Interviewer:  Miss Irene Robertson
Person interviewed:  Mary Williams, Clarendon, Arkansas
Age:  Born 1872
Light color

“My father was a slavery man two and one-half miles from Somerville, Tennessee.  Colonel Rivers owned him.  Argile Rivers was papa’s name.

“He went to war.  His job was hauling food to the soldiers.  He lay out in the woods getting to his soldiers with provisions.  He’d run hide under the feed wagon from the shot.  Him and old master would be together sometimes.  His master died, or was hurt and died after the War a long while.

“He said his master was good to him all time.  They had to work hard.  He raised one boy and me.”

[HW:  Ex-slave]

Name of Interviewer:  Irene Robertson
Subject:  Ex-Slave—­Herbs “Hant” experiences
Story:—­Information

This information given by:  Mary Williams
Place of residence:  Hazen, Arkansas
Occupation:  Field Worker
Age:  69
[TR:  Information moved from bottom of first page.]

Mary Williams mother’s name was Mariah and before she married her master forced her to go wrong and she had a son by him.  They all called him Jim Rob.  He was a mulatta.  Then Mariah married Williams on General Garretts farm.  The Rob Roy farm and the Garrett farm joined.  Mary was born at Rob Roy, Arkansas near Humphrey.  Mary said the master married her mother and father after her mother was stood up on a stump and auctioned off.  Her mother was a house girl.  Soon there were rumors of freedom but their family lived on where they were.  Her father said when he was a boy he attended the draw bars and met the old master to get a ride up behind him.

Once when her father was real small he was eating biscuit with a hole in it made by a grown person sticking finger down in it, then fill the hole with molasses.  That was a rarity they had just cooked molasses.  He was sitting in front of the fire place.  Big White Bobby stuck his nose and mouth to take a bite of his bread.  He picked the cat up and threw it in the fire.  The cat ran out, smutty, just flying.  The old mistress came in there and got after him about throwing the cat in the fire.

One time when my father was going to see my mother.  Before they got married, across the field.  He had a bag of potatoes.  He felt something, felt like some one had caught his bag and was pulling him back.  He was much off a man and thought he could whip nearly every body around but he was too scared to run and couldn’t hardly get away.

* * * * *

Mary’s mother, Mariah two children had been gone off.  They were coming in on the boat some time in the night.  The master sent two of the big boys down to build a fire and wait at the landing till they came.  They went in the wagon.  There was an old empty house up on the hill.  So they went up there and built a fire and put their quilts down for pallets by the fire place.  They