Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-05-19

woman, smoothing down her tailor
made gown.
That's what 1 said" answered the
old lady. For common wear we wore
dresses made of homespun, woven by
the slaves. Polly's grandmother owned
a great many negroes who could weave
really beautiful homespun and double
faced jeans, and they also made really
very pretty and artistic wool cover
lets and cOunterpanes. Old black silk
was travelled into lint. then carded up
with cotton and woven into a kind Of
gray poplin. which was very pretty ana
soft. Our best gowns were made OF
this and We only wore them on state
occasions to swell functions, as you
girls say. when we slipped tea made II
dried strawberry leaves. OF course.
Southern men, before the war, We're
great on wearing silk hats, and these
We're left at home. We women skinned
the hats and covered the home made
/ frames to make low hats for ladies'.
| They looked something like sailot
hat. and rooster feathers were used for
| trimming Our gloves we made OF
| black silk stocking legs.
all over the country. A neighborhood
would arrange to have a daily mail by
| having a member of each family going
or sending on his day to the nearest
railroad station. I have known Polly :
grandfather, old and feeble as he was,
| to go oftentimeS fifty miles in day
to get his own mail and fetch that OF
the soldiers wives in his neighborhood
They came teaminS III to get their let
tiers and to hear the paper read. 1he
Old gentleman got the Daily Cafolln-
ian, published in Columbia. At FIRST II
was printed on paper made OF straw
and the cheapest ink was used. out a'
last the publishers couldn't get even
straw paper. and SO they issued IN"
news printed on wall paper that ha1
been slowed away. Schooboys mddt
leadpencils by melting bullets an"
pouring the molten liquid into canes
| when cold the canes were split on
There were many funny things tt
tighten our burdens, however. am
everybody was hopeful and helpinl
| How the women worked in every way
They ran the plantations. looked per
sonally after the farming implements
the stock. the COWS in the pastures
the hundreds of sheep whose wool u
needed, and most carefully OF all alte'
the hundreds of negroes, VINO must .
clothed and fed. Toward the eH'
Confederate money would BUY hotiii"S
Why. I've paid as much as va loi
spool of cotton thread. HOW good ~"
kind how faithful were the negroes
What could they not have done WIZ
all the white men gone to war had the!
been evil-minded? When Sherman
WAS marching through South Cafollil'
WAS the sole white person except NJ!
baby girl on the great plantation
, among all the negroes. My sisters "e'
water bound twenty-five miles distant
and nv mother was in Richmond VIII
. my only brother. who lay Wouhoeu -.
ia death. But the negroes never lei
!, me. and how they loved ana pet'eo "'''
looked out for me. My oio nee
+, Nanny, Nanny Liza. comiofteo III
all the while, saying, Never you mn
E honey, I'll sleep in the big mousse wa
YOU and she did. In alier Se" :
when she was free and l ensiaFeu y
, sorrow. she cOmforted me again ." he
=. nv little girl died she told me so man
E beautiful things that kept my hea,
from hardening She never "ou'
= leave her white folks, as she cai'eu |"
Z and really died our slave, Tor tnei
i, no master like love, and she lo'eu
y, and we her. Now. do you belleVe li'
. we Southern women did any "o'
during the war " she asked, WIN
- smile.
VI oh, yes" instantly spoke up ~