Elige Davison
From:
Texas
ELIGE DAVISON was born in Richmond, Virginia, a slave of George
Davison. Elige worked in the field for some time before he was
freed, but does not know his age. He lives with one of his
grandsons, in Madisonville, Texas.
"My birth was in Richmond. That's over in old Virginny, and George
Davison owned me and my pappy and mammy. I 'member one sister, named
Felina Tucker.
"Massa and Missus were very good white folks and was good to the black
folks. They had a great big rock house with pretty trees all round it,
but the plantation was small, not more'n a hunerd acres. Massa growed
tobaccy on 'bout 30 of them acres, and he had a big bunch of hawgs. He
waked us up 'bout four in the mornin' to milk the cows and feed them
hawgs.
"Our quarters was good, builded out of pine logs with a bed in one
corner, no floors and windows. Us wore old loyal clothes and our shirt,
it open all down the front. In winter massa gave us woolen clothes to
wear. Us didn't know what shoes was, though.
"Massa, he look after us slaves when us sick, 'cause us worth too much
money to let die jus' like you do a mule. He git doctor or nigger mammy.
She make tea out of weeds, better'n quinine. She put string round our
neck for chills and fever, with camphor on it. That sho' keep off
diseases.
"Us work all day till jus' 'fore dark. Sometimes us got whippin's. We
didn't mind so much. Boss, you know how stubborn a mule am, he have to
be whipped. That the way slaves is.
"When you gather a bunch of cattle to sell they calves, how the calves
and cows will bawl, that the way the slaves was then. They didn't know
nothin' 'bout they kinfolks. Mos' chillen didn't know who they pappy was
and some they mammy 'cause they taken 'way from the mammy when she wean
them, and sell or trade the chillen to someone else, so they wouldn't
git 'tached to they mammy or pappy.
"Massa larn us to read and us read the Bible. He larn us to write, too.
They a big church on he plantation and us go to church and larn to tell
the truth.
"I seed some few run away to the north and massa sometime cotch 'em and
put 'em in jail. Us couldn't go to nowhere without a pass. The
patterrollers would git us and they do plenty for nigger slave. I's went
to my quarters and be so tired I jus' fall in the door, on the ground,
and a patterroller come by and hit me several licks with a
cat-o-nine-tails, to see if I's tired 'nough to not run 'way. Sometimes
them patterrollers hit us jus' to hear us holler.
"When a slave die, he jus' 'nother dead nigger. Massa, he builded a
wooden box and put the nigger in and carry him to the hole in the
ground. Us march round the grave three times and that all.
"I been marry once 'fore freedom, with home weddin'. Massa, he bring
some more women to see me. He wouldn't let me have jus' one woman. I
have 'bout fifteen and I don't know how many chillen. Some over a
hunerd, I's sho'.
"I 'member plenty 'bout the war, 'cause the Yankees they march on to
Richmond. They kill everything what in the way. I heared them big guns
and I's scart. Everybody scart. I didn't see no fightin', 'cause I gits
out the way and keeps out till it all over.
But when they marches right on the town I's tendin' hosses for massa. He
have two hosses kilt right under him. Then the Yankees, they capture
that town. Massa, he send me to git the buggy and hoss and carry missus
to the mountain, but them Yankees they capture me and say they gwine
hang that nigger. But, glory be, massa he saves me 'fore they hangs me.
He send he wife and my wife to 'nother place then, 'cause they burn
massa's house and tear down all he fences.
"When the war over massa call me and tells me I's free as he was, 'cause
them Yankees win the war. He give me $5.00 and say he'll give me that
much a month iffen I stays with him, but I starts to Texas. I heared I
wouldn't have to work in Texas, 'cause everything growed on trees and
the Texans wore animal hides for clothes. I didn't git no land or mule
or cow. They warn't no plantations divided what I knowed 'bout. Mos'
niggers jus' got turn loose with a cuss, and not 'nough clothes to cover
they bodies.
"It 'bout a year 'fore I gits to Texas. I walks nearly all the way.
Sometimes I git a li'l ride with farmer. Sometimes I work for folks
'long the way and git fifty cents and start 'gain.
"I got to Texas and try to work for white folks and try to farm. I
couldn't make anything at any work. I made $5.00 a month for I don't
know how many year after the war. Iffen the woods wasn't full of wild
game us niggers all starve to death them days.
"I been marry three time. First wife Eve Shelton. She run off with
'nother man. Then I marries Fay Elly. Us sep'rate in a year. Then I
marry Parlee Breyle. No, I done forgot. 'Fore that I marries Sue
Wilford, and us have seven gals and six boys. They all in New York but
one. He stays here. Then I marries Parlee and us have two gals. Parlee
die three year ago.
"The gov'ment give me a pension and I gits li'l odd jobs round, to get
by. But times been hard and I ain't had much to eat the las' few years.
Not near so good as what old massa done give me. But I gits by somehow.
"I done the bes' I could, 'sidering I's turned out with nothin' when I's
growed and didn't know much, neither. The young folks, they knows more,
'cause they got the chance for schoolin'.
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John Day
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Eli Davison
