Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1878-08-22
Co1nREn yorER.-"Ahrahn!


how do the white and the colored peo-
pie get along together at the South?"
"Why, dey gifts along well enough;
git along together? Dey all b'lonss
yere, an dey was all born am brung
up yere. OF course -doy-gits along.
But. massa, WE VOTE
AS he uttered the Wcrls "We votes"
Abraham's face WAS a study. The in-
deX finger of his right h,.nI Was press
ed against his lips, and his rOunteDance
assumed an expression D. once full Of
meaning and yet as blank a5 stone
wall. Finding that he WAs disposed to
take refuge behind this p1ntOmime
from future revelations, L replied Yes,
l know you vote, Abraham, but the
thing that want TO know is whether
there are serious troubles and differ
ences here between the colored people
and the white people. How is iI?"
"Why, to be sure dar'S troubles an
differences down here; in course ddr Is.
Don't ye see niggers is niggers, an
white folks down S0uf, jis like dey Is
all overs? l spect dar'S troubles Tween
folks up Norf, an dat's de way tits
down Souf. Sometimes de white folks
has a row, an den again sometimes de
niggeIs has a 70 v; sometimes de white
folks pitch into de niggers, an some :.
times de nigger5 pitch into de white
folks-an' den again dey don't. But,
| say, massa, WE WOTES!"
Again Abraham resorted to the same
expressive pantOmine, but pretended
not to com prehend his meaning, though
/ began to have glimmering of 1t.
So resumed: "YOu have told me that
twice, Abraham, but it is no answer to
my question:: Now no dodglng, but
come straight to the pOint-are the
white people and the colOred folks
friends or enemies? Do you understand
that?'
"Oh yes, massa, dat talks plain
enough. l guess | kin understand it
widout kickin'. Now jis lemme tell
you how its. S'pOse niger gifts sick:
well, dar amt no niger doctors, am
we've got to go to de white doctors.
Understan'? Well, jis so, dar amt no
nigger lawyers, nor bankers, nor butch
ers, nor bakers, nor noffiu', an we've
got to pend on de white lawyers an
butchers an bakers. Understan',
massa? Very well, den, eff | wants to
to sell, dar amt no niggers to go to,
an I've got to go to de white folks.
S'pose my chile was to die, dye spect
I'd want another common uigger jis
like myself to bury hi:n? No, Sir. He
should have de best white minister dar
is a-goin'. An den agin, s'pOse dar's
sickness or trouble in my family, an
want good keer an words o. comfort,
do you spect I'd run to udder niggers
to get 'ern? All Pve got to say Is, ef l
did, I'd be disappointed sure. But
don't do 1t, an no niggers does it what
kin help it. Eff my wife or chile gets
taken bad, l goes to Kurnal Rob's
sister, an den knows it's boom to
come right of any thin kin make it
come right; an ef L gifts into trouble,
like that dam bail, why, / jis goes to
Kurnel Bob hisse'f, an he helps me to
pull through. Dat's what we niggers
has got to do, massa. But den, you
see, WE woTEs!"
No ingenuity of which 1 was the
master could extract more direct re-
ply from Abraham, who seemed to be |
an adept in the art of saying nothing !
with his tongue while his face and eyes |
and hands spoke volumes. l had no
doubt, anowever, that the impression
he sought to convey was that while |
there were many strong ties of interest,
affection, and sympathy between the |
two races, and that while the negroes |
instinctively v aresOrtedtto the whites in |
great emergencies, deferring to their
superior intelligence in matters Of do
mestic or business coneernment, they |
still held themselves distinct political |
ly, because they perceived that some
gonism of interests, which they held
in restraint by massing their votes as
an undivided unit.-From "Ab'm: a |
Glimpse of Modern Dixe," by Charles
ID. Deshler, In Harper's Magazine for