| Summary: | Folder contains 8 pages of former slave narratives compiled for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the late 1930s.7
WPA Alabama Writers Project
- EX Su\VES TALES Marengo
COunty, #4
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IIi THE ltITCHEN.
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Sissy thought the kitchen a very attractive place with the big W1&e
fireplace, one eide of its hearth continuing across the end of the
house. The pots, skillets, ovens and trivets were set there when no~
in use. There was usually something good cooking in the big pot that
hung on pothooks from the long crane in the chimney; sometimss a ham,
somstimes ly~ominy or, maybe, hogehead to make souse. On special oc- -.
.oasions, like a birthday and Christmas, there was a turkey. When
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Hannah lifted the lid from the oven to see if the biscuits were done,
the crisp brown crusts looked tempting. The smell of frying ham mingled
with the aroma of b~iling coffee made one really hungry. Best of
all there were Hannan and aunt Luoy to entertain her.
W4J J=,/.i • .,ll.,ul
Today it was preaching time.~d Sissy ran into the kitchen to enjol
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the preparations that were being made for the preacher. He came once
a month to hold services at the neighborhood church- came Friday evening
and had services Saturday and Sunday. This was the Saturday hs
would come here. Hannah must have the cakes and pies all ready so
that she could give hsr undividsd attention to beating ths biscuits
~ and frying ths chicken.
Sissy leaned against the big kitchen table watching Hannah as she
took a fork and flutsd the dough into beautiful frills around the
edges of the pie pan. Balancing a pan on the palm of each hand she
went with a gliding motion toward the fireplace waving the pans zJiix
rhythmically as she sang:
•Shout , oh, my Jesus come a- ".JX dis a-way
Don' let-a your chariot wheels delay.
Don't let-a your chariot wheels delay.-
Sissy was afraid she would let the pans slip from her hands and
spoil the nice pies; but Hannah skillfully slipped them into the o~
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pen ovens that had been heating ovsr glowing coals, took the lids thaf
were lsaning against the burning logs to heat, put thsm on the oven
and put red hot coals on top of them. Placing the tongs against the
sids of the fireplace, she turned to other tasks with ths same swaying
gliding movement as she continued her song:
·Dat long white robe, come down to my feet,
Dem silver slippers dat fit so neat,
I'm gwine a-slip and slide down dem-a-golden streets,
I'm gwine-a-slip and slide down dem-a-golden streets.·
When she had stopped singing Bissy asked her to moan some. - Whau
the negroes called ·moaning· was a prolonged musical groan, impossibl~
to be preserved in writing. -
·Oh, go on, I ain' in de sperit for moanin' today.· Hannah said.
·What kind of spirit do you have to be in when you moan?·
·You has to be vis10nin' all ~~e wickedness of all dem sinners what~
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blockin' de way of us what's been redeemed, and puttin' temptations
afore us for us to struggle 'gainst."
·What were you visioning yesterday when you were moaning?·
·You know 'bout dat triflin' Ike stealin' one 0' Old Mis's nice
fryin' size chickens what roosts out on de lim' 0' de mulberry tree. __
Ole marster give 'im a good beat in , for it too, but he didn' hit 'im
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a lick amiss.- Dat nigger done had dat chicken fried sorgood an~
brown, den he slipped ODeO' Ole Mis's salt-risin' pones 0' bread to
take to dat party us wus gwine to. I knowed dat I wus gwine to want
some 0' dat chicken an' bread, an' I wus str~lin' so hard wid my
conscience dat I jes natually moaned.·
·Did you eat any of the chicken and bread?·
·Go way from here, chile. When dat chicken wus all mixed up wid
de udder victUals how could I tell which wus dat Ike stole? I sho
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et some mighty good fried chicken doh."
" What did you do at the party besides eat?"
" De young folks danced reels and jigs and played kissin' games, an'
de rest ov us jes stood 'roun an' looked on."
"What are kissing games?"
" Games lak - Ring'roun de Rosy, Rabbit in de bean Patch, an' Ols Sister
Phoebe."
" Why do you call them kissing games?"
" 'Case when de one what's in de ring chooees a pardner from dem What's
gwine roun' him, he has de right to kiss her."
" Did any of them kiss you l "
" Chile, what you studdin' 'bout? you knows I's married. An 'sides
I tole you us Christians didn' play an' sing dem reel songs.--Jes look
at your face! It's smeared allover wid dat cake batter what you've been
lickin' of'n de spoon an' bowl whar I made cake. Go 'long an wash it an'
get ready for dinner."
!IIn the mean time Hannah had put a small portion of the cake batter
in an egg shell and placed it in the hot embers on the oven lid to cook.
She now took it out and carefully peeled the shell away from the cake and
handed it to the little girl saying:
" Here, take yo' eggehell cake an' run 'long, see if Karthy's got de
table set. Tell her to be sho' to have dat castor in de center 0' de
table, an' put some mo' vinegar in de vinegar cruet- see dat all dem
cruets is filled - Put de goblsts for de water an' de tumblers for de
milk at every place. She know how pertickler Ole Miss is 'bout her table
being' jes so.' Tell her to come get dsse onions an' reddishes an' put
'em on de table, and go get a long peach tree switch to keep off de flies.
Let dat peafOWl bresh alone - Ole Kiss don' want dat used every day."
Sissy ran along eating hsr eggshell cake as Hannah called Arnold and
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- • • HANNAH'S WEDDING.
The little girl who lived in the Big House was called Sissy.
One of her earliest memories of the old plantation life is Hannah's
weddi • The little girl had nevsr been to a wedding; had never seen
anyone married; naturally she was very much interested in the approach-i
marriage.
When Hannah was a little girl her mother died and her mistress brought
her up in the house; taught er to make up feat er beds, eet the table,
to knit and to sew, and to keep thi s neat and orderly about the house.
How s e was an accomplished housemaid and a great favorite with the
white folks on account of her dooility and abounding good humor; and very
popular wit her colored folks because of her nice manners and good looks.
One day she came in looking rather baehful and confused, twisting a
ring on her finger and finally summed un courage to say: "Ole Miss! •
Rob ast .e to marry him."
As Hannah was something of a coquet among the colored set, her mistress
was not surprised that she had been asked to marry _ but was surprised
to hear her answer when asked:
"What did you tell him?"
"I tole him 'yes'."
"Are you sure you love him better than any othereo~,¥our beaux?'
'Yas'm, Ole llis'. He's de vsry apple of my eye."
'What kind of boy is he? I'll have to inquire about him. I don't
want you to marry anyone Who hasn't a good character." _ Rob didn't live
on the place. He had belo ed to a family in an adjacent neighborhood,-This
was a few years after the War between the States.
'Oh, he's got a good Character, he's a zorter."
"A zorter?"
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"Yas'm. He gits up in de prayer meetin's an' tells 'em how to live
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and cites 'em to de Bible."
"He must be a very good man, 1111 ask Lucy and Uilly about him."
"He's comin' Saddy to ast you for me."
"But you know you are free now. Don't you think he ought to ask
your uncle Dan and aunt Lucy?"
"»d'm, you's de one what raised me an' you'S de one.what'll bafto
give me away."
"Well, Hannah, we shall certainly miss you. You know you were
training to take Lucy's place in the kitchen, now that she is getting
old."
"Law! Ole Vis, I ain' gwine nowhere. I done tole dat man I ain'
gwine marry nobody less\n he comss here an' lives wid Ole Marster.
He's agreeable."
"What if your master has hands enough and doesn't nsed him?"
"Ole Marster got plenty of lan'. He'll fin' sumpen' fur him to II
do.
Aunt Lucy and aunt Milly indor,ed what Hannah had said about Rob's
charactsr and both favored ths match. On Saturday he came and asked
for her; "Ole Kis· gave her consent for Hannah to marry him; and "Ole
( Marster"hired him. He was ready to come as soon as he was married.
All agreed that Hannah must have a big wsdding and prsparations
were begun immediately. Everybody was interested and wanted to be
helpful. The aunts helped to make her trousseau. The wedding dress
was white poplin made in the latest style and trimm_d in passementrie.
Aunt Milly went to weaving a new coverlet, "The Rose in the Wilderness"
for a wedding gift. Most of the colored women gave pieces of table
ware. ~edstead was found in the lumber room and scrubbed and polished
till it looked almost new. Ike made her a table and "Marster"
gave her two chairs. "istis" gave ,her some linen. and she had plenty
of pretty quilts. She was set up very COZily for housekeeping.
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The day a~rived. Aunt Lucy and Emily had cooked the supper to be
served to the bridal party. That evening Aunt Lucy'e big room was
cleared and decorated with cedar and bright paper flowers. The
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kitchen table was borrowed and a smaller table placed at each end.
Theae were covered with snowy table cloths and bunches of frosted ceHe-
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dar in goblets placed on the ta.le. The chief attraction wae a big
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white cake/with pink candy hearts over it, that was in the center of
the table. There were meats and pies and tarts and cakes - a delicious
feast. All was ready and ths windowsmand doors closed until
the appointed hour.
Hannah didn't want to be married by a squire as most darkies were.
"Yistis" had to send many miles for the white folk6' preacher. He
arrived early in the afternoon.
When night came, Sissy was so excited that she kept running out
on the Pq•cg to see if they were coming. She thought the shadows over
the lawn a beautiful part of the decoration.
After awhile a murmer arose and they saw the light of the candles
as the procession moved toward the house. If one has never seen an
old fashioned negro wedding he cannot realizs how picturesque it is.
First came the candle holders, two couples, holding lighted candles
in their hands, and took thetx places in front of the porch, a
couple on each side of the steps. After these, came the other guests
and arranged themselves behind the candle holders, leaving an open
space through which came the ~x1ja~ bride and groom. Sissy thought
Hannah looked elegant in her pretty dress and bridal veil fastened
on with a wreath of artificial flowers.
After the ceremony the preacher congratulated them, then the candle
holders and the others. Some one cried out: "Kiss de bride.~
De ceremony ain' meXExrlkkxX&K done till you kisses 1at1l her," and
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the orowd became noisy but not boisterous. Bissy oouldA't see whether
he kissed the bride as the oouple beoame surroundsd by ths visitors.
It was not long till uncle Dan invited them ovsr to partake of the
supper. Bissy wanted to see them at the table so her mother went with
her to the door after they had gone in. It was a picturable scene. All
ws~beaming with admiration and uttering exclamations of delight and
trying to act sophisticated. Eaoh candle holder must take one of the
candy hearts from the big cake to dream over and learn what his or her
"fortune" would be .
After they had eaten, they went to a clean lsvel plot in front of
uncle Ned's house and played games and danced. Bissy and Buddy stood
on the railings o~ the back yard fenoe and looked over the palings to
watch them. The banjo picker sat on a chair by the door, a man stood
by him to call the figures, and the young men and women whirled about
to the music as the caller shouted: " Balance all"- "Swing corners""
First couple to the right - right across and left back" - " Chase the
squirrel "- I First lad; to the right and coquet "_- &c - When they
had ohassed and promenaded and seated their partners, two men got up
and danced a jig as the man with the banjo picked; I Chioken in the
bread tray " and
That was the
another stood by
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last ~ saw of
him half bent, patting time.
the wedding party. for their mother
callsd that it was time for little boys and girls to be in doors. They
went reluctantly for they were enjoying themselves almost as much as the
darkies were.
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