“I was ony five year old when dey brung me to Sanderson, in Baker County, Florida.  My stepfather went to work for a turpentine man, makin barrels, an he work at dat job till he drop dead in de camp.  I reckon he musta had heart disease.

“I doan recleck ever seein my mammy wear shoes.  Even in de winter she go barefoot, an I reckon cold didn’t hurt her feet no moran her hands an face.  We all wore dresses made o’ homespun.  De thread was spun an de cloth wove right in our own home.  My mamy an granmamy an me done it in spare time.

“My weddin dress was blue—­blue for true.  I thought it was de prettiest dress I ever see.  We was married in de court-house, an dat be a mighty happy day for me.  Mos folks dem days got married by layin a broom on de floor an jumpin over it.  Dat seals de marriage, an at de same time brings em good luck.

“Ya see brooms keeps hants away.  When mean folks dies, de old debbil sometimes doan want em down dere in da bad place, so he makes witches out of em, an sends em back.  One thing bout witches, dey gotta count everthing fore dey can git acrosst it.  You put a broom acrosst your door at night an old witches gotta count ever straw in dat broom fore she can come in.

“Some folks can jes nachly see hants bettern others.  Teeny, my gal can.  I reckon das cause she been borned wid a veil—­you know, a caul, sumpum what be over some babies’ faces when dey is borned.  Folks borned wid a caul can see sperrits, an tell whas gonna happen fore it comes true.

“Use to worry Teeny right smart, seein sperrits day an night.  My husban say he gonna cure her, so he taken a grain o’ corn an put it in a bottle in Teeny’s bedroom over night.  Den he planted it in de yard, an driv plenty sticks roun da place.  When it was growin good, he put leaf-mold roun de stalk, an watch it ever day, an tell us don’t nobody touch de stalk.  It raise three big ears o’ corn, an when dey was good roastin size he pick em off an cook em an tell Teeny eat ever grain offn all three cobs.  He watch her while she done it, an she ain never been worried wid hants no more.  She sees em jes the same, but dey doan bother her none.

“Fust time I ever knowed a hant to come into our quarters was when I was jes big nough to go out to parties.  De game what we use to play was spin de plate.  Ever time I think on dat game it gives me de shivers.  One time there was a strange young man come to a party where I was.  Said he name Richard Green, an he been takin keer o’ horses for a rich man what was gonna buy a plantation in dat county.  He look kinda slick an dressed-up—­diffunt from de rest.  All de gals begin to cast sheep’s eyes at him, an hope he gonna choose dem when day start playin games.

“Pretty soon dey begin to play spin de plate an it come my turn fust thing.  I spin it an call out ‘Mister Green!’ He jumps to de middle o’ de ring to grab de plate an ’Bang’—­bout four guns go off all at oncet, an Mister Green fall to de floor plum dead shot through de head.