*Aunt Eda Rains, 94, was born a slave in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1853.
In 1860 Eda, her brothers and mother, were bought by a Mr. Carter and
brought to Texas. She now lives in Douglasville, Texas.*
"I don't 'member my first marster, 'cause my mammy and Jim and John who
was my brothers, and me was sold when I was seven and brought to
Douglass, in Texas, to hire out. Befo' we lef' Little Rock, whar I was
born, we was vaccinated for smallpox. We came through in a wagon to
Texas and camped out at night and we slep' on the groun'.
"When I's hired out to the Tomlins at Douglass I sho' got lonesome for
I's jus' a little girl, you know, and wanted to see my mother. They put
me to work parchin' coffee and my arm was still sore, and I'd pa'ch and
cry, and pa'ch and cry. Finally Missus Tomlin say, 'You can quit now.'
She looked at my arm and then put me to tendin' chillen. I was fannin'
the baby with a turkey wing fan and I fell to sleep and when the missus
saw me she snatched the fan and struck me in the face with it. This scar
on my forehead is from that quill stuck in my head.
"I slep' on a pallet in the missus' room and she bought me some clothes.
She had nine chillen, two boys and seven girls. But after awhile she
sol' me to Marster Roack, and he bought my mother and my brothers, so we
was togedder again. We had our own cabin and two beds. Every day at four
they called us to the big house and give us milk and mush. The white
chillen had to eat it, too. It was one of marster's ideas and he said
he's raised that-away.
"Now, I mus' tell you all 'bout Christmas. Our bigges' time was at
Christmas. Marster'd give us maybe fo'-bits to spend as we wanted and
maybe we'd buy a string of beads or some sech notion. On Christmas Eve
we played games, 'Young Gal Loves Candy,' or 'Hide and Whoop.' Didn'
know nothin' 'bout Santa Claus, never was larned that. But we allus
knowed what we'd git on Christmas mornin'. Old Marster allus call us
togedder and give us new clothes, shoes too. He allus wen' to town on
the Eve and brung back our things in a cotton sack. That ole sack'd be
crammed full of things and we knewed it was clothes and shoes, 'cause
Marster didn' 'lieve in no foolishness. We got one pair shoes a year, at
Christmas. Most times they was red and I'd allus paint mine black. I's
one nigger didn' like red. I'd skim grease off dishwater, mix it with
soot from the chimney and paint my shoes. In winter we wore woolen
clothes and got 'em at Christmas, too.
"We was woke up in the mornin' by blowing of the conk. It was a big
shell. It called us to dinner and if anything happened 'special, the
conk allus blew.
[Illustration: _Eda Rains_]
"I seed run-away slaves and marster kep' any he caught in a room, and he
chained 'em till he coul' reach their marsters.
"We didn' get larned to read and write but they took care of us iffen we
was sick, and we made medicine outta black willow and outta black snake
root and boneset. It broke fevers on us, but, Lawsy, it was a dose.
"After freedom they tol' us we could go or stay. I stayed a while but I
married Claiborne Rains and lived at Jacksonville. We had ten chillen.
The Lawd's been right good to me, even if I'm blind. Nearly all my ole
white folks and my chillen has gone to Judgment, but I know the Lawd
won't leave me here too long 'fore I 'jines em."