CHANA LITTLEJOHN             0115-NC/#347
          "I REMEMBER WHEN DE YANKEES COME.  I REMEMBER WHEN DE SOLDIERS COME AN
' HAD TENTS IN MARSTER'S YARD BEFORE DEY WENT OFF TO DE BREASTWORKS.  MY MOTHER
WUS HIRED OUT BEFORE DE SURRENDER AN' HAD TO LEAVE HER TWO CHILLUNS AT HOME ON M
ARSTER'S PLANTATION.  WHEN SHE COME HOME CHRISTMAS HE TOLD HER SHE WOULD NOT HAV
E TO GO BACK ANY MORE.  SHE COULD STAY AT HOME.  THIS WUS DE LAS' YEAR O' DE WAR
 AND HE TOL' HER SHE WOULD SOON BE FREE.
         ""MY EYES ARE MIGHTY BAD.  DE DOC OR SAID8HE6WOULD6WORKOON8'nM  F2 OM B
ODY IN DE AGRICULTURE BUILDING WOULD PAY IT.  I CAN'T SEE AT ALL OUT OF ONE EYE
AND THE OTHER IS BAD.
          "I DOAN RECKON I WUS TEN YEARS OLD WHEN DE YANKEES COME, BUT I WUS RUN
NIN' AROUND AN' CAN REMEMBER ALL DIS.  GUESS I WUS 'BOUT EIGHT YEARS OLD.  I WUS
 BORNED IN WARREN COUNTY, NEAR WARRENTON.  I BELONGED TO PETER MITCHELL, A LONG
 TALL MAN.  THERE WERE 'BOUT A HUNDRED SLAVES ON DE PLANTATION. -MY-MSS S6W SN
AMED LAURA.  MOTHER ALWAYS CALLED ME 'OLE BETSY' WHEN SHE MAD AT ME.  BETSY WUS
MARSTER PETER'S MOTHER.  I REMEMBER SEEIN' HER.  SHE WUS A BIG FAT 'OMAN WID WHI
TE HAIR.  SHE GAVE BISCUITS TO ALL DE CHILLUN ON SATURDAYS.  SHE ALSO LOOKED OUT
 FOR DE SLAVE CHILLUNS ON SUNDAY.  MY FATHER WUS NAMED MARCILLUS LITTLEJOHN AND
MY MOTHER WUS NAMED SUSAN LITTLEJOHN.
          "WE HAD GARDENS AND PATCHES AND PLENTY TO EAT.  WE ALSO GOT DE qOLIDAY
S.  MARSTER BOUGHT CHARCOAL FROM DE MEN WHICH DEY BURNT AT NIGHT AN' ON HOLIDAYS
.  DEY WORKED AN' MADE DE STUFF, AN' MARSTER WOULD LET DEM HAVE DE STEERCARTS AN
' WAGONS TO CARRY DEIR CORN AN' CHARCOAL TO SELL IT IN TOWN.  YES SIR, DIS WUS M
IGHTY NICE.  WE HAD PLANK HOUSES.  DERE WUS NOT BUT ONE LOG HOUSE ON DE PLANTATI
ON.  MARSTER LIVED IN DE BIG HOUSE.  IT HAD EIGHT PORCHES ON IT.
          "DERE WUS NO CHURCHES ON DE PLANTATION, AN' I DOAN REMEMBER jNY PRAYER
 MEETIN'S.  WHEN WE SANG WE TURNED DE WASHPOTS AN' TUBS IN DE DOORS, SO DEY WOUL
D TAKE UP DE NOISE SO DE WHITE FOLKS COULD NOT HEAR US.  I DO REMEMBER DE GATHER
IN'S AT OUR HOME TO PRAY FUR DE YANKEES TO COME.  ALL DE NIGGERS THOUGHT DE YANK
HE RUN OUT IN DE YARD AN' CALLED, 'BLUE BELLIES COME ON, BLUE BELLIES COME ON.'
5ES HAD BLUE BELLIES.  THE OLD HOUSE COOK GOT SO HAPPY AT ONE OF DESE MEETIN'S S
 DEY CAUGHT HER AN' CARRIED HER BACK INTO DE HOUSE.
          "WHEN DE OVERSEER WHUPPED ONE O' DE NIGGERS HE MADE ALL DE SLAVES SING
, 'SHO' PITY LAWD, OH] LAWD FORGIVE]  WHEN DEY SANG AWHILE HE WOULD CALL OUT ONE
 AN' WHUP HIM.  WE HAD A SING FUR EVERYONE HE WHUPPED.  MARSTER GROWED UP WID DE
 NIGGERS AN' HE DID NOT LIKE TO WHUP 'EM.  IF DEY SASSED HIM HE OOULD SPIT IN TH
EIR EYES AND SAY 'NOW I RECON YOU WILL MIND HOW YOU SASS ME.'
          "WE HAD A LOT O' GAME AND POSSUMS.  WEN WE HAD GAME MARSTER LEFT DE B
IG HOUSE, AND COME DOWN AN' ET WID US.  WHEN MARSTER WAN'T OFF DRUNK ON A SPREE
HE SPENT A LOT OF TIME WID DE SLAVES.  HE TREATED ALL ALIKE.  HIS SLAVES WERE AL
L NIGGERS.  DERE WERE NO HALF-WHITE CHILLUNS DERE.
          "MARSTER WOULD NOT LET US WORK UNTIL WE WERE THIRTEEN YEARS OLD.  DEN
HE PUT US TO PLOWIN' IN SOFT LAN', AN' DE MEN IN ROUGH LAN'.  SOME OF DE WOMEN P
LAYED OFF SICK AN' WENT HOME AN' WASHED AN' IRONED AN' GOT BY WID IT.  DE OBERSE
ER TRIED TO MAKE TWO OF 'EM GO BACK TO WORK.  DEY FLEW AT HIM AN' WHUPPED HIM.
HE TOLD DE MARSTER WHEN HE COME HOME, MARSTER SAID, 'DID YOU 'LOW DEM WOMEN TO W
HUP YOU?'  'YES', HE REPLIES, DEN MARSTER TOLE HIM IF WOMEN COULD WHUP HIM HE DI
DN'T WANT HIM.  BUT HE LET HIM STAY ON.  HIS NAME WUS JACK RIVERS.  HE WUS HIRED
 BY MARSTER.  MARSTER RIVERS DID NOT HAVE ANY SLAVES.  DERE WUS NO JAIL ON DE-PL
ANTATION, CASE WHEN ER OVERSEER WHUPPED ER NIGGER HE DID NOT NEED ANY JAIL.
          "DE BLACK FOLKS BETTER NOT BE CAUGHT WID A BOOK BUT ONE O' DE CHILLUNS
 AT OUR PLANTATION, MARSTER PETER MITCHELL'S SISTER HAD TAUGHT AuNT ISABnLLA tO
READ AND WRITE, AN' DURIN' DE WAR SHE WOULD READ, AN' TELL US HOW EVERYTHIN' WUS
 GOIN'.  TIM MITCHELL, A SLAVE, SASSED MARSTER.  MARSTER TOLE HIM HE wOULD- OT6W
HUP HIM, BUT HE WOULD SELL HIM.  TOM'S BROTHER, HENRY, TOL' HIM IF HE WUS LEFT H
E WOULD RUN AWAY, SO MARSTER SOLD BOTH.. HE CARRIED 'EM TO RICHMOND TO SELL 'EM.
  HE SOLD 'EM ON DE AUCTION BLOCK WAY DOWN ON BROAD STREET.  WHEN DEY PUT TOM ON
 DE AUCTION BLOCK DEY FOUND TOM HAD A BROKEN LEG AND MARSTER DIDN'T GIT MUCH FER
 HIM.  HE WANTED TO GIT ENOUGH FER THESE TWO GROWN SETTLED MEN TO BUY TWO YOUNG
MEN.  TOM WUS MARRIED.  HE WUS SOLD FROM HIS WIFE AND CHILLINS.  MARSTER DID NOT
 GIT ENOUGH FOR DESE TWO YOUNG BOYS.  HE HAD TO PAY DE DIFFERENCE IN MONEY.  DE
BOYS WERE 'BOUT TWENTY ONE OR TWENTY TWO YEARS OLE.  WHEN MARSTER GOT BACK WID '
EM DE OVERSEER TOLE HIM HE HAD RUINED HIS PLANTATION.  DE BOYS SOON BECOME SICK
WID YELLER FEVER AN' BOTH DIED.  DEY STROWED IT 'ROUND, AN' MANY DIED.  MARSTER
SHORE MADE A MESS O' THINGS DAT TIME.
          "DOCTOR BEN WILSON, OF WARREN COUNTY WUS MARSTER MITCHELL'S BROTHER-IN
-LAW.  HE 'TENDED DE SICK FOLKS AN' HE MADE MANY TRIPS.  SOMETIMES AS SOON AS HE
 GOT HOME DEY SENT FER HIM AGAIN.
          "WE PLAYED MUMBLE-PEG AN' HOP-SCOTCH WHEN I WUS A CHILD, WE PLAYED JUM
PIN' DE ROPE A LOT.
          "I HAVE NEVER BEEN MARRIED.  I HAD ONLY ONE BROTHER.  HE HAS BEEN DEAD
 SX8YEAR\.  SINCE8HE DIED I HAVE HAD A HARD TIME MAKI)' A LIVI)'.  O,HER  OHN
 LIVED WID ME UNTIL HE DIED.   I HAD ONLY ONE SISTER.  SHE DIED MANY YEARS AGO.
 I THINK SLAVEY WUS MIGHTY HARD AN' WRONG.  I  OINED DE .HuRCH8'CA SE IHHADREL
IGION AN' DE CHURCH WOULD HELP ME TO KEEP IT.  PEOPLE SHOULD BE RELIGIOUS SO DEY
 WILL HAVE A PLACE IN DE BEYOND.
          "ABRAHAM LINCOLN WUS A GOOD MAN.  I HE HIS PICTURE.  I THINK MISTER
ROOSEVELT IS A GOOD GOD-FEARIN' MAN.  WHEN HE GITS SICK I PRAYS FER HIM.  WHEN H
E IS SICK I JIST AS SCARED AS I KIN BE.  I PRAYS FER HIM TER STAY WELL.


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