HENRIETTA MCCULLERS          0118-NC/#072                                    049
          "I WUS BORNED ROUN' EIGHTY-SEBEN YEARS AGO IN WAKE COUNTY.  ME AN' MY
MAMMY 'LONGED TER MIS' BETSY ADAMS AN' MY PAPPY 'LONGED TER MISTER NAT JONES.  I
 THINK DAT MARSE NAT HAD A WHOLE PASSEL O' SLAVES, BUT MIS' BETSY AIN'T HAD MORE
'N SIX OR SEBEN.
          "YO' AX ME IFFEN MIS' BETSY WUS GOOD TER US?  SHE WUS  O7 OOD DAT I  O
VED HER ALL HER LIFE AN' NOW DAT SHE'S DAID I LOVES HER IN HER GRAVE.
          "WE ET DE SAME RATIONS WHAT SHE ET AN' WE SLEPT IN DE SAME KIND O' BED
 SHE SLEPT IN.  I KNOWS DAT SOMETIMES SHE'D HAVE COMPANY AN' SHE'D DO A HEAP O'
EXTRA FIXIN', BUT SHE AIN'T NEBER FIX BETTER FER DE COMPANY DAN FER US.
          "SHE'D LET US HAVE A CO'N SHUCKIN' ONCE A YEA, A)'6OF  OURS(,6WE8HAD
A HEAP OF PRAYER MEETIN'S AN' A FEW SOCIALS.  SHE AIN'T WANTED HER NIGGERS TER D
ANCE CASE SHE AM SUCH A GOOD CHRISTIAN, BUT SHE LET US HAVE CANDY PULLIN'S AN' S
ICH.
          "WHEN DE WUCK WARN'T PUSHIN' SHE'D LET US GO FISHIN' AN'  WIMMI)'  )'
ALL, ONLY WE JIST WADED, CASS WE AIN'T USED ENOUGH TER DE WATER.  YO' KNOW DAT N
IGGERS AM NATU'LLY SKEERED O' WATER ANYHOW.
          "IFFEN DE WUCK WUS PUSHIN' WE WUCKED FROM SUNUP TILL DARK AN' MIS' BET
SY WUCKED TOO.  MAN, SHE WUS A WUCKIN' WOMAN. AN' SHE MADE US WUCK TOO; BUT I LO
VES HER BETTER DAN I DOES MY OWN CHILLUNS NOW, AN' DAT'S ONE REASON DAT I WANTS
TER GO TER HEABEN.  ALL MY LIFE WHEN I DONE A BAD THING I THINK 'BOUT MIS' BETSY
'S TEACHIN'S AN' I REPENTS.
          "I PLOWED AN' DUG DITCHES AN' CLEANED NEW GROUN'; AN' HARD WUCK AIN'T
NEBER HURTED ME YIT.  DE MASTER WUS TOO PUNY TO WUCK, AN' I OFTEN THINKS DAT MAY
BE HE MARRIED MIS' BETSY TO LOOK ATTER HIM.  DEY ONLY HAD ONE MAN, UNCLE MOSE, A
N' SO, OF COURSE, HE HAD TO HAVE SOME HELP TER TEN' 'BOUT A HUNDERT ACRES.
          "MOST OF OUR LAN' WUS PLANTED IN FEED STUFF FER US jN' DE CATtLE.  jN'
SO WE RAISED EVER'THING BUT DE COFFEE.  SOMETIMES WE DRUNK JAPONICA TEA, AN' DON
E WITHOUT DE COFFEE.
          "ON SUNDAY'S YOU SHOULD O' SEEN US IN OUR SUNDAY BES'  OI)' TER .HUR.H
 'HIND DE MISSUS COACH, WID OLE UNCLE MOSE HIGH ON DE BOX.  WE CAN'T READ DE HYM
NS EBEN IFFEN WE HAD A BOOK 'CAUSE WE AIN'T 'LOWED TER HAVE NO BOOKS, BUT WE SIN
G JIST DE SAME.
          "AT CHRISTMAS TIME WE HAD A PARTY AT DE BIG HOUSE.  MIS' BETSY HAD SAB
ED A BUSHEL ER SO O' DE LATES' APPLES AN' SHE MADE A BIG DISH OF LASSES CANDY AN
' WE POPPED POP CORN AN' WUS HAPPY.  MIS' BETSY ALWAYS GIVE US SOME CLOTHES AN'
WE HAS A FEAS' ALL THROUGH DE WEEK OF HOLIDAY.
          "WHEN DE YANKEES COMED DEY JIST ABOUT CLEANED US OUT.  DEY KILLS PIGS,
 TURKEYS, CALVES AN' HENS ALL OVER DE PLACE, DEY GITS DE BESERVES AN' A HEAP O'
DE LASSES AN' DEY SASS MIS' BETSY.  ALL DIS WUS DEM BAD-MANNERED SOLDIERS' FAULT
, CASE ABRAHAM LINCOLN AIN'T MEAN'T FER IT TER BE DIS WAY,I KNOW.  I RECKON DAT
MOST O' DEM SOLDIERS WUS PORE WHITE TRASH.  DEY DOAN KEER 'BOUT DE NIGGERS, BUT
DEY AIN'T WANTED OUR WHITE FOLKS TER BE RICH.
          "DE YANKEES AIN'T STAYED LONG IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD CASE DEY AM A-LOOKIN
' FER OUR SOLDIERS, SO DEY GOES AWAY.
          "DID I LEAVE ATTER DE WAR WUS OBER?  NAW SIR, I AIN'T, AN' ALL DE REST
 STAYED ON TOO.  UNCLE MOSE STAYED DE REST O' HIS LIFE, BUT I LEFT TWO YEARS ATT
ERWARES WHEN I GOT MARRIED.
          "MY MEMORY AM GITTIN' SO SHORT DAT I DOAN 'MEMBER MY DADDY'S-NjME, NER
 MY BROTHERS AN' SISTERS NAMES.  I 'MEMBER MY MAMMY WUS NAMED PIETY DO' AN' I 'M
EMBERS MY FUST LESSON FROM MIS' BETSY, "DOAN LIE, AN' DOAN STEAL, AX FER WHAT YO
U NEEDS, NEEDS, MIND YOU, NOT WHAT YOU WANTS."- NIGGERS ORT TER BE BACK IN SLAVE
RY NOW, DEY'D BE BETTER AN' HAPPIER DAN DEY IS.  I AIN'T NEBER HAD A WHUPPIN' IN
 MY LIFE AN' DAT'S MORE DAN MOST OF DESE FREE NIGGERS CAN SAY."
  X   XXX
STP