LUCY ANN DUNN                0068-NC/#533
          "MY PAPPY, DEMPSEY, MY MAMMY, RACHEL AN' MY BROTHERS AN' SISTERS AN' M
E ALL BELONGED TER MARSE PETERSON DUNN OF NEUSE, HERE IN WAKE COUNTY.  DAR WUS F
IVE OF US CHILLUNS, ALLEN, CHARLES, CORINA, MADORA AN' ME, ALL BORNED BEFORE DE
WAR.
          "MY MAMMY WUS DE COOK, AN' FUR BACK AS I 'MEMBERS ALMOST, I WUS A HOUS
E GIRL.  I FANNED FLIES OFFEN DE TABLE AN' DONE A HEAP OF LITTLE THINGS FER MIS'
 BETSY, MARSE PETERSON'S WIFE.  MY PAPPY WORKED ON DE FARM, WHICH WUS BOUN' TER
HAVE BEEN A BIG PLANTATION WID TWO HUNDRET AN' MORE      NIGGERS TER WORK IT.
          "I 'MEMBERS WHEN WORD COME DAT WAR WUS DECLARED, HOW MIS' BETSY CRIED
AN' PRAYED AN' HOW MARSE PETER QUARRELED AN' WALKED DE FLOOR CUSSIN' DE YANKEES.
           "DE WAR COMES ON JIST DE SAME AN' SOME OF DE MEN SLAVES WUS SENT TER
ROANOKE TER HEP BUIL' DE FORT.  YES MAM, DE WAR COMES TER DE GREAT HOUSE AN' TER
 DE SLAVE CABINS JIST ALIKE.
          " DE GREAT HOUSE WUS LARGE AN' WHITE WASHED, WID GREEN BLINDS AN' DE S
LAVE CABINS WUS MADE OF SLABS WID PLANK FLOORS.  WE HAD PLENTY TER EAT AN' ENOUG
H TER WEAR AN' WE WUS HAPPY.  WE HAD OUR FUN AN' WE HAD OUR TROUBLES, LAK LITTLE
 WHUPPIN'S, WHEN WE WARN'T GOOD, BUT DAT WARN'T OFTEN.
          "ATTER SO LONG A TIME DE RICH FOLKSES TRIED TER HIRE, ER MAKE DE PO' W
HITE TRASH GO IN DERE PLACES, BUT SOME OF DEM WON'T GO.  DEY AM TREATED SO BAD D
AT SOME OF DEM WON'T GO.  DEY AM TREATED SO BAD DAT SOME OF DEM CIDES TER BE KU
KLUXES AN' DEY GOES TER DE WOODS TER LIVE.  WHEN WE STARTS TER TAKE UP DE AIGS E
R STARTS FROM DE SPRING HOUSE WID DE BUTTER AN' MILK DEY GRABS US AN' TAKES DE F
OOD FER DERESELBES.
          "DIS GOES ON FER A LONG TIME AN' FINALLY ONE DAY IN DE SPRING I SETS O
N DE PORCH AN' I HEAR A ROAR.  I WUS 'SPONSIBLE FER DE GOSLINS DEM DAYS SO I SEZ
 TER MISSUS, "I RECKIN DAT I BETTER GIT IN DE GOSLINS CASE I HEAR HIT  ATHUNDERI
N'.
          "DAT AIN'T NO THUNDER, NIGGER, DAT AM DE CANON", SHE SEZ.
          "WHAT CANON," I AXES?
           WHY DE CANON WHAT DEY AM FIGHTIN' WID;" SHE SEZ.
          "WELL DAT EBENIN' I IS OUT GITTIN' UP DE GOSLINS WHEN I HEARS MUSIC, I
 LOOKS UP DE ROAD AN' I SEES FLAGS, AN' 'BOUT DAT TIME DE YANKEES AN DAR A-KILLI
N' AS DEY GOES.  DEY KILLS DE GEESE, DE DUCKS, DE CHICKENS, PIGS AN' EVERYTHING.
  DEY GOES TER DE HOUSE AN' DEY TAKES ALL OF DE MEAT, DE MEAL, AN' EVER'THING DE
Y CAN GIT DERE PAWS ON.
          "WHEN DEY GOES TER DE KITCHEN WHAR MAMMY AM COOKIN' SHE CUSS DEM OUT A
N'  RUN DEM OUTEN HER KITCHEN.  DEY SHORE AM A ROUGH LOT.
          "I AINT NEVER FERGOT HOW MIS' BETSY CRIED WHEN DE NEWS OF DE SURRENDER
 COME.  SHE AINT SAID NOTHIN' BUT MARSE PETER HE MAKES A SPEECH SAYIN' DAT HE AI
NT HAD TER SELL NONE OF US, DAT HE AINT WHUPPED NONE OF US BAD, DAT NOBODY HAS E
VER RUN AWAY FROM HIM YET.  DEN HE TELLS US DAT ALL WHO WANTS TO CAN STAY RIGHT
ON FER WAGES.
          "WELL WE STAYED TWO YEARS, EVEN DO MY PAPPY DIED DE YEAR ATTER DE SURR
ENDER, DEN WE MOVES TER MARSE PETER'S OTHER PLACE AT WAKE FOREST.  ATTER DAT WE
MOVES BACK TER NEUSE.
          "HIT WUS IN DE LITTLE BAPTIST CHURCH AT NEUSE WHAR I FUST SEED BIG BLA
CK JIM DUNN AN' I FELL IN LOVE WID HIM DEN, I RECKONS.  HE SAID DAT HE LOVED ME
DEN TOO, BUT HIT WUS THREE SUNDAYS 'FORE HE AXED TER SEE ME HOME.
          "WE WALKED DAT MILE HOME IN FRONT OF MY MAMMY AN' I WUS SO HAPPY DAT I
 AINT THOUGHT HIT WUS NIGHT 'FORE HE WnNT qOME.  MAMMY WOULDN'T LET ME WALK WID
HIM TER DE GATE I KNOWED, SO I JIST SOT DAR ON DE PORCH AN' SEZ GOOD NIGHT.
          "HE COME EVERY SUNDAY FER A YEAR AN' FINALLY HE PROPOSED.  I HAD TOLD
MAMMY DAT I THOUGHT DAT I ORT TER BE ALLOWED TER WALK TER DE GATE WID HIM AN' SH
E SAID ALL RIGHT IFFEN SHE WUS SETTIN' DAR ON DE PORCH LOOKIN'.
          !DAT SuNDAY-NIGHT I DID WALK WID-JrM TnR DE GATE jN' StOOD UNDnR DE qO
NEYSUCKLES DAT WUS  ASMELLIN' SO SWEET.  I HEARD DE BIG OLE BULLFROGS  ACROAKIN'
 BY DE RIBER AN' DE WHIPPERWILLS   AHOLLERIN' IN DE WOODS.  DAR WUS A BIG YALLER
 MOON, AN' I RECKON JIM DID LOVE ME.  ANYHOW HE SAID SO AN' AXED ME TER MARRY HI
M AN' HE SQUEEZED MY HAN'.
          "I TOL' HIM I'D THINK HIT OBER AN' I DID A)' DE N ?' SUND Y I  O$'8HIM
 DAT I'D HAVE HIM.
          "HE AINT KISSED ME YET BUT DE NEX' SUNDAY HE AXES MY MAMMY FER ME.  SH
E SEZ DAT SHE'LL HAVE TER HAVE A TALK WID ME AN' LET HIM KNOW.
         7"WELL ALL DAT WEEK SHE TALKS TER ME, TELLIN' ME HOW SERIOUS GITTIN' MA
RRIED IS AN' DAT HIT LASTS A POWERFUL LONG TIME.
          "I TELLS HER DAT I KNOWS HIT BUT DAT I AM READY TER TRY HIT AN' DAT I
INTENDS TER MAKE A GO OF  HIT, ANYHOW.
          "ON SUNDAY NIGHT MAMMY TELLS JIM DAT HE CAN HAVE ME AN' YO' ORTER SEED
 DAT BLACK BOY GRIN.  HE COMES TER ME WIDOUT A WORD AN' HE PICKS ME UP OUTEN DAT
 CHEER AN' DAR IN DE MOONLIGHT HE KISSES ME RIGHT 'FORE MY MAMMY WHO AM  ACRYIN'
.
          "DE NEX' SUNDAY WE WUS MARRIED IN DE BAPTIST CHURCH AT NEUSE.  I HAD A
 NEW WHITE DRESS, DO TIMES WUS HARD.
          "WE LIVED TOGETHER FIFTY-FIVE YEARS AN' WE ALWAYS LOVED EACH OTHER.  H
E AINT NEVER WHUP NER CUSS ME AN' DO WE HAD OUR FUSSES AN' OUR TROUBLES WE TRUST
ED IN DE LAWD AN' WE GOT THROUGH.  I LOVED HIM DURIN' LIFE AN' I LOVE HIM NOW, D
O HE'S BEEN DAID NOW FER TWELVE YEARS.
          "WE HAD EIGHT CHILLUNS, BUT ONLY FOUR OF DEM ARE LIVIN' NOW.  DE LIVIN
' ARE JAMES, SIDNEY, HELEN AN' FLORENCE WHO WUS NAMED FER FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE.
          "I CAN'T BE HERE SO MUCH LONGER NOW CASE I'SE GITTIN' TOO OLD AN' FEEB
LE AN' I WANTS TER GO TER JIM ANYHOW.  I THINKS OF HIM ALL DE TIME, BUT SEEMS LA
K WE'RE YOUNG AGIN WHEN I SMELL HONEYSUCKES ER SEE A YALLER MOON."


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