The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1886-11-20


doah n pray wild yoh eyes shut. N
when yoh git huff OBJ money, You'll
wake some mornin' N Bobbs'll he
gone. He'll not come back for tree
months, N YOU mus keep quiet and
say muffin. N when he comes, he'll
be dancin' N jumpin'.' Praise de
Lohd..'
DR.. Mactier's grave face kept me 81
lent.
81 understand" he said. after a
longer pause than before. you have
put the money in the pecan-trce:?'
''Reg'lar, sab"
"And it is always gone in the morn
ing2'
''Clah vanished, sah!' with an cx-
preston of awe and delight. as if she
had assisted at a veritable miracle.
As we crossed the meadow on our
way home, the doctor asked. ''Nhat is
the truth about this old mistress Of
Clossy's?"
'Shc was 4 fruit-huckstcr from New
Orleans | told him, "who had saved
enough money to buy a few acres
here and two or three slaves. She
could not read or write, and l remem-
Der that there was a umo that she
had black blood in her veins. But
how do you understand CIossy's
story?:'
ut is easily understood. Her mis-
tress was enra-cd at losing her slaves,
and, going to the cabin, probably
threatened the child, whose mother
had made a bogy of her for him all Of
his life. The child's terror brought on
an attack Of paraphlcgia. 1t is not an
uncommon CASE
"Rut this offer to remove the spell?:"
simply is a scheme tc rob the poor
washpr-woman of her little earnings,
and, | believe. to kidnap the boy and
exhibit him. ! assure you. there is y
fortune in his voice, and some one has
told his old mistress Of it. The in
credible part of the affair to me is that
Glossy should trust the old hag, know
ing her as she did,
'Oh, that is quite natural for one CT
her a e. They are tn most credulous
people living | said, adding that, as
soon as George (my husband) arrived,
the old woman should be brought to a
confession.
George, however, did not return for
two weeks. Early on the morning of
the tenth day, Aunt Judy burst into
myroom.
"Bobbs is gone, Miss Lucy! Was
outen de medder feedin' de geese when
he's mudder went in de house, n
when she look out, he vanished. Toby
say dab was a stread o light like fire,
m Josh say dat it war II black cloud
swoopln' down like u buzzard. n car
him off. | dono. But de wonder is
Glossy rc;oicin'! She say ole Mist
Yokum hab him, N it all right
hurried to Clossy's cabin. and found
her in Il state of ecstatic content. ''Ole
mist was GAVIN now to lif' de trick
bress de Lohd!' she cried.
1t seemed cruel to disturb her de-
fusion. She showed me a paper on
which was scrawled: do nothing for
two months. Then wait under the
pecan-tree at sunset
resolved not to tell her the truth
until the two months were over. As
DR.. Macticr was gone, | went alone to
beard Mrs. Yokum in her den. But
the honsc was closed and empty.
When George returned, he was not in
clined to be so eager in pursuit OF her
as | expected, putting me off with de-
claring that ''the devil was not so black
as he was painted" and other general
man-like evasions.
He remained at home but a day.
After he was gone, the ladies of the
village reused to sympathy with
Clossy's lifelong trouble, busted them
selves in making her comfortable. A
bit of carpet from one, 4 chair or two
from another, some gay curtains.
chromos, dishes, and the old cabin be-
came a palace among the other huts.
During the first month, these gifts
kept Glossy in a state of rapturous en-
element. They were all for Moncheer
Robiieaux, when he should come back
sound and whole. lie was never cheat
ed out of a syllable of his name now.
She worked night and day to earn
money to receive him like the prince
he was. She never doubted Mrs. Yok-
um's promise for y moment. But
as the weeks wore on, and her prep
tl thu Hrnt,nn'c