and make a tea. Dis was de most tubble of
all.

"De yeah fore de war started Marse Jim died. He war out in de pasture
pickin' up cow loads a throwin' em in de garden an' he jes drop over. I
hate to see Marse Jim go, he not sech a bad man. Ater he die his boys,
Tom an' Andrew take cha'ge of de plantation. Dey think dey run things
diffe'nt from dey daddy, but dey jes git sta'ted when de war come.
Marse Tom and Marse Andrew both hab to go. My pappy he go long wif dem
to do der cookin. My pappy he say dat some day he run four or five
miles wif de Yankees ahind him afore he can stop to do any cookin. Den
when he stop he cook wif de bullets a fallin all roun de kettles. He
say he walk on ded men jes like he walkin on de groun'. Some of de men
be dead, some moanin' an' some a groanin', but nobody pay no tention,
case de Yankees keep a comin. One day de Yankees come awful close Marse
Andrew hab de Confed'rate flag in his han'. He raise it high in de air.
Pappy say he yell for him to put de flag down case de Yankees was a
comin' closer an' was agoin' to capture him anyway. But Marse Andrew
jes hol' de flag up an run 'hind a tree. De Yankee sojers jes take one
shot at him an' dat was de las' of him. My pappy bring him home. De
fambly put him in alcohol. One day I went to see him and there he was a
swimmin' round in de water. Mos' ob his hair done come off tho. He
buried at Nazereth. I could go right back to de graveyard effen I was
there. Den my pappy go back to [HW: stay] with Marse Tom. Marse Tom
was jes wounded. Effen he hadn't had a Bible in his pocket de bullet go
clear through his heart. But yo' all kno' no bullet ain't goin' through
de Bible. No, you can't shoot through God's word. Pappy he bring Marse
Tom home an' take care of him til he well. Marse Tom give pappy a horse
an' wagon case he say he save his life.

"Many time de sojers come through de plantation an' dey load up dey
wagons wif ebberthing dey fin', lasses, hams, chickens. Sometime dey
gib part of it to de niggers but de white folks take it way when dey
git gone. De white folks hide all de silverware from de soldiers. Dey
fraid dey take it when dey come. Some time dey make us tell effen dey
think we know.

"After de war pappy go back to work on de plantation. He make his own
crop, on de plantation. But de money was no good den. I played wif many
a Confed'rate dollar. He sho was happy dat he was free. Mammy she shout
fo' joy an' say her prayers war answered.