Orelia Alexie Franks
From:
Texas
ORELIA ALEXIE FRANKS was born on the plantation of Valerian Martin,
near Opelousas, Louisiana. She does not know her age, but thinks
she is near ninety. Her voice has the musical accent of the French
Negro. She has lived in Beaumont, Texas, many years.
"I's born on Mr. George Washington's birthday', the twenty-second of
February but I don't know what year. My old massa was Valerian Martin
and he come from foreign country. He come from Canada and he Canada
French. He wife name Malite Guidry. Old massa a good Catholic and he
taken all the li'l slave chillen to be christen. Oh, he's a Christian
massa and I used to be a Catholic but now I's a Apostolic, but I's
christen in St. Johns Catholic Church, what am close to Lafayette, where
I's born.
"My pa name Alexis Franks and he was American and Creole. My ma name
Fanire Martin and I's raise where everybody talk French. I talks
American but I talks French goodest.
"Old massa he big cane and cotton farmer and have big plantation and
raise everything, and us all well treat. Dey feed us right, too. Raise
big hawg in de pen and raise lots of beef. All jes' for to feed he
cullud folks.
"Us quarters out behind de big house and old massa come round through de
quarters every mornin' and see how us niggers is. If us sick he call
nuss. She old slavery woman. She come look at 'em. If dey bad sick dey
send for de doctor. Us house all log house. Dey all dab with dirt 'tween
de logs. Dey have dirt chimney make out of sticks and dab with mud. Dey
[Transcriber's note: unfinished sentence at end of page]
"Lots of time we eat coosh-coosh. Dat make out of meal and water. You
bile de water and salt it, den put in de cornmeal and stir it and bile
it. Den you puts milk or clabber or syrup on it and eat it.
"Old massa have de graveyard a purpose to bury de cullud folks in. Dey
have cullud preacher. Dey have funeral in de graveyard. Dat nigger
preacher he a Mef'dist.
"Old massa son-in-law, he overseer. He 'low nobody to beat de slaves. Us
li'l ones git spank when we bad. Dey put us 'cross de knee and spank us
where dey allus spank chillen.
"Christmas time dey give big dinner. Dey give all de old men whiskey.
Everybody have big time.
"Dey make lots of sugar. After dey finish cookin' de sugar dey draw off
what left from de pots and give it to us chillen. Us have candy pullin'.
"Dey weave dey own cloth. Us have good clothes. Dey weave de cloth for
make mattress and stuff 'em with moss. Massa sho' believe to serve he
niggers good. I see old massa when he die. Us see old folks cry and us
cry, too. Dey have de priest and burn de candles. Us sho' miss old
massa.
"I see lots of sojers. Dey so many like hair on your head. Dey Yankees.
Dey call 'em bluejackets. Dey a fight up near massa's house. Us climb in
tree for to see. Us hear bullets go 'zoom' through de air 'round dat
tree but us didn't know it was bullets. A man rid up on a hoss and tell
massa to git us pickaninnies out dat tree or dey git kilt. De Yankees
have dat battle and den sot us niggers free.
"Old massa, he de kind man what let de niggers have dey prayer-meetin'.
He give 'em a big cabin for dat. Shout? Yes, Lawd! Sing like dis:
"'Mourner, fare you well,
Gawd 'Mighty bless you,
Till we meets again.'
"Us sings 'nother song:
"'Sinner blind,
Johnnie, can't you ride no more?
Sinner blind.
Your feets may be slippin'
Your soul git lost.
Johnnie, can't you ride no more?
Yes, Lawd,
Day by day you can't see,
Johnnie, can't you ride no more?
Yes, Lawd.'"
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