San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-05-05

straight eyed bystander.
Old Juba stopped. "Who dat spoke?"
Profound silence.
"Ef knowd who dat spoke I'd chop 'em
down wild disher pickr''
The crowd looked reproachfully at the
speaker, who skunk away.
"Now," said Juba, way dem fedders!"
They were probably on the rooster, but
no one spoke. A runner was dispatched
to tell Titus to hurry up. The messenger
found Titus skulkiug about Mr. Rodgers
| horse lot, trying TO drive the rooster before
him.
"Dey say come quick wild dem fedders,"
| said the runner.
"Dey better come git 'em themselves, den.
Disher rooster spises a cullud pusson
wusser'n pisen, an he'll spur you Quicker
an nuttin'. You better stop trowin' after
| disher rooster; eff Marse Sam ketch you
| a-ehunSin' him he'll lay his buggy whip
| ober you TO you know way you STAN.
The two now drove the bird into the lock
of the fence, where, armed with their hats,
| they made rush at him. The angry cock
few at the runner, who ran, but Titus
| made a grab at the coveted treasure and
the bird few away, leaving his tail behind
him. The two now returned in triumph
to the gold seekers.
Old Juba seized the feathers. Now"
cried he, ''w'ile bun desc yer fodder you
| all kin TEX it by tun to pray. Each man
pray so long as fodder bun, wen it bun
out dat pusson mus cen. Many prayers
is great Encouragement tub ebil sperits,
an so is bu'nt fedders"
Silas Chief Grand Lambkin was first
called on, and in some trepidation he be-
gan to pray and his feather to burn. "Oh,
Laud, we beseech thee tub perfect us frum
desc yer ebil sperits, we OATS found disher
great treasure, so dat eff we amt sole all
we had to buy it, leaseways Yves lef all
Marse Sam Rodgers cotton a-wastin' in de
tiep tell we fine"-
"Stop, suh," said old Juba: ''yo' fodder
dun out. Mex one"
Israel, one of the Chosen Sons of Iden-
| tity, began: "Oh, Laud, we baig OBJ thee
help agin desc ebil sperits; let us not waste
our time liker we waste Marse Sans cot
| ton OATS a-sheddin' ODER de groun' Ticker
ontimely snow
"Yo' fodder dun bun," said old Juba;
"annuder one try"
BY the time the ROSTERS tail had been
consumed some fifteen or twenty most
| hourishing prayers had been nipped in the
| bud. Some of the feathers being longer
| than others of course affected the length of
| the prayers which all were anxious to
| make so it fell to the lot of Eli, the last
| man, to speak only while the last and
| shortest feather burned. In great excite
| meft he began. "Oh, Laudy! Laudy!' he
| cried, as his feather began to fiz, "Lau-u-
| dyr'
"Dey, it dun bum" broke in old Juba.
"Chuh!" muttered Eli, crestfallen; Il
| nebber had no shown. Dat leetle tail
fodder wunt with talkin' bout. Tain't
muffin but pen fodder nohow."
| at SMELL" said Juba, IAN mex sperits
swink."
In case these fragmentary petitions were
not successful old Juba supplemented
them by muttering divers incantations
| against evil spirits, uttered in words of his
| own invention
The evening ceremonies being now over,
| the negroes commenced digging, and made
| the dirt fly. No sooner was one man ex-
! hausted than another took his place from
| the ranks of the anxious bystanders. As
| they got deeper they rugged up a bucket
and sweep and lifted the earth with great
speed. While they dug old Juba continued
| the fight against evil spirits by borrowing
| Bible from Silas, which he set on pile
| of old horseshoes, after opening it and
| laying a white stone across page, and he
pretended to read in muttering voice as
| they dug.
Silas led the diggers; he had been seized
with thirst for gold, and every time he
threw out a shovelful of dirt he looked
| anxiously for the coveted treasure. Under
| his lead the Chosen Sons of Identity did
| mighty deeds of valor. As he worked his
| imagination took fire, and
''Inny goule yit, Silas" asked an out
slider, anXiously.
mot yit," said Silas, "but terrectly hit'll
begin tub shine. l lows at least tub git
| bushel, an when does, de cotton fiel' III
know me no mo-. l gwinter buy Marse
Sam fas' boss an buggy an dribe roun'
| same hker wuz wife I'll draw de reins
| ODER FLYNN Bess an say, Cit up, subj"
At the mere idea of this grandeur Silas
| burst into joyous laughter, and without
thinking he spat, for he was a great to-
| bacco chewer. Old Juba looked up from
the Bible he was pretending to read.
'Dey now! you gone an spit. Wha' you
spit fun? Spttin' is great encourage
ment to ebil sperits-git outer dat hole,
sub, an git way frum huh"
Silas sorrowfully arose and retired crest
fallen, and another man, with an empty
mouth, took his place.
As Silas retired from the scene he made
vague effort to establish his present So
cial status. IL wuz a man who 'peared tub
be himself an not anudder pusson." He
shook his head, he failed to recognize him
self and he went over that statement. ~
wuz man who 'peared tub be himself,
an not anudder pusson; dat knows fur a
fac" Here he met his wife, who had been
the witness of his disgrace.
"You used tuh be de lam-kinl But now