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
To save expense, I decided to tear down the old schoolhouse, and use the lumber, which was in a good state of preservation, in the construction of the new kitchen. Before demolishing the old house, however, I made an estimate of the amount of material contained in it, and found that I would have to buy several hundred feet of lumber additional, in order to build the new kitchen according to my wifeâs plan.
One morning old Julius McAdoo, our colored coachman, harnessed the gray mare to the rockaway, and drove my wife and me over to the sawmill from which I meant to order the new lumber. We drove down the long lane which led from our house to the plank-road; following the plank-road for about a mile, we turned into a road running through the forest and across the swamp to the sawmill beyond. Our carriage jolted over the half-rotted corduroy road which traversed the swamp, and then climbed the long hill leading to the sawmill. When we reached the mill, the foreman had gone over to a neighboring farmhouse, probably to smoke or gossip, and we were compelled to await his return before we could transact our business. We remained seated in the carriage, a few rods from the mill, and watched the leisurely movements of the mill-hands. We had not waited long before a huge pine log was placed in position, the machinery of the mill was set in motion, and the circular saw began to eat its way through the log, with a loud whir which resounded throughout the vicinity of the mill. The sound rose and fell in a sort of rhythmic cadence, which, heard from where we sat, was not unpleasing, and not loud enough to prevent conversation. When the saw started on its second journey through the log, Julius observed, in a lugubrious tone, and with a perceptible shudder:â â
âUgh! but dat des do cuddle my blood!â
âWhatâs the matter, Uncle Julius?â inquired my wife, who is of a very sympathetic turn of mind. âDoes the noise affect your nerves?â
âNo, Misâ Annie,â replied the old man, with emotion, âI ainâ narvous; but dat saw, a-cuttinâ en grindinâ thoo dat stick er timber, en moaninâ, en groanin,â en sweekinâ, kyars my âmembâance back ter ole times, en âminâs me er poâ Sandy.â The pathetic intonation with which he lengthened out the âpoâ Sandyâ touched a responsive chord in our own hearts.
âAnd who was poor Sandy?â asked my wife, who takes a deep interest in the stories of plantation life which she hears from the lips of the older colored people. Some of these stories are quaintly humorous; others wildly extravagant, revealing the Oriental cast of the negroâs imagination; while others, poured freely into the sympathetic ear of a Northern-bred woman, disclose many a tragic incident of the darker side of slavery.
âSandy,â said Julius, in reply to my wifeâs question, âwas a nigger wâat useter bâlong ter ole Mars Marrabo McSwayne. Mars Marraboâs place wuz on de yuther sideân de swamp, right nexâ ter yoâ place. Sandy wuz a monstâus good nigger, en could do so many things erbout a plantation, en alluz âtenâ ter his wuk so well, dat wâen Mars Marraboâs chilluns growed up en married off, dey all un âem wanted dey daddy fer ter gin âem Sandy fer a weddinâ present. But Mars Marrabo knowed de resâ wouldnâ be satisfied ef he gin Sandy ter aâer one un âem; so wâen dey wuz all done married, he fix it by âlowinâ one er his chilluns ter take Sandy fer a montâ er so, en den ernudder for a montâ er so, en so on dat erway tel dey had all had âim de same lenk er time; en den dey would all take him rounâ agâin, âcepânâ oncet in a wâile wâen Mars Marrabo would lenâ âim ter some er his yuther kinfolks ârounâ de country, wâen dey wuz short er hanâs; tel bimeby it got so Sandy didnâ hardly knowed whar he wuz gwine ter stay fum one weekâs eenâ ter de yuther.
âOne time wâen Sandy wuz lent out ez yushal, a spekilater come erlong wid a lot er niggers, en Mars Marrabo swapâ Sandyâs wife off fer a noo âoman. Wâen Sandy come back, Mars Marrabo gin âim a dollar, en âlowed he wuz monstâus sorry fer ter break up de fambly, but de spekilater had gin âim big boot, en times wuz hard en money skase, en so he wuz bleedst ter make de trade. Sandy tuk on some âbout losinâ his wife, but he soon seed dey want no use cryinâ ober spilt merlasses; en beinâ ez he lacked de looks er de noo âoman, he tuk up wid her atter sheâd beân on de plantation a montâ er so.
âSandy en his noo wife got on mighty well tergedder, en de niggers all âmenceâ ter talk about how lovinâ dey wuz. Wâen Tenie wuz tuk sick oncet, Sandy useter set up all night wid âer, en den go ter wuk in de mawninâ des lack he had his regâlar sleep; en Tenie would âaâ done anythinâ in de worlâ for her Sandy.
âSandy en Tenie hadnâ beân libbinâ tergedder fer moâ dân two montâs befoâ Mars Marraboâs old uncle, wâat libbed down in Robeson County, sent up ter finâ out ef Mars Marrabo couldnâ lenâ âim er hire âim a good hanâ fer a montâ er so. Sandyâs marster wuz one er dese yer easy-gwine folks wâat wanter please eveâybody, en he says yas, he could lenâ âim Sandy. En Mars Marrabo tolâ Sandy fer ter git ready ter go down ter Robeson nexâ day, fer ter stay a montâ er so.
âIt wuz monstâus hard on Sandy fer ter take âim âway fum Tenie. It wuz so fur down ter Robeson dat he didnâ hab no chance er cominâ back ter see her tel de time wuz up; he
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