here. She would love to help her old Mammy, but my Delia's got chillun
of her own and she can't git nothin' to do 'cept a little washin' for de
white folkses, and she ain't able to pervide what her own household
needs to eat. Dem boys of mine is done got so fur off dey's done forgot
all 'bout deir old Mammy.

"When us fust got married, Solomon wukked at Mr. Orr's cotton house, and
he stayed dere a long time 'fore he went to wuk for Mr. Moss and Mr.
Levy. All dem white folks was good to me and Solomon. I kept on wukkin'
for de Dorseys 'til us had so many chillun I had to stay home and look
atter 'em. Solomon got sick and he lay dere sufferin' a long, long time,
but Mr. Moss and Mr. Levy seed dat he didn't want for nothin'. Even
atter Solomon died dem good white mens kept on comin' out now and den to
see if me and Solomon's chillun had what us needed.

"Solomon, my Solomon, he went out of dis here world, in dat dere room
whar you sees dat old bed, and dat is perzactly whar I wants to be when
de Blessed Lord lays his hands on me and tells me to come on Home to
Glory. I wants to be toted out of dat room, through dis hall and on out
to de graveyard jus' lak my man was. I knows dat evvything would be done
nice jus' lak I wants it if Mr. Moss and Mr. Levy was a-livin' 'cause
dey was both Masons, and members of de Masons is all done swore a oath
to look atter deir own folkses. Dey said Solomon and his fambly was lak
deir own folkses, Mr. Moss and Mr. Levy did. Most of de folkses, both
white and black, dat I has knowed and loved has done gone on over de
Jordan, out of dis world of trouble, and it will be happy days for all
of us when us meets again in de place 'of many mansions' whar dere won't
be nothin' for none of us to pester ourselfs 'bout no more.

"All of my life, I'se had a great desire to travel, jus' to go evvywhar,