*Lucy Lewis, wife of Cinto Lewis, does not know her age, but is very
aged in appearance, about four feet tall and weighs around 65 or 70
pounds. She was born on the McNeel plantation at Pleasant Grove, land
now occupied by No. 2 Camp of the Clemens Prison Farm. Her master was
Johnny McNeel, brother of J. Greenville McNeel. His sister married Dave
Randon, Cinto's master. Cinto and Lucy's cabin is furnished with an
enormous four-poster bed and some chairs. Pots, pans, kettles and jugs
hang on the walls. The fireplace has a skillet and beanpot in the ashes.
The old people are almost blind.*
"You all white folks jus' set a bit while I eats me a little breakfast.
I got me a little flap jack and some clabber here. Dem old flies gobble
it up for me, don't I git to it fust. Me and Cinto 'bout starve, old
hard time 'bout git us. I sure wishes I could find some of Marse John
Dickinson's folks, I sho' go to them.
"Me and Cinto got nine head grandchillen down in Galveston, but dey
don't write or nothin'. All our own children are dead. Dey was Lottie
and Louisa and Alice. Dey was John, too, but he was so little and
scrawny he die when he a month old. We call him after Marse John, which
we all love so much.
"My mama's name was Lottie Hamilton and she was born at de Cranby Camp
for Johnny McNeel. My papa was a Mexican and went by name of Juan.
"I don't hardly recollec' when we git married. I hardly turn fifteen and
dey was fat on dese here old bones den, and I had me a purty white
calico dress to git married in. It was low in de neck with ruffles and
de sleeves come to my elbow purty like. We sho' had de finest kind of a
time when Cinto and me gits married, we-all fishes down on de bayou all
day long. Marse John marry us right out of de Bible.
"I were bred and born in No. 2 Camp over thar, but it called McNeel
Plantation at Pleasant Grove in them days. It was Greenville McNeel's
brother and his sister, Nancy, marry Dave Randon. When my marster and
wife separate, de wife took part de slaves and de marster took some
others and us and we come down here.
"I had five brothers and one sister and I jus' 'member, Cinto' s
step-pappy try cross de ribber on a log in high water and a old
alligator swaller him right up.
"My marster and his missy were mighty good to us, mighty good. We used
to wear good clothes--real purty clothes--most as good as dat Houston
cloth you-all wearin'. And, sho' 'nough, I had some purty red russet
shoes. When we-all real good, Marse John used to give us small money to
buy with. I spent mos' of mine to buy clothes. We used to go barefoot
and only when I go to church and dances I wore my shoes.
"We sho' had some good dances in my young days, when I was spry. We used
to cut all kind of steps, de cotillion and de waltz and de shotty
(schottische) and all de rest de dances of dat time. My preacher used to
whup me did he hear I go to dances, but I was a right smart dancin' gal.
I was little and sprite and all dem young bucks want to dance with me.
"Cinto didn't know how to do no step, but he could fiddle. Dere was a
old song which come back to me, 'High heels and Calico Stockin's.'
"'Fare you well, Miss Nancy Hawkins,
High heel shoes and calico stockin's.'
"I can't sing now from de time I lost my teeth with de Black John fever.
When I git dat fever, my missy told me not to drink a mite of water
'cepting she told me to. I git so hot I jus' can't stand it and done
drink a two-pint bucket of water, and my teeth drop right out.
"Missy sho' good to me. Dey 'bout 20 slaves but I stay in de house all
de time. Our house have two big rooms and a kitchen and de boys and men
have rooms apart like little bitty houses on de outside. When we don't
have to green up, I gits up 'bout sun-up to make coffee, but when we has
to green up de house for company I gits up earlier.
"Missy Nancy used to whup me if I done told a lie, but I didn't git
whupped often. She used to whup me with a cattle whup made out of
cowhide.
"Some of de slaves wore charms round dey necks, little bags of
asfeddity. Me, I got me three vaccinations--dat all I need.
"We used to git lots to eat, greens and suet, fish from de ribber,
cornmeal and plenty of sugar, even in de war time. Soldiers was around
here as thick as weeds. We had to give 'em a tithe of corn and we makes
clothes for 'em, and bandages and light jackets. We made de heavy leaded
jackets, with lead in de skirts of de coat to hold it down. De lead
looked like a marble and we cut it in long strips and hammer it down.
"One of dem Yank gunboats come up de river and shell around here. Right
here. Dem shells come whistlin' through de trees and lop de limbs right
off. Dem were sho' scare times.
"I didn't want to be free, I was too happy with missy. But I had to be
free, jus' like de others."