Sylvester Sostan Wickliffe

Text

"I's what dey call a free-born nigger. Its a long story how dat come about, but I can tell you.

"Three Frenchmen come to Louisiana from France. In three generations dey mix with Indians and Negroes. Dey high-born Frenchmen and 'cumulate plenty property. Before dey die dey make 'greement 'mongst demselves. When one die de property go to de other two; de last one livin' git all three plantations and all dat's on dem. It so happen dat old man Vidrine's daddy live longes', so he git it all. But he so good he divide up and my daddy gits forty acres good land. My daddy's greatgrandpapa was one dem first three Frenchmen.

"My daddy was Michael and mama was Lucy and dey a whole passel chillen, Frances, Mary, Clotilde, Astasia and Tom, Samuel, Gilbert and Edward. My daddy was part Indian and I had some half-brothers and sisters what wore blanket and talk Indian talk. Dey used to come see daddy and set round and talk half de night and I never understan' a word dey sayin'.

"Mama didn't have no Indian blood in her, but she born in Louisiana and a right purty, brown-skin woman, probably some French or Spanish in her.

"My uncle, Romaine Vidrine, de son of old man Vidrine, he have de bigges' property. He was a slave-holder. Dey was a number niggers in Louisiana what owned slaves. Romaine, he have 'bout thirty-eight. Dey was a big dif'ence make 'tween slave niggers and owner niggers. Dey so much dif'ence as 'tween white folks and cullud folks. My uncle wouldn't 'low slave niggers to eat at de same table with him or with any of us free-born niggers.

"Folks come down from de noth sometimes and mistook de slave for de owner or de owner for de slave. My uncle was sech a purty, bright man, he must of been a quadroon. He had long burnsides and a long tail coat all de time. He was very dignified. He was good to all he slaves, but when he say work, he mean work. He ain't never 'low none de slaves be familiar with him.

"De old Romaine house was a old*fashioned house make out of cypress. Dat everlastin'. It come to a peak on top and dere was one big room what run de whole length in de back and dat de sleepin' room for all de li'l chillen. De growed-up folks have sleepin' rooms, too. Dey have a cook shack outside. It a sep'rate house.

"Us live in a purty good house not very far from de big house. Dey have what dey calls a private school. It was kep' by my uncle. Only de free-born niggers went to it. De older ones educated in French and de young ones in French and 'merican, too. After de war dey hire a white man named William Devoe to be teacher. He educate de chillen to de third gen'ration. He come to Texas with me and die 'bout five years ago.

"When a couple want to git marry on de old Romaine place, uncle sent for de priest from St. Martin. Dey wasn't no priest round Franklin or what dey call New Iberia later. When I's most a growed boy de priest come baptise 'bout forty of us. He use de water* out uncle's cistern for de ceremony. When us goin' down de road to de baptisin' dey's a squirrel run 'cross de road and us chillen all broke and run to cotch it. Law, dat jus' 'bout scare my old godmother to death. She took so much pain dat us all nice and clean and 'fraid us git dirty. Her name was Nana Ramon Boutet and she live here in Ames settlement for many year. Us laugh many time 'bout dat squirrel.

"Dey used to call us de free Mulattoes from 'cross de bayou. De nearest town was Pattersonville and it five mile away. Now dey calls de settlement Vidrinville for old man Romaine Vidrine. De plantation suppor' a grist mill and a raw sugar mill. Dey make de sugar dark, big grain, 'cause dey ain't no 'finery in dem days. Dey put de sugar in big five hunerd pound hogshead and take it by boat down de Teche to New Orleans and sell it. Dey use de money to buy coffee and cotton. Us didn't raise cotton. I never see no cotton till I's a big boy and come to Fort LaFayette.

"De grist mill was built 'way from de house. Dey have a long lever what stand out de side and hitch hosses with a rawhide belt to make de mill turn. Us folks all raise rice. Not like now, Lawdy, no. Dey jes' plant rice in rows like corn and cultivate it like any other crop. Dey wasn't no irrigation ditch. After de rice harves' dey put it in a mortar make out a cypress log or block and knock de roughness off de rice with de pestle.

"Every fall us go huntin' deer round Chicimachi Lake. Dey calls it Grand Lake now, but de reg'lar Indian name am Chicimachi. Dere was a tribe of Indians by dat name. Dey wasn't copper skin, but more yaller like.

"When war commence it purty hard on folks. Us see soldiers comin' 'cross de bayou in blue suits. Dey raid de sugar mill and take de livestock and foodstuff on de Pumphrey place. Dey have a awful battle five mile away. Dat at Camp Boesland, on de Teche. Dat a awful battle! My brother go dere next day and see soldiers standin' up dead 'gainst trees with dey bay'nets still sot.

"De Confed'rates come and took all de slaves to build de fort at Alexandria. When dey come to de Romaine place dey see niggers, and ain't know which free and which slaves. Dey line my daddy up with deothers, but a white man from town say, 'Dat a good, old man. He part Indian and he free. He a good citizen. He ain't s'pose do work like dat.' So dey didn't take him.

"De Yankees damage de Romaine property 'siderable. Dey take a whole year crop of sugar and corn and hosses. Afterwards dey pass a law and de gov'ment 'low money for dat. It was 'bout twenty year before dey git de' money, but dey git it. Romaine and he heirs git $30,000 for dem damages.

"After war over, old man Romaine tell he slaves dey free now. But he say, 'You is most born right here and iffen you is bright you stay right here.' Dey all did stay. But dey ain't never git to jine with de free-born. Dey still make a dif'ence.

"After freedom I 'cide to larn a trade. I 'prentice myself to de blacksmith trade for clothes and board. I larn all I can in three year and quit and open a shop on Bayou Tortue, 'tween St. Martin and Lafayette. I charge $2.00 for to shoe a hoss all de way round. Den I beat plows, build two-wheel buggy and hack. I make sweepstocks and Garrett and Cottman plow. Dat after de time of de wood mould boards. I make mine with metal.

"I come to Texas in 1890, to Liberty, and been right round dere and Ame for forty-seven year. I start me a gin and blacksmith shop when I first come. I marry in Houston to Epheme Pradia, 'nother free-born nigger, and I still marry to her after forty-seven year. Dat a good long hitch. We have seven chillen, all livin'. One gal went to de Catholic church school in Galveston. One boy go to Pradeau University in New Orleans. Dey two blacksmith, one farmer, one good auto mechanic and de three gals keeps house.

"I 'member lots of songs us sing in French but I can't give 'merican for dem. I know de song, LaLoup Garou. I try to translate one song for you:

"Master of de house
Give me meat without salt;
When de stranger come,
He give me roast chicken."