"I was born in Wilcox County, Alabama, in 1850. W.J. Snow was my old
marster. He bought my ma from a man named Jerry Casey. Venus was her
name, but dey mos'ly called her 'Venie.'

"I's workin' now for one o' my old folks. I can't work much--jus'
carries things to 'er an' such. She's my old mistis' own daughter an'
she's got gran'chillun grown an' married. All de chillun dat's livin' is
older'n me.

"When her pa bought my mammy, I was a baby. Her pa owned a heap o'
Niggers. I's de only one still hangin' aroun'.

"My ma was a black African an' she sho' was wild an' mean. She was so
mean to me I couldn' b'lieve she was my mammy. Dey couldn' whup her
widout tyin' her up firs'. Sometimes my marster would wait 'til de nex'
day to git somebody to he'p tie her up, den he'd forgit to whup 'er. Dey
used to say she was a cunger an' dey was all scared of 'er. But my ma
was scared o' cungers, too.

"All de Niggers on de place was born in de fam'ly an' was kin, 'cept my
ma. She tol' me how dey brought her from Africa. You know, like we say
'President' in dis country, well dey call him 'Chief' in Africa. Seem
like de Chief made 'rangements wid some men an' dey had a big goober
grabbin' for de young folks. Dey stole my ma an' some more an' brung 'em
to dis country.

"I don't 'member nothin' 'bout havin' no pa. You know, honey, in dem
days husbands an' wives didn' b'long to de same folks. My ma say her
husband was so mean dat after us lef' Alabama she didn' want to marry no
more.