Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1911-07-22

IopIn' over de state Cd Tennessee.
Once In awhile Mars Harry ne tax
me an ride to de ole plantation 10 see
his Iadylub. An when we come away
Missy Della say. TAX car OBJ him,
Julius, TO my sake An say: 'Neb-
Der fear 70 dat. Missy Della. Reckon
| know what I'm about Den Mars
Harry an 80 back TO camp.
Zone time when Ginerai Wheeler
war leadin his men back IN de r'ar OBJ
de Yankees, br'akin' up de railroads
an burnin' de wagon trains, he stop
one day to rest In wood an stayed
dar whole day. Mars Harry he neb-
Der lax TO rest. When de udder men
war restn' he war always tryin' TO
git some message to his ladylub He
would go TO a house an write a long
letter to her full OBJ Tub talk an pay
some niger to tax II TO her.
well. when Everybody was restin'
Mars Harry he TAX me with him to a
house about mile away an sot down
In de libin' room befo' table. an he
wrote an wrote all de mawnin'. But
befo' he sot down to write he tole me
to go down ON de Nashville pike, about
mile from whar he war writin'. an
stan on rise In de groun' whar
could see down de road, an II | see
any bmejackets comm wor to ride
back an warn him.
II rode down to whar I could see
two or three miles an sot on my
hose. lookin' down de road. Fust
thing | knew | sor Niger gal lookin'
| frou do rails OBJ de fence She war
smilin' at me. shown her teeth lax an
alligator's jaw. An she says. TWha'
yo' dom darT An says. 'Watchin'
70 de Yanks.' An she says. VIVA 20
watchin' TO- do Yanks for An |
says, TO wan ma. mars II dey come.
"Sbe talks to me awhile. an bimeby
she says. Come down dar an | glib
yo' some applejack.' l war all tired
out ridin' so had an powerful thirsty,
but say. 1 don't want no applejack.
mouf waterin' TO- it, Go way an
let me alone, l says.
do yo' know wha' dat gal did?
She p'inted to de house whar de apple
jack war, an she says. i keep watch
70 20 while yo' go down an get a
drink fell under de temptation an
lax fool, left dat gal to watch an
| went down to de house an filled ma
canteen with de appleJack. Same time
l TUX long drink. war gittin' ready
| to go back when hearn n chatter OBJ
critters hoofs on de road above an
saw a lot OBJ bluecoats gallopin' past
| tfx ntd do ho AZ Z 70.
wrltin the Tub letter to Missy Della.
81 want to kill somebody sartin. 1
| got on ma hose an. ridin' back to de
road, saw de gal dot brought de trouble
on me skulkin' away. fred ma re-
yolver at her Den | rode on. follerin
de Yanks. hearn shootin' ahead. but
| when | got to de house whar Mars
Harry was writip' he lub letter de
soJers war all gone. But dar beside
de road | saw what hants me eber
| since"
He put his hand to his eyes as II to
| shut out some painful sight Presently
| he moaned:
Mars Harry layin' dar shot dead
- For that few minutes he had been
| tempted to relax his watchfulness he
was paying lifelong penalty. Posi-
bly, he had dwelt upon his fault so
long that 1t had affected his mind
| / wondered at the love this black man
| had for one whom he considered so
| far his superior-the daughter of the
man who had owned him and could
have sold him as horse or dog
II knelt down beside him." he con
| 81 40. nnI 81 n IIn-
ry. come to life ag'in an femme be
daid in yo' place. CANT live to face
Missy Della nohow. How ] gwine
to go through life with this curse on
mel Come back, Mars Harry; come
back TO Missy Della. She CANT go
through de worl without yo'.'
But he didn't wake up no mo- an
when | see 1t want no use talkin' TO
him | TUX him up an carried him into
de house. An then | got wagon an
drly him to de plantation
He made an effort to tell me OF his
reception there, but failed
"How did your mistress treat you
after the misfortuneT' | asked
misfortune! Dat want no misfo'
tune; dat war yieldin to temptation
rs one OBJ de goats dat Is Token from
de sheep Ef hadn't. listened TO dat
gal Mars Harry wouldn't "a got kill
ed | didn't hab de courage to go back
TO de plantation TO a long time; den
sneaked In among de udder niggers an
hid In de ban. Some niger sor me
an tole Missy Della | was come home
She hearn all about how Mars Harry
got killed. an thar want anything TO
me to Tess. She sent TO me to come
up to de house. My legs badly car
ried me dar. Missy Della war standin
by herself in de hall. ! stood at de do
When she sor me she put up her ham
chekuff to her eyes an held out her
hand to me. She didn't say wo'd.
but | knowed she fogib me.
dat didn't do me no good" he con
dnued after pause, "'cause didn't
fo'gib maself."
lis your mistress living at the plan
tation house nowY' asked.
IL reckon she Is dar or | wouldn't be
hyar. Much as respec' mars.
wouldn't stay hyar II missy war away
| dom penance. De plantation run
min down since de proclamation. DE
niggers dat laks to wo'k laks to wo'k
To- thairselves. DE udders won't wo'k