Negroes. I heard 'em say that after he had done bought his slaves by
working in a blacksmith shop, and wearin' cheap clothes, like mulberry
suspenders, he warn't goin' to slash his Negroes up. The older folks
admired Mist'ess and spoke well of her. They said she had lots more
property than Marse Billy. She said she wanted Marse Billy to see that
her slaves was give to her children. I 'spose there was about a hundred
acres on that plantation and Marse Billy owned more property besides.
There was about fifty grown folks and as to the children, I just don't
know how many there was. Around the quarters looked like a little town.

"Marse Billy had a overseer up to the time War broke out, then he picked
out a reliable colored man to carry out his orders. Sometimes the
overseer got rough, then Marse Billy let him go and got another one. The
overseer got us up about four or five o'clock in the morning, and dark
brought us in at night.

"Jails! Yes, Ma'am, I ricollect one was in Watkinsville. No, Ma'am, I
never saw nobody auctioned off, but I heard about it. Men used to come
through an buy up slaves for foreign states where there warn't so many.

"Well, I didn't have no privilege to learn to read and write, but the
white lady what taught my gran'ma to weave, had two sons what run the
factory, and they taught my uncles to read and write.

"There warn't no church on the plantation, so we went to Mars Hill
Church. The white folks went in the mornings from nine 'til twelve and
the slaves went in the evenings from three 'till about five. The white
folks went in the front door and slaves used the back door. Rev. Bedford
Lankford, what preached to the white folks helped a Negro, named Cy
Stroud, to preach to the Negroes. Oh! Yes, Ma'am, I well remembers them