“I ‘members jus’ as good as if it was yesterday what Mammy Mary said when she told us de fust news of freedom.  ‘You all is free now,’ she said.  ’You don’t none of you belong to Mister Lordnorth nor Mister Alec no more, but I does hope you will all stay on wid ’em, ’cause dey will allus be jus’ as good to you as dey has done been in de past.’  Me, I warn’t even studyin’ nothin’ ‘bout leavin’ Marse Alec, but Sarah Ann and Aunt Mary, dey threwed down deir hoes and jus’ whooped and hollered ’cause dey was so glad.  When dem Yankees come to our place Mammy Mary axed ’em if dey warn’t tired of war.  ’What does you know ‘bout no war?’ Dey axed her right back.  ‘No, us won’t never git tired of doin’ good.’

“I stayed on wid my two good Marsters ’til most 3 years atter de war, and den went to wuk for Marse Tye Elder in Crawfordville.  Atter dat I wuked for Miss Puss King, and when she left Crawfordville I come on here to Athens and wuked for Miss Tildy Upson on Prince Avenue.  Den I went to Atlanta to wuk for Miss Ruth Evage (probably Elliott).  Miss Ruth was a niece of Abraham Lincoln’s.  Her father was President Lincoln’s brother and he was a Methodist preacher what lived in Mailpack, New York.  I went evvywhar wid Miss Ruth.  When me and Miss Ruth was in Philadelphia, I got sick and she sont me home to Athens and I done been here wid my daughter ever since.

“Lawdy, Miss!  I ain’t never been married, but I did live wid Major Baker 18 years and us had five chillun.  Dey is all daid but two.  Niggers didn’t pay so much ‘tention to gittin’ married dem days as dey does now.  I stays here wid my gal, Ida Baker.  My son lives in Cleveland, Ohio.  My fust child was borned when I warn’t but 14 years old.  De war ended in April and she was borned in November of dat year.  Now, Miss!  I ain’t never told but one white ’oman who her Pa was, so you needn’t start axin’ me nothin’ ‘bout dat.  She had done been walkin’ evvywhar ’fore she died when she was jus’ 10 months old and I’m a-tellin’ you de truth when I say she had more sense dan a heap of white chillun has when dey is lots older dan she was.  Whilst I was off in New York wid Miss Ruth, Major, he up and got married.  I reckon he’s daid by now.  I don’t keer nohow, atter de way he done me.  I made a good livin’ for Major ’til he married again.  I seed de ’oman he married once.

“Yes Mam,” there was strong emphasis in this reply.  “I sho would ruther have slavery days back if I could have my same good Marsters ’cause I never had no hard times den lak I went through atter dey give us freedom.  I ain’t never got over not bein’ able to see Marse Alec no more.  I was livin’ at Marse Tye Elder’s when de gate fell on Marse Alec, and he was crippled and lamed up from dat time on ’til he died.  He got to be Governor of Georgia whilst he was crippled.  When he got hurt by dat gate, smallpox was evvywhar and dey wouldn’t let me go to see ’bout him.  Dat most killed me ‘cause I did want to go see if dere was somepin’ I could do for him.