*Interview with Dave Harper,*
*Montgomery City, Missouri.*
_Dave Is Cardinal Fan_
Dave Harper, a former slave, had just tuned in on the baseball game when
the interviewer arrived for he is an ardent Cardinal fan and, although
he was extremely courteous, he never missed a play in that game. He was
not at all reticent about telling of his life though plainly curious to
know the purpose of the interview and just a bit skeptical as to its
final use. Dave, who now lives in Montgomery City, Mo., has been a
gardener for years, always having the earliest and finest vegetables as
well as supplying others with plants for resetting.
"I'll be glad to tell you anything I remember," Dave said in reply to
the request for something of his life story. "Col. Harper was my master.
We lived northwest of town (Montgomery City). I was born in Montgomery
County and lived dere all my life. Col. Harper had 25 or 30 slaves; dere
was lots of money wrapped up in dem."
Here Dave reflected for a moment and shook his head sadly at the amount
of cash invested in humans and then continued.
"He bought me when I was six years old. I was born eighty-seven years
ago next January, down on Clear Fork, southwest of Danville, near
Mineola, 'bout half mile from Capt. Callaway's grave. No'm, it don't
seem like dey could have found enough dirt dere to cover his body. It
sure is rocky dere. Did you ever read Nat Sharp's history? It says dat
one of Capt. Callaway's men was buried down dere across de field.
"I've seen slaves go through Danville in droves like cattle. Dey was
chained together and dey walked 'em to St. Louis to de nigger yard. One
mother give out. De man in charge made her give her baby away, she
couldn't carry it no further. Someone near Danville raised de baby.
"I was sold when I was six years old to Clark Whitesides's father to
nurse Clark. My mother was sold down on de Missouri River. I'll tell you
'bout dat. De Fords moved to Danville from Virginia. Dere was several
brothers in together in de nigger business. Dey brought my mother to
wait on Mrs. Ford and carry her her coffee. She married and had three
children. De nigger traders from Virginia run an attachment to get
possession of my mother. Den on de way back he took cholera and died. De
case was in court when de war come up. Mr. Ben Sharp had de money, he
died and dat ended it. I was sold by Thos. J. Powell, de sheriff. Mother
was to be sold. Kit Talbot bid on her and de baby. She cried so hard
'cause she wanted to live with me dat Dr. Sharp paid de bid and got her.
I used to go to see her real often.
"We was fed just moderate. Dere was fifteen hands. When dey come in at
noon, dey ate from de big old kettle where de old colored woman had
cooked de food. De next morning after he bought me, de boss carried me
to de old woman and told her to take care of me. Dat morning de kettle
was full of spare ribs and de people fished dem out with sticks. I
didn't see no knives or forks. When dey asked me why I didn't get
something to eat, I asked 'bout dem and a table where I could eat. De
overseer just cried.
"De old lady took care of de children while de mothers worked. De oldest
one never went to de field. She just looked after de little ones. One
overseer was colored. He was an uncle of 'Big Nig' dat works at de
hotel. We was fanning out wheat and one of de children was raking out de
wheat. He talked back to de overseer who struck him. Dere was a
singletree under de edge of de cloth. De master picked up de singletree
but didn't strike de overseer, he backed off. Col. Harper raised oodles
of tobacco. Dere were 16 to 17 hundred pounds to de hogshead. He raised
15 to 20 hogsheads.
"My mother-in-law was from Memphis. One day dey went to church and de Ku
Klux Klan came in and beat de people over deir heads with pistols. De
people went out de doors and windows. Dey could just blow a horn and de
Ku Klux Klan would come from all directions.
"I was sold for $715. When de freedom come, I said, 'Give me $715 and
I'll go back.' Col. Harper just gave me a quarter to buy my dinner.
After de freedom, I worked in wheat harvest all season for $.75 a day. I
worked for a week and my mammy told me to bring her some bacon. When de
man paid me, I spent it all for a side of bacon. I felt mighty proud to
take dat to her. Bacon was $.50 a pound. I stayed at Dr. Sharp's where
mother worked and done chores. Later I made rails. Dey paid me $14 a
month for cutting rail timber. I was paid at de postoffice and took de
money home and gave it to mammy.
"Col. Harper's wife was Gen. Price's niece and Col. Harper was a
recruiting officer for Gen. Price. Young men came dere to join de
southern army. Dey could always get a horse. De women stayed dere all de
time to make de suits for de soldiers. De Union soldiers tried deir best
to kill Col. Harper.
"One time I saved his life. Dey was going to kill him, 'bout 75 or 100
men on horses. I warned de Colonel two hours before dey got dere. Dis is
how it happened. Col. Harper gave me de first day of Christmas to go to
see my mother. Us children went out in de woods playing and when we come
back de yard was all cut up with horses hoofs. Dr. Sharp put me on my
horse and told me to tell Col. Harper dis message, dat 'dere was so many
soldiers dat you might get hurt, you can come again some other time.' I
told Col. Harper and he left. I didn't see him again until I was cutting
wheat.
"My mistress lived dere for some time without any menfolks 'round 'cept
de slaves. Dere was a horse kept dere on purpose so I could come to town
every day for de mail. After a while, my mistress and her daughter went
to Jarod Harris's to stay. Den I went to Harris's every morning for de
mistress orders and to Montgomery each afternoon for de mail. I took de
mail to de camp at night. Dat was Bill Anderson's camp over in Callaway
County. Dey moved dat camp pretty often but I found it. One time de
bushwhackers came to burn de depot but Col. Harper had it full of
tobacco and wheat so dey didn't burn it.
"Young Billy Mathis was a lieutenant. He used to come to see mistress
almost every day and bring her messages. Once a gang of blue coats was
coming down de road. He got on one of mistress' horses and she told me
to go 'long and bring de horse back. We went down through de woods with
de bullets whistling through de air and cutting off de limbs of de
trees."
Dave had apparently studied about the voodoo doctors and their wiles for
a question as to conjure doctors brought a quick response:
"We call dem 'two headed Negroes'. You know dat if he could do any
tricks he would keep dem from whipping him or selling him and dey
couldn't do dat or dey would have done it long time ago. Tear open a
pillow and sometimes dere is a mat of feathers. Sometimes dey puts
things under de door step but I don't pay no 'tention to it. Dey is some
dat thinks dere is something to it.
"Mother used to tell a tale 'bout when she was a little girl. Her mother
went to frolics but her father went to bed, he was always tired after
his day's work. One night my mother saw a woman come to her father's bed
and rub her hand over his head. It didn't wake him up. De next day he
took sick and soon died. I don't believe in hoodoo doctors but it is
like de blood hounds can run and tree a man but if you can't find de
goods it don't count.
"I worked in de hay harvest for $.50 a day. Common domestic for shirts
was $.50 a yard. It took six yards to make one shirt, dat was a week's
work. We lived on chickens. My mother raised a whole camp meeting of
chickens. Dere never was a better white man dan Dr. Sharp. When I
married I had four head of horses and three mules. I owed for one team
of horses. I took typhoid fever in August and was in bed until November.
Dr. Sharp and Dr. Bodine knew something was de matter but dey didn't
know what it was. When de note come due, I got on a horse and rode to
Dr. Sharp's. He wanted to know what I was doing on dat horse. I told him
'bout de note and he said, 'Hum, dat's what's been bothering you. Don't
you get off dat horse! I help you den you get back home and go to bed
and stay dere!' He just wrote a check for $90, I had already paid $300.
After I got well, I sold a span of mules to Joe McCleary and put de
check in de bank for Dr. Sharp. Dat was to pay him for de note and
taking care of me dat summer and fall.
"I was in de railroad home guards during de war. We had to keep de
people from tearing up de railroads. I fought Bill Anderson's men many a
time. Seems sort of queer when I used to take dem de mail but we kept
dem from burning de railroad bridges. I served for 'bout six months near
Macon."