The Nevada journal. [volume] (Nevada City, Calif.) 1851-18??, 1857-12-04

ern States. Gents from the South will
recognize the truthfulness of the sketch
es:
4 Corn Shocking.
"But you must hear of the corn
shocking The one at which l was
present was given on purpose that l
might witness the humors of the Caro-
lima negroes. A huge fire of Hght-wood
was made near the courthouse. Light
wood is the wood of the long-leaved
pine, and is so called, not because it is
light, for it is almost the heaviest wood
in the world, but because it gives more
light than any other fuel. In clearing
land, the pines are girdled and suffered
to stand; the outer portion ot,the wood
decays and falls off, the inner part,
which is saturated with turpentine, re-
mains upright for years, and constitutes
the planters provision of fuel. When
supply is wanted, one of these dead
trunks is felled by the axe. The alum
dance of light-wood is one of the boasts
of South Carolina. Wherever you are,
if you happen to be chilly, you may
have a fire extempore; bit of light
wood and coal give you bright blaze
and strong heat in an instant. The
negroes make fires of it in the fields
where they work; and, when the morn
ings are wet and chilly, in the pens
where they are milking the cows. AT
plantation. where l passed frosty
night, | saw fires in small Enclosure,
and was told by the lady of the house
that she had ordered them to be made
TO warm the cattle.
1.-The light-wood fire was made, and
the negroes dropped in from the neigh
boring plantations, singing as they came.
The driver of the plantation, colored
man, brought out baskets of corn in the
hnsk, and piled it in heap; and the
negroes began to strip the husks from
tie ears, singing with great glee as they
worked, keeping time to the music, and
now and then throwing in joke and an
extravagant burst of laughter. The
songs were generally of comic char
acter; but one of them was set to a sim
sulaily wild and llaintive air, which
some OF our musicians would do well
to reduce to notation. These are the
words:
johnny come down de hollow
Oh hollow
Johnny come down de hollow.
Oh hollow
De nig5er-tradcr got nc.
Oh hollow!
De Spectator bought me.
Oh hollow
I'm sold for silver dollars
| CHI hollow
Boys, go catch de pony.
Oh hollow
Bring him round de corner.
Oh hollow
I'm goin' away to Georgia
Oh hollow
Boys, good-by forever!
Oh hollow :"
The song of Jenny gone away was
also given, and another, called the mon
key-song, probably Of African origin, in
which the principal singer personated a
monkey, with all sorts of odd gesticula-
tons, and the other negroes bore part in
the chorus, Dan, dan, who's de dandy 2
One of the songs, commonly sung on
these occasions, represents the various
animals Of the woods rs belonging to
some profession Or trade. For exam
pie
De eooter is de boatman-'
The cootcr is the tcrrarin, and a very
expert boatmen he is.
"De cootcr is de boatman.
John John Grow.
De red-bird de soger.
John John Crow.
De mocking-bird de lawyer.
John John Grow.
De alligator sawyer.
John John Crow"
"The alligators back is furnished
with toothed ridge, like the edge of
saw, which explains the last line.
"When the work of the evening was
over the negroes adjourned to spacious
kitchen. One of them took his place
as musician, whistling, and beating time
with two sticks upon the floor. Several
of the men came forward and executed
various dances, capering, prancing, and
drumming with heel and toe upon the
floor, with astonishing agility and per-
severance, though all of them had per-
formed their daily tasks and had work
ed all the evening, and some had walk
cd from four to seven miles to attend the
constructing. From the dances
transition was made to a mock military
parade, sort of burlesque of our militia
trainings, in which the words of COM
mand and the evoiutions were extreme
ly ludicrous. 1t became necessary for
the commander to make speech, and
confessing his incapacity for public
speaking, he called upon huge black
man named Toby to address the com
pany in his stead. Toby,a man of pow
e,ful frame, six feet high, his face orna-
mented with beard of fashionable cut,
had hitherto stood leaning against the
wall. looking upon the frolic with an air
of superiority. He consented, came