I mus' be purty old now. My name' Millie Randall and my mammy, she call' Rose , but I don't know nothin' 'bout my paw. My old massa name' Dan McMillen and he wife she name' Laura . It were a old wood country where my white folks was and us live way out. Dey raise de corm and de cotton and when dey wasn't workin' in de field, dey diggin' out stumps and movin' loge and clearin' up new ground. Dey have lots of goats and sheep, too, and raises dey own rice. Dey give us cullud folks de ration in a sack right reg'lar. It have jes' plain food in it, but plenty for everybody. Missy have de big plank house and us have de little log house. Us have jes' old plank beds and no furniture. Us clothes make out good, strong cloth, but dey was plain make. All us white folks was mean, I tells you de truf. Yes, Lawd, I seed dem best and almost kilt on us own place. What dey beat dem fort 'Cause dey couldn't he'p demselves, I guess. De white folks have de niggers like dey want dem and dey treat dem bad. It were de old, bully. mean overseers what was doin' de beatin' up with do niggers and I guess dey would have kilt me, but I's too little to best much. I heared 'bout dem Yankees drivin' dey hosses in de white folks house and makin' den 1st dem eat offen de table. Another time. dey come to de plantation and all de niggers locked in de barn. Dose soldiers go in de house and find de white boss man hidin' in 'tween de mattresses and dey stick swords through de mattress and kilt him. Some de white folks hides dey silver and other things what worth lots of money and hang dem down in de well, so de Yankees not find dem. But dey find dem anyway. Dey breaks open a store what was lock up and told de niggers to git all dey wants. De woman kotches up de bottom of dey skirt round de waist and fill dem up with everything dey wants. After freedom old massa not 'low my mammy have us chillen. He takes me and my brother, Benny, in de wagon and druv us round and round so dey couldn't find us. My mammy has to git de Justice of de Peace to go make him turn us a-loose. He brung us to our mammy and was we glad to see her. I don't 'member 'zactly when I git marry. It was at Big Cane and when I git marry I jes' git marry, dat's all. Dey was three chillen but dey all dead now and so my husban'.

A slow-moving, heavy set negress, whose voice continually drifts off into a husky whisper, is Millie Randall , of Beaumont. Her large face is almost expressionless, and her eyes, behind rimmed glasses, are covered with a thin, membraneous skin. Under her round chin tiny tufts of black wool grow in patches, and also edge her upper lip. Born in Mississippi, her slavery days were mostly spent on Bayou Jaques near Big Cane, Louisiana, on the Dan McMillan farm. I was jes' 'bout six year' ol' w'en peace was 'clared. I done been bo'n in Miss'ippi, but us move to Bayou Jacques, tother side of Big Cane in Lou'sana. I mus' be purty ol' now. I got a skim ober my eye an' kaint see much of nuthin'. My name' Millie Randall . My maw she was name' Rose , but I dunno nuthin' 'bout my paw. I ain' 'member nuthin' 'bout eeder gramma' or grampa'. My ol' marster name' Dan McMillan . He wife, she de ol' mistus an' her name' Laura . It were a ol' wood country w'er my w'ite folks was. Us lib 'way outn' de country. Dey raise' cotton an' co'n but dey didn' raise no cane. W'en dey was'n' wukkin' in de fiel' dey was diggin' out stump' an' movin' logs an' clearin' up new groun'. Dey hab lots of goats an' sheep too, an' dey raise dey own rice. Dey give de culled folks dey ration' in a sack right reg'lar. It hab jes' plain food in it, but plenty for eb'rybudy. Mistus hab a big plank house an' us hab li'l log house. Us hab jes' ol' plank beds an' no furn'chure. Us clo's was mek outn' good strong clo'f, but dey was plain-mek. De li'l gal's dress' was jes' plain wid a body on dem. Dey didn' give us no Sunday dress cause dey didn' 'low us to go to chu'ch or nuthin' like dat. My maw brung me from Miss'ippi, jes' a baby in arms. W'en I's six or seben, I was put up for a nuss for young mistus baby. I kaint 'member w'at de baby look like now. I didn' hab to wuk so hard. Jes' play so much foolishness. Us mek dolls outn' rag an' cotton. Den we play 'Ring 'roun' de Center' an' others like dat. Dey didn' 'low me to be whip'. But ol' mistus was all de time thumpin' me on de head.

All my w'ite folks was mean, I tell you de troof. Yes, Lawd, I seed dem beat an' almos' kilt on us own place (negroes). W'at dey beat dem for? Cause dey couldn' he'p deyse'fs, I guess. De w'ite folks hab de niggers like dey want dem an' dey treat dem bad. It were de mean oberseers w'at was doin' de beatin' up wid de niggers. I was jes' nuthin' in de house. I guess dey would of kilt me iffen I'd a been big 'nuf to beat cause I's too li'l. In my ol' time home I seed de sojers for de fus' time. Maw say dey was sojers cause dey was dress' in blue. I heard tell of dem Yankee' drivin' dey hoss in de w'ite folks house an' mekin' dem eat offn' de w'ite folks table. I heard anudder story 'bout dem come to a plantation. All de niggers was lock in de barn. Dey go in de house an' fin' de w'ite boss man hidin' in 'tween de mattress an' dey stick dey so'des (swords) through de mattress an' kill him. Some of de w'ite folks hide dey silber an' other t'ings w'at wor'f lots of money an' hang dem down in de well so de Yankee wouldn' fin' dem. But dey fin' dem anyway. Anudder time dey bre'k open a sto' w'at was lock' up an' tol' de niggers to git all w'at dey want. I heerd tell how de wimmen ketch up de bottom of dey skirt 'roun' de wais' an' fill dem up wid eb'ryt'ing dey want. Anudder time I heerd a ol' lady tell 'bout a wake. Dey was a-sittin' up wid a cors' w'en de Yankee come. Eb'ry budy run off but her. She been gone to sleep an' didn' know 'bout it. W'en she wake up an' fin' herse'f all by herse'f wid dat dead pusson an' Yankees hammerin' at de do' (door) she lit out.

Atter freedom ol' marster wouldn' 'low my maw to hab us chillen. He tuk me an' my brudder Benny in a wagon an' drove us 'roun' an' 'roun' so dey couldn' fin' us. My maw hatter git de Jestice of de Peace to go mek him t'un us a-loose. De man brung me an' my brudder to Big Cane to us maw. Was we glad to see her cause we figger we ain' gwineter see her no mo'. Maw tuk ober de care of de chillen an' done de bes' she could. Dey put me in a fiel' of co'n to hoe. Us uster lib one time on de Atchafalia Riber. It were in April an' de high water was a-comin' on. Dey was right smart people drownded. Dere was lotser sojers come on dey hosses 'cross de ribber an' he'p us git outn' de flood. Dey put us on a box car an' tek us to Chaneyville 'til de water went down. Dat was atter freedom, though. I don' 'member 'zackly w'en I git marry. It was a long time ago. It was w'en I was at Big Cane. W'en I git marry I jes' git marry dat's all. Us didn' hab no big weddin' or nuthin'. Dey was t'ree chillen, Hillary , Peter , an' Baby but dey all dead now, an' so' my husban'. I been in Beaumont now goin' on fi'teen year'.

One time us was libin' in a ha'nt house. Us knowed it was ha'nt but us war'n' 'fraid. Dey was all kindser noises in dat house. Dey soun' like dey draggin' t'ings like chair an' bed an' t'ings. How us kep' dem off? Us jes' pray to God an' dat how us kep' dem off.  I kin tell you all 'bout dem t'ings (ghosts). I kin see dem any w'er. One time I was walkin' 'long by de cem'terry an' sump'n' riz up befo' me 'bout's big as a goat. I kep' on walkin' but I tu'n 'roun' t'reckly an' it look like it tu'n to a big yellin' caff. It like to scare me to de'f but nuthin' happen. I kep' on a-walkin' cause I seen all I want to. I kin go right out dere in de cen'terry an' show you plenty of spirits right now. Lots of times I saw balls of fire in a sto'm. Dey was jes' a rollin' all 'roun'. I seed Jack-my-lantern too, but I don' pay no 'tenshun to dem kinder mild spirits. Dey ain' none of dem boddered me.