“I told her, ‘yes’.

“She said, ’Well, you ain’t going back by yo’self because you’re too little,’ and she sent her oldest son back with me.  He was white.

“My boss was sick once, and he wanted to get his mail.  The post office was five miles away.  He said to me: 

“‘Can’t you get my mail if I let you ride on my horse?’

“I said, ‘Yes sir.’  I rode up to the platform on the horse.  They run out and took me off the horse and filled up the saddle bags.  Then they put me back on and told me not to get off until I reached my master.  When I got back, everybody was standing out watching for me.  When my boss heard me coming, he jumped out the bed and ran out and took me off the horse and carried me and the sacks and all back into the house.

Soldiers

“I saw all of Wheeler’s cavalry.  Sherman come through first.  He came and stayed all night.  Thousands and thousands of soldiers passed through during the night.  Cooper Cuck was with them.  He was a fellow that used to peddle around in all that country before the War.  He went all through the South and learned everything.  Then he joined up with the Yankees.  He come there.  Nobody seen him that night.  He knowed everybody knowed him.  He went and hid under something somewhere.  He was under the hill at daybreak, but nobody seen him.  When the last of the soldiers was going out in the morning, one fellow lagged behind and rounded a corner.  Then he galloped a little ways and motioned with his arms.  Cooper Cuck come out from under the hill, and he and Cooper Cuck both came back and stole everything that they could lay their hands on—­all the gold and silver that was in the house, and everything they could carry.

“Wheeler’s cavalry was about three days behind Sherman.  They caught up with Sherman, but it would have been better if they hadn’t, ’cause he whipped ’em and drove ’em back and went right on.  They didn’t have much fighting in my country.  They had a little scrimmage once—­thirty-six men was all they was in it.  One of the Yankees got lost from his company.  He come back and inquired the way to Louisville.  The old boss pointed the way with his left hand and while the fellow was looking that way, he drug him off his horse and cut his throat and took his gun off’n him and killed him.

“Sherman’s men stayed one night and left.  I mean, his officers stayed.  We had to feed them.  They didn’t pay nothing for what they was fed.  The other men cooked and ate their own grub.  They took every horse and mule we had.  I was sitting beside my old missis.  She said: 

“’Please don’t let ’em take all our horses.’

“The fellows she was talking to never looked around.  He just said:  ‘Every damn horse goes.’

“The Yankees took my Uncle Ben with them when they left.  He didn’t stay but a couple of days.  They got in a fight.  They give Uncle Ben five horses, five sacks of silverware, and five saddles.  The goods was taken in the fight.  Uncle Ben brought it back with him.  The boss took all that silver away from him.  Uncle Ben didn’t know what to do with it.  The Yankees had taken all my master’s and he took Ben’s.  Ben give it to him.  He come back ’cause he wanted to.