Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1881-06-24

her round little body.
"What is your name 2" asked, by way of
a beginning to my labors.
"Sho now !" she said "you-um knows"
mo. dear, don't know" said.
The grin faded from her face. Fought
you-um uns knowed eJ7yting," she said in a
disappointed tone.
but not your names until you tell them"
l said. "Tell me yours"
She's Harcourrs Wine Mango !" shouted
a voice in the rear.
''Shet up, you nigga, or I'll mash yer !"
said the girl looking veDgefully in the direc-
ton Of the voice.
"what is your name p repeated.
'V'line Mango" she said rather sulkily.
"Harcourt's Wine Mango"
IL took us some little time to understand
that surnames were represented by the names
of the former owners used as a prefix. l
soon had on my book "Howard's Seraphine
Jane" ''Potter's Mandy Iisbuth Maria,"
and dozens of names whose original was as
obscure as that of Wine Mango, over the
derivation Of which Fannie and vanly puz.
zled our brains. The names taken, 1 dis
tributed primers, and called up ten of the
scholars.
'Y'line, l said, pointing to page, that
isA."
''sho now dat arr Dat ar's camp -kittle
sticks"
''But we call it A. See if you can find me
another A"
second one was triumphantly pointed
out; dat ar A."
Yes; that is A."
Down dueked the pink bonnet, up went
pair of black heels, as Wine Mango cried,
turning complete somerset xxi vi! Dis
nigga knows Al"
"You must stand still while 1 am teaching
you, Wine" l said with as much gravity as
could command
She grimaced, twisting one naked black
foot over the other.
Now, this" l continued, sis another a.
| little a."
Hi Tudder AS pickaninny Nanny
| A, n pickaninny a Hi dar's anudder !"
She pointed out as on the page with mar
velous rapidity, evidently delighted, while
all the black fingers in the class were soon on
a similar quest. 1t was amazing to see the
ayidity Of these children to study, and be-
| widering to me, accustomed to seeing my
little scholars in dear New England look up
on their studies as tasks taken up reluctantly.
We soon had all our woolly heads bent
over primers looking for letters, and the hum
Of voices heard in all schools was broken con-
stantly by exclamations Of
II done Ootched b."
''Hi see dat ar? OATS pickaninny c."
''Shet up, you nigga OATS d."
''Sho now Specs you know morn me ?
Tell yer dat ar's G. Use gwine ter ak de
teacher" And the disputed letter was sub
mitted to me.
But must tear myself from the memories
Of the school-hours il / am to tell my story.
We soon found that we must be very reso-
Lutte in keeping the scholars out of the wretch
ed room in q negro cabin, which was the only
shelter we could obtain, or be without one
hour of privacy but no frowns or seedlings
u -
out from under our bed at midnight; she
scrambled in at the window when the door
was fastened she perched on the roof to
watch for our coming; she brought her
bruises and cuts for our pity, and stole chick
ems to present to us. Finding we must &C
cept her, we made her a suit of clothing,
nearly lost her allegiance by discArding the
pink satin bonnet, and allowed her to come
and go as she would.
Don't you-ums eber wallop you-ums mig
gas p she asked.
mo :" was the emphatic answer
Hi yer'd oughten see Missee Hellum
make de ha'r fly She kin mash yer, she
kin now! Don't want none OBJ yer lazy mig
gas roun' her, Missee Hellum don't. Jes' let
fly de chairs on yer. Hi you-ums oughten
see Missee Hellum when she sure 'nuff mad :"
Does Miss Helen whip you ?" Fannie
asked.
When she done cotches me. 'Fo' de wa
she wAlloped all de niggas, NANNY Julianne
sez but dey run of, day did Oars lot o.
niggs come back, but dey's free niggas now.
Missee Hellum shies de chars an de plates at
um, but dey amt tied up no mo- an fiogged,
or put in de ole barn and hung up by de
fums. Yer can't jest kill a nigga now, kase
de Bruro's arter yer but Mssee Hellum she
ies' lows she gwine ter make she-ums mig
gas min, an she jes' does it, she does. Hi
you-ums oughten see de pickaninnies tumble |
ober one 'nudder when dey see AIissee Hell
lum a-comin'; an, jes' yer say Freedmen's |
School to Missee Hellum an she-ums eyes
jes' snap like dey was fre-sparks !"
''But she allows you all to come to the |
school"
specs no body done az her." was the re-
ply, as Wine Mango tossed her head with an |
air of complete independence "Who's gwine |
ter AK white folkses 'missium to be gwine |
ter schooll Hi! Reckon desc niggas free |
niggas, gwine Norf some desc times. Man, |
my Julianne done been Norf couldn't fin |
de man wot gibs niggas de houses but |
reckon he's dar. Missee Hellum she done
lowed all de folks Mort was born debils."
Fannie and exchanged glances We had |
met Miss Helen Harcourt, and the fash of
her great black eyes, the scorn of her naughty |
face, the careful avoidance of touching our
skirts as we passed, showed her estimation |
OF the treedmens teachers.
She was the only child of an ex-colonel of
the Confederate army, who had returned
from the war crippled by the loss of his left
hand and with disease of the optic nerve
slowly but surely leading TO total blindness.
His daughter was superbly handsome, a
glowing brunette of eighteen, with a wonder |
ful proficiency in music, and with temper
that was by-word with the negroes, some
seventy of whom, after deserting him, had
returned to the old colonel after a years ab-
sence. "We-ums cum back to take car ole
marse," one old aunte told me. "Went
Rorf, we-ums did, TO git dat ar house, an
mule, an cotton-feP, an watch, an silk
gowns, an neber fetched one of dem ar.
Heber What's de use bein' free niggas
when we-ums got noffin, sames white folks
So we-ums come SOuf agin, to take car o.
ole Marse Harcourt. Which, being trans
lated, meant that seventy of his old slaves
lived on the scanty produce of the neglected
plantation, refusing to work, and reporting
''Missee Hellum's cuffs and abuse TO the
''Freedmens Bruro" about once a week.
Tive half mind TO call on that handsome
vixen in my official capacity" Lieutenant
Bronson said to me, land tell her Uncle Sam
will not allow her to crack free men over the
skull with poker or fling knives at them"
"Why don't you ?" asked
"It is so miserable to threaten a woman
and an old man almost blind. Besides they
are keeping seventy of their old slaves on
the place, and really they will not work
stroke if Miss Helen is not watching and
storming all day"
"Poor girl =" said sit is hard for her"
isn't it ?" he asked eagerly. ''She was
in Paris all through the war, in a convent
and she comes home to ruin, desolation and
misery Have you ever heard her sing?n
thought of Wine Mango's description :
"Pears like Missee Hellum done got a fous,
and birds in she-ums froat, " and quoted it,
'She does sing superbly" said the lieuten-
ant, ''and their piano is quite fair. She is
very handsome. You see the Bureau Office
is close to Harcourt's house, and can hear
her and see her whenever she comes out of
kba D. h. ind 10