The Lambertville record., 1925-06-18
SMILIN' THU
BY GORDON COOPER
DOC. BLOOM SPEAKS


An All still kin sing nah song.
Nah load am heavy on nah back,
Nah laigs is tiahed an weak;
But Ah1l res down in de hollow
Wild nah hot feets in de creek.
Yassuh! De sun am mighty hot;
But dat makes fishes bite.
OATS why Abs got heavy load,
An All sho' doan want hit lighti
Ah'll hab feas' fer supper
OBJ fishes crisp an brown.
An All hopes Ah1l be ez happy
When de sun OBJ life goes down!
"Doc" is an honorary degree con-
ferred on Doc. Bloom by Mercer
University in Georgia. Not by the
trustees and faculty, but by the
students.
He is preacher of sorts, and the
"Doc." is for Doctor of Divinity. He
has resonant voice of thunder that
many a white preacher would trade
his shirt to possess.
In the old days the students held
spirit meetings" in the chapel when
ever athletic events we're soon to
be staged with other colleges.
Doc. Bloom was always invited to
address the assemblies. There was
a fire and earnestness about him
which always stirred his hearers to
point of enthusiasm which could
not be equaIed by white speakers.
And his quaint philosophy had a
charm that put to shame the cold
logic of sophisticated platform
speakers.
"Go way fun hyah, Honey" said
Doc. Bloom when someone spoke of
the "easy time" Negroes had in the
North. "Dey amt no easy times
fer nobody. Yer gotta wurk fer whut
yer gitsl"
"Ah knows all erbout dis easy
times bizness whut yo' say dey has
up in de Moth. Didn' dat good-fer-
nothin' boy OBJ mine go up dar ?"
"Yassuhl An he come back purity
quick, too! He say dat de Yankees
treat i'm awful nice-dey called him
Mister, an dey wuz awful perlite
ter i'm. But did dey take i'm at
de kitchen an feed i'm when he
wuz hongry? Nawsuh, dey didn't"
"All he knowed wuz plowin' an
hoein' Gavin an pickin' cotton. An
when he axed fer wurk, dey axed
i'm kin he do all dem high-fallutin'
jobs up dar he doan whut deys' talk
in erbout. So he doan git him no
wurk, but dey's awful perlite ter
i'm an calls i'm Mister.
But answer me dis, honey: Kin
yo' fill yo' belly wild Misters an
cover yo' neckedness wild perlite-
ness? Nawsuh, yo' caint!"
$50 after while he jes' sets his
feets in de road an he starts fer
home. Cause he didn' hab no money
to buy no railroad ticket. An eve'y
time he come ter house he'd stop
an AK fer somepen ter eat. But,
de folks would say dey's awful
sorry, but dey amt got nothin' ter
give i'm"
"An' he had ter live on de fruits
an things he could fin along de
road. An sometimes he'd git odd
job ter pay fer meal. But eve'y
time he axed anybody fer help he'd
git perlite answers a-plenty."
"Till finely he come ter a big
white house along de road, an when
he knock on de front do big
tall man wild goatee whiskers open
hit an say, Well, whut de debbil
does yo' want?"
An dat son OBJ mine say, Please
sub, kin yo' glib a poor nigger some
pen ter eat?"
An de man say, Eff yo' wants
anything ter eat why doan yo' go
roun' ter de kitchen whah yo' be-
longs, yo' low-down wuthless mig
ger!
When nah boy hears dat, de
tears come in his eyes an he takes
off his hat an say, Thanks ter de
Lawd! Abs done got back South
ter nah own folks!"
%s+A*A
Doc. rolled his cud around in his
mouth and spat a stream of amber
fluid that drowned a fly buzzing at
his feet.
"Now yo' take me-" he contin-
ued, while keeps busy eroun' dis
campus a-mowin' de lawns an
tendin' ter de flowers, All doan hab
ter worry bout nah belly. Any
time All wants ter All kin sneak
in de kitchen OBJ de college dinin'
room an git me some grub"
"An' while l does little odd jobs
fer de boys dey allus glib me dey
OF clo'es an All dresses swell. OATS
whole lot easier den yo' gifts up
Moth"
kNAsks
"But dey's one thing dat's goin'
hard wild de Southern niggers. Yo'
see de niggers doan wear no shoes
in de summer time when dey wurks
on de farms. De odder day Gavin
fiel' nigger went ter Mr.. Perkinses
sto' an say he want some shoes.
"Mr. Perkins look at his feets an
see dey's ez big ez hams. Whut
fer does yo' want wild shoes in de
summer time, he say. Anyway All
amt got no shoes big ernough fer
yo'."
"An dis niger say ter i'm, Mr..
Perkins Abs jes got ter hab some
shoes, cause yo' knows since dis pro-
'bition is goin' on de white folks