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ā€œDan wuz mighty soā€™ fum ā€™is wounā€™s en scratches, en wuz laid up fer two er thā€™ee days. One night de noo mule got outā€™n de pasturā€™, en went down to de quarters. Dan wuz layinā€™ dere on his pallet, wā€™en he heard sumpā€™n banginā€™ erway at de side er his cabin. He raiseā€™ up on one shoulder en lookā€™ rounā€™, wā€™en wā€™at should he see but de noo muleā€™s head stickinā€™ in de winder, wid his lips drawed back over his toofs, grinninā€™ en snappinā€™ at Dan desā€™ lack he wanter eat ā€™im up. Den de mule went rounā€™ ter de doā€™, en kickā€™ erway lack he wanter break de doā€™ down, ā€™tel bimeby somebody come ā€™long en driv him back ter de pasturā€™. Wā€™en Sally come in a little later fum de big house, whar sheā€™d beā€™n waitinā€™ on de wā€™ite folks, she founā€™ poā€™ Dan nigh ā€™bout dead, he wuz so skeered. She ā€™lowed Dan had had de nightmare; but wā€™en dey lookā€™ at de doā€™, dey seed de marks er de muleā€™s huffs, so dey couldnā€™ be no mistake ā€™bout wā€™at had happenā€™.

ā€œCoā€™se de niggers tolā€™ dey marster ā€™bout de muleā€™s gwines-on. Fust he didnā€™ pay no ā€™tention ter it, but atter a wā€™ile he tolā€™ ā€™em ef dey didnā€™ stop dey foolisā€™ness, he gwine tie some un ā€™em up. So atter dat dey didnā€™ say nuffin moā€™ ter dey marster, but dey kepā€™ on noticinā€™ de muleā€™s quare ways des de same.

ā€œā€Šā€™Long ā€™bout de middle er de summer dey wuz a big camp-meetinā€™ broke out down on de Wimā€™lā€™ton Road, en nigh ā€™bout all de poā€™ wā€™ite folks en free niggers in de settlement got ā€™ligion, en lo en beholā€™! ā€™mongsā€™ ā€™em wuz de cunjuh man wā€™at ownā€™ de shote wā€™at chaā€™med Primus.

ā€œDis cunjuh man wuz a Guinea nigger, en befoā€™ he wuz sot free had useā€™ ter bā€™long ter a gentā€™eman down in Sampson County. De cunjuh man say his daddy wuz a king, er a guvā€™ner, er some sorter wā€™at-you-may-call-ā€™em ā€™way ober yander in Affiky whar de niggers come fum, befoā€™ he was stoled erway en solā€™ ter de spekilaters. De cunjuh man had heā€™ped his marster outā€™n some trouble ernudder wid his goopher, en his marster had sot him free, en bought him a tracā€™ er land down on de Wimā€™lā€™ton Road. He purtenā€™ ter be a cow-doctor, but eveā€™ybody knowed wā€™at he rā€™alā€™y wuz.

ā€œDe cunjuh man hadnā€™ moā€™ dā€™n come thā€™oo good, befoā€™ he wuz tuk sick wid a colā€™ wā€™at he kotch kneelinā€™ on de grounā€™ so long at de mouā€™nersā€™ bench. He kepā€™ gittinā€™ wusser en wusser, en bimeby de rheumatiz tuk holt er ā€™im, en drawed him all up, ā€™tel one day he sont word up ter Mars Jim McGeeā€™s plantation, en axā€™ Pete, de nigger wā€™at tuk keer er de mules, fer ter come down dere dat night en fetch dat mule wā€™at his marster had bought fum de poā€™ wā€™ite man dyoinā€™ er de summer.

ā€œPete didnā€™ know wā€™at de cunjuh man wuz dribinā€™ at, but he didnā€™ daster stay way; en so dat night, wā€™en heā€™d done eat his bacon en his hoe-cake, en drunk his ā€™lasses-en-water, he put a bridle on de mule, en rid ā€™im down ter de cunjuh manā€™s cabin. Wā€™en he got ter de doā€™, he lit en hitchā€™ de mule, en den knockā€™ at de doā€™. He felt mighty jubous ā€™bout gwine in, but he was bleedst ter do it; he knowed he couldnā€™ heā€™p ā€™isseā€™f.

ā€œā€Šā€˜Pull de string,ā€™ sez a weak voice, en wā€™en Pete lifā€™ de latch en went in, de cunjuh man was layinā€™ on de bed, lookinā€™ pale en weak, lack he didnā€™ hab much longer fer ter lib.

ā€œā€Šā€˜Is you fotchā€™ de mule?ā€™ sezee.

ā€œPete say yas, en de cunjuh man kepā€™ on.

ā€œā€Šā€˜Brer Pete,ā€™ sezee, ā€˜Iā€™s beā€™n a monstā€™us sinner man, en Iā€™s done a power er wickedness endyoinā€™ er my days; but de good Lawd is washā€™ my sins erway, en I feels now dat Iā€™s bounā€™ fer de kingdom. En I feels, too, dat I ainā€™ gwine ter git up fum dis bed no moā€™ in dis worlā€™, en I wants ter ondo some er de harm I done. En datā€™s de reason, Brer Pete, I sont fer you ter fetch dat mule down here. You ā€™member dat shote I was up ter yoā€™ plantation inquirinā€™ ā€™bout lasā€™ June?ā€™

ā€œā€Šā€˜Yas,ā€™ says Brer Pete, ā€˜I ā€™member yoā€™ axinā€™ ā€™bout a shote you had losā€™.ā€™

ā€œā€Šā€˜I dunno wheā€™r you eber lā€™arnt it er no,ā€™ says de cunjuh man, ā€˜but I done knowed yoā€™ marsterā€™s Primus had tuk de shote, en I wuz bounā€™ ter git eben wid ā€™im. So one night I cotchā€™ ā€™im down by de swamp on his way ter a candy-pullinā€™, en I thā€™owed a goopher mixtry on ā€™im, en turnt ā€™im ter a mule, en got a poā€™ wā€™ite man ter sell de mule, en we ā€™vided de money. But I doan want ter die ā€™tel I turn Brer Primus back agā€™in.ā€™

ā€œDen de cunjuh man axā€™ Pete ter take down one er two goā€™ds offā€™n a sheā€™f in de corner, en one er two bottles wid some kinā€™ er mixtry in ā€™em, en set ā€™em on a stool by de bed; en den he axā€™ ā€™im ter fetch de mule in.

ā€œWā€™en de mule come in de doā€™, he gin a snort, en started fer de bed, des lack he was gwine ter jump on it.

ā€œā€Šā€˜Holā€™ on dere, Brer Primus!ā€™ de cunjuh man hollered. ā€˜Iā€™s monstā€™us weak, en ef you ā€™mence on me, you wonā€™t nebber hab no chance fer ter git turnā€™ back no moā€™.ā€™

ā€œDe mule seed de sense er dat, en stood still. Den de cunjuh man tuk de goā€™ds en bottles, en ā€™menceā€™ ter wuk de roots en yarbs, en de mule ā€™menceā€™ ter turn back ter a manā ā€”fust his years, den de resā€™ er his head, den his shoulders en arms. All de time de cunjuh man kepā€™ on wukkinā€™ his roots; en Pete

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