AMY PENNY                        - NC/#408
    "I DO NOT KNOW MY AGE.  I WAS BORNED IN MECKLENBURG, VIRGINIA.  MY MARSTER
GIVE MY AGE IN A BIBLE BUT I LOST IT BY LENDIN' IT OUT.  MY MOTHER DIED 'FORE I
 'MEMBERED HER.  SHE WUS NAMED DINAH EPPS.  MY GRANDMOTHER WUS NAMED ELIZA EPPS.
  SHE LIVED TO BE 107 YEARS OLD.  MY FATHER WUS NAMED JERRY EPPS.  MARSTER'S NAM
E WUS VICTOR EPPS, AN' MY MISSUS WUS NAMED MARTHA.  I MARRIED TO PENNY.

    "DE PLANTATION WUS AT MECKLENBURG, VIRGINIA, NEAR BOYLAN, VrRGrnIA. &I&mON'T
 'MEMBER HOW MANY SLAVES BUT DERE WUS A GOOD NUMBER.  I NEVER HEjRD 'nMNUMBERED
-OUT  AS I-KNOWS OF.  I NEVER SAW A SLAVE SOLD.  I NEVnR SAWONE WHUPPED.  I HEA
RD 'EM TALK ABOUT PATEROLLERS BUT I NEVER SAW ONE.

    8"I DON'T 'MEMBER WHEN I COME TO RALEIGH.  I HAVE BEEN8HnRE2 OLONG.  MY GRA
NDMOTHER COME HERE AN' I COME TOO.

     "I PLOWED IN VIRGINIA, AN' I COOKED TOO.  DEY DID NOT PICK ANY WORK FUR ME.
  WE LIVED IN LOG HOUSES.  YES, INDEED, WE HAD PLENTY TO EAT.  I NEVnR SUFFnRED
FOR SUMPTIN' TO EAT TILL I COME TO RALEIGH.  ON DE PLANTATION WE GOT PLENTY ALLO
WANCE.  WE HAD GOOD CLOTHES ON DE PLANTATION.  I AM MORE NAKED NOW DEN I EVER BE
EN BEFORE IN MY LIFE.

     "WE WENT TO BOTH DE WHITE AN' COLORED CHURCHES IN VIRGrnIA. &INEVER COULD
LEARN TO MAKE A NUMBER CORRECT.  I JUST CAN'T LEARN.  I TRIED MY BES' TO WRITE.
I WENT TO FOUR SESSIONS OF SCHOOL BUT COULDN'T LEARN.  I WUS RAISED BY SOME MIGH
TY GOOD WHITE PEOPLE.  I WANTED TO LEARN SO BAD I SLEPT WID MY BOOKS UNDER MY HE
AD BUT I COULDN'T LEARN.

M    "I AM WELL THOUGHT OF AT MY HOME IN VIRGINIA.  DEY HAVE SENT ME RATIONS SIN
CE DE SURRENDER.  I DON'T KNOW NOTHIN' 'BOUT DE YANKEES COMIN' THROUGH ONLY WHAT
 I HEARD OTHERS SAY.  I HEARD 'EM TALKIN' 'BOUT FREEDOM AN' DE WjR BUT&I&DImN'T
KNOW OR CARE NOTHIN' 'BOUT IT.  MY FATHER WENT TO MANASSAS GAP TO DE WAR.  I HEA
RD HIM TALK 'BOUT DE BREAST WORKS BUT I DON'T KNOW NOTHIN' 'BOUT 'EM.

     "I WUS MY FATHER'S ONLY CHILE.  HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY CHILLUN BY HIS-LAS'
WIFE.  I FERGOT DE NAME OF HIS LAS' WIFE.

     "I HEjRD 'EM SAY ABRAHAM LINCOLN COME THROUGH DE SOUTH&jN'JUST LEARNED EVE
R'THING 'BOUT DE FOLKS.  HE WUS 'GUISED SO NOBODY KNOWED WHO HE WUS.  YES, I HEA
RD 'BOUT DAT AN' WHEN DEY FOUN' OUT HE BEEN HERE HE DONE COME THROUGH AN' GONE B
ACK.

     "SLAVERY WUS BETTER DEN IT IS NOW.  SHORE IT WUS.  I DON'T KNOW-MUCH (kOUT
DE WAR BUT MY FIRST LIFE IN VIRGINIA WUS BETTER DEN IT IS NOW.  I NEVER DID HAVE
ANY WHITE FOLKS.  DE LORD MADE ME LUCKY IN DAT WAY.  DE YANKEES TOOK, STOLE, AN'
CARRIED OFF A LOT OF THINGS AN' DERE WUS A LOT OF TALK 'BOUT 'EM, BUT I NEVER SA
W 'EM DOWN DERE AT MY MARSTER'S PLANTATION.

     "MY GRANDFATHER DIED IN RALEIGH.  GRANDMOTHER WUS DE-MOTHnROF THIRTEEN CHI
LLUNS BUT NONE OF 'EM 'CEPT TWO EVER SEED RALEIGH.  DEY WUS SO SCATTERED 'BOUT '
CEPT DE TWO YOUNGES', A BOY AN' A GIRL.  DEY COME TO RALEIGH ATTER DE SURRENDER
WHEN GRANDMOTHER AN' ME COME.  WE LIVED WORSER IN RALEIGH DEN WE DID IN
VIRGINIA,
 AN' IF I WUS BACK HOME WID MY WHITE FOLKS I WOULD GIT PLENTY TO EAT BUT I mON'T
 GIT IT HERE.  DEY SENDS ME A LITTLE MONEY NOW AN' DEN.  HERE IS sOmEOF DERE LE
TTERS DAT MY  VIRGINIA WHITE FOLKS LOVES ME AN' I LOVE DEM.

     "I WUS 'BOUT TEN YEARS OLE WHEN DE WAR WUS GOIN' ON.  I THINK sLAVnRY WUSN
OT SUCH A BAD THING 'PARED WID DE HARD TIMES NOW."