“Ol’ Marster Ballinger, he were a Rebel, an he harbors Rebels.  Dey wuz two men a hangin’ around dere name o’ Buell and Bragg.”

“Buell were a nawtherner; Bragg, he were a Reb.”

“Buell give Bragg a chance to get away, when he should have found out what de Rebs were doin’ an a tuk him prisoner ah heard tell about dat.”

“Dey wuz a lotta spyin’, ridin’ around dere fo’ one thing and another, but ah don’ know what it were all about.  I does know ah feels sorry fo dem Rebel soldiers ah seen dat wuz ragged an tired, an all woe out, an Mars.  He fell pretty bad about everything sometimes, but ah reckon dey wuz mean Rebs an southerners at had it all cumin’ to em; ah allus heard tell dey had it comin’ to em.”

“Some ways I recollect times wuz lots harder after de War, some ways dey was better.  But now a culled man ain’t so much better off ‘bout votin’ an such some places yet, ah hears dat.”

“Yes’em, they come an want hosses once in awhile, an they was a rarin’ tarin’ time atryin to catch them hosses fo they would run into the woods befo’ you could get ahold of ’em.  Morgan’s men come fo hosses once, an ol Mars, get him’s hosses, fo he were a Reb.  Yes’em, but ah thinks them hosses got away from the Rebels; seem lak ah heard they did.”

“Hosses?  Ah wishes ah had me a team right now, and ah’d make me my own good livin!  No’em, don’t want no mule.  They is set on havin they own way, an the contrariest critters!  But a mule is a wuk animal, an eats little.  Lotsa wuk in a mule.  Mah boy, he say, ’quit wukin, an give us younguns a chance,’ Sho nuf, they ain’t the wuk they use to be, an the younguns needs it.  Ah got me a pension, an a fine garden; ain’t it fine now?”

“Yes’em, lak ah tells you, the wah were ovah, and the culled folks had a Big Time wid speakin’n everything ovah at Dick Robinsen’s camp on de 4th.  Nevah see such rejoicin on de Fourth ’o July since,-no’em, ah ain’t.”

“Ah seen two presidents, Grant an Hayes.  I voted fo Hayes wen I wuz twenty-two yeahs old.  General Grant, he were runnin against Greeley when ah heard him speak at Louieville.  He tol what all Lincoln had done fo de culled man.  Yes’em, fine lookin man he were, an he wore a fine suit.  Yes’em ah ain’t miss an election since ah were twenty-two an vote fo Hayes.  Ah ain’t gonto miss none, an ah vote lak the white man read outa de Emanicaption Proclamation, ah votes fo one ob Abe Lincoln’s men ev’y time—­ah sho do.”

“Run a way slaves? No’em nevah know ed of any.  Mars.  Ballinger neighbor, old Mars.  Tye—­he harbor culled folks dat cum ask fo sumpin to eat in winter—­n’ he get ’em to stay awhile and do a little wuk fo him.  Now, he did always have one or two ’roun dere dat way,—­dat ah recollects—­dat he didn’t own.  Maybe dey was runaway, maybe dey wuz just tramps an didn’t belong to noboddy.  Nevah hear o’ anybody claimin’ dem—­dey stay awhile an wuk, den move on—­den mo’ cum, wuk while then move on.  Mars.  Tye—­he get his wuk done dat way, cheap.