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
âNow, ef deyâs anâthing a nigger lub, nexâ ter âpossum, en chickân, en watermillyums, itâs scuppernonâs. Dey ainâ nuffin dat kin stanâ up sideân de scuppernonâ fer sweetness; sugar ainât a suckumstance ter scuppernonâ. Wâen de season is nigh âbout ober, en de grapes begin ter swivel up des a little wid de wrinkles er ole ageâ âwâen de skin git sofâ en brownâ âden de scuppernonâ make you smack yoâ lip en roll yoâ eye en wush fer moâ; so I reckon it ainâ very âstonishinâ dat niggers lub scuppernonâ.
âDey wuz a sight er niggers in de naberhood er de vimyaâd. Dere wuz ole Mars Henry Brayboyâs niggers, en ole Mars Jeems McLeanâs niggers, en Mars Dugalâs own niggers; den dey wuz a settlement er free niggers en poâ buckrahs down by de Wimâlâton Road, en Mars Dugalâ had de only vimyaâd in de naberhood. I reckon it ainâ so much so nowadays, but befoâ de wah, in slabâry times, a nigger didnâ mine goinâ fiâ er ten mile in a night, wâen dey wuz sumpân good ter eat at de yuther eenâ.
âSo atter a wâile Mars Dugalâ begin ter miss his scuppernonâs. Coâse he âcuseâ de niggers er it, but dey all ânied it ter de lasâ. Mars Dugalâ sot spring guns en steel traps, en he en de oberseah sot up nights onceât er twiceât, tel one night Mars Dugalââ âhe âuz a monstâus keerless manâ âgot his leg shot full er cow-peas. But somehow er nudder dey couldnâ nebber ketch none er de niggers. I dunner how it happen, but it happen des like I tell you, en de grapes kepâ on a-goinâ des de same.
âBut bimeby ole Mars Dugalâ fixâ up a plan ter stop it. Dey wuz a cunjuh âoman livinâ down âmongsâ de free niggers on de Wimâlâton Road, en all de darkies fum Rockfish ter Beaver Crick wuz feared er her. She could wuk de mosâ powerfullesâ kinâ er goopherâ âcould make people hab fits, er rheumatiz, er make âem des dwinel away en die; en dey say she went out ridinâ de niggers at night, fer she wuz a witch âsides beinâ a cunjuh âoman. Mars Dugalâ hearn âbout Aunâ Peggyâs doinâs, en begun ter âflect wheâr er no he couldnâ git her ter heâp him keep de niggers offân de grapevimes. One day in de spring er de year, ole miss packâ up a basket er chickân en pounâ-cake, en a bottle er scuppernonâ wine, en Mars Dugalâ tuk it in his buggy en driv ober ter Aunâ Peggyâs cabin. He tuk de basket in, en had a long talk wid Aunâ Peggy.
âDe nexâ day Aunâ Peggy come up ter de vimyaâd. De niggers seed her slippinâ ârounâ, en dey soon founâ out what she âuz doinâ dere. Mars Dugalâ had hiâed her ter goopher de grapevimes. She saântered ârounâ âmongsâ de vimes, en tuk a leaf fum dis one, en a grape-hull fum dat one, en a grape-seed fum anudder one; en den a little twig fum here, en a little pinch er dirt fum dereâ âen put it all in a big black bottle, wid a snakeâs toof en a speckleâ henâs gall en some haârs fum a black catâs tail, en den fillâ de bottle wid scuppernonâ wine. Wâen she got de goopher all ready en fixâ, she tuk ân went out in de woods en buried it under de root uv a red oak tree, en den come back en tole one er de niggers she done goopher de grapevimes, en aâer a nigger wâat eat dem grapes âud be sho ter die insideân twelâ montâs.
âAtter dat de niggers let de scuppernonâs âlone, en Mars Dugalâ didnâ hab no âcasion ter fine no moâ fault; en de season wuz mosâ gone, wâen a strange gemman stop at de plantation one night ter see Mars Dugalâ on some business; en his coachman, seeinâ de scuppernonâs growinâ so nice en sweet, slip ârounâ behine de smoke-house, en et all de scuppernonâs he could hole. Nobody didnâ notice it at de time, but dat night, on de way home, de gemmanâs hoss runned away en killâ de coachman. Wâen we hearn de noos, Aunâ Lucy, de cook, she up ân say she seed de strange nigger eatânâ er de scuppernonâs behine de smoke-house; en den we knowed de goopher had bâen er wukkinâ. Den one er de nigger chilluns runned away fum de quarters one day, en got in de scuppernonâs, en died de nexâ week. Wâite folks say he dieâ er de fevuh, but de niggers knowed it wuz de goopher. So you kân be sho de darkies didnâ hab much ter do wid dem scuppernonâ vimes.
âWâen de scuppernonâ season âuz ober fer dat year, Mars Dugalâ founâ he had made fifteen hundâed gallon er wine; en one er de niggers hearn him laffinâ wid de oberseah fit ter kill, en sayinâ dem fifteen hundâed gallon er wine wuz monstâus good intrusâ on de ten dollars he laid out on de vimyaâd. So I âlow ez he paid Aunâ Peggy ten dollars fer to goopher de grapevimes.
âDe goopher didnâ wuk no moâ tel de nexâ summer, wâen âlong toâds de middle er de season one er de fielâ hanâs died; en ez dat lefâ Mars Dugalâ shoât er hanâs, he went off ter town fer ter buy anudder. He fotch de noo nigger home wid âim. He wuz er ole nigger, er de color er a gingy-cake, en ball ez a hoss-apple on de top er his head. He wuz a peart ole nigger, doâ, en could do a big dayâs wuk.
âNow it happen dat one er de niggers on de nexâ plantation, one er ole Mars Henry Brayboyâs niggers, had runned
Comments (0)