But us Vanhook chilluns et wid Mammy in de big kitchen an us shore was taught manners. Us had to turn thanks an us shore didn't drink our coffee outen no sasser. Mammy was raised in de big house an she was mos white an she could read an rite an sech. Yessum she an ole Mistis taught us Vanhook chillun to read an rite an figger. But de odder sarvants didn't care so much 'bout it an dere mammies didn't care neidder. My Mammy got a switch atter us an made us larn. Oh, yassum us played lots. Us'd go fishin. Ud git a bent pin an put it on a string an fassen a piece ob bacon on it an fish. No, didn't nebber catch much, but it was fun. Den when us got bigger, us'd fish in a big tank. When us catched a perch er a cat dat weighed one or two pounds, did us holler! De sarvants had lots ob picnics an ole Marse ud gibe us meat fer barbecue. Dere was lots ob water melons in de field an us got one when ever us wanted one. Dere was lots ob apples in de orchard, an' peaches an' plums, jes all you wanted. Mammy allus put up all dey could eat ob p'sarves an jelly an' sech. After de War, she did jes de same fer de Vivrettes an dey gibed her lots fer her chillun to eat. De bes fruit ob all kinds grows back in Tennessee, I shore wish I could go dere before I dies. For de War an atter, us'd haul cords ob wood an put it on de north side ob de orchards. Den in real cold weather, us'd build big fires to save de fruit. De smoke ud keep de fruit from freezin. Black berries, dew berries an raspberries all grow wild on wore out hill sides. Dere ud be eight an ten acres patches ob wild black berries an wild strawberries. Dey didn't plant dem dey jes growed every whar, in fence rows an ebery whar. Us'd dry fruit by de bucket fulls. Us'd build big shelves an tables in de yard to put de peaches an apples on to dry. Dere was fifteen er twenty acres ob grapes on de Vanhook place an big patches ob grapes on mos all de odder plantations. Dere was wild grapes but not no mustang grapes like in Texas. Dere was possums, coons, same as here (Texas), but no Jack rabbits nor no horned frogs an no prairie dogs, but dere was a groun hog. Dat sayin 'bout de groun hog seein he shadow, dat's whar de groun hog has he home, back in Tennessee. Dey didn't raise no cotton, but dey raised Irish potatoes, corn, wheat, red clover an hay. Hay ud last two or three years an clover ud too, before it played out. Back in Tennessee, dey had turnpikes an had to pay toll at de toll gates. Dey paid ten cents on a horse; twenty-five cents on a wagon an team; walkers (persons walking) did not pay; a double rig had to pay a quarter. Dey'd put a long pole across de road an den no one couldn't git across de bridge. Dere was a keeper at bofe ends ob de bridge. De main turnpike was made ob rock an dey allus had good bridges an was kep in good condition. De toll gates was ten or fifteen miles apart. I wukked at Pilot Knob in Tennessee jes before I come to Waco. Lots of people come to Texas from dere. Mongs dese was Marse Berry Trice , Lee Russell , John Vivrette , an Dick Vivrette . Mammy used to cook fer all dese fore dey lef back dere. I bringed Nelse Vanhook out to Texas along wid Marse John Vivrette when Nelse was jes a little boy. Den I went back an stayed till Mammy an' Marse John Vivrette come here (Texas).

I was married an had two chillun when dey come to Texas. Mammy come wid us an I kep her till she died. She said she was over a hunnerd years ole an all de white folks say she older dan dat. She died eight years ago. (1929) De Vivrettes come to Waco an us did too. By den wild turkey an' deer was scace 'bout Waco, but I went wid de white folks an killed lots ob em on de Bosque an up north ob Waco on de ribber. Dat was fifty-six years ago. Dey was raisin cotton on Columbus Street as fer down town as whar Eighth Street is now. De Suspension Bridge was a toll bridge den. Fer several years I wukked fer Marse James Baker at his brick yard in East Waco an' hauled brick. Drove a span ob de meanest black mules to de brick wagon. I farmed fer fust one an den anodder; wukked fer de Rail road an' jes general work. I had been doin yard work fer de pas few years. De ole man gittin de rumatiz too bad an my jints too contrairy to do much. De white women de say dat I got "green fingers" as de gypsy folks say. Dat means dat I hab good luck in gittin flowers an' garden stuff to grow. Oh, yassum, I members when I got married. Been married three times. Oh, dat furs weddin? Well, musta had on a suit ob close. Don't member dat fur, but I allus had good close case I wukked hard an dressed an et good. Lordey, dat's a powerful long time to member a woman. But dat furst one was shore a good woman. She been dead dese twenty years now but deres none like her. I'ze tried it twice sence den an dese young wimmin don't know noddin an won't work. I'ze de fadder ob seven chillun. I belong to de African Methodist church an am a Republican. No'm no special song. Effen a song is sung good, I likes it, effen it is sung like it ought to be. I likes all de 'ligious songs.

Yassum, I members de big house on de Vanhook plantation mighty well. It was a big double house an had lean-to rooms on de back. It was two storied an' had a big porch with big pillars all across de front ob it. It was made ob weather board dat de sarvants cut an drawed outen de woods. Dere was lots ob big trees around in front ob de house to big shade an fer de chillun to play in. De Marster had him a little log house in de yard fer an office an' dere was anodder little house whar de men had dere guns an dey sit in dere by de fireplace an swop yarns. In de back was de barns an stables an my Mammy's house an fudder on was de "Quarters" whar de sarvants slep. Each fambly had 'em a little one room log house wid a split palin fence an back ob dese houses in each yard was a chicken house sometimes a hog pen an' den a few fruit trees ob various kinds. But mos ob de fruit trees was in de big orchard. Dere was a smoke house, wash house, an carpenter shop. Dere was two gardens. One wus fer flowers an one was fer vegetables. Dat was old Mistis' special property. My Mistis was de real king pin. She allus knowed whar every supply was kep an how much meat, flour, meal, sugar, coffee an sech was needed to run things. She knowed jes how much thread de spinners oughter spin in a day an how many yards ob cloth de wimmin oughter weave. Ebery mornin she us sot de tasks fer de wimmin whether it was settin eggs, er makin butter, er in de spinnin room or loom room er kitchen, she knowed jes what she wanted to hab done an when an who. She was a little bit ob frail woman but she was a power. She was de bes doctor I eber knowed. When folks got sick she'd take charge an den effen her medicine didn't do de work, den she'd call a doctor. She took keer ob de sarvants as like de fambly. She ud come down in de dead ob de night to look atter things effen she got a worry 'bout some of 'em. My Mammy she was right long side ob ole Mistis. She nussed de chillun an cooked but she had a couple of gals to hope her in de kitchen. She jes managed things. She de one dat did de whippin, en case de chillun got to rambunctious. De Vanhooks held her as a member ob de fambly an effen dey hadn't los eberything to dem Yankee soljers us'd had a piece ob land 'til now. Dere was a Butler an a Kerridge Driver an ploughers, an wood choppers an all like ob dat befo' de war. Lan sakes alive, us chillun, white an black had a good time. Us was all ober de place; robbin birds nestes in de orchard; er fishing an goin in washin in de deep holes; er riding de plough horses to an from de field effen us could wangle de ride; runnin de calves; an colts an fightin de old ganders. All de black chillun wore a long shirt, it come down to de middle ob de legs an' you couldn't tell a gal from a boy, cepn de white girls. Dey wore great big bonnets an dey was sewed to dere hair to make em keep em on to perteck dere faces from de sun. De larger sarvant gals mos' en usual wore blue dresses. Mos all de servants ud sing when dey wukked. In de summer, de white folks us go horse back ridin any hay rides in de moon light an dances an visits to dere frens. Right atter de War fer Sev'ral years, I'd go wid crowds ob white men on long huntin' an fishin' parties an' show 'em what de bes places was. Bof in Tennessee an' in Texas. I has ranged all ober de Bosque hills an known de bes fishin pools eny whar.

 Winger Vanhook and Henry Boraddus  

The first person that sleeps in the middle of a cotton field under a tree with a bird's nest in it, will never hear wedding bells. If a young man sits with his legs crossed on a bale of cotton he will be blessed with many children. Good luck comes to those who make love while picking cotton. If newly-weds sleep on a cotton mattress the first night of their married life, they will have bad luck. "If you dream of a large field of cotton and pick a boll, you will be lucky."Wherever a whirlwind drops a cotton boll which has been gathered up by the whirlwind, you will find money. "Always pick the first boll of cotton that opens in the field, carry it home, put it over the front door and pick out the seed of this boll and plant them under the back door steps. You will be sure to get good prices for your crop, but woe if you don't do this. "Dream of white clothes, and there is sure to be a death in your family real soon. "If a woman wears a white cotton dress to a wedding she will hear of the death of a relative soon. "Put cotton in your ear is mighty bad luck, you will never again be happy.   If a turtle bites you, he won't turn loose until it rains again. If you kill a turtle, he won't die until the sun sets.

OLD TIME CURES : In sickness, the pioneer knew that he must depend on his own resources, as, often, the nearest doctor was fifty miles away. Doctors, at first, were distrusted and many deaths were attributed to misplaced confidence in doctors. Many remedies were believed in by white and black people alike. Some of these were: take an empty whiskey bottle, fill half-full with vinegar; put a handful of large red ants into this and shake well before applying internally and externally. Hay Fever   place coffee grounds in a pipe and smoke. Good Poultice   mash up tumble bugs and put them on the raw  (they are guaranteed to draw ole Satan out ob de groun'.) Lockjaw   give tea made out of cockroaches. Tootache   cut the outer skin off of the frog of a horse's front hoof, put this skin over the fire, and char until it crumbles, put these ashes on the tooth. Will stop the toothache every time. Warts   stick a needle through the wart, pull out the needle and stick it into a grain of corn, then burry the corn and in a day or two, the wart will drop off. Nose Bleed   tie a woolen thread around the big toe. Mash a lead bullet around a string; tie this around the neck; this will stop nose bleed every time. Sprained ankle bathe the sprain with turpentine; light with a match and let it burn two minutes, then fan out the flame with your hat. Cramps   when cramp come in legs at night, turn your shoes upside down under the bed and the cramps will leave. Colds   Who in the hell would want a better remedy for colds than whiskey