“‘Who is this ‘Massa Linkum’ of whom you speak?’
“‘He is de President who’s been ’lected by de people, but the rebs refuse de knowledge ob it, and make Jeff Davis President.’
“‘Don’t you think Jeff Davis is abetter President than Lincoln?’
“Shaking his head and exposing his ivory, he said, ‘Better nor Linkum, what’s been ’lected by the people, what’s ’titled to the posishun, what’s made us all free? Can’t tell dese chil’n anyting ’bout dat. Dey knows all ’bout it.’
“This man’s name was Frank. He had been willing to forego his visit to his wife, procured a large supply of food, went five miles with us on our way, and felt that he was more than paid in having had the privilege of doing a favor to ‘Massa Linkum’s sogers.’”
After leaving the old man, keeping in the road, they went toward Greenville until two o’clock in the morning, when they came suddenly on a negro in the road with a large bundle under his arm. He refused to tell what he had in his bundle, but on learning that they were Yankees, he said, ‘I’ve had no meat in forty days. I got dese chickens for my Sunday dinner, but de Yankees are friends to us and we friends to dem. Now deni’s my words, take ’em.” Three or four days after this, becoming very hungry, they were on the lookout for negroes, knowing that there was no safety in applying to any others. Having made a camp at daylight, one of them crept carefully toward a field, and soon saw five negroes come into the field and commence plowing. In going around they passed near him, and when he saw that there was no white man with them, he rapped on®the fence, whereupon they all stopped, and one of the negroes said, “Gor a mighty! How comes you dar? Who is ye? whar ye come from?” Cautioning them to
