Like most peons, the Wall family was not permitted to leave the land, was illiterate, and were under the impression that "all black people were being treated like that". They were repeatedly beaten by plantation owners, often including whips or chains. Mae's sister Annie Wall recounted that "the whip would wrap around your body and knock you down". The Wall family was not paid in money or in kind with food: "They beat us. They didn't feed us. We had to go drink water out of the creek." The Wall family ate wild animals and leftovers that were "raked all up in a dishpan", "like slop". "They treated the dogs a whole lot better than they treated us." Mae recounted harvesting cotton, corn, peas, butter beans, string beans, potatoes. "Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all".
