The Souls of Black Folk W. E. B. Du Bois (nonfiction book recommendations .txt) đ
- Author: W. E. B. Du Bois
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âHave you heard him say anything out of the way?â
âWhy, noâ âbut Sally, our girl, told my wife a lot of rot. Then, too, I donât need to heah: a Nigger what wonât say âsirâ to a white man, orâ ââ
âWho is this John?â interrupted the son.
âWhy, itâs little black John, Peggyâs sonâ âyour old playfellow.â
The young manâs face flushed angrily, and then he laughed.
âOh,â said he, âitâs the darky that tried to force himself into a seat beside the lady I was escortingâ ââ
But Judge Henderson waited to hear no more. He had been nettled all day, and now at this he rose with a half-smothered oath, took his hat and cane, and walked straight to the schoolhouse.
For John, it had been a long, hard pull to get things started in the rickety old shanty that sheltered his school. The Negroes were rent into factions for and against him, the parents were careless, the children irregular and dirty, and books, pencils, and slates largely missing. Nevertheless, he struggled hopefully on, and seemed to see at last some glimmering of dawn. The attendance was larger and the children were a shade cleaner this week. Even the booby class in reading showed a little comforting progress. So John settled himself with renewed patience this afternoon.
âNow, Mandy,â he said cheerfully, âthatâs better; but you mustnât chop your words up so: âIfâ âthe-manâ âgoes.â Why, your little brother even wouldnât tell a story that way, now would he?â
âNaw, suh, he cainât talk.â
âAll right; now letâs try again: âIf the manâ ââ
âJohn!â
The whole school started in surprise, and the teacher half arose, as the red, angry face of the Judge appeared in the open doorway.
âJohn, this school is closed. You children can go home and get to work. The white people of Altamaha are not spending their money on black folks to have their heads crammed with impudence and lies. Clear out! Iâll lock the door myself.â
Up at the great pillared house the tall young son wandered aimlessly about after his fatherâs abrupt departure. In the house there was little to interest him; the books were old and stale, the local newspaper flat, and the women had retired with headaches and sewing. He tried a nap, but it was too warm. So he sauntered out into the fields, complaining disconsolately, âGood Lord! how long will this imprisonment last!â He was not a bad fellowâ âjust a little spoiled and self-indulgent, and as headstrong as his proud father. He seemed a young man pleasant to look upon, as he sat on the great black stump at the edge of the pines idly swinging his legs and smoking. âWhy, there isnât even a girl worth getting up a respectable flirtation with,â he growled. Just then his eye caught a tall, willowy figure hurrying toward him on the narrow path. He looked with interest at first, and then burst into a laugh as he said, âWell, I declare, if it isnât Jennie, the little brown kitchen-maid! Why, I never noticed before what a trim little body she is. Hello, Jennie! Why, you havenât kissed me since I came home,â he said gaily. The young girl stared at him in surprise and confusionâ âfaltered something inarticulate, and attempted to pass. But a wilful mood had seized the young idler, and he caught at her arm. Frightened, she slipped by; and half mischievously he turned and ran after her through the tall pines.
Yonder, toward the sea, at the end of the path, came John slowly, with his head down. He had turned wearily homeward from the schoolhouse; then, thinking to shield his mother from the blow, started to meet his sister as she came from work and break the news of his dismissal to her. âIâll go away,â he said slowly; âIâll go away and find work, and send for them. I cannot live here longer.â And then the fierce, buried anger surged up into his throat. He waved his arms and hurried wildly up the path.
The great brown sea lay silent. The air scarce breathed. The dying day bathed the twisted oaks and mighty pines in black and gold. There came from the wind no warning, not a whisper from the cloudless sky. There was only a black man hurrying on with an ache in his heart, seeing neither sun nor sea, but starting as from a dream at the frightened cry that woke the pines, to see his dark sister struggling in the arms of a tall and fair-haired man.
He said not a word, but, seizing a fallen limb, struck him with all the pent-up hatred of his great black arm, and the body lay white and still beneath the pines, all bathed in sunshine and in blood. John looked at it dreamily, then walked back to the house briskly, and said in a soft voice, âMammy, Iâm going awayâ âIâm going to be free.â
She gazed at him dimly and faltered, âNoâth, honey, is yoâ gwine Noâth agin?â
He looked out where the North Star glistened pale above the waters, and said, âYes, mammy, Iâm goingâ âNorth.â
Then, without another word, he went out into the narrow lane, up by the straight pines, to the same winding path, and seated himself on the great black stump, looking at the blood where the body had lain. Yonder in the gray past he had played with that dead boy, romping together under the solemn trees. The night deepened; he thought of the boys at Johnstown. He wondered how Brown had turned out, and Carey? And Jonesâ âJones? Why, he was Jones, and he wondered what they would all say when they knew, when they knew, in that great long dining-room with its hundreds of merry eyes. Then as the sheen of the starlight stole over him, he thought of the gilded ceiling of that vast concert hall, heard stealing toward him the faint sweet
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