American library books Ā» Other Ā» The Conjure Woman by Charles W. Chesnutt (7 ebook reader .TXT) šŸ“•

Read book online Ā«The Conjure Woman by Charles W. Chesnutt (7 ebook reader .TXT) šŸ“•Ā».   Author   -   Charles W. Chesnutt



1 ... 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 ... 57
Go to page:
fer ter let Dave preach ter de niggers, en tell ā€™em wā€™at wuz in de Bible, en it would heā€™p ter keep ā€™em fum stealinā€™ er runninā€™ erway.

ā€œSo Dave ā€™menceā€™ ter preach, en done de hanā€™s on de plantation a heap er good, en most un ā€™em lefā€™ off dey wicked ways, en ā€™menceā€™ ter love ter hear ā€™bout God, en religion, en de Bible; en dey done dey wuk better, en didnā€™ gib de oberseah but mighty little trouble fer ter manage ā€™em.

ā€œDave wuz one er dese yer men wā€™at didnā€™ keer much fer de galsā ā€”leastways he didnā€™ ā€™tel Dilsey come ter de plantation. Dilsey wuz a monstā€™us peart, good-lookinā€™, gingybread-colored galā ā€”one er dese yer high-steppinā€™ gals wā€™at holā€™s dey heads up, en wonā€™ stanā€™ no foolishness fum no man. She had bā€™longā€™ ter a gemman over on Rockfish, wā€™at died, en whose ā€™state haā€™ ter be solā€™ fer ter pay his debts. En Mars Dugalā€™ had beā€™n ter de oction, en wā€™en he seed dis gal a-cryinā€™ en gwine on ā€™bout beinā€™ solā€™ erway fum her ole mammy, Aunā€™ Mahaly, Mars Dugalā€™ bid ā€™em bofe in, en fotch ā€™em ober ter our plantation.

ā€œDe young nigger men on de plantation wuz des wilā€™ atter Dilsey, but it didnā€™ do no good, en none un ā€™em couldnā€™ git Dilsey fer dey junesey,2 ā€™tel Dave ā€™menceā€™ fer ter go rounā€™ Aunā€™ Mahalyā€™s cabin. Dey wuz a fine-lookinā€™ couple, Dave en Dilsey wuz, bofe tall, en well-shapeā€™, en sooplā€™. En dey sot a heap by one ernudder. Mars Dugalā€™ seed ā€™em tergedder one Sunday, en de nexā€™ time he seed Dave atter dat, sezee:ā ā€”

ā€œā€Šā€˜Dave, wā€™en yer en Dilsey gits ready fer ter git married, I ainā€™ got no rejections. Deyā€™s a pounā€™ er so er chawinā€™-terbacker up at de house, en I reckon yoā€™ mistā€™iss kin fine a frock en a ribbin er two fer Dilsey. Youer bofe good niggers, en yer neenter be feared er beinā€™ solā€™ ā€™way fum one ernudder long ez I owns dis plantation; en I ā€™specā€™s ter own it fer a long time yit.ā€™

ā€œBut dere wuz one man on de plantation wā€™at didnā€™ lack ter see Dave en Dilsey tergedder ez much ez ole marster did. Wā€™en Mars Dugalā€™ went ter de sale whar he got Dilsey en Mahaly, he bought ernudder hanā€™, by de name er Wiley. Wiley wuz one er dese yer shiny-eyed, double-headed little niggers, shaā€™p ez a steel trap, en sly ez de fox wā€™at keep outā€™n it. Dis yer Wiley had beā€™n pesterinā€™ Dilsey ā€™foā€™ she come ter our plantation, en had nigh ā€™bout worried de life outā€™n her. She didnā€™ keer nuffin fer ā€™im, but he pestered her so she haā€™ ter thā€™eaten ter tell her marster fer ter make Wiley let her ā€™lone. Wā€™en he come ober to our place it wuz des ez bad, ā€™tel bimeby Wiley seed dat Dilsey had got ter thinkinā€™ a heap ā€™bout Dave, en den he sorter hilt off awā€™ile, en purtenā€™ lack he gin Dilsey up. But he wuz one er dese yer ā€™ceitful niggers, en wā€™ile he wuz laffinā€™ en jokinā€™ wid de yuther hanā€™s ā€™bout Dave en Dilsey, he wuz settinā€™ a trap fer ter ketch Dave en git Dilsey back fer hisseā€™f.

ā€œDave en Dilsey made up dere minā€™s fer ter git married long ā€™bout Christmas time, wā€™en deyā€™d hab moā€™ time fer a weddinā€™. But ā€™long ā€™bout two weeks befoā€™ dat time ole mars ā€™menceā€™ ter lose a heap er bacon. Eveā€™y night er so somebody ā€™ud steal a side er bacon, er a ham, er a shoulder, er sumpā€™n, fum one er de smoke-ā€™ouses. De smoke-ā€™ouses wuz lockā€™, but somebody had a key, en manageā€™ ter git in some way er ā€™nudder. Deyā€™s moā€™ ways ā€™n one ter skin a cat, en deyā€™s moā€™ dā€™n one way ter git in a smoke-ā€™ouseā ā€”leastways datā€™s wā€™at I hearn say. Folks wā€™at had bacon fer ter sell didnā€™ hab no trouble ā€™bout gittinā€™ rid un it. Hit wuz ā€™gā€™inā€™ de law fer ter buy things fum slabes; but Lawd! dat law didnā€™ ā€™mount ter a hill er peas. Eveā€™y week er so one er dese yer big covered waggins would come ā€™long de road, peddlinā€™ terbacker en wā€™iskey. Dey wuz a sight er room in one er dem big waggins, en it wuz monstā€™us easy fer ter swop off bacon fer sumpā€™n ter chaw er ter waā€™m yer up in de wintertime. I sā€™pose de peddlers didnā€™ knowed dey wuz breakinā€™ de law, caze de niggers alluz went at night, en stayed on de dark side er de waggin; en it wuz mighty hard fer ter tell wā€™at kine er folks dey wuz.

ā€œAtter two er thā€™ee hundā€™ed er meat had beā€™n stoleā€™, Mars Walker call all de niggers up one ebeninā€™, en tolā€™ ā€™em dat de fusā€™ nigger he cot stealinā€™ bacon on dat plantation would git sumpā€™n fer ter ā€™member it by long ez he libā€™. En he say heā€™d gin fiā€™ dollars ter de nigger wā€™at ā€™skiverā€™ de rogue. Mars Walker say he sā€™picionā€™ one er two er de niggers, but he couldnā€™ tell fer sho, en coā€™se dey all ā€™nied it wā€™en he ā€™cuse em un it.

ā€œDey waā€™nā€™t no bacon stoleā€™ fer a week er so, ā€™tel one dark night wā€™en somebody tuk a ham fum one er de smoke-ā€™ouses. Mars Walker des cusst awful wā€™en he founā€™ out de ham wuz gone, en say he gwine ter sarch all de niggersā€™ cabins; wā€™en dis yer Wiley I wuz tellinā€™ yer ā€™bout upā€™n say he sā€™picionā€™ who tuk de ham, fer he seed Dave cominā€™ ā€™cross de plantation fum toā€™ds de smoke-ā€™ouse de night befoā€™. Wā€™en Mars Walker hearn dis fum Wiley, he went en sarchā€™ Daveā€™s cabin, en founā€™ de ham hid under de floā€™.

ā€œEveā€™ybody wuz ā€™stonishā€™; but dere wuz de ham. Coā€™se Dave ā€™nied it ter de lasā€™, but dere wuz de ham. Mars Walker say it wuz des ez he ā€™spected: he didnā€™

1 ... 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 ... 57
Go to page:

Free e-book: Ā«The Conjure Woman by Charles W. Chesnutt (7 ebook reader .TXT) šŸ“•Ā»   -   read online now on website american library books (americanlibrarybooks.com)

Comments (0)

There are no comments yet. You can be the first!
Add a comment