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Mrs. Margaret Davis
(Revised and expanded)
(Georgia)
Tom's
note: This is a expanded and extensively edited version of the original
life history for Mrs. Davis.
Much of the information is duplicated from that story.
Breathless after climbing the long
flight of steps leading to Mrs. Dawson's shop I entered a narrow hall,
vacant except for a table stool and telephone, over, which a light was
burning.
I knocked at the first door and a very friendly voice, "Come in." I
entered a large work room. Several men from the different dry cleaning
establishments were talking with a large dark headed woman. She proved to
be Mrs. Dawson. "Just have a seat," she said to me. "I'll be with you in a
few minutes.
Several chairs were grouped about a glowing heater at one end of the room.
This was the sewing room, and here were two long tables used for cutting
out clothing and for marking garments for alteration. Finished garments
almost filled the long rack at one end of the room. Between two large
windows a smaller table was flanked by sewing machines; one was a modern
electric machine, while the other was of the old fashioned pedal type.
As the men put their work down and started out the door, another man came
in, and said, "Miss Maggie, can you turn these shirt collars for me? They
are pretty bad, but I know you can fix 'em if any one can." After
inspecting the collars, she replied, I can fix them as good as new, but
you'll have to wait, for 'em 'til tomorrow." He said that would be all
right, and added, "What'll the job cost me?" She told him that she charged
ten and fifteen cents for turning collars, according to how much work was
necessary. "All right" said the man. I'll come for them tomorrow.
The man had not left before another was in the shop, saying, "Miss Maggie,
can you fix a hole in my coat right quick? I got it caught in a screen
door a few minutes ago and you know that I can feel this cold wind." Miss
Maggie laughed and said, "Hand me the coat and I'll see what I can do." He
pulled off his leather "lumber jack", and in a very few minutes he was on
his way, his coat mended, and it had only cost him fifteen cents.
Mrs. Dawson called, "Ed", and a Negro man came to the door. "Fix up the
fire," she told him. This room's getting cold and don't go off, for
there's plenty of work to be done. She turned to me with a friendly smile
and said, "Did you think I would never get through? It's like this every
day.
"But that's where I get most of my business for I don't get as much from
the stores now. Since Christmas they're not doing so much business. Yet I
have all I can do, and I don't take but very few new things to make since
I have been running the shop by myself, for I don't have the time for
that.
"All this is not interesting to you I know," she remarked. I explained
that was what I wanted, the story of her life and her work. She laughed
and said, "I don't think my story would be interesting to anybody else,
for I guess it's just about like most any ones. I have had my ups and
downs, pleasures and, yes, troubles too. We all have 'em.
There was another knock at the door, and in answer to her "Come in" a
Negro man entered. He was well-dressed and his speech and manner made me
think of a Negro preacher. He had brought in a pair of pants that had a
hole in them, and asked if could she fix them inside of two hours? "Cause
Mistiss, I has just gotta have 'em." Mrs Davis told him that she would do
her best to finish the task on time.
As he went out, the man from the Lee Morris Clothing Store came in with a
pair of new trousers to be adjusted to measurements of 38" waist 34"
inseam length, and the cuff were to be put in. The customer would be back
for them in two hours.
As he closed the door behind him, Mrs. Davis looked at me and laughed
again. "I'll make a bargain with you," she said. "See all this work that I
have to do? Well, if you will fix this pair of pants for me, I will give
you a story of my life and my business. How about it? Are you a good
sport?"
I pulled off my hat and coat and told her to hand me those pants. She
grinned and gave me a quizzical look. You'll have to french-cuff them,"
she challenged, "for I know they are not long enough to get a cuff without
it." I insisted that I could do that too. As I took the pants to the table
to measure and mark them, she said "I believe you know what you are
doing." It, was my turn to laugh, and I informed her that I had fixed many
a pair of pants, that she need not worry about them, and that I was
willing to work for my story.
"Well I like a good sport," she said "but I didn't think that you'd do it.
I'll be a good sport too, and if you don't mind me talking and working
too, at the same time I'll tell you all I can remember. But don't think
that I won't have to stop, for I will. You see how it is.
It did not take me long to finish the chore, and I handed them to her to
see if they would pass inspection. She said, "Well, I was fooled one time.
You did a very good job." "Ed" she called. Waiting for him to come she
said, "Do you like coffee?" "Very much," I replied. "Now I knew that we
will get along," was her answer. Ed appeared, "Take these pants and press
'em," she ordered. "but first fix some coffee for us, for I think a good
cup of coffee will help us out." Ed went out and came back with a coffee
pot. He stirred up the fire again and placed the coffee pot on the heater.
Mrs. Dawson said: he won't forget our coffee, I just don't know what I'd
do without him. He has been with me so long, and knows just how I want
every thing done. And he is one honest Negro, never bothers a thing.
"But get your book and pencil. You don't have to sew any more, and if I
talk too much, just stop me, for I really like to talk and I get lonesome
for someone to talk too. The wind was rattling the windows, and coffee pot
was begining to percolate as she started her story.
"I was born in a little two-room log house on my grandfather Sumers place,
out near where Princeton is now. While I was still just a baby, Daddy
moved near the old paper mill. The place is now called the Cord Mill. The
old paper mill building is still standing, but in too a condition to be
used for anything.
"My father and Jerome Wallace were the men that operated the paper
machines, or "en-jines," as they called them then. Of course they had
helpers, but either father or Mr. Wallace had to be on duty all the time.
If one of them was sick, or off for any other reason, one had to stay
until the other was back on duty. There was only one woman employed in
that part of the mill. She counted the paper. It was made in large square
sheets ready for the printers, and they said she was an expert. It was a
long time before they ever got a machine that was as accurate and fast at
that task as she was.
"Old man Bishop ran the finishing machine. I have watched them work many a
time when I was a child, for it was so interesting to see the machines
run. Out from the paper mill, was the rag room, where the rags were
sorted, and each color was put in a separate bin. They bought old clothes
and rags to make paper. All buttons were cut off. They had to be very
careful about that, for a button left on could ruin a machine.
"I was sent to school when I was about
six, but it was not like the schools are now. School then was in the Old
Hall, and was all in one room. Miss Sally Wood was our teacher, and there
was only teacher for the whole school. She taught all the children. There
were about one hundred children, all sizes and ages, from six years up,
and some of them were almost grown. Our books were spelling, out of the
Old Blue Back Speller, arithmetic, and geography. We sure had to study.
Everyone stood up in rows for spelling bees, and every time you missed a
word, you had to go the bottom of the row. Oh yes, we studied, but at that
we had some good times in that old schoolhouse. In later years it was made
into a dwelling house and is, I believe, still standing.
"It was a great thing to us kids, to work in the rag room at the paper
mill after we were out of school. They were glad to have us too. Our job
was to sort the rags, and we enjoyed the work. They paid us fifty cents a
month. That was a lot of money to us then. Of course it wouldn't mean much
to the kids these days. People from all around sold their old clothes and
rags at the paper mill. And many times we found nickles and dimes in the
bags of rags. We were allowed to keep this money, and we bought candy with
it and had a big time.
"One day - I sure remember that time, for I think that pleasures and
disappointments in our childhood days are better remembered than any thing
else - we found a large bag of new clothes, and they were nice ones,
dresses for women and children, underwear, stockings, and some men's
shirts. Well, we just dressed ourselves up, and put these things aside,
for we wanted to keep 'em. But the very next morning, a woman from town
was out there hunting her clothes. She said her maid had sold them and
kept the money. And as the old saying goes, 'our feathers fell,' for we
had to give up all those nice clothes.
"About this time they put in machines to make paper bags. The machines
would cut a hundred bags at a time, and that provided some thing else for
us kids to do. We tied the bags in bundles, two hundred bags to a bundle;
that was fun, for we folded half one way and the other half the other way.
Those bag machines were a great curiosity to the people then, and they
would come for miles to watch them run.
" They also used jute to make paper. That was bought in large bales, and
it made another job for us. We would tear up the jute into small pieces to
have it ready for the machines. One day we found a lot of paper money in a
bale of jute. But two of the women that worked there took that away from
us and said that they would have to send it back. But folks said that they
kept it and bought them a home with it. I don't know about that, but I do
know that we didn't get any of that money.
"And did you knew that they used to make paper out of wood, even back in
those days. Well, they did. I don't remember just what kind of wood they
used for it, but they would cut young saplings, skin the bark off, and
grind them into pulp ready for the paper machine. The paper made from the
wood was a heavy brown paper such as they use for wrapping and was called
manila paper.
"People was paid once a month then for their work, and it was the custom
to buy a months supply of provisions on pay day. And they all traded at
the company store. The men all liked their tobacco, and this was one
supply that was not forgotten when they were buying groceries. It was
something they felt like they could not do without.
"And kids would slip tobacco out and chew it, the boys especially. One day
some of the kids swiped some of their dads tobacco and told me that I had
to hide it, and I had better put it where it would not be found. I decided
that the old well would be the best place if I could climb up and put it
on the sills in the top of the well shelter. I managed to climb up and
arranged it so nice along the sills, and was sure that no one would see
it. But it started raining that night, and it rained for a solid week.
After the rain was over the kids told me to get their tobacco. I went to
the old well and found it was ruined. The top of the shelter had leaked,
and the rain had soaked that tobacco until it swelled up twice as thick as
it should be. And I almost got a beating from these kids, for of course
they chewed it, and was sick. No I did not try any, for I knew better.
Mamma would sure have tanned my hide.
"I had some older sisters and our house was just a gathering place for the
young folks. There was a crowd of them in and out all the time, and I
could get the biggest thrill out of watching and listening to them talk.
One night, two girls come to our house to set a dumb supper. I was just
about seven then, and I cried because they put me to bed, for they had
these suppers at midnight, just on the stroke of twelve.
"They started their supper and one of my sisters and another girl put on
pants and was going to scare 'em. I could hear them talking for I wasn't
asleep if I was in bed. I slipped up and told one of my Uncles what they
was going to do. It was a disgrace in them days for a girl to dress up
like a boy, so he said that he would fix them. And when they started
around the kitchen to scare the girls that was cooking, he got after 'em,
and did they scream? Any way it broke up the supper and I was satisfied.
"Did you ever hear about them old time dumb suppers? They was popular
then. That was the way the girls found out who was going to be their
future husbands. I know it seems funny now to look back on things we did
then. But after all, I think we had more fun than the young folks has now.
"Well, I'll try to tell you how they cooked these suppers. Two girls did
the cooking, set the table, and each one used their right hand. Everything
was done backwards, even to making the bread. They did every thing
together, and each one just used one hand. They could not speak or laugh
from the time they started until it was ended, for if they did the spell
was broken and nothing would happen.
"Everything must be ready just at twelve, the table set for two. A Bible
and a bottle was placed on the table. Then the wind was supposed to blow
the doors come open, and the men were expected to come in and eat. They
did not speak either, just ate and walked out. If a man picked up the
Bible, then he would make a good husband, but, beware of the man that
moved the bottle for you would sure get a husband who would turn out bad
and be a drunkard for sure. And if no man came, and your coffin come in
then you was doomed to die an old maid.
"These suppers were lots of fun, for most every time the girls would get
scared and wake up everybody in the house. Oh yes, they had to be the only
two people awake in the house." At this time Ed came in with cups, but
before we poured our coffee the Negro customer came back for his trousers.
When Mrs. Dawson only charged him fifteen cents for the work, his
gratitude was properly expressed in his best pulpit mabber.
We now enjoyed the excellent coffee. Mrs. Dawson was tired. She had
rapidly reduced that pile of work as she talked. When I mentioned it, she
said, "I am used to it, and it does not worry me. My customers are all so
nice, and if I am occasionally a little late in getting out their work
they never say anything. But I guess I had better get back to work. You
can rest if you are tired." I reminded her that my job was to write when
she talked.
"Well I am going to tell you about how we use to spend Christmas.
Christmas lasted a week, from Christmas Eve, 'til New Years. Nobody
worked, just ate, danced, and visited all during that week. Many's the
time I've laughed over the Christmas I'm going to tell you about now.
"Mamma was looking for her half-sister and family from Alabama to spend
Christmas with us. None of us had ever seen them, and we was sure looking
forward to their coming. We was having a big supper and dance for them on
Christmas Eve night. We kids were just on tiptoes, so excited we just
couldn't hardly wait. And, of course, we were looking for Santa Clause too
and our tree was all ready. Mamma had killed turkeys and chickens, and had
been cooking cakes and pies for two weeks.
At last they came. Now, Child, we have had many laughs over this Christmas
and I'm going to tell you about it just exactly as I remember it. Our
uncle and aunt got here several days before their three children arrived.
Like so many other people in those days, they did not have enough money
for the whole family to ride on the train for such a long trip, so the
children started off several days ahead of their parents. They rode with
friends part of the way and then set out to walk the balance of the way.
Those two girls and the boy got here on Christmas Eve, and if they wasn't
a sight! One of the girls weighed over two hundred pounds and she had
walked the soles off of her shoes.
"All of our folks and many of our friends were there. Among one of them
was one of mamma's nieces and her husband, a man named, Stencile. Also one
of my uncles and his daughter, they played fiddles and were to furnish the
music for the dance. Everything was cleared out of two rooms, and about
three o'clock the young people started dancing. We kids were happy. We
could watch them as long as wanted to, 'cause we didn't have to go to bed
early on Christmas Eve.
"The older women were busy cooking and getting the supper ready. Every
body was having a good time. The man calling for the dance would holler,
"Swing your pardners!" Oh, it was a grand time. We kids were so interested
in the fat girl from Alabama that we stayed pretty close around her. She
did not seem to want to dance and we couldn't understand that, and when we
saw one of the boys start toward her we just had to hear what he said. He
asked her if she would dance that set with him. We held our breath for her
answer, "I had just as lief dance with you as any body else," she said,
"but I has walked all the way from Alabamy to see Aunt Sis, and am too
tired and galleded from walking to feel like dancing with anybody."
There was a knock at the door. Mrs. Dawson said, "Come in", A man from the
dry cleaners brought in more work, and with him was a laundryman, who
wanted to know if she had been able to mend the coveralls that he brought
her the day before. She laughed and said, "You'll be surprised at how much
wear that man can get out of 'em yet." The customer looked at the
coveralls and said, "Miss Mollie, how do you do it? It makes no difference
how bad anything is when we bring it to you, it's always fixed when we get
it back." He requested his bill for the day before, paid it all, and
departed.
"Mrs. Dawson said, "Where was I? Wasn't we just fixing to eat? Well,
anyway, they started eating supper about five o'clock, and we had to set
that table eight times, there was so many to eat. And of course, we
children did not eat until all the grown people had finished. Well, this
man Stencile, sat down at the first table, and that man stayed there,
eating with every table full of people. I never saw one person eat so much
in all my life. There was plenty to eat, but we kids were watching the
turkey. There was one piece left on the dish on the last table full was
about to finish eating, and that man Stencile reached over and got it. We
was so mad, but we knew better than to say anything. Much as we had to
eat, we couldn't enjoy it for thinking about that last piece of turkey.
"The dance lasted all night, but we kids got so sleepy we gave it up and
went bed of our own accord. We were up early the next morning, ready for
breakfast, but first we had to see what Santa Clause had left for us. Of
course we did not have things then like children do now, but we had many
nice things, and when it was time for dinner, Mamma saved out some of the
turkey for us, and I guess it was a good thing that she did for that man
Stencile was still there, and still eating just like he did the day
before.
"I had just about finished school when the paper mill closed down and we
moved to Athens, near the old check mill on Broad St. We went to work
there and, I don't think that I will ever forget how that old mill looked.
It had large posts all through the mill, and one day my sister was leaning
against one resting. One of the women thinking she would have some fun,
yelled out to her to move quick. It scared my sister so that she jumped
too sudden and tore out a hand full of her hair that caught on a nail.
Every one laughed, but it made me mad and I hit her so hard she fell in
the floor. We were due some teasing because we were new people in the
settlement, but after that they did not pester us any more. And we were
soon satisfied there and having the same good old times that we had
enjoyed in our old home community.
"Just when I was thinking that I was about grown, I met my present husband
at my sister's house. He came to see my brother-in-law and had the
prettiest horse and buggy. He carried me to ride, but we just went down
the road, not far enough to get out of sight of the house. But even at
that, Mamma heard about it. She didn't believe much in whipping, but she
sure could find other ways of punishing, and just for that one little
ride, I had to stay at home for three long months. I was not even allowed
to go to church and Sunday school.
"I had a girl friend that I used to spend the night with real often, and
she would visit me too. Once I was spending the night at her house while
her mother and father were away visiting, and there was no one at home
except the children. Some of her sisters were much older than we, so
nobody was afraid to stay. But we decided that after the others had all
gone to sleep, that we would slip out of bed and cook a dumb supper, for
we had wanted to do this a long time, but they had always said that we
were too little.
"After they were all in bed we got up. Yes we was scared, but we was
determined to show 'em that we could do it as well as they could. And we
did get the supper ready, didn't even forget the Bible and bottle. Two
boys that knew us had been fishing and was on their way home. Seeing the
light in the kitchen so late they thought that some body might be sick,
and came by to see if there was anything that they could do. But when they
saw us in the kitchen they knew what we was doing, and just pushed opened
the door, walked in and picked up the bottle and went out. We were scared
so bad we couldn't move for a few minutes, but when we did get to yelling
we had everyone in the house up. But, strange as it may seem, one of those
boys is now my husband, and my girl friend married the other.
"And now I am going to stop a little while for lunch and drink another cup
of Ed's coffee. Do you go home for lunch, or do you eat in town? I said
that I usually lunched in town. "Well then," she said. "We will just order
us somthing sent down here, for I do not leave the shop, there's always
some one coming in. We ordered sandwiches and were arguing as to who was
to pay for them, when a customer came in and suggested that he toss a coin
and settle the question. I lost. My last fifty cents went to pay for the
sandwiches.
As we ate our lunch Mrs. Davis said "I'm glad that you came to see me to
day, but I'm sorry that I've made you work so hard. It seems like I have
got along so well with my work better than usual because I had good
helpful company. I guess I had better get back at it now, but we can still
talk.
"I have been married twice. I met my first husband on a picnic. Yes we had
real picnics then. Every one went in those old tallahos. They just put
straw in the bottom to sit on, and all piled in together. After dinner
there would be a ball game, and my husband was one of the players. Once we
went with a crowd of young people the old Beaver Dam Church, to see a foot
washing. After that was over we rode to the Jim Smith place, where one of
the guards showed us around. We were especially interested in the prison
labor camp. There was so many prisoners, some of them were crippled up in
different ways, some with one arm and some with one leg, but they all had
to work. It was on the way home from there that Sam proposed. And in about
three months we were married.
"We went to housekeeping in the house with Mr. and Mrs. Endicott. We was
both young but got along fine, and were very happy.
"It was during this time that my Daddy got burned so bad. He was working
at the old waterworks plant then. And some of the pipes had been
condemned, but they had not changed them. And one day just as Daddy passed
by, one the large pipes with about two hundred pounds of steam in it
bursted, and the steam went all over Daddy's left side and head, just
missing his eyes, he was just a solid blister. There was no ambulances
then, and they carried him home in a cab. They had two doctors with him
and they told us that he could not live until dinnertime. All our family
was called home. Two of our neighbors put him in bed, took off his clothes
and shut all the windows, because they said the air would make the fire go
inside. They started giving him whiskey, and afterwards they told my daddy
that he drank over a half of a gallon. I don't know about that, but I do
know that they gave him some, for my husband went to the despensary and
got it for daddy. The doctors came back at noon expecting to find him
dead, but after they had stayed a long time, they told us he had a chance
to get well. They said it was because the whiskey had run the fire to the
outside. It took him a long time to get up and where he could go back to
work. In a few years he started to having strokes of paralysis in his left
side, and the fourth stroke killed him.
"My husband died in 1907. After he passed away I went back to live with
Mamma and Daddy. I was blue and discouraged, and decided that if I could
work it would help me, and I got work at the Climax Hosiery Mill. I worked
there for a while and then I went to work for Mr. Hart at his overall
plant. I had never done any of that kind of work, but I started-in and
when I had learned it from the bottom up, I made $8 a week. We made some
khaki work pants and did so good on 'em that Mr. Hart decided he would
open up a tailor shop. He got the place fixed up and put in all the
machines. He sent to New York for two Bohemians, to learn us how to be
tailors. He paid them Bohemians $50 a week each. I guess they earned it
too, for we was hard to learn. When the war came on we got orders for
officers' uniforms, and our pay was raised to $18 a week. Orders kept
coming, and he had to put on ten more girls to help sew on buttons, fell
seams and whip in waistbands. And then the older help got another raise to
$25 a week. We was just rusehed to death with orders all the time while
the war lasted.
"The war ended and things began to drop. Mr. Hart couldn't collect and his
business began going down. He had to cut us to $15 a week, and the extra
help was laid off. It was this time that I saw my first fight between men.
And I don't think that I ever want to see another one. The Bohemians got
to fussing about their work and then started fighting and throwing things
at each other. The women were all scared, and I started to go for Mr.
Hart. Just as I got to the door, one of them threw the stand that the
heavy press iron sits on. It just missed my head. I screamed, and that
brought Mr. Hart to see what was the trouble.
"He got 'em straightened out and tried to talk to 'em. He told 'em that
the Southern men did not fight in front of ladies. But they told Mr. Head
that it didn't hurt us, and that the ladies in New York didn't think
anything of a fight, that they were used to it. They didn't fight any more
around us.
"Business was getting worse, and Mr. Hart seemed about to go broke. We got
another cut that sent our wages down to $12 a week. And that is when Milly
Myers and I went into the tailoring business for ourselves. We rented a
place on Clayton street over the Dunaway furniture store, and we made good
while we were there.
"Then Mr. Hart got a big order for knickerbocker pants. He came down to
our place and begged us to come back and work for him, at least until he
could get out that order and to give him time to learn some one else to do
the work. He had always been so nice to us that we went back to help him
out.
"We stored our machines and other things, for we knew that we would need
them later, and in 1922, we rented this place. Milly came down here then
and went to work as soon as the shop was ready. But I stayed on with Mr.
Hart for several months, until his orders were all filled and he had some
one that could do his work. But as long as he was in business here, he
would come to our shop and beg us to come back and work for him.
"We have done fairly well. We made a good living, and during the Hoover
administration, we never made under $15 each a week after all expences
were paid. After all bills were paid, we divided the rest between us. We
worked together until Milly died in February 1938. She was taken sick in
1937, and they found that she had a tumor. After that she was never well
any more. Part of the time she was not able to work at all.
"But before Milly got sick, we made all kind of things, mens clothing,
ladies dresses, coats, in fact just everything that came to hand, as well
as doing our regular work of repairing and alterating garments. We also
made pants for the Cavalry Troops that are stationed here. And I still
make them, but that is the only new stuff I take in now. There is no way
out of that for they just bring 'em and leave 'em.
"We have always tried to be reasonable with our customers, and not
over-charge them. And they have been very nice to us, and we have made
everything from airplane wings to grave awnings, so I guess we have tried
'most everything that can be sewed. And I have never had any trouble with
collecting, as most of the time they pay when they get the garments.
"We used to order most all of our supplies from Bruner &Mason Woolen Co.
in New York, but since I don't need so much by myself, I buy what I can
from the stores here, as they give me their work, and get some things from
Atlanta supply houses. A girl helps on busy, days, and I pay her two
dollares a day. Another girl works for me by the hour, as she just works
when she can get away form home, and some times that is just for a few
hours a day. I like them both, and they seem to like me also.
"Business is not as good now as it used to be, but as you see I have all
the work I can do, and make a good living out of it. I do not belong to
any tailors' organization, and if there is one here in town I have never
heard of it. My days work here starts around seven in the morning if I am
very busy, but most times around eight. I always close around six except
on Saturday nights, and then I say open until the stores close, as I most
always have work from them late.
"One day not very long after I had gone to work for Mr. Hart I was walking
down Broad Street, when who should I meet but the boy that came to my dumb
supper. He had been married also, but had lost his wife not so very long
after my husband died. And that meeting was the begining of a friendship
that later ended in a happy marriage. He was then, and still is, a great
teaser and enjoys playing jokes on me.
"One night he came down to the house to see me and asked me and one of my
sisters to go to the show with him. Shows then only cost 5 and 10¢. Well
when we were almost there, he said that we could go in the show and he
would wait on the outside for us, as he did not have enough money for all
of us to go in.
"I was embrassed and said that we would just go back home. But he insisted
that we go on. I got mad and said that I could pay my own way in the show.
But my sister just laughed; it seemed that she could tell that he was
teasing, and she told him to just give her a dime and she would buy
peanuts and candy. Oh yes, we went to the show and he went with us but I
was so mad that I could not enjoy it. And after we came out, he bought me
a large basket of fruit, I wouldn't have it, but my sister told him to
just give it to her. It was a long time before I would let him come to see
again. They both like to tease me now about that show.
"When one of my sisters was fixing to get married, he came walking in and
told Mamma that it was going to be a double wedding, for he was going to
marry me, and that she would lose two daughters instead of one. I told
them it was not so, but he would just laugh and say it was so, and he had
everyone believing it. Even when the preacher came, he told them that we
would be next. I was so mad, but the more I quarreled the more he laughed.
But he won out at last, and in 1913 we were married.
"We have our little home that we bought when we were married, and we are
still living there. We have no children, and there is no one there but
just ourselves. But we have a very happy home, with our chickens and
flowers. Yes, we have a lovely flower garden, but my husband looks after
that, and he takes a great pride in his flowers. He tends the chickens
too. I have my shop, and he has his barber shop. And did you know that he
is the oldest white barber in Athens. His brother was the first white
barber to open a shop here. All the barbers used to be colored. He learned
my husband the barber trade when he was just a boy, and now all the older
white barbers are dead, and he is the oldest one left in the barber
business, I mean by that, he has been a barber longer than any of the
others.
"We both work every day. I do my house work at night and he tends to his
chickens and flowers. We have our church, and we visit our friends and
have a lot of company. Sometimes we go to the shows, but we both like
reading, and we read most of the time, after we get through with our work
at night. And then too, we have our car, and can get out on Sundays when
ever we feel like we want to go some place.
"But it has been lonesome here in the shop since my pardner died. And I
sure do miss her, for we had worked at the same trade together so long,
even before we went in business together. And we never had any
disagreements over our work, for what one done was all right with the
other. Our customers have been nice and we have tried to please them, and
I believe that I can say something that not many people in business can
say, and especially in this kind of business. And that's this, since I
have been in business, I've lost less than five dollars, that's right, I
have less than five dollars on my books from the time that I first opened
a shop until now, that has not been paid. I think that is excellent. Do
you suppose there is another business in Athens that can show fewer
uncollected accounts?
"There was another knock at the door, and in answer to her "Come in," a
man entered and asked her if she could sew some buttons on the trousers,
that he was wearing. Mrs. Dawson told him to go in the dressing room and
that Ed would get his trousers for her to work on. As Ed was bringing the
pants, she said "I have three rooms. This is the work room, the next is
the dressing room, and the last one is where Ed does all the pressing.
"Ed came in with the man's trousers. She sewed on the suspender buttons
and sent the garment back to the customer. He soon made his appearance
asked the price of the work. "A dime," she said. He handed her a quarter,
and said that he did not have any change; that he appreciated her doing
the work so quick, and would the ladies to just get coca colas with the
change. He was gone before Mrs. Dawson could give him his change.
"Well," she said, "we will just have coca colas," and ordered them. As we
waited for the drinks I prepared to leave. Mrs. Dawson said "I sure am
glad that you came in today, but I'm sorry that I made you work. The truth
is, I didn't think you'd do it. But if you do as good a job on this story
as you did on the, pants, you'll be all right. I promised to do the best I
could. The drinks came then and we enjoyed them. "I hope you'll come back
again" she said, "just stop any time you come this way, and Ed will make
coffee for us. He doesn't forget that when it's cold weather."
I thanked her for her life history material, and for the very pleasent day
that I had enjoyed in her very friendly shop. As I went down the stair, I
knew that I would like to go back again and have another chat over a cup
of coffee.
McCune
Dec. 9-39
Jan. 18-39
Mrs. Margaret Davis (White)
193 Nacoohee Ave.
Athens, Georgia.
Text from: Library of
Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection
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