The Conjure Woman Charles W. Chesnutt (best fiction novels .TXT) đ
- Author: Charles W. Chesnutt
Book online «The Conjure Woman Charles W. Chesnutt (best fiction novels .TXT) đ». Author Charles W. Chesnutt
âââBrer Pete,â sezee, bimeby, âgimme a drink er dem bitters outân dat green bottle on de sheâf yander. Iâs gwine fasâ, en itâll gimme strenk fer ter finish dis wuk.â
âBrer Pete lookâ up on de mantelpiece, en he seed a bottle in de corner. It was so daâk in de cabin he couldnâ tell wheâr it wuz a green bottle er no. But he hilt de bottle ter de cunjuh manâs mouf, en he tuk a big mouffâl. He hadnâ moâ dân swallowed it befoâ he âmenceâ ter holler.
âââYou gimme de wrong bottle, Brer Pete; dis yer bottleâs got pizen in it, en Iâs done fer dis time, shoâ. Holâ me up, fer de Lawdâs sake! âtel I git thâoo turninâ Brer Primus back.â
âSo Pete hilt him up, en he kepâ on wukkinâ de roots, âtel he got de goopher all tuk offân Brer Primus âcepânâ one foot. He hadnâ got dis foot moâ dân half turnt back befoâ his strenk gun out entiâely, en he drapâ de roots en fell back on de bed.
âââI canât do no moâ fer you, Brer Primus,â sezee, âbut I hopes you will fergib me fer wâat harm I done you. I knows de good Lawd done fergib me, en I hope ter meet you bofe in glory. I sees de good angels waitinâ fer me up yander, wid a long wâite robe en a starry crown, en Iâm on my way ter jine âem.â En so de cunjuh man died, en Pete en Primus went back ter de plantation.
âDe darkies all made a great âmiration wâen Primus come back. Mars Jim let on lack he didnâ bâlieve de tale de two niggers tolâ; he sez Primus had runned erway, en stayâ âtel he got tiâed er de swamps, en den come back on him ter be fed. He tried ter âcount fer de shape er Primusâ foot by sayinâ Primus got his foot smashâ, er snake-bit, er sumpân, wâiles he wuz erway, en den stayed out in de woods whar he couldnâ git it kyoed up straight, âstidder cominâ long home whar a doctor could âaâ âtended ter it. But de niggers all noticeâ dey marster didnâ tie Primus up, ner take on much âcaâse de mule wuz gone. So dey âlowed dey marster must âaâ had his sâpicions âbout dat cunjuh man.â
My wife had listened to Juliusâs recital with only a mild interest. When the old man had finished it she remarked:â â
âThat story does not appeal to me, Uncle Julius, and is not up to your usual mark. It isnât pathetic, it has no moral that I can discover, and I canât see why you should tell it. In fact, it seems to me like nonsense.â
The old man looked puzzled as well as pained. He had not pleased the lady, and he did not seem to understand why.
âIâm sorry, maâm,â he said reproachfully, âef you doan lack dat tale. I canât make out wâat you means by some er dem woâds you uses, but Iâm tellinâ nuffin but de truf. Coâse I didnâ see de cunjuh man tuân âim back, fer I wuznâ dere; but I beân hearinâ de tale fer twenty-five yeahs, en I ainâ got no âcasion fer ter âspute it. Deyâs so many things a body knows is lies, dat dey ainâ no use gwine rounâ findinâ fault wid tales dat mought des ez well be so ez not. Fâ instance, deyâs a young nigger gwine ter school in town, en he come out heah de yuther day en âlowed dat de sun stood still en de yeath turnt rounâ eveây day on a kinder axletree. I tolâ dat young nigger ef he didnâ take hisseâf âway wid dem lies, Iâd take a buggy-trace ter âim; fer I sees de yeath stanâinâ still all de time, en I sees de sun gwine rounâ it, en ef a man canât bâlieve wâat âe sees, I canât see no use in libbinââ âmought âs well die en be whar we canât see nuffin. En ernudder thing wâat proves de tale âbout dis ole Primus is de way he goes on ef anybody axâ him how he come by dat club-foot. I axed âim one day, mighty perlite en civil, en he callâ me aâ ole fool, en got so mad he ainâ spoke ter me sence. Hitâs monstâus quare. But dis is a quare worlâ, anyway yer kin fix it,â concluded the old man, with a weary sigh.
âEf you makes up yoâ minâ not ter buy dat mule, suh,â he added, as he rose to go, âI knows a man wâatâs got a good hoss he wants ter sellâ âleasâways datâs wâat I heared. Iâm gwine ter praârmeetinâ ter-night, en Iâm gwine right by de manâs house, en ef youâd lack ter look at de hoss, Iâll ax âim ter fetch him rounâ.â
âOh, yes,â I said, âyou can ask him to stop in, if he is passing. There will be no harm in looking at the horse, though I rather think I shall buy a mule.â
Early next morning the man brought the horse up to the vineyard. At that time I was not a very good judge of horseflesh. The horse appeared sound and gentle, and, as the owner assured me, had no bad habits. The man wanted a large price for the horse, but finally agreed to accept a much smaller sum, upon payment of which I became possessed of a very fine-looking animal. But alas for the deceitfulness of appearances! I soon ascertained that the horse was blind in one eye, and that the sight of the other was very defective; and not a month elapsed before my purchase developed most of the diseases that horseflesh is heir to, and a more worthless, broken-winded, spavined quadruped never disgraced the noble name of horse. After worrying through two or three months of life, he expired one night in a fit
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