Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1867-04-23
HU MO us.
From the Southern cuitivator.l
Letter from GENES Munro.
MIss1ssIppr. Feb. 1s6i

Mr. ERittG-Thar ain't no use ter deny
it, for it's Jest as the poit said, some twenty
hundred yeres afOre this here present writer,
when he said, ''times amt as they uster was"
No, sir, When kast my optikal luminaries
askant, and experience the foatin' events
what ar hsppenin ever aud anon, kontinually,
I'm konstrained to make use of the aforesaid
potts language, with feelins kin ter melau-
koly. Everything is changing, and l kant
keep up with 'em. We go from bad to bad
er, and I'm Altered there is worser still away
fernent the present. 1866 has diseased
gone glimmering- been wound up and slid
silently back into the vast lumber room, whar
time draps as it wares out-taint even a
''skool boys tail" Kould / step back into
that thar aforesaid ''room" I'd pick up the
yere '66 and wipe out heap er things re-
corded agin Jemes Munro. Yes sir don't
know but I'd tear the hole kontrapsion, from
Krismus ter Krismus, and let 65 run smooth
inter 67-skippin 4th July, even. "How,
0 how ar the mighty fallin!" But its all
been did now, and its too late to cry after yer
b-s are tore. Wisdom says mend um
quick, ter kiver yer nakidness-be more kcer>
tul and tare EN- no more.
wound up at the end er the yere with 81
bales er kotton-havin spent % bales ter
make the 81. Now have ter spend the 81
made but little, aud l made but lttlerNbut
havin adopted the britchcs parable, proverb,
er whatever it tbs, [ am tryin it agin, and
don't low to give it up yit-however, every
thing is'a runnin kontrarywise. Tho't I'd
ship ten bales cr kotton ter Mobile tothcr
day, and hawled it ter the Depo-a Teller
KUN up and said he had ter way the kotton
atOre it kOuld go-that he war government
agent and sumthin bout rivernue. l told
him 1t warnt government kotton, but belonged
to me and the niggers what made it. All
the same, he said, and waved the hole of it
atore kouId xplain thing about hit, then
said that must fix up ther taxes aforc it
kould git on the kars.
You kno [ told yer I was tryin to quit
fghtin an kussin, SO sot rite down thar all
day, ter see if he done everybody the same
way, but he did, and had ter give that thar
chap nigh on to one hundred S ter git ther
kottOn released from konfiskasion, and cit it
on the kars. Do they do your Gcorgy folks
this way, Mr.. Editur? Has the North bust
ed up, and are we carryin on ther Government
by taxin kotton? Somethin is wrong
things Orter be more equil on ''the best Gov
erhment on the yerth." What sorter per-
duce have they got, they tax ike kotton p
May be we aint back in the Government Wit
but then yer kant make ieller pay the pre-
cher afore he jines the church. I'm SO fur
behind, ] kant understand thcr changes
I'm lookin fur tax on corn and pertaters,
next thing. When they do that, blieve I'll
quit the whole kontrapsion, go out and line
the lRJins, whar thar amt no laws taxes, Gov
ernnent agents, nor nuthin else, and every
feler shutfles for hissaf Ter tax one set
er folks and not the tothcr, aint that konfis.
kasiOn Whar's the use er callin it taxes.
When me and my folks lived on Little River,
Georgy, L uster to go to town-run my hand
Inter my pocket, pull out few thrips and
bits, pay my taxes, get recipe, and heard
no moro OF taxes that yere; but now, out
here, you kant sneeze thout payin fur it, and
Its that way all thru the yere. Then, when
krismus kums, they jst make clean sweep,
and take nigh onto all yer perduce Yer
kant write "One day after date" thout byin
a permission and stick it on Has Mississip
pi moved ter Ingland2 Does white folks
git anything out er the "Civil Rights Bill 2"
If so, what civilities, and whar are yer rights
AR sail men born free and equIl," as they
uster was? If SO, whars your freedom and
yer equil Yer see I'm SO fur behind the
times, kant locate myself-beIieveI' ! m lost.
They say ther nigger's free-if SO, l know
white folks ar sold, and we aint found out
who we belong ter-just a sloshin round
loose-stray dogs thout anybody ter give us
bone. Jarushalem Wish a yeth quake
would kum-make big land slide of Mis-
sisslppl, and land her away out yander in the
ocean, sorter island like. Somebody would
want us then, l reckon, thout cents on kot
ton. Then, if Alabamy and Georgy begun
ter crack all round and slide slowly, wouldn't
somebody want to throw on the grappliu
irons, and may be offer premium Of cents
on kotton. Whoope! wouldn't ther be
shakln er the dry bones in KoBGress, and
bellowin and tarrin up er dirt by the Bulls
on Wall Street. Yer 5-2O's would drap
down to l-nothins, and green backs berkome
thum papers fur kullered children. This
may never come ter pass-that is ter say, the
landslide; but them other things. G..
''shakin Of dry bones" aud thum papers-is
as certain as Krismus, if things keeps er goin
on as tha ar now. Aint the goose most ded
what laid TIE golden aig? Aint Kongriss
slttin on litter of foreign aigs, and hachin
out things never hern of afore DON'T the
hole eliments (perlitically sreekin) stink er
rottun aigs? In short, (speekin Of freedom)
amt the whole kontrapsion a dad-ratted
skunk stensh in ther nostcrls of the Konsti-
tuition as it uster was
The Scriptur tells of an onrulv bow what
cut up tremendously and seeded from his
dadies government. This boy arter irwin ter
live solus bolus, sortcr busted up and cum
nigh onto starvin, and went back home. The
old man seed him akomin afar off, down the
lane, and run and met and hugged him /; put
bran new coat of many kullers on him had
the fattest yearlin on the place killed and
barbakued, and all the nab6rs cum over, and
they had big dinner, and the old man war
happy, fur his lost son war found. l expect
they had chicken fxins, and heap er other
good things. Well, away back yander in 81,
we down South, got ter cuttin up. and bust
ed loose from the old house at Washington.