Litchfield enquirer., 1880-03-11
GEORGIA SKETCHES

I ,lt5f GEORGIA SKETCHES ss.l s7a
 ,st''. Nav Nav i" heard Kernanny say. ! sn What honey ?? Diana asked blandly of her fayorite child. 1T .os a,r74an1s0 alIAr q Nav, is de students out in de daytime p l ''Dey tells me so, chile-dey's out at all l times "inq@H -o9i'a79@s t .f57@sS1 bi1B '''e 1 ." Mawl What does de students want mid folkses ?'' ;.s.,, r.,i..e., s.s, 4s .t,naa ..-3r
 ''l dunno, pig" l't pig" was gentle name when Diana called Kernanny by it, and ca- ressing), "dey makes oil of em, dey tells me-" sei- ,HJne.
 gro drink, coot dey makes, de oil you drinks out O live folks's bodies P '''7 '" Diana I called, severely. 1" Diana come here to me. What are youtelling Kern l anny?" .,,.,..,.. -.i- ,,.,-5r ''Miss Jasmin, it's bout desc here medical ! studenses at the college You done heard l what dey does to folks.''a ,gEi H.t t.o. r | "I have heard some talk of it, and that there was big scare among you all, but, I | hardly can believe it. What do you really | think the students dop" a 'E#2 m" 'i"1i @' l Miss Jasmin," Diana said sOleunly and slowly, leaning with. one elbow on the mantel- piece and one foot (wearing 8 mans shoe) | stuck out toward the fire, while her serious face was turned over her shoulder toward me.
 Miss Jasmin, dey takes folks wherever dey kin ketch lem, an puts stickin' plasters over deir mouf so dey can't holler, an carries 'em to de college, an cuts lem up. Dev does do 1t, Miss Jasmin. An de wors' of it is, dey ain't 'fraid to take nobody. Faint on'y nig- gers, but it's white folks, too. Dere's rich mans son missin' ofn Msreetta-st., an mo- body never will fin him twell de, Judgment An dere's whole fambly O white folks-po' white folks-is disappeared; widow 'onian and her three chillun-gone clean out de way. An as to niggers-why, it's done, broke up goin' to church, an eve'thin'. Law, Miss Jasmin. its gttin' time to be skeered t"'@'''s'' | Diana, don't you know any better than that'2" queried. <. . .s s.,s7 ffI r "t'Who? Miss Jasmin, I done tole de truf, Don you 'b'lieve dey does itg' N i' ''"''''''''
 "Do what Diana?' Make oil of people ?"'
 "Well, don, dey. Miss Jssmin2 Dey tell
 me dey does-dis here castor oil what you takes for med 'cine-ain' it made out O live folkses 2'' a.- "-.. '.a I.f ,n a "i%'
 "Dianal Why, don't you know there is a bean called the castor bean, and the oil takes it's name from the bean they get, it from That oil is made out of beans and nothing else. Now, Diana want to explain this scare to you. I've heard all about how it came up, and some people just laugh at.it and say
  nights, and they won't tell their servants any better Now, do you want to know the truth p "Yes'm, course does" .,. --,.... "Well, as understand it, this is it. You know there is new medical college here. We'll, the students want to be doctors. Now doctor has to know what people are like in- slde Sometimes sick person dies, and the doctors don't know what killed him aud they cut him open and find terrible sore here or sign of poison there They have to learn how people are, so as to cure them Now in some countries, believe the doctors and students are given the bodies of all men who are hanged for certain crimes; and in this country they get them in different ways Sometimes they steal out of their graves persons who have just been buried and the way all this scare came, a man up here in Chattanooga got to stealing dead bodies and sending them to this college, and he was found out, and people were furi. ous, and 1t was in the papers and made great talk. l heard of a lady who was SO afraid they han stolen her little boys body that she had his grave opened herself, to be sure he was there where she had laid him." ..,y .., ,E.
 "Pears like I'd .ha' had dat grave dug deep CT and put him whar dey was safe not to git him, 'lessn dey worked twell daylight" Diana said. Al, .... ..,f........ -., hr.a 9st Well, after all this was in the paper there, came another scare nearer hOme-at Marietta. Here's where the name of negro first comes in.. They say inc negro porter of this college helped man to steal some bodies there" Dead ones, Miss Jasmin 2" "Of course, dead. And that negro is accus- ed of this, and some people believe he is guilty and some aon't have talked with very clever lawyer, who is going to defend him before the court, who says he is innocent. We'll, the scare came from this. You darkies got it started tLat they took live people,"
 Miss Jasmin' eagerly. Miss Jasmin, femme tell you. Dey say dere was two men goin' down de street one dark night, an dey SOW a man wid bundle O sompin an soon's he saw dem he commenced standin it up ag'inst de fence, an sayin', Q, come now, stan up; don be so drunk be man, ole feller: stan up, tell you,' an dey thought that it was a drunken man shore huff, an dey started to cross de road to have laugh at him, an de antuk to his heels an run, an deY come up to de drunk man whar he lay, an Miss Jasmin, fore gracious, dey say it was dead man wrap ped in sack an hardly cole ylt!"
 With sticking plaster over his mouth ?"
 "I dunno, m. Law! Miss Jasmin, how kin you laugh? Miss Jasmin. ef was to go cross de road some dark night to see Char lotte, an dem studentses was to grab me, you'd never know no more bout it! You'd jes' know your cook was missin', an you never WOuIu kuOW WudL kOL Iuc.
 "But, Diana, don't you know they woldun't dare to murder people by wholesale in that way? Don't you know they would be hung if they killed the smallest child? But go away; l might collect together all the negroes in this neighborhood, and talk solid sense to them by the hour, and give them my word and honor as lady, and they wouldn't believe word said."
 "Yes, I'm, Miss Jasnlin, we would believe you; yes, Tn, of co'se we would but den we'd be afraid to resk it." .....f....., .s-.,,y
 l coulden't help laughing at her.
 Well, go your ways, Diana," I said. '1t will only keep you at home of nights, and if 1 were like some people would have told yon an extra horror or two to make sure you were thoroughly scared. expect the worst stories that have got about came from the desire to tease and frighten the servants after they be- gan to be frightened at all Who told you about this first ?''
 ''Ds fust as told me was Mr. Brinley, Miss Jasmin an den Aunt Julie's husband, he brought de- news from town, too; an an ole colored lady at Aunt Dinah's gate one mornin' heard Aunt Dinah say, Come round an spen' de ebenin tonight, she say. an she say to Aunt Dinah, Unnuh, honey, you don kotch me out nights, wid desc here studentses on deir rovn's, she say; an ast her, Lady I said, please tell me, is dat all 90 bout stealin' folks an cuttin' lem up P an she say, .Yes, It IS 30 an dey takes lem over to de ole soap factory back O de college. an cuts deir flesh from deir bones-' Ugh! Miss Jasmin, you wonder all de meetin's is broke up an de churches ain open for night meetin', or prar meetin' any mo Elf de preachers is afraid. you know we is"
 s"'Diana, did you ever hear MT. Brinley preach ?"l ...,a t!v. l.ydl E. ssu.. a''Yes, I'm, he breaches reg'lar. He works as brickiayer wid MT. Longley week days, an breaches Sundays. Dey ain't lazy bonetin his body" .E, ,d .jgia .sss4,,d a1s, es3 s.d. 'Tm glad to hear it for your sake, Diana. I've never seen him yet, you know; but but l
 a Miss Jasmin, of you an Mars Gordon didn't always hal so much comp'ny, l He bin. wantin'' to come in an ask Mars Gordon for me desc two W. eks. We wants to git mar ried week from Wensday." @ja