MARSTER GOFORTH COUNTED HIMSELF A GOOD OLD BAPTIST CHRISTIAN.  THE ONE GOOD
 DEED HE DID, I WILL NEVER FORGET.  HE MADE US ALL GO TO CHURCH EVERY SUNDAY.
THAT WAS THE ONLY PLACE OFF THE FARM WE EVER WENT.  EVERY TIME A SLAVE WENT OFF
 THE PLACE, HE HAD TO HAVE A PASS, EXCEPT WE DIDN'T FOR CHURCH.  EVERYBODY IN
THAT COUNTRY KNEW THAT THE GOFORTH NIGGERS DIDN'T HAVE TO HAVE A PASS TO GO TO C
HURCH.  BUT THAT DIDN'T MAKE NO DIFFERENCE TO THE PATROLLERS.  THEY WOULD HIDE
IN THE BUSHES, OR WAIT ALONG THE SIDE OF THE ROAD, AND WHEN THE NIGGERS COME FRO
M MEETING, THE PATROLLERS WOULD SAY:"WHERE IS YOUR PASS?"  US GOFORTH NIGGERS US
ED TO START RUNNING SOON AS WE WAS OUT OF CHURCH.  WE NEVER GOT CAUGHT.  THAT
IS WHY I TELL YOU I CAN'T USE MY LEGS LIKE I USED TO.  IF YOU WAS CAUGHT WITHOUT
 A PASS, THE PATROLLERS GAVE YOU FIVE LICKS.  THEY WAS LICKS]  YOU TAKE A
BUNCH OF FIVE TO SEVEN PATROLLERS EACH GIVING FIVE LICKS AND THE BLOOD FLOWS.
     OLD MARSTER WAS TOO OLD TO GO TO THE WAR.  HE HAD ONE SON WHO WAS A SOLDIER
, BUT HE NEVER CAME HOME AGAIN.  I NEVER SAW A SOLDIER TILL THE WAR WAS OVER AND
 THEY BEGAN TO COME BACK TO THE FARMS.  WE HALF GROWN NIGGERS HAD TO WORK THE FA
RM, BECAUSE ALL THE FARMERS HAD TO GIVE, I BELIEVE IT WAS A TENTH OF THEIR CROPS
 TO HELP FEED THE SOLDIERS. SO WE DIDN'T KNOW NOTHING ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON, N
O MORE THAN A HOG.  IT WAS A LONG TIME BEFORE WE KNEW WE WERE FREE.  THEN ONE NI
GHT OLD MARSTER CAME TO OUR HOUSE AND HE SAID HE WANTS TO SEE US ALL BEFORE
BREAKFAST TOMORROW MORNING AND TO COME ON OVER TO HIS HOUSE.  HE GOT SOMETHING
TO TELL US.
    NEXT MORNING WE WENT OVER THERE.  I WAS THE MONKEY, ALWAYS ACTING SMART.  BU
T I BELIEVE THEY LIKED ME BETTER THAN ALL OF THE OTHERS.  I JUST SPOKE SASSY