Eustace Hodges
From:
North Carolina
N. C. District: No. 2 [320116]
Worker: Mary A. Hicks
No. Words: 465
Subject: Eustace Hodges
Story Teller: Eustace Hodges
Editor: Geo. L. Andrews
[TR: Date Stamp "AUG 6 1937"]
EUSTACE HODGES
An interview with Eustace Hodges, 76 years old, of 625 W. Lenoir Street,
Raleigh, North Carolina.
I doan know when I wus borned, ner where but at fust my mammy an' me
'longed ter a McGee here in Wake County. My mammy wurked in de fiel's
den, ditchin' an' such, even plowin' while we 'longed ter McGee, but he
sold us ter Mr. Rufus Jones. My daddy still 'longed ter him but at de
close of de war he comed ter Mr. Jones' plantation an' he tuck de name
of Jones 'long wid us.
Marse Rufus wus gooder dan Marse McGee, dey said. He give us more ter
eat an' wear an' he ain't make us wurk so hard nother. We had our wurk
ter do, of course, but mammy ain't had ter ditch ner plow no mo'. She
wurked in de house den, an' none of de wimmen done men's wurk. Course
she can't wurk so hard an' have 'leben chilluns too. She had a baby one
day an' went ter wurk de nex' while she 'longed ter McGee, but at Marse
Rufus' she stayed in de bed seberal days an' had a doctor.
Marse Rufus uster let us take Sadday evenin' off an' go swimmin' er
fishin' er go ter Raleigh. I 'members dat somebody in town had a fuss
wid Marse Rufus 'bout lettin' his niggers run loose in town. Marse Rufus
atter dat had a oberseer in town ter see 'bout his niggers.
I got a whuppin' once fer punchin' out a frog's eyes. Miss Sally giv'
hit ter me long wid a lecture 'bout bein' kin' ter dumb brutes, but I
ain't neber seed whar a frog am a brute yit.
Yes'um I heard a heap 'bout de Yankees but I ain't prepared fer dere
takin' eben our bread. Miss Sally ain't prepared nother an' she tells'
em whar ter go, den she goes ter bed sick. I wus sorry fer Miss Sally,
dat I wus.
De day dat news of de surrender come Miss Sally cried some more an' she
ain't wanted mammy ter go, so Marse Rufus said dat we can stay on. Dey
said dat Mister McGee runned his niggers offen his place wid a bresh
broom dat day.
Atter de war we stayed on Marse Rufus' place till 1898 when pa died. I
had married a feller by de name of Charlie Hodges, what lived on a
nearby plantation an' we wus livin' on Marse Rufus' place wid pa an' ma.
We moved ter Raleigh den an' atter seberal years mammy moved hear too.
You can fin' her on Cannon Street, but I'll tell you dat she's pretty
puny now, since her stroke.
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Alex Huggins
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