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Burke i-Boot h

3 •111


‘tu black night ant us knowed whut wuk wuz. De beds us slep‘ on had roun‘ postes made outen saplins ot hickory or little pine trees. De bark wuz tuk off an‘ dey wuz rubbed. slick an‘ shiny. De sprangs wuz rope crossed frunx one side uv de bed to de udder. De mattress wuz straw or cotton in big secks made outen osnaberg or big salt sacks pieced tergether. Maitmiy din‘t have much soap an‘ she uster scrub d~e floe wid sand an‘ it~ wuz jes ez white. Yas marn, she made all de soap us used, but it tuk a heap. We‘uns cooked in de ashes ant on hot coals, but de vittals tasted a heap better‘n dey does nowadays. Mammy had to wuk in de fiel‘ ant den cum• home an‘ cook fer inarster ant his fenibly. I didn‘ know nuth in‘ tbout it ‘till atter freedom but I hyearn ‘ein tell ‘bout

it.

	“Mammy an‘ pappy stayed on Marster‘s plantation ‘tu a year, or tiio‘ atter dey had dey freedom. Marster paid ‘em wages an‘ a. hoise ter stay in. He didn“t hay‘ many slaves, ‘bout 20, I reckon. My brothers wuz Berry, Dani‘l, Ephriaxn, ~ully, Bob, Lin, an‘ George. De yuthers I disremembers.oaze dey lef‘ home wnen dey wuz big enough to earn dey livin‘ an‘ I jes d~on‘t rec~ ollec‘.

	“Conjur‘ woman~ Law miss, I aims ter git ter liebem when I dies an‘ I show don‘t know how ter oonjur‘ nobody. No mam, I ain‘t never seed no ghost. I allus pray to de Lord dat Ee
e
spar‘ me dat troubi an‘ not let me see nary one. No good in