I'll be ninety-one years old next May, and I was borned in Brenham. My massa and missus was Frank Hubert and Sarah Ann Hubert . My daddy come from de old Africa and was tall and straight as a arrow. He was sold to an man what tooked him to California in de gold rush in 1849 and me and mammy stays with Massa Hubert . Dat how come my name ain't de same as massa have. I get so much misery in de head I can't 'member like I should. But I knew us live in little houses all kind of group together, and us eat in a long lean-to builded on to de big house. Us chillen had a long, scooped-out dish on a split log table. What we had to eat was dumped in dat trough and us ate it like slep. But it she' taste good when you been huntin' for eggs or salves or gittin' in chips or breakin' bresh. When I's big 'nough I carries water, sometimes from de spring and sometimes from de deep well. Dere danger a little child fall in and drown and massa, he say niggers too valu'ble to risk dem dat way. It was hard work to tote water for niggers workin', 'cause allus somebody hollerin' for de water. I had to trot down de slippery bank through de thorns to de spring or pull de heavy sweep to git it out de well, and carry two buckets most de time. Us cut two saplin's de right size to fasten together at de end and stick dem in holes in de wall, to make de bed. Us use lace cowhide strings or any kind rope across de poles to hold de bed up. Den put hay or corn shucks and a little cotton in de ticks. Us eat bacon and cornbread and greens, but de white folks had more'n better. Dey didn't have to cat strong victuals like us; us have to eat something to stick to de ribs. Right 'bout de time dis state come to be de United States, and de Mexicans raisin' de old billy, us cook most usual on de fireplace and have ovens by de side to make bread, and cranes for de pots. Us slaves used pine torches and sometimes a little bit of candle. De women make all de candles demselves for de white folks. Us didn't need much light at night, 'cause us tired after de long day, workin' from can see to can't see, and us git in de bed early. I wore shirt tail till I's fourteen, den de homespun britches and shirt. My weddin' suit was de dark jeans and I was fix up fine as any nigger on de plantation. She wore white and massa fix supper and git de fiddler and all sich.

Massa have John to oversee, and he she' de stepper. He be every place you didn't think he gwine come. He have de big, boom voice and allus singin', and wail, 'Look along, black man, look along, dere trouble comin' she'.' Iffen de black boy or woman lyin' in de corn row, dey it up quick and be mighty bust right soon, 'cause dat black snake whip reach for dem. Dey scramble deyself together and be de busiest in de bunch by time John git dere. In de long winter days de men sat round de fire and whittle weed and make butter paddles and troughs for de pigs and sich, and ax handles and hoe handles and box traps and figure-four traps. Dey make combs to git de wool clean for de spinnin'. Us take de long strip of leather and put wire in it and bend dem so dey stay, den cut dem comb-like teef and dere you are. Come Christmas us slaves have de big dinner and eat all day and dance till nex' mornin'. Some de niggers from near plantations git dey passes and come jine us. Course dey a drap egg nog round and candy for de chillen. De white folks have dey big carriage full of visiters and big goin's on dey come to from miles round. Us didn't have no money, but didn't have no place to go to spend it, neither. At night, us sot round de fire sometimes and de women sew and knit and de men whittle and told things. Dey talk 'bout charms and sich. You wine have lots of luck iffen you cotch de rabbit in de graveyard on de dark of de moon and cut off he hind leg and wear it. Iffen you chews de piece of shoe-string root, just you ask anybody a favor and you sho' gwine git it.

I was born in May 1847, an' I will be ninety years old nex' May. I was borned in Brenham, Washington County, Texas. My Marster an' Mistis was Frank an' Sarah Ann Hubert . My daddy come from de ole Africa an was tall an straight as an arrow. He was sold to a man dat took him to Californy in de gold rush of '49. Me an mammy stayed wid Marse Hubert . Dat's how come my name ain't de same as de Marster's was like so meny slaves. Ize got de misery in my haid an I can't 'member lak I should. I didn't hab no shore 'nuff brudders an sisters, I means no Stringfellow kinfolks. Dere was some more in de fambly but dey all had some udder name. Dere was Sally an Joe an Tom . Us libed in little log houses all kinder grouped together an called de quarters. All us niggers ate in a long lean-to built on to de big house whar marster an mistis libed. De chillun had a long, scooped out dish on a split log table. An what we had to eat was dumped all togedder in dat trough-like an us little chillun ate it like slop. But it shore tasted good when you had been huntin' fer eggs, er calves, er slop'n de pigs, er gittin' in chips, er breakin' brush fer to kindle de fires er carryin' water. Ob course, I didn' carry no water till I was about fourteen years ole. 'Case we had to git it sometimes from a spring an sometimes from a deep well, an dere was danger dat a little chile would fall in an drown. Marster, he say dat niggers too valyble to risk dem dat way. It was hard work to be a water totter fer de niggers what was workin on de plantation. 'Cause dere was allus some body a hollerin' fer water. An you had to trot down a slippery bank through de thorns to de spring, or pull a heavy sweep to git it out ob a well. An when you trot all day wid a heavy bucket an mos' de time two heavy buckets, it shore makes you tired. Dey brought our dinner to de field or woods wherever we was workin' an' you only stopped long 'nuff to eat an den Marse Green Morgan , de over seer, he kracked dat ole black snake whip an nigger, you better git in dere an swing. Us had beds made into de wall, like mos every body else 'cept de big white folks, dey had store boughten furnichure. Us'd cut down two saplins de right size to fasten dem togedder at de end an stick em in de holes in de wall. Den us'd lace cow hide strings er eny kind-a rope across dese poles to hold de bed up. Dey didn't hab springs like dey do now. Den dey put hay or some corn shucks an a little cotton in de ticks an dere was de bed. 'Course, now a-days, us hab cotton mattresses an boughten bedsteads. I don't 'member eny grandpa er eny body 'cept my mammy an' marster an mistis an dere chillun. De cookin was done in de kitchen at de big house an 'course de slaves had bacon, corn bread, greens an' sech but de white folks had more bettern dan us did. De white folks didn't hab to eat strong vittles like us; de slaves had to eat something to stick to dere ribs an make dem strong to work. Right 'bout de time dis state come to be de United States, an de Mexicans was raisin' ole billy, de folks mos'en usually cooked on de fire place an dey had ovens made by de side ob de fire place to cook bread in, an cranes to hang de pots on an three-legged things to cook over de coals in an all sech. In hot weather, dey cooked on a fireplace out doors under a shed. Yessum, Ize seen 'em make candles, lots ob times when I was a chile. Dey worked a long time gittin ready fer de candle dippin'. Dey mos en allus dipped de candles in de fall ob de year. De womin folks saved all de tallow from de beefs an sech. Ef a cow got herself killed dey allus tried to save de tallow case it took a lot ob candles to light up ole Marster's big house. Den, down in de plum thicket, us had a lot ob bee hives an dey'd rob de hives of wax fer to make de candles, too. Dere was a kind of hollow iron rods dat dey filled wid melted tallow or bees wax to shape de candles. Dey'd put a big fire in de fireplace an hang a great big kettle over de fire; den dey'd fill it with water an' melt tallow or bees wax. When dey wuzn't usin' de candle rods, dey stuck dem 'way up in de attic or under de edge ob de beams.

Dere was rods put 'bout a foot or so apart, on two chairs; an shorter rods was put like ladders 'cross dese two long rods. Dese short rods was sometimes called reels an dey had wicks about every six or eight inches, however long you wanted de candle. Dese wicks was of cotton dat had been spun loose like, or of a kind ob rope, an hung down like icicles. Dese wicks was dipped time an time again into the melted tallow, an' den lef' to git hard an den dipped some more until dey was de size dey wanted. Dey allus put dese rods in a place whar it 'ud be kinda cool so de candles would git hard quicker. Effen dey got hard too quick dey was apt to crack an dat 'ud shore spile de candle. When de candle got de size dey wanted, dey 'ud cut it off, an' put it up some proper place to whiten an' den atter a-while, dey was stored away in de candle boxes. Us slaves used pine torches an sometimes us got a bit of a candle from de big house. Dat was on de birfday or on Christmus time an sech. Some folks had rods dat wud mould de candles. An dere was men what come roun sellin molds an lendin molds an helpin in de candle makin'. Us wore a long tailed shirt ob cotton cloth till us was 'bout fourteen years ole; den us wore home-spun, an jeans, an sech, like de odder folks. De close was all made of home-spun cloth. In cold weather us had some woolen close an more heavier close. Dey had a slave to make shoes. Ole Marster brung a w'ite man from Austin to teach him how to make shoes an to patch 'em. Us had a tannin vat to fix de hide up wid.  Oh, shucks, my weddin suit was a dark jeans as well as I kin think. Eny ways I was fixed up fine as eny nigger on de plantation an was considered to hab married a mighty likely gal. She wore white an de white folks fixed de supper an got a fiddler an all sech. Our folks black an white wus allus de top in eny thing an I guess my weddin was jes as good as could be. Marster shore had a lot ob land an a lot ob slaves. Us got to de fields fore good light an wukked till 'bout dark. Den some went to de big house to git in de wood, to milk an do de chores an sech; de odders dey wuk on till plum dark. Marse had Mister John to oversee an he was shore a stepper. He could be every place you didn't think he gwine come. Ole man Jim he had a big boom voice an he allus singing; jes any kind song outen he haid. An he had one dat would wail kind-a an ef de oberseer was comin he'd wail out loud like an say; "Look-a long black man, look-a long; dere's trouble comin shore". Effen de black boy or wimmin be a-lyin in de corn row, dey's gwin git up quick an be mighty buzy right soon, case de black snake whip reach fer 'em an reach quick. Effen deres a boy a-nappin under a tree, he scramble he self togedder some fas', an he be de buziest in de bunch time Mister John git to see him. No'm twan't no jail ez you might say. Some ob de planters had a big strong crib dey put de troublesome niggers in an tie 'em up hard an fas'. De oberseer guine whup you effen you lazy er sassy er break something an effen you makin' somethin', you better watch close an not spoil it. My marster nebber whup me an he nebber let Mister John git me case I allus wurkked good an atter I not wurk in de field like on rainy days er in de winter, I made things wid my knife an Marse he like dat fine. In de long winter days de men, some ob 'em an' some ob de boys dey sot 'roun de fire an whittle wood an make butter paddles, troughs fer de pigs an sech; an ax handles, hoe handles an like ob dat; an box-traps an' figure-4 traps; cheese hoops an' handles fer all ob de different tools dey use. An us'd make combs to git de wool clean an straighten out fer spinnin'. Us'd take a long strip of leather an put wire in it an bend 'em so dey would stay, den cut dem like comb-teeth an dere you are.

Come Chrismus us slaves had a big dinner an eat all day an dance an eat some more an dance twill next mornin'. Some de niggers from de nearby plantations 'ud git dem passes an come to jine us an us had fun. Cose dere was a little drop of egg nog aroun an candy fer de chillun. De white folks had dey big kerridge full ob visiters an dey had big goins on dat dey come for miles aroun' to be at. Us niggers didn't hab no money but us didn't hab no place to go to spen it neider. No'm I nebber seed no slaves in chains ner none sold on de block but I heerd of sech. Us didn't got much an us didn't heer eny news onles what de white folks want us to know. No'm Ize too buzy wurkkin an tottin water fer to set still an learn readin an writin. But one er two ob de ole wimmin could read de Bible to us. Marse mighty pertikler dat dey read it to de slaves. I like dat song 'bout "Dem Golden Slippers" an I like "Swing Low Sweet Chariot." I don't 'member no special song at de berryins, Ize don't like berryins (funerals) no how. At night, us sat 'roun de fire in de cold winter an de wimmin sewed er knitted an de men whittled out things to use er mended harness an sech. Cose us talked an tole things. No'm twan't no hant stories, Marster didn't like no sech. Cose dey's cha'ams but you wouldn't understan', Miss, so I jes don't want to talk sech like. But you gwine hab lots ob luck effen you cotch a rabbit in de grave yard on de dark ob de moon, an cut off he lef hine leg an wear it. Effen you chew a piece ob shoe-string root jes as you ask a person a favor, you sho gwine git dem to do what you ask. De day us was free, de Marster gib us a talken to an a big whoppin dinner an den tole us to go git us a job. My folks stayed on fer a year or so, den we went fus one place an tother twill now an I'ze too ole to do much but wait fer Mistis to call ole Yach. I did fa'am work an fust one thing an den de odder.