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Lampton said I was de bes' driver of his team he ever had caze I kep' his team fat. "Afte I come back to Miss'ssippi I mar'ied a woman named Maggie Ransom. We stayed together 51 years. I niver hit her but one time. No ma'm, dat is somethin' I won't stand fer. "My old lady had seven chulluns dat lived to git grown. Two of 'em lived here in Magnolia an' de others gone North.
Place of walkin' off, she jes stumbled an' got wo'ser an' wo'ser till she plum los' her min'. Fer a long time, dey had to tie her to a tree. Den afte' de War, she lef Mr. Davenpo't's an' jes traveled 'bout over de country.
Well, afte' de War, Marse Elbert tol' us dat we was free now, an' pappy come an' got us an' taken us to live wid de cook on Mr. Elisha Bishop's place, an' he paid Mr. Barren Bishop to teach us. "My pappy, he had a stolen ejucation 'at was cause his mistress back in South Ca'Line hoped him to learn to read an' write 'fo he lef' there. You see, in dem days, it was ag'inst de law fer slaves to read.
Den it was washed off wid salt, an' de nigger was put right back in de fiel'. Dey was whupped fer runnin' away. Sometimes dey run afte' 'em fer days an nights with dem big old blood houn's. Heap o' people doan b'lieve dis. But I does, 'cause I seed it myse'f. "I'se lived here forty-five years, an' chipped turpentine mos' all my life since I was free. "I'se had three wives.
Me an' brudder Hamp b'longed to Marse George Newsome. Marse George was named afte' George Washington up in Virginny whar he come frum. Miss Margurite was our mistiss. My mammy? Well, I'll have to tell you now 'bout her.
Dey brung his body all de way from Richmond, or Virginny, I fergit which, and lawzy, if de Cunel an' de Miss didn' take on somethin' awful. Dey sho' loved dat boy an' so did all of de niggers. Afte' dey buried him dey took his sword an' hung it on de wall of de parlor. I reckin it still dar. "Marse Ben went afte' dat. He was jes old 'nough to go but he went an' fought jes de same.
De Yankees tried to git some of de men to vote, too, but not many did 'cause dey was scared of de Ku Kluxers. Dey would come at night all dressed up lak ghosts an' scare us all. We didn' lak de Yankees anyway. 'Old Mister Yankee, think he is so grand, Wid his blue coat tail a draggin' on de ground! "I stayed on wid Old Marster afte' de surrender, wid de res', 'til I met Joshua.
I was layin' down by a white oak tree 'sleep, an' when I woke up an' looked up an' saw nothin' but blue, blue, I said, 'Yonder is my Boss's fine male hoss, Alfred. He 'tended dat horse hisself. He took it to heart, an' he didn' live long afte' de Blue Coats took Alfred. "Peace was declared to us fust in January in Alabamy, but not in Miss'sippi 'til Grant come back, May 8th.
I tuk my ax an' dog 'long wid me an' de dog, he treed a possum right in de graveyard. I cut down dat tree an' started home, when all to once somethin' run by me an' went down dat big road lak light'ning an' my dog was afte' it.
I was born at Richmond, Virginny, but lef' dare right afte' de War. Dey had done surrendered den, an' my old marster doan have no mo' power over us. We was all free an' Boss turned us loose. "My mammy's name was Judy, an' my pappy was Bob. Clark was de Boss's name. I doan 'member my mammy, but pappy was workin' on de railroad afte' freedom an' got killed.
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