“De little Niggers thought it was fun.  Dey laughed an’ brung out big armfuls from de cotton house.  One little black gal clapped her han’s an’ jumped in a big heap.  She sunk down an’ down’ til she was buried deep.  Den de wind picked up de flame an’ spread it lak lightenin’.  It spread so fas’ dat ’fore us could bat de eye, she was in a mountain of fiah.  She struggled up all covered wid flames, a-screamin’,’ Lawdy, he’p me!’ Us snatched her out an’ rolled her on de groun’, but twant no use.  She died in a few minutes.

“De marster’s sons went to war.  De one what us loved bes’ never come back no more.  Us mourned him a-plenty, ‘cause he was so jolly an’ happy-lak, an’ free wid his change.  Us all felt cheered when he come ‘roun’.

“Us Niggers didn’ know nothin’ ’bout what was gwine on in de outside worl’.  All us knowed was dat a war was bein’ fit.  Pussonally, I b’lieve in what Marse Jefferson Davis done.  He done de only thing a gent’man could a-done.  He tol’ Marse Abe Lincoln to ‘tend to his own bus’ness an’ he’d ‘tend to his’n.  But Marse Lincoln was a fightin’ man an’ he come down here an’ tried to run other folks’ plantations.  Dat made Marse Davis so all fired mad dat he spit hard ‘twixt his teeth an’ say, ’I’ll whip de socks off dem dam Yankees.’

“Dat’s how it all come ’bout.

“My white folks los’ money, cattle, slaves, an’ cotton in de war, but dey was still better off dan mos’ folks.

“Lak all de fool Niggers o’ dat time I was right smart bit by de freedom bug for awhile.  It sounded pow’ful nice to be tol’: 

‘You don’t have to chop cotton no more.  You can th’ow dat hoe down an’ go fishin’ whensoever de notion strikes you.  An’ you can roam’ roun’ at night an’ court gals jus’ as late as you please.  Aint no marster gwine a-say to you, “Charlie, you’s got to be back when de clock strikes nine."’

“I was fool ‘nough to b’lieve all dat kin’ o’ stuff.  But to tell de hones’ truf, mos’ o’ us didn’ know ourse’fs no better off.  Freedom meant us could leave where us’d been born an’ bred, but it meant, too, dat us had to scratch for us ownse’fs.  Dem what lef’ de old plantation seemed so all fired glad to git back dat I made up my min’ to stay put.  I stayed right wid my white folks as long as I could.

“My white folks talked plain to me.  Dey say real sad-lak, ’Charlie, you’s been a dependence, but now you can go if you is so desirous.  But if you wants to stay wid us you can share-crop.  Dey’s a house for you an’ wood to keep you warm an’ a mule to work.  We aint got much cash, but dey’s de lan’ an’ you can count on havin’ plenty o’ vit’als.  Do jus’ as you please.’  When I looked at my marster an’ knowed he needed me, I pleased to stay.  My marster never forced me to do nary thing’ bout it.  Didn’ nobody make me work after de war, but dem Yankees sho’ made my daddy work.  Dey put a pick in his han’ stid[FN:  instead] o’ a gun.  Dey made’ im dig a big ditch in front o’ Vicksburg.  He worked a heap harder for his Uncle Sam dan he’d ever done for de marster.