Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1909-04-22
,hee; and our secret sins in the light Of

a powerful effort, and many of the white
listeners went home looking very grave.
Clinker, who was careful to preserve
the appearance of a mere idler, sauntered
into the meeting late and managed to sit
beside Delilah.
She was old; her skin was scanned with
wrinkles; her little eyes were black and
bright still in the brownish yellow of
what should be the whites; her chin
sloped suddenly back to the throat i'm
mediately under the large under-lip; a
few yellow fangs showed from time to
time between her lips; her thick wool
above her monkeyish forehead was thick
ly sprinkled with white; she wore a plaid
cloth tied over the wool, but otherwise
her bingham dress was much like others
round about; with all the formless skull,
she was intelligent in a certain degree.
In the shadow of the trunk of a tree
Tom gave himself up to watching her as
the preacher warmed to his work and DE-
lated upon the necessity of repentance
and confession.
If Clinker had dictated the sermon he
could not better have said the words he
wished; the grove was full of weird shad-
ows alternated by brilliant spaces of the
light of a full moon; the night was warm.
The minister grew more eloquent; his
words poured forth from his lips in a fer
vid stream of denunciatory defamation.
whatsoever among you has a secret
sin locked in his breast; be that one IN
the flush of youth or in the slow, crawl
ing, frosty days Of age; to that one | say,
cast it forthl Cast it forth The deadly
secret that is set in the light of His coun-
tenance-oh terrible thought! In the last
day will the finger Of God point to that
secret sin-which is all unknown to our
brethren while we walk in the light of
day, respected! Then will He point to
that awful, foul, putrid thing we cherish
ed 50 fondly, and say, Depart, depart
from me, ye accursed!"
Delilah fell down upon the grass and
hid her face on the plank before her.
ooh Lord, have mussy! I done beg
Marse Richard for to let me TESS de
trufe-but he won't Lord, he won I'll"
She suddenly recovered her s~elf-posses-
sion and rose and sat upon the seat again,
looking sharply around to see if anyone
had noticed her agitation; none had, APP
parently; she took no note of Clinker sit
ting quietly in the shadow of the large
tree trunk. AS the sermon reached its
conclusion and the benediction fell like
balm upon the rasped and narrowed SEN
sibilities of the congregation, she rose to
go; Clinker also rose.
"Don't you want to ride home with
me, %auntie7 | am here alone and could
just as well take you.'
Delilah had associated freely as nurse
and maid with white people all her life,
and to her there seemed nothing strange
or unusual in this proposition.
els you a Southern gen 'leman, suh9''
"Not exactly; I have lived much in the
South, however"
~ thought you was a Southern gen.
,leman, case you isn't feard fer to ride
wild a ole black oman. Vas, sub, l will
go wild youall. case dat shacklin old wag'
on done break all my bones"
She had ridden in a neighbours ole
wagon which was indeed "shackly.'
The soft cushions and nicely balanced
springs of Clinker's cart were luxury tt
her. By a few leading questions he got
her soon to talking freely Of the Soules
"My miss done come 'om Gawgy ant
fotch me long. She didn't have no chileI
for a long time-tree Of 'em died, der
Marse Richard he done come. When he
about two years ole, Marse Willum HI
done marry a oman from the No'f, ;
stuck-up bigitty 'oman--look at me lal
I 'se dirt. Marse Willum, he younger Z
Marse Jack. Den was wah times; m.
miss an Miss Willum dey called he
kinder quarl like, but not much, cas-
/ dey's bofe ladies, but de feelin was da
? tween No'f and Souf an dey didnt 81
, long mighty well, Ole Marse George don
'sist dey all live ~togedder in de big hous
hyar. When Marse &c 'ald was bawI
\ Miss Willum she done nuss him herse \
t list lax po' white trash!"
Dellah's scorn was measureles'
"Marse Gea IDS Yankee ma think hir
5 too good for me to nuss, an when Mis-
/ Eleanor, she die, she say, Take my bah,
Lilah; you kin raise i'm lax | want
=, An so I did raise him till he go to schoo
He never could dress his 'sef, an Mars
Gea Id 'blige to dress his 'sel, case Min
a Willum done make him. Well, dey grow
8 ed. and befo dey want Miss Aileen, al
a she done tax Marse Gea Id. Make Mari
Il Richard ror pow full case she won't hay
him, an he done come to my cabin az
war how he'll get even, an 'stroy q
dere happiness.
"And did hef'' asked Tom, becomir
excited.
10 "Dey wasn't no need fur him to !
10 muffin, Marse Gea1d done go do hi
Sc 4 writin' ole Marse Gawge's nan
wen he amt got no business fur to {
it; he's in de pen now, and ! 'spects Mi
p Aileen done quit i'm an she'd mar
10 Marse Richard, lax she ort done fust.2y
a. "How can she do that when she
Gerald's wifea"
l. HMarse Richard done say she can 3
u. a divorce, case he in de pen; an d