I cannot remember much before I was five years old, so I am not going to go into that period of my life. I do remember vividly my living in a two-room house owned by Mrs. Mary Northcutt in Morgan, Kentucky, who stayed at night with us many times in this little house.

My siblings at that time included in age order Vernon, Faye, Eddie, and Jerry (a cousin who lived with us). My mother and father and myself made seven in the family; and, when Mrs. Northcutt was there, eight people slept in the house. I do not remember its being too crowded.

I began school at the age of five, and I remember walking to school, which was just beside and in front of the little house.

The house was beside the Licking River, and I remember that we saw many snakes around the house. During the time we lived here, many events took place. I will tell some of these in the days to come.

The layout of the house both inside and out is still vivid in my mind. I can still tell where each piece of furniture sat and where everyone slept at night. I remember that everyone ate at one table at mealtime, and the wood-burning stove sat just inches from the person sitting next to it. The stove contained fire year around, because cooking was going on nearly all the time.

Jerry and I were eight months apart in age; he was the older one. I remember our taking turns taking a bath in an old washtub. Mom heated the water on the kitchen stove. I can in my mind still see the steam arising as my mother poured boiling hot water in the tub for our baths.