They wasn't many slaves on her place
and they was good to them. That whooping was right smart a curiosity to
mama the way papa told us about it.
"When mama and papa married, Johnny Williams had a white preacher to
read out of a book to them. They didn't jump over no broom he said.
"They was the biggest kind of Methodist folks and when mama was five
years old Johnny Williams had all his slaves baptized into that church
by his own white preacher. Papa said some of them didn't believe niggers
had no soul but Johnny Williams said they did. (The Negroes must have
been christened--ed.)
"Papa said folks coming through the country would tell them about
freedom. Mama was working for Miss Sallie Ann and done something wrong.
Miss Sallie Ann says, 'I'm a good mind to whoop you. You ain't paying
'tention to a thing you is doing the last week.' Mama says, 'Miss Sallie
Ann, we is free; you ain't never got no right to whoop me no more care
what I do.' When Bill come home he say, 'How come you to sass my wife?
She so good to you.' Mama say, 'Master Bill, them soldiers say I'm
free.' He slapped her. That the first time he laid hands on her in his
life. In a few days he said, 'We going to town and see is you free.
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