A TRUE STORY. 203 



She turned her face over her shoulder toward me, and said, without even a 

 smile in her voice : — 



" Misto C , is you in 'arnest ?" 



• It surprised me a good deal ; and it sobered my manner and my speech, too. 

 I said : — 



" Why, I thought — that is, I meant — why, you canU have had any trouble. 

 I've never heard you sigh, and never seen your eye when there wasn't a laugh 

 in it." 



She faced fairly around, now, and was full of earnestness. 



"Has I had any trouble? Misto C , Fs gwyne to tell you, den I leave it 



to you. I was bawn down 'mongst de slaves ; I knows all 'bout slavery, 'case I 

 ben one of 'em my own se'f. Well, sah, my ole man — dat's my husban' — he was 

 lovin' an' kind to me, jist as kind as you is to yo' own wife. An' we had chil'en 

 — seven chil'en — an' we loved dem chil'en jist de same as you loves yo' chil'en. 

 Dey was black, but de Lord can't make no chil'en so black but what dey mother 

 loves 'em an' wouldn't give 'em up, no, not for anything dat's in dis whole 

 world. 



" Well sah, I was raised in ole Fo'ginny, but my mother she was raised in Mary- 

 land ; an' my souls ! she was turrible when she'd git started ! My Ian' ! but she'd 

 make de fur fly! When she'd git into dem tantrums, she always had one word 

 dat she said. She'd straighten herse'f up an' put her fists in her hips an' say, ' I 

 want you to understan' dat I wa'nt bawn in the mash to be fool' by trash ! I's 

 one o' de ole Blue Hen's Chickens, / is ! ' 'Ca'se, you see, dat's what folks dat's 

 bawn in Maryland calls deyselves, an' dey's proud of it. Well, dat was her 

 word. I don't ever forgit it, beca'se she said it so much, an' beca'se she said it 

 one day when my little Henry tore his wris' awful, and most busted his head, 

 right up at de top of his forehead, an' de niggers didn't fly aroun' fas' enough 

 to 'tend to him. An' when dey talk' back at her, she up an' she says, ' Look-a- 

 heah ! ' she says, ' I want you niggers to understan' dat I wa'nt bawn in de mash 

 to be fool' by trash ! I's one o' de ole Blue Hen's Chickens, /is! ' an' den she 

 clar' dat kitchen an' bandage' up de chile herse'f. So I says dat word, too, 

 ^hen I's riled. 



