County,
Kentucky. I was born and lived just 13 miles from Parish. My mother's
name is Rachel Conrad, born at Bourbon County, Kentucky. My father,
George Conrad, was born at Bourbon County Kentucky. My grandmother's
name is Sallie Amos, and grandfather's name is Peter Amos. My
grandfather, his old Master freed him and he bought my grandmother,
Aunt Liza and Uncle Cy. He made the money by freighting groceries from
Ohio to Maysville, Kentucky.

Our Master was named Master Joe Conrad. We sometimes called him "Mos"
Joe Conrad. Master Joe Conrad stayed in a big log house with weather
boarding on the outside.

I was born in a log cabin. We slept in wooden beds with rope cords for
slats, and the beds had curtains around them. You see my mother was
the cook for the Master, and she cooked everything--chicken, roasting
ears. She cooked mostly everything we have now. They didn't have
stoves; they cooked in big ovens. The skillets had three legs. I can
remember the first stove that we had. I guess I was about six years
old.

My old Master had 900 acres of land. My father was a stiller. He made
three barrels of whisky a day. Before the War whisky sold for 12-1/2c
and 13c a gallon. After the War it went up to $3 and $4 per gallon.
When War broke out he had 300 barrels hid under old Master's barn.

There was 14 colored men working for old Master Joe and 7 women. I
think it was on the 13th of May, all 14 of these colored men, and my
father, went to the Army. When old Master Joe come to wake 'em up the
next morning--I remember he called real loud, Miles, Esau, George,
Frank, Arch, on down the line, and my mother told him they'd all gone
to the army. Old Master went to Cynthia, Kentucky, where they had
gone to enlist and begged the officer in charge to let him see all of
his boys, but the officer said "No." Some way or 'nother he got a
chance to see Arch, and Arch came back with him to help raise the
crops.

My mother cooked and took care of the house. Aunt Sarah took care of
the children. I had two little baby brothers, Charlie and John. The
old Mistress would let my mother put them in her cradle and Aunt Sarah
got jealous, and killed both of the babies. When they cut one of the
babies open they took out two frogs. Some say she conjured the babies.
Them niggers could conjure each other but they couldn't do nothing to
the whitefolks, but I don't believe in it. There's an old woman living
back there now (pointing around the corner