e was powerful strong in his arms, but he act like he
don't feel good jest the same.

I remember when the War come. Mostly by the people passing 'long the
big road, we heard about it. First they was a lot of wagons hauling
farm stuff into town to sell, and then purty soon they was soldiers on
the wagons, and they was coming out into the country to git the stuff
and buying it right at the place they find it.

Then purty soon they commence to be little bunches of mens in soldier
clothes riding up and down the road going somewhar. They seem like
they was mostly young boys like, and they jest laughing and jollying
and going on like they was on a picnic.

Then the soldiers come 'round and got a lot of the white men and took
them off to the War even iffen they didn't want to go. Master Bill
never did want to go, 'cause he had his wife and two little children,
and anyways he was gitting all the work he could do fixing wagons and
shoeing hosses, with all the traffic on de road at that time. Master
Bill had jest two hosses, for him and his wife to ride and to work to
the buggy, and he had one old yoke of oxen and some more cattle. He
got some kind of a paper in town and he kept it with him all the time,
and when the soldiers would come to git his hosses or his cattle he
would jest draw that paper on 'em and they let 'em alone.

By and by the people got so thick on the big road that they was
somebody in sight all the time. They jest keep a dust kicked up all
day and all night 'cepting when it rain, and they git all bogged down
and be strung all up and down the road camping. They kept Master Bill
in the shop all the time, fixing the things they bust trying to git
the wagons out'n the mud. They was whole families of them, with they
children and they slaves along, and they was coming in from every
place because the Yankees was gitting in their part of the country,
they say.

We all git mighty scared about the Yankees coming but I don't reckon
they ever git thar, 'cause I never seen none, and we was right on the
big road and we would of seen them. They was a whole lot more soldiers
in them brown looking jeans, round-about jackets and cotton britches
a-faunching up and down the road on their hosses, though. Them hoss
soldiers would come b'iling by, going east, all day and night, and the
two-three days later on they would all come tearing by going west! Dey
acted like dey didn't know whar dey gwine, but I reckon dey did.

Den Ma