The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1925-12-31
SMILIN' THU
BY GORDON COOPER
Copyright 1925 by Gordon Cooper
ode POT CAN'T CALL
DE KITTLE BLACK


the southern sun seemed to Undue
him with the peace that hung over
the campus. Bees buzzed about the
rose bush, and every now and then
Doc would duck his head when one
of them came too close, and upbraid
it as if it could understand his pro-
testations.
"Behave yo'sef, beel Wharfo' amt
yo' out in de clovah fiel's gittin' yo'
honey, Std o buzzin' 'roun hyah
whar Abs tryin' ter wuhk" And as
he dug his trowel into the earth his
resonant voice swelled in the har-
mony of that spiritual which is
so dear to the hearts of Southern
negroes:
"Go down, Moses!
Way down in Egypt's Ian,
An tell oil Pharo'-
Let nah people go!
Professor Mount, emerging from
a nearby building where he had
evidently been finishing some extra
work, heard Docs fog horn voice, and
went toward him. The rose bush
prevented Doc seeing him until he
stopped and spoke, and the song
continued:
Gwen Isrul wuz in Egypt's Ian
Let nah people go!
Oppressed so hahd dey couldn't
STAN
Let nah people gol
"Let them go where" asked Pro-
fessor Mount with smile.
Doc raised his head quickly and
rested with his launches on his
heels Lawsy bless nah soul!' he
exclaimed, "Yo' sho' did take me by
s'prise! Whut wuz dat yo' say?"
~ asked where you wanted the
people to go that you were singing
about"
ooh OATS bout de chillun o Isrul
whut King Pharo' treated so bad.
But o. cou'se yo' knows how de
Lawd delibered 'em fun bondage"
And Doc looked thoughtfully across
the campus as he sponged his per-
spring brow with a big red handker-
chief.
but den yo' know, dey's lots o
folks whut's still in bondage, eben in
his day o freedom" he cogitated.
"F'instance, dar's dat po' country
boy whut come by las week dat
stuttahed so bad. Dat po' Teller is a
slave ter de cranky muscles oh dat
tongue o. his'n.'
"By the way, what became of
him ?" asked Professor Mount.
Doc was silent for moment, still
with look of sympathy about his
shrewd old eyes as he thought of
the suffering youth, and then his
face crinkled with smile. "Ah
reckons hit amt right ter laff at de
po' feller," he replied, "but chen eff
All does symperthize wild i'm, All
CANT hep latin"
"Yo' know, de day e happened
long e toll me dat e wuz goin ter
dee stuttahin' docter ter cure i'm
FUN stuttahin'. An e didn't know
nobody hyah, an so All fixed i'm
n place ter sleep dat night.
"De mex mawnin' bright an early
e stahted out ter fin de docter whut
ed been a-savin' lis money fer ter
cure i'm wild, an purity soon e met
anudder niger boy, an axed i'm de
way ter de stuttahin' docter.
'De odder niger boy say, wy
yo' g-g-g-go d-d-d-down t-t-t-ter
W-w-walnut s-s-s-street t-t-ter d-d-de
c-c-cohner O. F-f-fo'th s-s-street.'
"An' den, de boy whut wuz lookin'
fer de docter, say. 'Ah h-h-h-ears dat
e is g-g-g-good doctor f-f-fer
-S-s-stuttahin'.'
AN de odder boy say, D-d-d-dat's
de t-t-t-trufl C-c-c-cause e d-d-done
c-c-c-cured m-m-me!
kin yo' beat dat" asked Doc be-
tween roars of laughter. "De odoer
niger stuttahed mo- dan de boy
whit wuz hyah, but e say e done
been cured!"
Professor Mount had joined heart
ly in the laugh. "And then the only
difference in them is that one knows
he is in bondage to his tongue, but
the other is ignorant of it. Isn't that
one of the hard things you have to
contend with as a preacher-teach-
ing people to realize that religion
will free them from their bondage 2"
"Yo done hit de nail on de haid,"
replied Doc, wiping the tears of
laughter from his eyes. Oats jes'
whut's de trubble wild folks. Eff
dey would jes' know dey wuz in
bondage lax de Chillun o Isrul, den
dey'd hab chance ter git free"
And when Professor Mount had
left after few more words, Docs
voice again took up the strain which
had been interrupted:
"Thus spoke de Lawd. Bold Moses
said
Let nah people go!
Ell not I'll smite yo' fust-bawn
daid-
Let nah people got"
My Favorite Stories
By lRplN s. COBB
GL Ksl- TT. 4