they would put the hounds on ’em.”  Concluding her story on treatmeant Mrs. Byrd remarked “Yessirree I could tell that ’oman wuz mean the first time I seed her after we came from Virginia cause she had red eyes.”  “Pader rollers” stayed busy all the time trying to find slaves off their plantations without passes.  Marriages were performed by having the couple jump the broom.  If the [TR:  ‘couple’ deleted, handwritten words above illegible] belonged to different masters oftentimes one master would purchase the other; but should neither wish to sell the man would then have to get passes to visit his wife on her plantation.  “Dey would leave the plantation on Saturday afternoons and on Sunday afternoon you could see ’em coming in just lak they wuz coming from church,” remarked Mrs. Byrd.

There were frolics on the Byrd plantation any time that the slaves chose to have them.  “Yes sir we could frolic all we want ter.  I use ter be so glad when Saturday night came cause I knowed us wuz go have a frolic and I wouldn’t have a bit ’uv appetite I would tell my ma we gwine dance ter night I dont want nothin teet.  Yes sir us would frolic all night long sometimes when the sun rise on Sunday morning us would all be layin round or settin on the floor.  They made music on the banjo, by knocking bones, and blowing quills.”

The Byrds did not provide a church on their plantation for their slaves neither were they allowed to attend the white church; instead they had prayer meetings in their own cabins where they could sing pray and shout as much as they wished.  “I nebber will fergit the last prayer meeting us had,” remarked Mrs. Byrd.  “Two woman named Ant Patsy and Ant Prudence came over from the next plantation.  I believed they slipped over there wid out gittin a pass.  Anyway, they old master came there and whipped ’em and made ’em go home.  I reckin he thought us wuz praying ter git free.”  Continuing—­

I nebber will fergit the fust time I set eyes on them thar Yankees.  I done already heard ’bout how they wuz going round ter the different plantations taking the horses and carrying away the money and other valuable things, but they had nebber come ter our place.  So this day I saw ’em coming cross the railroad track and they look jest lack thunder there wuz so meny ’uv em.  When they got ter our house every body wuz sleep and they knocked and knocked.  We had a bad dog that didn’t take no foolishness off nobody, so when he kept barking them Yankees cursed him and do you know he heshed up?  I sid, ’Dear Lord what sort of man is that all he got ter do is curse that dog and he don’t even growl.’  Well, when they finally got in all they wanted wuz ter know if Mr. Byrd could help feed the soldiers until Monday.  Mr. Byrd told ’em he would.  Soon after that the war ended and we wuz called ter gether and told us wuz free.  Some uv’em stayed there and some uv’em left.  Us left and moved ter another plantation.”

Mrs. Byrd who had previously given the writer an interview on folk-lore asked the writer to return at a later date and she would try to think up more information concerning superstitions, conjure, etc.  The writer thanked her for the interview and promised to make another visit soon.