Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-28
THE JUDGEMENT OF SOLOMON.
How 1t was Viewed by an Observant
COlOred ScripturaI Student.


l read considerable to Jim about kings
and dukes and earls and such, and how
gaudy they dressed and how much style
they put on, and called each other your
majesty, and your grace, and your lord.
ship, and so on, stead of mister; and
Jim's eyes rulged out, and he was inter.
ested. He says:
81 didn't know dey was so many un UNI
| haint hearn bout none I'm um skasely,
but ole King Sollermun, OnIess you counts
dem kings OATS in a pack er k'yards
How much do king git?''
"Get?' L says; ''why, they get a thOus-
and dOllars.a month, if they wantit; they
can have just as much as they want;
everything belongs to Them"
Ain dat gay! En- what dey got to do,
Huck?'
..They don't do nothingi Why, how you
talk! They just set around"
''No; is dat SOP"
"Of course it is. They just set around
except maybe when there's a war; then
they go to the war. But other times they
just lazy around; or go hawking-just
hawking and sp- Shl D. you hear a
noise Y'
We skipped out and looked; but il
warn't nothing but the flutter of a steam.
boats wheel, away down coming around
the point; so we come back.
YES" says /, ''and other times, when
things is dull, they fuss with the Party.
ment; and if every body don't go just so,
he whacks their heads off. But mostly
they hang round the harem."
"Roun' de which~
'Harem."
"What's de harem?"
"The place where he keeps his wives.
Don't you know about the harem? Solo
mon had one, he had about a million
| wives"
"Why, yes, dat's so; I'd done forgot it.
A harem's bO'd'n house, l reck'n. Mos
likely dey has rackety times in de nuss-
cry. En- reck'n de wives quaTrels con-
sidable; en- dat crease de racket. Yit
dey say SOllermun de wises' man dat
ever live. | dOan' take no stock in dat.
Becase why? Would a wise man live
in de mids' er such a blimblammin' all
de time? Nodded he wouldn't. A wise
man 'ud take en- buiP biler factry; en-
den he could shet down de biler factry
when he want to res'."
swell, but he was the wisest man, any
way; because the widow she told me so,
her own self"
II doan' k'yer what de wilder say, he
warn't no wise man, nuther. He had
some er de dad-fetchedes' ways l ever
see. Does you know bout dat chile dat
he 'uz gwyne to chop in twow
Eyes, de widow told me all about It,"
"Well, dent Warm dat de beatenes' no.
ton in Ge wOrP? You Jes' take en- look at
it a minute. Dah's de stump. dah-dat's
one er de women; heah's yeu-dat's de
yuther one; rs SOllermun; en- dish yer
dollar bilPs de chile. Bofe un you claims
it. What does | do? Does l shin arOun'
'mongs' de neighbOrs en- fine out which
un you de bill do b'lOng to, en- ham it
over to de right one, all safe en- SCUM, de
way dat anybody dat had any gumptiOn
wouldy Mo- take en- whack de hi,, m
two en- give halt ~ ~. it tc you, en- de yuther
l4alI 10 the yuther woman. OATS de way
SOllermun was gwyne to do wild de chile!
Now, | want to ask you: what's de use er
dat halt bill?-can't buy nun y wild 1t.
En- what use Is half chile? | wouldn't
give dern for a million on um.v
"But hang it, Jim, you've clean missed
the pOint-blame it, you've missed it a
thousand mile"
"WhO? Me? Go 'long. Doan' talk to
me bout yo' pints. II reck'n knows sense
when l sees it: en- dey aim no sehse in
SIGH dOin's as dat. De 'spute warn't' bout
half chile; de 'spute was bout a whole
chile; and de man dat think he kin settle
a 'spute bout whole chile wild half a
chile doan' know enough to come in Outn
de rain. DOan' talk to me bout Soller-
mum. Huck. knows him by de back"
''But l tell you, you don't get the point"
"Blame de pint! reck'n knows what
knows. En- mine you, de real pint is
down furder-it's down deeper. 1t lays
in de way SOllermun was raised. You
take man dat's got on'y one er two chill
len; is dat man gwyne to be wasteful o.
chillen? No, he amt; he can't ford it.
He knows how to value 'em. But you
take man OATS got bout i've million
chillen runnin' rOun' de house, en- it's DIFF
funt. He as soon chop a chile in two as a
cat. oey's plenty mo-. A chile er two,
mo- er less, warn't no consekens to SOller-
mum, dad fetch him!' MARK TWAIN.