REFERENCE

1.  Personal interview with Edward Lycurgas, 611 West Ashley Street, Jacksonville, Florida

FEDERAL WRITERS’ PROJECT American Guide, (Negro Writers’ Unit)

Pearl Randolph, Field Worker
Madison, Florida
November 13, 1936

AMANDA MCCRAY

Mrs. McCray was sitting on her porch crooning softly to herself and rocking so gently that one might easily have thought the wind was swaying her chair.  Her eyes were closed, her hands incredibly old and workworn were slowly folding and unfolding on her lap.

She listened quietly to the interviewer’s request for some of the “high lights” of her life and finally exclaimed:  “Chile, why’ny you look among the living fer the high lights?”

There was nothing resentful in this expression; only the patient weariness of one who has been dragged through the boundaries of a yesterday from which he was inseparable and catapulted into a present with which he has nothing in common.  After being assured that her life story was of real interest to some one she warmed up and talked quite freely of the life and times as they existed in her day.

How old was she?  She confessed quite frankly that she never “knowed” her age.  She was a grownup during the Civil War when she was commandered by Union soldiers invading the country and employed as a cook.  Her owner, one Redding Pamell, possessed a hundred or more slaves and was, according to her statement very kind to them.  It was on his plantation that she was born.  Amanda McCray is one of several children born to Jacob and Mary Williams, the latter being blind since Amanda could remember.

Children on the Pamell plantation led a carefree existence until they were about 12 years of age, when they were put to light chores like carrying water and food, picking seed from cotton lint (there were no cotton gins), and minding the smaller children.  They were duly schooled in all the current superstitions and listened to the tales of ghosts and animals that talked and reasoned, tales common to the Negro today.  Little Mandy believes to this day that hogs can see the wind and that all animals talk like men on Christmas morning at a certain time.  Children wore moles feet and pearl buttons around their necks to insure easy teething and had their legs bathed in a concoction of wasp nest and vinegar if they were slow about learning to walk.  This was supposed to strengthen the weak limbs.  It was a common occurence to see a child of two or three years still nursing at the mother’s breast.  Their masters encouraged the slaves to do this, thinking it made strong bones and teeth.

At Christmas time the slave children all trouped to “de big house” and stood outside crying “Christmas gift” to their master and mistress.  They were never disappointed.  Gifts consisted mostly of candies, nuts and fruits but there was always some useful article of clothing included, something they were not accustomed to having.  Once little Mandy received a beautiful silk dress from her young mistress, who knew how much she liked beautiful clothes.  She was a very happy child and loved the dress so much that she never wore it except on some special occasion.