elly and through de brush and he lead a pony,
and when he gits clear he rides de pony bareback twel he git to Fort
Sill. Den Gen. Davidson, he soun' de gin'ral alarm and he send two
companies of cavalry to reinforce us. But de Cheyennes give 'em a fit
all de way, dey's gotter cut dere way through de Cheyennes.

"And Col. Shafter comes up, and goes out in de hills in his shirt
sleeves jus' like you's sittin' dere. Dey's snow on de groun' and de
wind's cole, but de colonel don't care, and he say, 'Whut's dis order
Gen. Davidson give? Don' kill de Cheyennes? You kill 'em all from de
cradle to de Cross.'

"And den we starts de attack. De Cheyennes got Winchesters and rifles
and repeaters from de government. Yahsur, de government give 'em de guns
dey used to shoot us. We got de ole fashion muzzle loaders. You puts one
ball in de muzzle and shove de powder down wid de ramrod. Den we went in
and fit 'em, and 'twas like fightin' a wasp's nest. Dey kills a lot of
our boys and we nearly wipes 'em out. Den we disarms de Cheyennes we
captures, and turns dere guns in to de regiment.

"I come to San Antonio after I'se mustered out and goes to work for de
Bell Jewelry Company and stays dere twel I cain't work no more. Did I
like de army? Yahsur, I'd ruthuh be in de army dan a plantation slave."

420230

[Illustration: Clara Brim]

CLARA BRIM, slave of William Lyons of Branch, Louisiana, now lives
in Beaumont, Texas. The town of Branch was known in slave days as
Plaquemine Bouley. Clara estimates her age to be 100 or 102, and
from various facts known to her and her family, this would seem to
be correct.

"Old massa's name was William Lyons. I didn't have no old missus, 'cause
he was a bachelor. He had a big plantation. I don't know how big but dey
somethin' like twenty fam'lies of slaves and some dem fam'lies had
plenty in dem. My ma was Becky Brim and pa, he name Louis Brim. She come
from Old Virginny. Dey work in de field. I had two sister name Cass and
Donnie and a brudder name Washington. He went off to de war. When it
break out dey come and take him off to work in de army. He lost in dat
war. He didn't come back. Nobody ever know what happen to him.

"Some de houses log house and some plank, but dey all good. Dey well
built and had brick chimneys. Dey houses what de wind didn't blow in. Us
had beds, too, not dem built in de wall. Us sho' treat good in slavery
times, yes, suh. Old massa