*Leithean Spinks, 82, was born a slave to Fay Thompson, in Rankin
County, Mississippi. Soon after Leithean's birth, Mr. Thompson moved to
E. Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. Leithean was happy in slave days, and
stayed with her master two years after she was freed. She lives at 2600
Merrick St., Fort Worth, Texas.*
"Does I look old 'nough to be birthed in slavery? I's eighty-two years
old and mammy had it right there in de Bible, marked when I's birthed,
in 1855. I's birthed in Mississippi but a little while after, massa goes
to Louisiana, over in East Feliciana Parish, and when I's old 'nough to
'member, we'uns am there, 'twixt New Roads and Jackson, right near the
Mississippi River.
"Massa Thompson had a awful big plantation and more'n 300 cullud folks,
and three rows of cabins 'bout two blocks long, and 'bout one family to
a cabin. No floors in dem cabins, you stands on dirt, and de furniture
am something you knows ain't there. Why, man, there am jus' benches to
sit on and a homemake table and bunks. Dere am de fireplace but all de
main cookin' am done in de big cookin' shed, and old Mammy Dice done it,
with four to holp her.
"De bell am rung when meal time comes and all de slaves lines up, with
their pans and cups and passes de service table, and de food am put on
dere pans and milk in de cup. Dat de one time massa could allus 'pend on
de niggers. When de bell say, 'Come and git it,' all us am there. Us
takes de food to de cabins and eats it.
"Dis old nigger come near gwine to Glory once when mammy am gone to de
cook shed. How 'twas am dis-a-way. She latches de door on de outside to
keep us three chillen in de cabin, my sis and brudder and me. Well, in
dem days, us uses tallow candles for light and pine knots when candles
am short. Mammy lights de pine knot befo' she leaves and after she am
gone, it falls off de hook and hits de ground and rolls a couple feet
under de bunk. There am straw in de tick and right off de whole shebang
am on fire. There am three of us with de door latch and all de grown-ups
in de cook shed. Us hollers and yells but it am no use, and de hollerin'
don't last long, 'cause de smoke gittin' thick. De fire am spreadin'
fast and de bunks starts burnin'. Us am huddle togedder, skeert plumb
out our wits and chokin' and coughin'.
"Den my brudder gits de idea and he grabs de big spoon and de iron poker
and starts diggin' de dirt from under de log next de door. De smoke
ain't so bad next de ground, and did yous ever see de dog diggin' in de
rabbit hole? Dat how us digs, and seems it never gwine come a hole.
Finally, a hole busted through and lets in fresh air, and den us dig
some more, and it am big 'nough for my little sis to crawl through. Den
us dig some more and I crawls out and my brudder starts but he gits he
head outside and his shoulders wedges and there he am, stucked. Us pull
and pull, but nary a inch could us budge him. He try to back up but he
shirt caught on a knot and he can't do dat. So us runs for de cook shed
and yells, 'Mammy, de cabin on fire.' Everybody starts to holler,
'Fire,' and mammy busts in de door and yanks brudder out dat hole, and
he am sweatin' like a latherin' mare. After dey puts de fire out with de
water buckets, mammy say, 'When sis gits out, why didn't she unlatch de
door?' 'Cause de 'citement, us never think of dat!
"Us have plenty hawg meat and veg'tables and butter and 'lasses and
honey. De food ain't short no time 'round massa, 'cause he say niggers
works better when dey feeds good. De mammies leaves de babies in de
nursery durin' de day and dem chillen am take good care of and has lots
of milk and am all fat like hawgs.
"In de mornin' when de bell ring, everybody goes to work, but I is
little and does de chores and am gap tender. De cattle am 'lowed to run
where dey wants, here, there and all over. Fences am 'round de fields
and yards and there am gates to go through, but us calls dem gaps. It am
my job to open and close dem, 'cause somebody allus wantin' to drive or
walk through dem gaps.
"MY sis am de fly chaser. She has de big fan make from de tail feathers
of de peacock. 'Twas awful purty thing. She stands 'round de white folks
and shoo off de flies.
"Massa Fay ain't hard on he cullud folks. He works dem steady but don't
drive dem. Lots de slaves goes fishin' in de river on Saturday afternoon
and Sunday, and dey cotches plenty fish.
"Us has parties and singin' and dancin' and fiddle music. Oh, Lawdy! How
lonesome I gits when I thinks 'bout dem days, and de music and singin'.
Sometimes 'bout a hunerd sings to once and dat sound purty and jus' go
all through me.
[Illustration: _Leithean Spinks_]
"For runnin' off am de only hard whuppin's massa give. De run-off am tie
to de log and massa lay de whuppin' on he back. De plantation am near de
river and dere am lots of caves and cliffs to hide in. Massa cotch de
run-offs with de nigger hounds and if he don't, dey git hongry and
sneaks back. Only one gits clear away.
"One Sunday mornin' 'bout ten o'clock, massa have de bell ring and calls
all us to de front gallery and makes de talk. He say, 'I's happy to tell
yous is free and, 'cording to de law, yous am all citizens. Dem what
wants to stay with me I'll pay de wages or dey can work on shares.' He
gives us all de paper, with de name and age and where us am birthed. Me
and mammy stays two years after freedom. I marries Sol Pleasant in 1872
and us has two chillen. Us sep'rate in 1876. De trouble am, he wants to
be de boss of de job and let me do de work. I 'cides I don't need no
boss, so I transports him, and says, 'Nigger, git out of here and don't
never come back. If you comes back, I'll smack you down.'
"In 1876 I marries Frank Spinks and us has eight chlllen and he dies in
1930. All dem eight chillen lives here and I's livin' with one of dem,
Mrs. Covy Kelly. 'Tain't many years befo' old Gabriel blow he horn, and
I's waitin' for him."