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
âOne day in de winter Mars Dugalâ went ter town, en wuz santerinâ âlong de Main Street, when who should he meet but Henryâs noo marster. Dey said âHoddy,â en Mars Dugalâ ax âim ter hab a seegyar; en atter dey run on awhile âbout de craps en de weather, Mars Dugalâ ax âim, sorter keerless, like ez ef he des thought of itâ â
âââHow you like de nigger I sole you lasâ spring?â
âHenryâs marster shuck his head en knock de ashes offân his seegyar.
âââââSpecâ I made a bad bahgin when I bought dat nigger. Henry done good wuk all de summer, but sence de fall set in he âpears ter be sorter pininâ away. Dey ainâ nuffin pertickler de matter wid âimâ âleastways de doctor say soâ ââcepânâ a tech er de rheumatiz; but his haâr is all fell out, en ef he donât pick up his strenk mighty soon, I specâ Iâm gwine ter lose âim.â
âDey smoked on awhile, en bimeby ole mars say, âWell, a bahginâs a bahgin, but you en me is good frenâs, en I doan wanâ ter see you lose all de money you paid fer dat nigger; en ef wâat you say is so, en I ainât âsputinâ it, he ainât wuf much now. I âspecâs you wukked him too haâd dis summer, er eâse de swamps down here donât agree wid de sanâ-hill nigger. So you des lemme know, en ef he gits any wusser Iâll be willinâ ter gib yer five hundâed dollars fer âim, en take my chances on his livinâ.â
âSho ânuff, when Henry begun ter draw up wid de rheumatiz en it look like he gwine ter die fer sho, his noo marster senâ fer Mars Dugalâ, en Mars Dugalâ gin him what he promus, en brung Henry home agâin. He tuk good keer uv âim dyoinâ er de winterâ âgive âim wâiskey ter rub his rheumatiz, en terbacker ter smoke, en all he want ter eatâ ââcaze a nigger wâat he could make a thousanâ dollars a year offân didnâ grow on eveây huckleberry bush.
âNexâ spring, wâen de sap ris en Henryâs haâr commenceâ ter sprout, Mars Dugalâ sole âim agâin, down in Robeson County dis time; en he kepâ dat sellinâ business up fer five year er moâ. Henry nebber say nuffin âbout de goopher ter his noo marsters, âcaze he know he gwine ter be tuk good keer uv de nexâ winter, wâen Mars Dugalâ buy him back. En Mars Dugalâ made ânuff money offân Henry ter buy anudder plantation ober on Beaver Crick.
âBut âlong âbout de eenâ er dat five year dey come a stranger ter stop at de plantation. De fusâ day he âuz dere he went out wid Mars Dugalâ en spent all de mawninâ lookinâ ober de vimyaâd, en atter dinner dey spent all de eveninâ playinâ kyaâds. De niggers soon âskiverâ dat he wuz a Yankee, en dat he come down ter Norf Câlina fer ter lâarn de wâite folks how to raise grapes en make wine. He promus Mars Dugalâ he câd make de grapevimes bâar twiceât ez many grapes, en dat de noo winepress he wuz a-sellinâ would make moâ dân twiceât ez many gallons er wine. En ole Mars Dugalâ des drunk it all in, des âpeared ter be bewitchâ wid dat Yankee. Wâen de darkies see dat Yankee runninâ ârounâ de vimyaâd en digginâ under de grapevimes, dey shuk dere heads, en âlowed dat dey feared Mars Dugalâ losinâ his minâ. Mars Dugalâ had all de dirt dug away fum under de roots er all de scuppernonâ vimes, anâ let âem stanâ dat away fer a week er moâ. Den dat Yankee made de niggers fix up a mixtry er lime en ashes en manyo, en poâ it ârounâ de roots er de grapevimes. Den he âvise Mars Dugalâ fer ter trim de vimes closeât, en Mars Dugalâ tuck ân done eveâything de Yankee tole him ter do. Dyoinâ all er dis time, mind yer, dis yer Yankee wuz libbinâ offân de fat er de lanâ, at de big house, en playinâ kyaâds wid Mars Dugalâ eveây night; en dey say Mars Dugalâ losâ moân a thousanâ dollars dyoinâ er de week dat Yankee wuz a-ruininâ de grapevimes.
âWâen de sap ris nexâ spring, ole Henry ânâinted his head ez yuzhal, en his haâr âmenceâ ter grow des de same ez it done eveây year. De scuppernonâ vimes growed monstâs fasâ, en de leaves wuz greener en thicker dan dey eber beân dyoinâ my remembâance; en Henryâs haâr growed out thicker dan eber, en he âpeared ter git younger ân younger, en soopler ân soopler; en seeinâ ez he wuz shoât er hanâs dat spring, havinâ tuk in considâable noo grounâ, Mars Dugalâ âcluded he wouldnâ sell Henry âtel he git de crap in en de cotton chopâ. So he kepâ Henry on de plantation.
âBut âlong âbout time fer de grapes ter come on de scuppernonâ vimes, dey âpeared ter come a change ober âem; de leaves withered en swivelâ up, en de young grapes turnâ yaller, en bimeby eveâybody on de plantation could see dat de whole vimyaâd wuz dyinâ. Mars Dugalâ tukân water
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