St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1892-12-10
FROM MISTRESS TO MAID.

81. IAMMAl
FROM MISTRESS TO MAID.
4 slavsholasr's Deaeassr whe Dsssn,
Ssa0ssrsss = lsse Former Servant
There IN. two women In San Fran
cisco who can tell . story of ups and
downs that would astonish . novelist
One Of them Il . refined. well-educated
woman. She il widow and she livea
with her mothe: in . house that shows
unmistal<s bile signs Of penury and want
She goes out to sew by the day, and
she manages TO make just enough money
10 keep the breath of life in her old
mother and 10 purchases . few poor com.
forts to warm the chill Of age. Yet
that woman was once the mistress Of Z
splendid home. She dispensed the open.
handed hospitality Of the old south and
| never knew what care and anxiety
meant
Way back in the days before the war
there was . rich Kentucky family
named Montgomery. They lived on .
beautiful plantation near St Joseph,
Mo MrA Montgomery had over fifty
slaves One Of those was . mite Of .
roly poly black baby. whose parents
were dead. Mrs Montgomery had y
little daughter just the age Of the
r0ly poly mite. and Is soon as the
children grew old enough the little
black girl became the maid of the little
white girl Life was very gay in those
old days; there were lots of visitors
70 the beautiful plantation and
little Miss Montgomery had nothing to
do but grow and be happy. When she
was thirteen years old her maid married
. likely young fellow who belonged to
family in the neighborhood. He had
only one name then. He was called
Bristol He used to come over to the
Montgomery plantation once . week to
see his wife. Things went on smoothly
for the young negroes for awhile.
Their owners were friends, 20 they saw
each other quite often. At the end of
three years the woman had borno her
husband three children.
Then came the war. The Montgomery
family suffered like all the rest Of the
south. They lost all their property.
they were compelled to give up their
home and finally all the slaves were
gone. Miss Montgomery's maid and
her three children went to St Joe. and
the woman went to work out by the
day. She did not know where her hus-
band VAS Early in the beginning of
the great struggle he had been sold to
Col. Wilson. who went away with him
she knew not where. So she struggled
along as best she could, trying to gain
. living for her children. Finally she
drifted westward. She lived for several
yeaEs In Salt Lake City. All the time
she was trying TO find out what had be-
come of her husband She knew that
he called himself Wilson, Bristol Will
son, after his new master, and she knew
that Col Wilson came to the coast.
One day she heard that he was in San
Francisco. She wrote to him. He was
delighted to get trace Of his wife and
family and at once sent for her. When
she arrived she found that her husband
had prosperod in California. At the
close Of the war his master set him free
and he managed to accumulate quite
. little sum Of money. This was
only . few years ago-somc time In
lsSs-that the little slave girl and her
husband met and found themselves
free and prosperous. They bought
pretty little home ON Guerrero street.
and there they live to-day. They often
wondered what had become Of the
Montgomerys, and Mrs. Wilson never
foc0ot her voun1 Mistress
About two years ago Mrs. Wilson
wanted some sewing done. She ad-
vertised for . woman to come and sew
BY the day.; Her old owner answered
the advertisement She was no longer
tho pretty, light-hearted Miss Mont
gomery. She was married. Her name
was Mrs Sweeney. She was wan and
pale from overwork and anxiety, and
the two women did not recognize each
other. Mrs Sweeney was surprised to
find that the advertiser was . colored
woman. but she worked steadily away
and said nothing. One day Mrs Wilson
was In . chatty mood, and the two
women talked over the days before the
war. Then the truth came out. The
Montgomerys had been ruined by the
war. and they had come west to try and
recruit their shattered fortunes. They
failed miserably. Mother aud daughter
chung together and fought fate with
falling courage.
Now the daughter is sewing by the
day for the woman she once owned and
she Is paid for the work by the man
who was once the bond slave Of her
friends San Erancisco Examiner