ct he want Ham to go, too.'

"Ham said: 'Well, Marfa, maybe he not want me any more. I's not well;
I's got dem pains in de knees and de breas' and de shouldars and de
stomach. What is it dey calls dem pains?'

"'Rumatiks, you ole fool; doesn't you know nuffin'?'

"'No, Marfa, I not know nuffln'; you know I doesn't. I 'spect you better
told de Gen'l, Marfa, I's sick. I go off and die wid dem pains, den what
you do, Marfa? You be all by yerself, and don't you see dat won't do,
Marfa. No, indeed, dat won't do.'

"'Well, now, Ham, I's not goin' to tell Marsa Gen'l no such way as dat.
No, sir. Ham, you jes' got to go wid de Gen'l; dat's what you do, so you
needn't be tucken sick jes' for to skeer me, kase I know you, Ham. You
no get kill. No, sah, no danger; so you jes' go, dats what you do.'

"'Well, Marfa, jes' as you say. If you say Ham go, he goes, dats all;
but de good Laud love you, Marfa, I's powerful sick, sho'.'

"'No you isn't; you play dat afore. I knows you, Ham; you knows I do.
You jes' stop dis rumatiks and go wid de Gen'l, dat's what you do. When
did you get sick? I not hear it afore. You not sick. Let me see you
walk.'

"Old Ham hobbled off and Martha laughed at him. This nettled the old man
and he straightened up and said: 'Well, I guess I's not bery bad, but
I's not well, all de same.'

"I came up to them, and nothing more was said.

"I told Ham to go out to the farm and ask Joseph Dent to come into my
house in the morning. His sickness all left him and he did the errand.
The next morning Dent came in with Ham and we interrogated him on the
question of his friends and what they were doing. He said that two days
prior to this they had a meeting and were notified that they must
change their name to the 'Sons of Liberty'; that the object of their
organization was becoming too well known, and that they could not
operate any longer under their old name. This was being done all over
the country and in Canada. He also stated that Thos. A. Stridor had
ordered them to send delegates to Indianapolis secretly, in order to
assist in appointing delegates to go to St. Catharines, in Canada, in
a few days, to consult as to the best means to be adopted to aid their
friends, as they had met with a great loss. They had lost a ship and a
valuable cargo, as well as their most important men who were to operate
in burning cities. This was so true of what had occurred that we no
longer had any doubt as to their certain