Mary Wright
From:
Kentucky
Mary Wright:
Mary Wright, 204 W. Fourth St., Born August 1, 1865.
"I was born at Gracey, Kentucky on Mr. James Colemans far, in a log
cabin wid a dirt floor en a stick chimney.
"Folks uster weat wat dey calls a "Polanaise". Hid wat kinder like a
wrapper made of calico made wid tight in de waist en wide in de bottom.
Den I've remembers de basque waist on de over skirts dese war made real
tight waists wid a point in de back en ober de stomach. De skirt wer
real full dem a skirt ober dis ter de knees wid a big pucker on de
hips."
"My Mammy bound me out to Miss Puss Graham ter learn ter work, foh my
vittals en cloes. Miss Puss gave me a pair of red morocco shoes en I was
made so happy, I'se neber fohgot dese shoes.
"I heard my Mammy talk of "De Nigger Risin". De Klu Klux uster stick de
niggers head on er stake alongside de Cadiz road en dar de buzzards
would eat them till nuthin' was left but de bones. Dar war a sign on dis
stake dat said "Look out Nigger You are next". Us chilluns would not go
far way from dat cabin. I'se tells you dat is so. I jes knowed dat dis
Ku Klux would do dat to us sho if weuns had been catched.
"I remember wen Hopkinsville had jest a few stores en ole jew by name of
Shyer bought bones an iron en rags. Once us chilluns found some bones on
de creek bank en took dem things and wanted ter sell dem to Mr. Shyer en
he said 'take dem things way dey stink, dey aint cured up yet. Bury dem
things den bring dem back to me. Us Chilluns bed a hard time gittin home
cause we stunk so bad.'
"I remember wen we uster hev big time quilting on dem days we sho had a
big time fore we start in de morning wid a water melon feast, den weuns
quilt erwhile den a big dinner war spread out den after dinner we'd
quilt in the evening den supper and a big dance dat night, wid de banjo
a humming en us niggers a dancing, "Oh, Lawdy wat good days dem war."
"Wen we were young we uster hev parties called "Dideoos", de banjo
would play en den de girls would line up on one side of de cabin en de
boys on de tother side while the folks war a clappin en er playing why
de boys en girls wuld choose dar parrners den weuns sing:
"Ole Brer Rabbit,
Shake it, shake it,
How I love you,
Shake it, shake it.
I'd ruther play dat game dan to eat."
"We uster tap maple trees en hev big gathering foh ter make maple sugar
dat war while I lived at Gracey.
"De stage coach day war big days, wen de stage coach war a comin thru
why us little niggers would try ter keep up wid de horses en run erlong
side de coach en sometimes a man or woman would drop us a penny den dar
was sho a scramble."
"I remember wen we uster wash cloes wid a paddle. You wet dese cloes en
put soft soap in dem, the soap war made outer ash lye en grease den dese
cloes war spread on a smooth stump an beat wid paddles till dey war
clean. Den come de wooden wash board, hit war jes a piece of wood wid
rough places or ridges chiseled in hit. Wen we uster wash quilts we
uster cyt a nikasses varrek ubter eb dat made de tub deb my Mammy would
put water in dese tubs den soft soap de quilts den us chilluns would git
in de tubs in our Bare foots en tromp de dirt out."
"We uster use grease lamps, dese war made outer iron, wid a piece of
cotton rope down in de grease on dis jes send out a puny smelly light.
Dem de brass lamp came erlong hit war a little lamp wid a wich wid a
handle in er stem, no burner or nuthin hit burned coaloil but had no
chimney."
"Hee, Hee, Hee, I remember arbout a story Mary Beard told ter me erbout
a slave woman dat war foolish. Her Massa couldn't git no body ter buy
her, hee, hee, hee, so he dresses her up nice en buys her a thimble en
gives her a piece of cloth ter sew on. It war right here in Hopkinsville
in front of de court house dat de block war en he sold dis woman as a
"sewing slave", en her war foolish en couldn't take er right stitch en
she sho brought a good price en wen her new Massa found out she war
foolish he sho war mad. He tried ter sell her but pshaw he bought
something he couldn't git rid of, Hee, Hee."
"Dese ole nigger slave traders uster so my Mammy said, steal de niggers
from one Massa and dey would leave at night en stay in "Campbells Cave"
den dey would take dese niggers wid a promise of freedom to Clarksville,
Tenn., sell dem again on "Mr. Dunk Morr's" slave market. Sometimes dese
niggers if dey got a new Massa dat war mean would run erway en come back
tar dar ole Massas."
"Yes I believe you can be hauted, I aint neber seed one tho but I'se
heard dem en I jest git creepy en I no's dey is around."
"Cos dreams come tru, I dont remember one now but if I'se had one ergin
I will try ter remember en tells you."
"No I aint neber seed a ghost. I feels dem sometimes en I jis shot my
eyes en pray de "Good Lawd" ter send dat ghost away."
"If youse find a horse shoe er put eber de door you will sho has good
luck."
"Thirteen has always been my lucky number. Dats follish ter thing
'Thirteen is unlucky'. Seben is lucky ter me ter. I always win when I
think of a seben."
"Of cos now if youse breakes a mirror you cant keep from having bad
luck. Nuthin you do will keep you from hit."
"Sho is bad luck ter meet a cross-eyed pusson er blue gummed niggers is
pizen cause if one bites you youse will sho ter die."
"My Mammy sho did hev a big wedding my Pappys Massa ask my Mammy Massa
foh her en den my Mammy Massa give her a big infair dat cost him $200.00
wid de bridal supper en all."
"Dey uster do niggers pretty bad erbout dat funerals. Wen a nigger did
die why de rest of de niggers hed ter work en one nigger made de box
whiler ernother nigger dug de grave en the nigger war jes civered up en
den on de Fourth Sunday in August ebery year all de colored folks would
take a basket dinner ter de church en each family dat had buried a
nigger would pay de preacher ter preach the sermon foh dat darkie dat
died. We ate dinner en supper at de church en sometimes the funeral foh
some fo de darkies wouldn't git preached till next August. We went to
dis funeral why we had big time talking wid our neighbors en of de
dead."
"Dogs howling meand bad luck if he howls under de house why someone is
goin ter die."
"If er owl come around de house on holler a death will happen in de
family fore de next day."
"I remembers I wat a sitting in de house en er peckerwood war a pecking
on de house 'Pure bad luck.'"
"I was working once foh Mrs. Shelton wen a little wren kept trying ter
git in de house an I kep a shosin hit arway wen he got in somehow jes as
soon as hit did Mrs. Shelton called me en I had a telegram from Chicago
my neice war dead. She by dat I nos dat am bad luck. I dont like wrens
any how."
"Wenn a cow loses hits cud, jes giv hit an old dirty dish rag en den de
cow will ding her cud again."
"Sometimes a cow gits sich en lay down en if you will fell her tail on
de end it is all soft, 'Dat cow hot holler tail, en less you split dat
tail en fill de holler wid salt den bind hit up dat cow will sholy
die.'"
"I asked Mary if she was superstitious and she said 'no, cos niggers are
edicatted dese days en dey don believe in all dat tom-foolery. Dey neber
would benn so foolish if de white folks did not tell us all dat rot.'"
Mary neither reads or writes and is not superstitious according to her
admission. What do you think of it. I am afraid that I do not agree
with. M.D.H.)
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Nannie Eaves
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