"I was borned down in Oconee County on Marse Ike Vinson's place. Old
Miss was Marse Ike's mother. My Mammy and Pappy was Peter and 'Nerva
Vinson and dey was both field hands. Marse Ike buyed my Pappy from Marse
Sam Brightwell. Me and Bill, Willis, Maze, Harrison, Easter, and Sue was
all de chillun my Mammy and Pappy had. Dere warn't but four of us big
enough to wuk when Marse Ike married Miss Ann Hayes and dey tuk Mammy
wid 'em to dey new home in town. I stayed dar on de plantation and done
lots of little jobs lak waitin' on table; totin' Old Miss' breakfast to
her in her room evvy mornin', and I holped 'tend to de grainery. Dey
says now dat folkses is livin' in dat old grainery house.

"Dat was a be-yootiful place, wid woods, cricks, and fields spread out
most as fur as you could see. De slave quarters would'a reached from
here to Milledge Avenue. Us lived in a one-room log cabin what had a
chimbly made out of sticks and mud. Dem homemade beds what us slep' on
had big old high posties wid a great big knob on de top of each post.
Our matt'esses was coarse home-wove cloth stuffed wid field straw. You
know I laked dem matt'esses 'cause when de chinches got too bad you
could shake out dat straw and burn it, den scald de tick and fill it wid
fresh straw, and rest in peace again. You can't never git de chinches
out of dese cotton matt'esses us has to sleep on now days. Pillows? What
you talkin' 'bout? You know Niggers never had no pillows dem days,
leaseways us never had none. Us did have plenty of kivver dough. Folkses
was all time a-piecin' quilts and having quiltin's. All dat sort of wuk
was done at night.

"Pappy's Ma and Pa was Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Jacob. Day was field
hands, and dey b'longed to Marse Obe Jackson. Grandma Lucy and Grandpa
Toney Murrah was owned by Marse Billy Murrah. Marse Billy was a preacher
what sho could come down wid de gospel at church. Grandma Lucy was his