No sir ree I never voted and I ain’t never goner vote!  Women is tearing dis world up.

The ex-slaves was told that they would got things, different things.  I don’t know what all.  I know they didn’t got nothing and when freedom came they took their clothes and left.  They scattered out and went to different places.  It was hard to get work and there was no money cept what the Yankees give em.  When they all got run off there was no money.

My husband was a Yankee soldier and he decided he wanter come to this country.  We come on the train and on the boat to Pine Bluff.  We farmed.  I got three children but just two living.  One boy lives at Fargo and the girl lives at Chicago.  My husband died.  Me and my sister lives here.  I bought a place with my pension money.  That since my husband died.

The present times is hard.  I don’t know nithin about these young folks.  I tends to my own business.  I ain’t got nothing to do with the young folks.  I don’t know what causes the times to be so hard.  Folks used to wear more clothes than they do and let colored folks have more ironing and bigger washings too.  The washings bout played out.  Some few folks hire cooks.

I farmed and washed and ironed and I have cooked along some here in Brinkley.

I am supported by my pension my husband left me.  It ain’t much but I make out with it.  It is Union Soldiers Pension.

[HW:  Hot Springs]

Interviewer:  Mary D. Hudgins
Person Interviewed:  Anna Woods, 426 Grand Avenue

“Yes ma’am.  Come on in.  Is you taking lists of folks for old age pensions?  Can you tell us what we going to get and when it’s going to come?  No?  Then—­Oh, I see you is writing us up.  Well maybe that will help us to get attention.  Cause we sure does need the pension.

To be sure I remembers slave days.  My grandmother—­she was give away in the trading yard.  She was aflicted.  What was the matter with her?  Was she lame?  No ma’am, she had the scrofula.  So her mother was sold away from her, but she was give away.  She was give away to a woman named Glover.

Mrs. Glover was a old woman when I knowed her.  She was an old, old woman.  She sort of studied before she’d say anything.  She was a pretty good old woman though, Mrs. Glover was.  She wouldn’t let her colored folks be whipped.  She wouldn’t let me work in the field.  Old Donovan wanted me to work in the field—­but she wouldn’t let him make me.  Donovan was Mary’s husband.  Mary was Mrs. Glover’s girl’s girl.  Mrs. Glover’s girl was named Kate.

Mrs. Glover had a whole flock of slaves.  My mother and another woman named Sallie cooked and did the washing.  Fannie, she was my sister, was old Mrs. Glover’s maid.  Robert and Sally and Lucy—­they was my brother and sisters—­all of them worked in the field.  They had to begin early and work late.  They got them out way fore day.  They worked them til dark.