laugh so bad."

"Yassum, in dem days" continued Aunt Arrie, "all us colored folks went
to the white folks church kase us didn't have no churches of our own and
day want no colored preachers den, but some what wuz called
"Chairbacks". The Chairback fellows went er round preachin' an' singin'
in the cabins down in the Quarters and dey use ter have the bes'
meetin's, folks would be converted an' change dey way. De hymns dey sung
de most wuz "Amazin' Grace" an' "Am I Born ter Die?" I 'members de
meetin's us use ter have down in our cabin an' how everybody would pray
an' sing."

"Dey ain't nothin' lak it use ter be," sighed Aunt Arrie, "Now when I
first could recollect, when a nigger died they sot up with de corpse all
night and de next day had de funeral an' when dey started to the burial
ground with the body every body in the whole procession would sing
hymns. I've heard 'em 'nough times clear 'cross the fields, singin' and
moanin' as they went. Dem days of real feelin' an' keerin' is gone."

When freedom came there were sad times on the Sybert plantation, Arrie
said. "Old Miss cried and cried, and all us cried too. Old Miss said
'You'al jest goin' off to perish.' Aunt Jennie, one of the oldest women
slaves stayed on with her and took keer of her, but all us stayed on a
while. Us didn't know whar to go an' what ter do, an' den come Dr.
Peters and Mr. Allen frum Arkansas to git han's to go out dar an' work
fer dem. My Pa took his family and we stayed two years. It took us might
nigh ar whole week to git dar, we went part way on de train and den rid
de steam boat up de Mississippi River ter de landin'. We worked in the
cotton field out dar and done all kinds er work on de farm, but us
didn't like an' Dr. Peters an' Mr. Allen give my Pa money fer us ter