Slave Narratives Vol. XIV | Page 5

go soon,
they ain't gwine to beat dis old frame long, 'cause I is gwine to soon
follow, I feels. I hope when I does go, I can be able to say what dat
great General Stonewall Jackson say when he got kilt in de Civil War,
'I is gwine to cross de river and rest under de shade of de trees'."
[~HW: Ezra Adams, Swansea (about 10m. south of Columbia)~]

Project 1885-1. Folk Lore District No. 4. May 27, 1937. Edited by: J. J.
Murray.
EX-SLAVE STORIES

"Aunt" Mary Adams was swinging easily back and forth in the porch
swing as the writer stopped to speak to her. When questioned, she
replied that she and her mother were ex-slaves and had belonged to Dr.
C. E. Fleming. She was born in Columbia, but they were moved to
Glenn Springs where her mother cooked for Dr. Fleming.
She remembers going with a white woman whose husband was in jail,
to carry him something to eat. She said that Mr. Jim Milster was in that
jail, but he lived to get out, and later kept a tin shop in Spartanburg.
"Yes sir, Dr. Fleming always kept enough for us Niggers to eat during
the war. He was good to us. You know he married Miss Dean. Do you
know Mrs. Lyles, Mrs. Simpson, Mr. Ed Fleming? Well, dey are my
chilluns.
"Some man here told me one day that I was ninety years old, but I do
not believe I am quite that old. I don't know how old I am, but I was
walking during slavery times. I can't work now, for my feet hurt me
and my fingers ain't straight."
She said all of her children were dead but two, that she knew of. She
said that she had a room in that house and white people gave her
different things. As the writer told her good-bye, she said, "Good-bye,
and may the Lord bless you".
Source: "Aunt" Mary Adams, 363 S. Liberty Street, Spartanburg, S. C.
Interviewer: F. S. DuPre, Spartanburg, S. C.

Project #1655 Everett R. Pierce Columbia, S. C.
VICTORIA ADAMS EX-SLAVE 90 YEARS OLD.
"You ask me to tell you something 'bout myself and de slaves in
slavery times? Well Missy, I was borned a slave, nigh on to ninety
years ago, right down here at Cedar Creek, in Fairfield County.
"My massa's name was Samuel Black and missus was named Martha.

She used to be Martha Kirkland befo' she married. There was five
chillun in de family; they was: Alice, Manning, Sally, Kirkland, and de
baby, Eugene. De white folks live in a great big house up on a hill; it
was right pretty, too.
"You wants to know how large de plantation was I lived on? Well, I
don't know 'zackly but it was mighty large. There was forty of us slaves
in all and it took all of us to keep de plantation goin'. De most of de
niggers work in de field. They went to work as soon as it git light
enough to see how to git 'round; then when twelve o'clock come, they
all stops for dinner and don't go back to work 'til two. All of them work
on 'til it git almost dark. No ma'am, they ain't do much work at night
after they gits home.
"Massa Samuel ain't had no overseer, he look after his own plantation.
My old granddaddy help him a whole heap though. He was a good
nigger and massa trust him.
"After de crops was all gathered, de slaves still had plenty of work to
do. I stayed in de house wid de white folks. De most I had to do was to
keep de house clean up and nurse de chillun. I had a heap of pretty
clothes to wear, 'cause my missus give me de old clothes and shoes dat
Missy Sally throw 'way.
"De massa and missus was good to me but sometime I was so bad they
had to whip me. I 'members she used to whip me every time she tell me
to do something and I take too long to move 'long and do it. One time
my missus went off on a visit and left me at home. When she come
back, Sally told her that I put on a pair of Bubber's pants and scrub de
floor wid them on. Missus told me it was a sin for me to put on a man's
pants, and she whip me pretty bad. She say it's in de Bible dat: 'A man
shall not put on a woman's clothes, nor a woman put on a man's clothes'.
I ain't never see that in de Bible though, but from then 'til now, I ain't
put on no