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95 6 Regimentation Eugene Genovese labeled the constant intrusion by resident antebellum slavemasters upon the lives of their thralls as “paternalism .” The same word may also denote the paternalist ideology that was devised in order to justify holding human beings in bondage.1 The term regimentation to describe masters’ efforts to regulate almost every detail of their slaves’ lives avoids confusion between the two meanings of paternalism. The regimentation of a slave’s life began early. “When I’se five years ole,” recalled Caroline Hunter, “I had to wuk. I had a job cleanin’ silver an’ settin’ de table. A few years after dat I was put out in de fiel’s to wuk all day.” Charles Grandy was five when he was made to weed the crops by hand. West Turner began later. “Guess I started workin’ when I was ’bout six years old,” he reported . “Had to go roun’ stickin’ slabs and branches in de fences where de hogs done pushed dey heads threw. After dat dey put me in de fiel’—guess I was ’bout seven or eight. Was big an’ strong for my age, an’ used to plow fo’ I could reach up to de handles. Used to stick my head under de cross bar an’ wrap my arms roun’ de sides whilst another boy led de mule” (Interviews, 149, 111, 113, 115, 288).2 Samuel Ballton’s “good massa” nevertheless put him to work at age seven.3 And by the time Robert Ellett was eight, he was already so reliable at his task—pulling worms off tobacco leaves—that a white man offered his master a high price for him. Georgina Gibbs was eight when she was put in the field with two paddles to scare off crows. The only reason Amelia Walker wasn’t also set to work very young was that she seemed to be a sickly child. But when she was about ten, her master decided there was nothing wrong with her. “Put me in de fiel’ de nex’ day,” Walker 96 offenses exclaimed, “—weedin’ corn. Sho’ foun’ what fiel’ work was about arter dat” (Interviews, 85, 105, 292). Adult slaves normally had to be up before daylight so as to be in the field by sunrise (which might be at five or six in the morning). On some plantations there would be a pause for breakfast at about eight, and a half hour or longer for a midday dinner. Labor usually lasted until sundown, after which the bondpeople would eat supper in their cabins. This routine usually extended over the six working days each week, though some masters let the slaves—or at least the women—take off Saturday afternoons (Interviews, 228, 237, 105).4 The routine varied a little from one plantation to another and from one season to another. Some masters required their slaves to eat breakfast before daylight. “Had to git yo’ breakfas’ fo’ day,” West Turner pointed out, “’cause you got to be in de fiel’ when de sun gits to showin’ itself ’bove de trees.” At the midday dinner a tug of war—concerning the length of their break—might take place between the overseer and the laborers. “De slaves lay down under a shade tree an’ eat,” Susan Jackson recalled. “Mos’ times dey got half-hour, but nobody ain’t gonna rush none. An’ sometimes de ole overseer git impatient an’ yell fo’ de hands to come back to work fo’ dey git done eatin’.” At harvest time the bondpeople could expect their working hours to be extended. Normally, according to Elizabeth Sparks, “they worked six days fum sun to sun. [But] if they forcin’ wheat or other crops, they start to work long ’fo day [i.e., during the dawn before sunrise ]” (Interviews, 288, 154, 274). The masters regimented not only working hours but the kinds of vocational skills a slave might be permitted to develop. Cornelia Carney’s father—who liked woodwork (and who after Emancipation became a skilled cabinetmaker)—used his hobby to protest his being relegated to unskilled fieldwork. But his master refused to let him become an artisan. “Ole Marsa Littleton used to beat father all de time,” Carney recalled. “His back was a sight. It was scarred up an’ brittled fum shoulder to shoulder. Ole Marse didn’t like father always whittlin’ wid his jackknife. Wanted him to work in de fiel’, same as de other slaves” (Interviews, 66).5 Masters also had the final say about whom...

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