*Harre Quarls, 96, was born in Flardice, Missouri, a slave of John W.
Quarls, who sold him to Charley Guniot. The latter owner moved to Texas,
where Harre lived at the time of emancipation. Harre now lives in
Madisonville, Texas. His memory is very poor, but he managed to recall a
few incidents of early days.*
"Massa Quarls he live in Missouri. Place call Flardice. He done give me
to he son, Ben, and he sold me to Massa Charley Guniot. Massa Charley
come to Texas but I don't know when. It's befo' de freedom war, dat all
I knows.
"My daddy name Dan and mammy Hannah. She was blind. I 'member us have
small room in back of dere house, with de bed make from poles and
cowhide or deerhide. Our massa good to us.
"I must be purty big when us come to Texas, 'cause I plows and is
stockman back in Missouri. I don't know 'xactly how old I is, but it am
prob'bly 'bout 96. I think dat 'bout right.
"Sir, us got one day a week and Christmas Day, was all de holiday us
ever heered of, and us couldn't go anywhere 'cept us have pass from our
massa to 'nother. If us slips off dem patterrollers gits us.
Patterroller hits 39 licks with de rawhide with de nine tails.
Patterroller gits 50 cents for hittin' us 39 licks. Captain, here am de
words to de patterroller song:
"'Run, nigger, run, patterroller cotch you,
How kin I run, he got me in de woods
And all through de pasture?
White man run, but nigger run faster.'
"Sir, us have everything to eat what's good, but here in Texas everybody
eat beef and bread and it am cooked in oven in de fireplace and in
washpot out in de open. Sir, de great day am when massa brung in de
great, fat coon and possum.
"Captain, us has no weddin' dem days 'mong de slaves. I'd ask massa
could I have a gal, if she 'long to 'nother massa, and she ask her massa
could I come see her. If dey says yes, I goes see her once de week with
pass. Boss, say, I had three wives. When I's sot free dey wouldn't let
me live with but one. Captain, that ain't right, 'cause I wants all
three.
"My missus larned me readin' and writin'. After freedom I taught de
first nigger school. Dat in Madison and Leon Counties. I's de only
nigger what can read and write in two settlements. They was thousands
couldn't read and write.
"I 'lieve it's 1861 when us come to Texas. Us camps at Neasho in
Arkansas and then come through the Indian Nation. Massa was purty good.
He treated us jus' 'bout like you would a good mule.
"Us wore horseshoes and rabbit feet for good luck. Then us have de
hoodoism to keep massa from bein' mean. Us git de stick and notch so
many notches on it and slip up to massa's front steps, without him
seein' us, and put this stick under his doorsteps. Every night us go
back to de stick and drive it down one notch. By time de last notch down
in de ground, it make massa good to us. Dat called hoodoism.
"Massa tells us we's free on June 'teenth. I leaves. I made a fiddle out
of a gourd 'fore freedom and larns to play it. I played for dances after
I's free.
"I marries Emily Unions and us have de home weddin' but not any
preacher. Us jus' 'greed live together as man and wife and that all they
was to it. Us have one gal and one boy.
"Emily leaves and I marries Lucindy Williams. Preacher marries us. Us
have three boys and two gals. Dey all farms' now. I has some sixty odd
grand and great grandchillen.
"Say, boss, I wants to sing you 'nother song 'fore you goes:
"Walkin' in de parlor,
Lightnin' is a yaller gal.
She live up in de clouds.
"Thunder he is black man,
He can holler loud,
When he kisses lightnin'.
"She dart up in wonder,
He jump up and grate de clouds;
That what make it thunder."