The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1888-02-16
COULDN'T EXPLAIN.
A Sentimental White Man Tries to Pick q
Quarrel with an Old Negro.


A traveller who had read much of the
negro, and who had, while listening to
negro melodies sung by white men.
been impressed with the ''darkey's''
fullness of sentiment, stood watching
an old negro vino worked at a country
hotel
.How do you do?" said the white
man, bowing with q sort of tender and
sympathetic politeness.
How does / do?" replied the old
fellow.
Yes"
"Wall, l does bout de bes' l ken,
;ah."
81 mean how is your health?'
''Sorter slow at de present. Amt
heen all right in mer health fur seb-
eral days. Went de uder day whar er
frien' O mine killed haugs an L stood
roun' de fire, roastin' haug melts on de
hot rocks an eatin' EN-, did, till da
made me sick. 1t amt gwine do fur
er ole man ter ack like er boy, sab;
amt gwine ter do er tall. Wy, wen
I wuz er boy / uster 60 ter er haug-
killin' an eat all day laung. lister
chaw, did. till couldn' hardly shet
mer niouf Wen opened it
"a simple child of nature" unused
the traveller, ''an instrument upon
which the skilled politician may play
the tune of his unscrupulous improvisa-
tion." Then addressing the old negro
the sympathetic traveller added: You
love poetry, do you not?'
80, vas, sab, vas; likes any thing
dat's good ter eat"
'.You don't understand. Poetry is
not to eat. You can drink"
.'Suthin' ter drink? Hits me now.
yer does. When it comes ter suthin'
ter drink, wy, my top-not stan's up
like er ROSTERS. Wars de bottles
Show me de bottle ef yer wants ter see
ME bite de naik off. -
'You still misunderstood me, and in
ruth, / do not see how / am to ell.
tighten you. Poetry-and l wish now
that hadn't mentioned it's nothing
to eat or drink"
''Suthin' to war, den, eh? Wall,
like ter dress up ez much ez anybody
Jes mix some red in er suit o. cloze an
I'm dar, tell yer"
''Just keep quiet now until 1 ex
plain myself. Poetry is the music
Of"
''Music! Now got yer-got yer di
time, sho. Music-w'y, bless yer life
chile, Use er fiddler fruln de ole house
Use made all desc yere folks roun' yert
shake do hoofs at dances. / tell yer
Use got er ole fiddle dat'll take de gou
an rheumatic outen er foot in two min
it's"
Il am determined to make you un
derstand me. Poetry-and when ex
plain it know that you will acknowl
edge its influence--is revival of
feeling which you have felt before.
feeling brought up by certain words
whose tenderness, like the falling 0
, teardrops. brings glimpses of your owl
, SOUL
.'Look we're, Mister. Use er peaceabl
man. | is. an Use been here too launi
> fur er pusson ter come roun' talkin' te
me dat way. You talk ter me like rs
been stealin' suthin, talks ter me lik
dat jedge done ober yander in de cou't
house, an wants yer ter un'erstar
! dat Use er man dat tends ter mer ow
bizness. I come out yere ter scou' di
flo an not be Sian cred. sab"
, "Poor, deluded-"
a "Who's er 'ludedp Call me er 'lude
n ergin an I'll hit yer wild dis wet rag
D Go on outen yere. now, ur I'll call d
, boss. Come huntin' me up wen
r want doin' nothin' ter you an callir
! me er 'luded. You's er luded verse
/, sab; you's er blame son O. er 'ludet
n dat w'ut yer is. No, sab, no; doa
9 stop ter say ernuder word. OATS righ
4 move on. Huh, imperdest man l ebe
!. seed. Come down yere tryin' ter raj:
er row an lay he gets it. ''-Arkansa
a Traveller.
L "A celebrated physician has II
: marked that every house ought to /
= pulled down at the end of the sixtiet
g year, as it has by that time absorbe
s all the diseases of those who have live
|. in it, believing that wood and plast,
IS absorb gases, foul air and feverish e,
L halations as readily as milk or watt
|, does. But as it is not practicable
:. tear down houses every half-centul
:. or SO, it is TO be considered if all ii
l. wood used in the interior construetie
g and all the plain surfaces of plast'
n should not be SO thoroughly oiled
it vanished that the power of absorptic
/ should be almost entirely destroye
st and the character thus SO changed th
10 destruction would be no longer desir
BILE. Boston Budget.
n Tn tho Othar <at,