Interviewer: Pernella M. Anderson
Person interviewed: Tom Douglas
Route 2, Box 19-A, El Dorado, Arkansas
Age: 91
"I was born in Marion, Louisiana September 15, 1847 at 8 o'clock in the
morning. I was eighteen years of age at surrender. My master and missus
was B.B. Thomas and Miss Susan Thomas. Old master had a gang of slaves
and we all worked like we were putting out fire. Lord child, wasn't near
like it is now. We went to bed early and got up early. There was a gang
of plow hands, hoe hands, hands to clear new ground, a bunch of cooks, a
washwoman. We worked too and didn't mind it. If we acted like we didn't
want to work, our hands was crossed and tied and we was tied to a tree
or bush and whipped until we bled. They had a whipping post that they
tied us to to whip us.
"We was sold just like hogs and cows and stock is sold today. They built
nigger pens like you see cow pens and hog pens. They drove niggers in
there by the hundred and auctioned them off to the highest bidder. The
white folks kept up with our age so when they got ready to sell us they
could tell how old we were. They had a 'penetenture' for the white folks
when they did wrong. When we done wrong we was tied to that whipping
post and our hide busted open with that cow hide.
"We stayed out in the field in a log house and old master would
allowance our week's rations out to us and Sunday morning we got one
biscuit each. If our week's allowance give out before the week we did
not get any more.
"Cooked on fireplaces, wasn't no stoves. We did not have to worry about
our clothes. Old missus looked after everything. We wore brogan shoes
and homespun clothes. There was a bunch of women that did the spinning
and weaving just like these sewing room women are now. I was a shoe
maker. I made all the shoes during the time we wasn't farming. We had to
go nice and clean. If old missus caught us dirty our hide was busted. I
got slavery time scars on my back now. You ought to see my back. Scars
been on my back for seventy-five years.
"I never went to school a day in my life. I learned my ABC'S after I was
nineteen years old. I went to night school, then to a teacher by the
name of Nelse Otom. I was the first nigger to join the church on this
side of the Mason and Dixie line. During slavery we all joined the white
folk's church set in the back. After slavery in 1866 they met in
conference and motioned to turn all of the black sheep out then. There
was four or five they turned out here and four or five there, so we
called our preacher and I was the first one to join. Old master asked
our preacher what we paid him to preach to us. We told him old shoes and
clothes. Old master says, 'Well, that's damn poor pay.' Our preacher
says, 'And they got a damn poor preacher.'
"I did not know anything about war. Only I know it began in 1861, closed
in 1865, and I know they fought at Vicksburg. That was two or three
hundred miles from us but we could not keep our dishes upon the table
whenever they shot a bomb. Those bombs would jar the house so hard and
we could see the smoke that far.
"We was allowed to visit Saturday night and Sunday. If you had a wife
you could go to see her Wednesday night and Saturday night and stay with
her until Monday morning and if you were caught away any other time the
patrollers would catch you. That is where the song come from, 'Run
nigger run, don't the patarolls will catch you.' Sometimes a nigger
would run off and the nigger dogs would track them. In slavery white
folks put you together. Just tell you to go on and go to bed with her or
him. You had to stay with them whether you wanted them or not.
"After freedom old master called all us slaves and told us we was free,
opened a big gate and drove us all out. We didn't know what to do--not a
penny, nowhere to go--so we went out there and set down. In about thirty
minutes master came back and told us if we wanted to finish the crop for
food and clothes we could, so we all went back and finished the crop and
the next year they gave us half. So ever' since then we people been
working for half.
"Here is one of my boy songs:
'Sadday night and Sunday too,
A pretty girl on my mind
As soon as Monday morning come
The white folks get me gwi-ng.'"