eteen and one fourth years old when I'm sot free.

"She tell pappy Massa John want to see him in de house and when he comes
out he tells us Massa John done told him to take a couple wagons and de
family and go to de farm 'bout ten miles 'way on Possum Creek and work
it and stay long as he wants. Massa has us load up one wagon with
'visions. Pappy made de first crop with jes' hoes, 'cause us didn't have
no hosses or mules to plow with. Us raise jes' corn and some wheat, but
dey am fruit trees, peaches and apples and pears and cherries. Massa
John pay pappy $120 de year, 'sides us 'visions, and us stays dere till
pappy dies in 1868.

"Den I heared 'bout de railroad what dey buildin' at Knoxville and I
leaves de folks and gits me de job totin' water. Dey asks my name and I
says William Davis, 'cause I knows Mr. Jefferson Davis am President of
de South durin' de war, and I figgers it a good name. In 1869 I goes to
Nashville and 'lists in de army. I'm in de 24th Infantry, Company G, and
us sent to Fort Stockton to guard de line of Texas, but all us do am
build 'dobe houses. Col. Wade was de commander de fort and Cap'n
Johnson was captain of G. Co. Out dere I votes for de first time, for
Gen. Grant, when Greeley and him run for president. But I gits sick at
de Fort and am muster out in 1870 and comes to Houston.

"I gits me de deckhand job on de Dinah, de steamboat what haul freight
and passengers 'tween Galveston and Houston. Den I works on de Lizzie,
what am a bigger boat. Course, Houston jes' a little bit of place to
what it am now--dey wasn't no git buildin's like dey is now, and mud, I
tell you de streets was jes' like de swamp when it rain.

"Long 'bout 1875 I gits marry to Mary Jones, but she died in 1883 and I
gits marry 'gain in 1885 to Arabelle Wilson and has four girls and one
boy from her. She died 'bout ten years back. Course, us cullud folks
marry jes' like white folks do now, but I seen cullud folks marry 'fore
de war and massa marry dem dis way: dey goes in de parlor and each carry
de broom. Dey lays de brooms on de floor and de woman put her broom
front de man and he put he broom front de woman. Dey face one 'nother
and step 'cross de brooms at de same time to each other and takes hold
of hands and dat marry dem. Dat's de way dey done, sho', 'cause I seed
my own sister marry dat way.

"I has wished lots of times to go back and see my folks, but I never has
been back and never seed dem since I left, and I