Chapt Five- Martha Washington's Surprising Legacy

John Brown died on a scaffold for the slave,
Dark was the hour when we dug his hallowed grave;
Now God avenges the life he gladly gave,
Freedom reigns today.

CHORUS:
                 John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave;
                 John Brown lives in the triumphs of the brave;
                 John Brown's soul not a higher joy can crave -- 

                  Freedom reigns today!

                                                1863- EDNA DEAN PROCTOR 

Chapter 5

Martha Washington's Surprise Legacy

“//”

Mariah Carter Syphax

"If I closes my eyes, I kin still see it- Ahlin'ton... so green and pretty, almos' like a pitchuh... so perfic, everthin' in its place; a lil' girl's doll house, but it was real.

"I'm de las' one. Mos' my chilens done moved away, my sons aw cross de rivah in Washin'ton... my husband- he died. We fahmed heah mose my life. I grew up in de big house with de Custis, my mama was de housemaid dare fo many a yeah.

"Anyway Mr. Custis, he gave me my own place when I got married...an' set me free. Mama alus tole me he was my papa, but I nevah 'spected what he done fo me. I was sisteen. Thought I was a woman full growed, an I didn' much care what Mama said...

"I was terrible tard of lookin' after white girls... dumpin' they piss pots... brushing dey haya... lis'nin' to dey troubles... like dey actially had some. Mary Anna, who was actially my lil' sista, but we did'n know... and her cousins... always some stayin' wit de Custis, specially po lil' awphan Markie... dey was alus' inta sompthin'. Don' take me wrong, dey was sweet, and dey were mosely good to me, gave me things... alus defended me to Mr. Custis, no matter what, like dey was afraid of him too. But I was growin' up an' wanted to make my own troubles you see. (chuckle)

"Charles an' me was so proud...we nevah thought 'bout what dat would all mean to de res'. All de “Ethiopians” was jealous, spiteful... cause we had our own place, and what's more- freedom...an' dey was still in bondage, some womens could not even live wi' dey husbanz, dey might be a slav'in some place else. Sometime dey gone fo'evah. Dey might be separated from dey whole fambly. Some womens even seen dey own chilen sold off... taken far way, but Mr. Custis alus tried to keep his niggas togelthah. He was good 'bout DAT at lease. 

"So we was stuck in the middle, the richest niggas in the valley, free and somewhat edicated, but not really Mr. Custis inside fambly, and not slaves...

"An' no money... an' no rights... an' we knew if we lef de plantation? Dat we might get caught by de slavers and sol' again.

"So we stayed. We stayed right heah... Mmmmhmmm... We wasn' goin' nowhur! Dis heah Ahlin'ton was a right nice place when ya look't elsewheya... Pleny o' white folks said so... An' we was a part of it, since the beginning! See... Mistah Custis, he what dey calls a fust bone “Merican! Bawn durin' de revolution! Mmmmhmm. The first 'un.

"Yes, an' wen I close my eyes an' thinks about it, it is right like it was... so long ago. “Merica bran' new country. Peoples mosely good ta each utha. Eva'body workin' and de peoples singin' as dey walk to de fiels... an' as dey works de tobacca... we sang on de porch at night in de summah an' gave de crickets a go! We was happy. We wuz Ahlin'ton niggas! An Miss Martha... she wuz my gran'ma ya see... she sich a gran' lady... evahbody love her. Always glad to be of service! We did'n know any diff'rent.

"When I growed up, de Custis alus had schoolin' at the big house... an den our chilens all went too. My boys picked it up, and Mistah Custis got 'em jobs workin' in Washin'ton; Inside jobs, de kine mos' white folk have; no fahmin, no plowin' o' choppin', not even sweatin'! I don' know who was proudes', us o' Mistah Custis! He just love to put 'em in de wagon and take 'em to de ferry. An' alus tell 'em; 'Now you boys, remember what Miss Custis taughtcha, and mine yo mannehs! I don' wanna git no bad report!' He nevah did.

"I don' believe he evah did! William, he wooks in de Depahtmen' ob de Interyah... stahted out wit President Pierce back in '53... a messenger fo Sectery MahClellan'... but he got sech a purty han', he wooked up to Copyis' fo Mr. Thompson- under Pres'dent Buchanan... then Pres'dent Abraham Lincoln.. an'den Johnson...an' anyway he serve unna NINE diff'rent pres'dents! He's a clerk now... and my utha boys wooks up dere too.

Colbert Syphax

"Colbert- he's a copyist in de Treasury departmen'... An' John Bryce? He's some kinda politician... an Justice o' de Peace...and a Delegate to de Vaginia 'Ssembly! He stayed de longes' heah an' help de peoples at de Freedman's Village over yonder. Mmmhmm.

John Bryce Syphax

"But William my oldis' is de leadeh ob de fambly. He stays mighty active... runnin' dis an' dat... school boad... de cemetery... He been fightin' t'git a fair shake for our peoples ever since 'Mancipation. Miss Lee was so right 'bout one thing... it's gonna take a laaawng time. Both sides so full o' mischief an' meanness.

"An' dat wah? De Lee's call't it Nawthe'n 'Gression? I don' know why dey batha ta fight! Nothin' change much fo de niggas, But did fo de Lees! Dey loss dey home and dey lan... O' course dey slaves... Seems dem Yankees done took obah and took it all. I's a faw cry from de 'Merica Miss Martha had... an dat's why sometimes I closes my eyes.

"Then came freedom.. 'Mancipation, but from what? It was jus' like miss Mary Anna tol' me... all de niggas got nothin', no place to go... livin' worse dan slavery. An the Federals come an' bury dey dead across de way... sad, sad, sad. Right up to de front doe' ob de house! Trampled the gawdens. Almost cause Charles a hawt attack! He work so hard to save 'em, like Miss Mary wuz gonna come back some day. Fed'rals took eva'thing, dey took Gawj Washin'ton's things off, like dey belong to 'em! Mmmhmm.

"You know the Fed'ra' Gov'ment tried to take this place from us? We been heah fawty yeahs, but dey say it was Custis lan' an dey had bought it all up. They done stole it, hidin' behind dose Generals and dey awmy. Dey punish Master Lee sompthin' fierce. Some Fed'ra man too big for his britches, if you aks me... I cried and pitched a fit... an' my oldes' son William, he went to the United State Congress... Mmmmhmmm,

Young William Syphax

"An' he pass a Bill sayin' de lan' was ouwas. Mmmmhmmm. Always had been! An' President Andrew Johnson sign it into law! Dey hated him fo dat. My William heped de pres'dent do dat! An' do you think he coulda done it if he wad'n' Custis grandson? I doubt it. Dat edication sho paid off. But didn' hep de Lees so much. Mary, my half sista, she white, she alus say us Syphaxes was kinda high on the hog, cause Mr. Custis do so much fo us... an I s'pose she was right. Edication was the key. Gave us a leg up. An' de Fed'ras treat us good, cause we wuz niggas... Neva guess we wuz Lee kin!

"Always wondah what dey say if dey knew we wuz Lee kin, dey hate him so. Den times got baaad... T'was a bad dream... Dem Yankees came and started plantin dead soldias in de Lee's yad... said it was a cemetery. Down de road de Fed'ra's an' some missionaries build a whole town fo de peoples here on de plantation. They been livin' like rats in Washin'ton. They say one ob de freedmen died nearly ever day... small pox... diftheria... so dey came heah fo “fresh aiya.” But William say it was to git 'em out o' Washin'ton. We still got no place...

Mary Syphax Brodie

"But dey had to go somewheya!  At fus we was so proud... Dey build fifty- sump'm like hotels? An' de peoples come from all ovah. It was thousands ob 'em! My chillen went dere and taught 'em... how ta read, how ta write. Elinor taught the womens how ta sew. Dey had a church... mmmhmmm... and stoes... it was a town! Call't it Freedman's Village.

"But it was too crowded, an' dey fed 'em army rations... peoples was starvin'... some went beggin' from travelers on de road... and de missionary man? He build it in de bottom. Mosquitoes was bad... mud puddles all over...an' made 'em pay rent for dose dutty, crowded places... Lotsa folk wouldn't pay... Some wooked off dey rent on de Gov'men' fahm... took HALF dey wages! Fo “upkeep” they say! So dis is freedom? An we thought slavery was ovah! 'Mancipation jus' brought dat sorry Gov'men' town... did'n las' tweny yeahs befoe it was a disgrace. Mmmmhmmmm.

"De peoples try to keep it up... but dey aint' got no money. Still, Freeman Village was bettah dan mos' got. When dey complain too much? De Fed'rals try to make 'em leave, my son John wrote a lettah and got 'em to let 'em stay... but it was no use. Miss Mary was right aftah all. Dem Yankees didn' care 'bout no niggas. Freed 'em, sent 'em cross de rivah, call't 'em contraband! Put dat on dey tombstones! Dey didn' care about us, only wanted us out of, of Washin'ton City... ebry town I spect.

"Den when dey wants de lan' fo de white peoples, dey don' fix up de village, dey condemns it! Das when I knows dat my sista Mary was so right... Gonna take a hundred yeahs to get somethin' more precious dan freedom...to be treated like a human being! A 'Merican citizen, an' not some beast of burden... some CONTRABAND, cross the rivah!

"Ob'Cose, me an' Charles, we made out... we had sompin' de res' did'n hab... just like Mary say... we was Custis' peoples... an edicated... we had power in Washin'ton... an' no Yankee evah gave us any of it. It was my papa. Mmmmhmmm.

"When he stahted, most black chillens nevah paid no mind to school... but Mr. Custis put William in private school... say he had de head fo it... an' William took to schoolin' like a moccasin to watah. He loved it. And he love seein' chillen git edicated, de way his grandpa, Mr. Custis did. He say Washin'ton must be the fust, to educate all its chillens, black an' white, together, and evahbody grows up together... EVEN, you see. My sista Mary nevah could see it. But William gots 'em doin' it in Washin'ton! Black an' white teachehs, black and white chillens... nobody higher, or lower, all treated de same. All togethah. Dat's what de whole country will do some day. Ebum in de South!

"De way I sees it, my William is a great leadah of dis here country, he hol' de politician's feet to de far, makin' 'em do right by us, shamin' 'em if he has'ta...and dey jumps when he say frog! All dat talk of de Yankees 'bout 'Mancipation, an' franchise, well he made 'em put up o' shut up! I believes eben my sista Mary would be proud ob him... An' all my udah chickens!

Margaret Syphax

"So many o' my daughtahs and granddaughtahs aw school teachahs... mmmmhmm... an' so many good Christians just like my fathah-in-law, de fus William Syphax, he was a slave an b'came a 'vangelis'. I know he would be proud o' his namesake.

"Yes... I can close my eyes an membeh dose days... Dey was good and bad 'bout it... I'm glad dey are behind. An' I hab seed a lot o' good come to pass, an' I do miss ole Ahlin'ton... Mr. Custis... he weren' so bad. I miss my fambly... the Lees... gone so long ago, an' the singin'... the smell ob tobacca... the pretty peoples comin' to see the grandson of Gawj Washin'ton... the gardens ovaflowin' wit roses and such... The Custis mansion sparklin' like a castle in heb'm... Mr. Custis he so proud... we was all proud.

"An my husban' Charles use ta say. “Pride goeth befo a fawl...”

"You see, I was what dey calls an “outside chile”... but my papa- Mr. Custis treated me and my chillens just like inside, he done by us bettah dan I see lots ob folk aroun'. Black o' White. He finally did free my husban' Charles when he pass'. Charles came from Miss Mawtha Washin'ton... Mmmmmhmmm. Mr. Custis brought him an' a awmy ob slaves when he came here t' Ahlin'ton. But dey was really mo like brothas. Charles hep build de house, an' he keep it up, an' he kept de gawdens... he de butler fo ahwile too. But he lib like a free man. When we got married? Mr. Custis got us married by a preacher in his own house. Mmmhmmm. I even wore Miss Custis dress!

"I alus' wonder why he did not free Charles. I was free.. an' my chil'ens was free... but Charles say it because he was afrayid dat we would run off if we both free. An' he didn' want us to go. It was his way to keep us... maybe tryin' ta proteck us. Das 'way White folks is... if dey likes ya, dey won' let go obya. Dey's selfish... Master Robert E. Lee jus' like 'em! Held de slaves till de very las' day! But he nevah let any of his foah daughtahs marry neidah! 'Lease Mr. Custis let me and Charles marry!

"Aftah we did? Mr. Custis sent us to lib wit a Quakah in town fo' awhile, but we came back, and when we did, he gib us ouwa very own place... dis house and seventeen acres! Mmmhmm. He neber want us ta leave afta' dat. I alus' wonder if dat Quakah man shame him into it! He was alus so sof'-hawted. 

We had lots o' good times... Hog-killin' time! An' fresh peaches in de summah. Ate 'em till we didn' wanna see 'nothah one... De Custis alus bring us candy an' fruit come every Chris'mas... When I close my eyes, an' push all dem bad thoughts outa my head... I can almose' see it now. It's like it was only a dream...

But now de bes' ob dis country is in front of us... anothah dream... an' William an' othahs goin' t' make it better dan evah. An' peoples aks me how I know dat. An' I don' have to say, but it is very cleah when I close my eyes.... I know that some day we will, as 'Mericans, Black an' White, wook it out. Cause folk like my William up deah in Washin'ton, an' dey hab a biggeh dream in mind, eben biggeh dan what my great grandmama, Mawtha Washin'ton put her Gawj up to. Mmmmhmmm.

I knows it will happen, jus' like what she was able to help make t'happen, when she fus stir de pot... cause Miss Washin'ton gots many a gran'chile now... an she was so goood, an' fine, an' smart too... an' it's a big fambly now... a strong fambly... an' the acawn don' fall faw from de oak tree!