Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1891-05-13

Portable, Royal, so you can teach me
some of your best songs. You sing
don't your"
"Oh, yes'mI'
"Did you ever live on a planta
tion?"
"Sho'ly l did. l aim live nowhar
else, clear o. desc las two years been
refugeein' down heah in Weldon. ]
was riz on de ole RoyI plantation, an,
! nuver come away twull ole Mis- die.
You heerd how she met with a turri.
BILE accidentI tole her dat was o
superstitious ladder, an she mustn't
sot her foot on 1t agin-I seen a ha'nt
on dat same ladder one moonlight
night in de barn. Sperrits is mighty
quiet folks mostly; dey stays whar day
put, dey amt gwine ter meet I'D wild
you les'n dey come for sump'n but
ole Mis- she wont listen ter me, she
full o. whimsies, an she got ter hang
up dem greens wild her own hands,
Christmas, an sho' nuff, she tumble
down an broke her spinal bone, so she
couldn't get up no mol"
"Ole Mis-, she set heap o. sto' by
me; white folks alters did like me:
nuver had no boss'n an doggin', 'kase
dey soon see terr peoples property
amt got no chawms for my principles
an character. l bewar' % covishness,
l does, / too much enameled wild Chris
tianity for dat. Well, wen dey sell
de ole place, | come down heah ter
work on de railroad; but dey tu'n me
off las wintah when dey done layin'
de new track. l keep hangin' on, a
hopin' to git sump'n ter do on de road
agin-but l got to scratch roun' an
make out ter live in de meantime"
"What are you doing now?'
al aint got no speshual employmun,
Nam: only wat l kin pick up a
whitewash'n an mendin' chars an
tables at de hotel, Wen dey gifts so on
steadfas' can't do muffin wild 'em.
Times is gittin' harder ev'y day now" !"
He scratched his head and looked
down on the floor with becoming re-
serve.
''Have you any family?"
"Yessum, l has had consid able
family my wife she present me wild
fo' o. de fines an de blackes' niggah
babies in the State o. Fahginy, fo' de
wah, an to make shorts out of a
mighty long tale-we raised 'em all,
'an dey tu'nd out ecamps, dey did, its
de naked trufe, an It's scanned an q
shame. ] ain KEEP track of all of 'em.
| don't want hear no mo- bout 'em.
ain got much use for niggahs no how"
He gave deep sigh. "'Den after all
our sufferment, de Lawd he greed ter
make q compromise, an he sont down
a I'll lamb f'om de gret white frone,
ter be de pride of our life. Dat was
des fo' years ago, she come like de las
button off Gabe's collar, after Tiddy
done give de cradle away,-oh, da'
blessed pil gall"
Royals voice quivered with a mys-
terious parental teneerness, and there
was moist look in his eyes. ''But
my membunce gittin' slack, - wat
kinder song dat, yo' want yo' humblin'
servant teach yo'?"
"I'd rather you should choose one"
With firm, solemn chord or two
ne preluded strangely stirring hymn
had never heard before. What a
roll and volume of sound he brought
out of his dilapidsted banjo, as he sang
this sold Ship ZionI" The wood
work was warped, every string tied at
the bottom, yet a longing seized me to
possess it, such as a yiolinist might
cherish for Paganini. 1t seemed to
me it must have superior soul to that
of my frislly, be-ribboned instrument,
which was so Independent of my touch
that it would only twang and clang
\ ~ 4 ha
banjo deity was familiar to this
grave, dignifed negro, and yielded
such melody to his fingers as l never
heard from the expert in a Northern
city who had been giving me lessons at
the rate of two dollars per hour.
| ROYALS voice showed no signs OF
the consumption it was subject to; ii
was rich and deep beyond G. sugges
ton of fatigue.
When the hymn ceased, / said
q" .The Old Ship Zion is very fine,
am glad to hear it, but it's not exactly
the kind I'd rather learn from you-l
can find that in book somewhere.
Let me have some of your regular
plantation tunes that you used TO sing
at corn-shuckings."
He hesitated moment, with a re
luctant air. "Seem lax | kinder tu'n
ter de hymn chunes ter day, lady, des
natchul, but l mus try to please yo'
How yo' lax dis one?"
"Look-a-look-a-heah, lool-a-look wharf
Look-a-look away o. yander!
Don't YOU see the old gray goose
A smilin' at de gandah?
Unh unh um, a low downl
Unh unh um, a low down!
Unh unh um, low DOWN.
Johnny come down de hollow!
A settin' on a ole gum log,
A lOokin' for his dahtah,
Terrapin crope up behine dat frog
An pushed him into de watah-
Unh unh um, low down.
Unh unh um, low down.
Unh unh um, a low down!
Johnny come down de hollow.
Oh. de squirrel am got de bushy tai
De possum tail am bar,
De raccoon tail am ring all 'roun,
An stumpy am de tail oh de har'
Unh unh um, low down!
Unh unh um, low down.
Unh unh um, low downl
Wooowl Johnny come down de hollowN
/ laughed and clapped heartily
ssSplendidI Just the thing. I'll put
the words down right away'-taking
pencil and sheet of paper ont Of my
satchel. "Now say the first words
over"
"Look-a-look a heah, look-a-look q
wharf" he repeated; "set that down
in yo' rememberandum book"
Then when | had all the words be-
fore me / began to sing them as well
as | could, with random accompani-
ment on my banjo. How weak and
thin my imitation
Royal wriggled in his seat-"Scuse
me eff | disrup' you, man, but you
don't screech mon half lou enough;
des make up yo' mind ter take de roof
of. dis way-swOOOw y -