Jonah's Gourd Vine Read Free Page B

de ones s’posed tuh ketch de wind and de weather.”
    â€œAh don’t want none uh mah chilluns pullin’ tuh no spring in uh hard rain. Yo’ foots kin wait. Come hawg-killin’ time Ah been married tuh you twelve years and Ah done seen yuh let ’em wait uh powerful long spell some time. Ah don’t want mah chilluns all stove-up wid uh bad cold from proagin’ ’round in de rain.”
    â€œOle Marse didn’t ast me of hit wuz rainin’ uh snowin’ uh hot uh col’. When he spoke Ah had tuh move and move quick too, uh git a hick’ry tuh mah back. Dese younguns ain’t uh bit better’n me. Let ’em come lak Ah did.”
    â€œNaw, Ned, Ah don’t want mine tuh come lak yuh come nor neither lak me, and Ahm uh whole heap younger’n you.You growed up in slavery time. When Old Massa wuz drivin’ you in de rain and in de col’—he wasn’t don’ it tuh he’p you ’long. He wuz lookin’ out for hisself. Course Ah wuz twelve years old when Lee made de big surrender, and dey didn’t work me hard, but—but dese heah chillun is diffunt from us.”
    â€œHow come dey’s diffunt? Wese all niggers tuhgether, ain’t us? White man don’t keer no mo’ ’bout one dan he do de other.”
    â€œCourse dey don’t, but we ain’t got tuh let de white folks love our chillun fuh us, is us? Dass jest de pint. We black folks don’t love our chillun. We couldn’t do it when we wuz in slavery. We borned ’em but dat didn’t make ’em ourn. Dey b’longed tuh old Massa. ’Twan’t no use in treasurin’ other folkses property. It wuz liable tuh be took uhway any day. But we’s free folks now. De big bell done rung! Us chillun is ourn. Ah doan know, mebbe hit’ll take some of us generations, but us got tuh ’gin tuh practise on treasurin’ our younguns. Ah loves dese heah already uh whole heap. Ah don’t want ’em knocked and ’buked.”
    Ned raked his stubbly fingers thru his grisly beard in silent hostility. He spat in the fire and tamped his pipe.
    â€œDey say spare de rod and spile de child, and Gawd knows Ah ain’t gwine tuh spile nair one uh dese. Niggers wuz made tuh work and all of ’em gwine work right long wid me. Is dat air supper ready yit?”
    â€œNaw hit ain’t. How you speck me tuh work in de field right long side uh you and den have supper ready jes’ ez soon ez Ah git tuh de house? Ah helt uh big-eye hoe in mah hand jes’ ez long ez you did, Ned.”
    â€œDon’t you change so many words wid me, ’oman! Ah’ll knock yuh dead ez Hector. Shet yo’ mouf!”
    â€œAh change jes’ ez many words ez Ah durn please! Ahm three times seben and uh button. Ah knows whut’s de matter wid you. Youse mad cause Beaseley done took dem two bales uh cotton us made las’ yeah.”
    â€œYouse uh lie!”
    â€œYouse uh nother one, Ned Crittenden! Don’t you lak it,don’t you take it, heah mah collar come and you shake it! Us wouldn’t be in dis fix ef you had uh lissened tuh me. Ah tole you when dey hauled de cotton tuh de gin dat soon ez everything wuz counted up and Beasley give us share for yuh tuh take and haul it straight tuh dis barn. But naw, yuh couldn’t lissen tuh me. Beasley told yuh tuh leave hit in his barn and being he’s uh white man you done whut he told yuh. Now he say he ain’t got no cotton uh ourn. Me and you and all de chillun done worked uh whole year. Us done made sixteen bales uh cotton and ain’t even got uh cotton seed to show.”
    â€œUs et hit up, Major Beasley say. Come to think of it ’tis uh heap uh moufs in one meal barrel.”
    â€œNo sich uh thing, Ned Crittenden. Fust place us ain’t had nothing but meal and sow-belly tuh eat. You mealy-moufin’ round cause you skeered tuh talk back tuh Rush Beasley.