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De pleasantest sail I eber take was when I leabe old Berginny in de good Tantalizer; and I swings my hat at old slabe massa on de bank, and asks him if he don't wish he as free as dis individual. Dat was but a few years ago; den you wear little dress like Sea-flower, and now you talk 'bout going to sea! Well, dat am de way wid you sea-fish here."
"Dunno, missy; but 'pears like de slabe jus' no more chilen dan de oder animals; and I tinks old massa done teach de hounds about de big bible, sooner dan he niggers." "What became of your wife, Vingo, when father took you away? Could you not prevail on your master to let her come with you?"
Me sure dat de ole gentleman and de ole missy pretty nigh turn in deir grabe at de thought ob all de hands they was so kind to sold away. "Dat de curse of slabery, sar. Me trabel a good deal, and me tink dat no working people in de world are so merry and happy as de slabe in a plantation wid a good massa and missy. Dey not work so hard as de white man.
She say she free one minit en a slabe nex' minute twel her haid mos' whirl off her shol'ers. Now she say, 'I doan know 'bout dis freedom business; I does know how ter cook en I'se gwinter cook twel dey gets troo a whirlin' back en forth. You says I mus' trus' de Lawd 'bout spooks, Uncle Lusthah. W'y kyant you trus' de Lawd 'bout freedom?"
Dey have plenty to eat and drink, dey hab deir gardens and deir fowls. When dey are sick dey are taken care ob, when dey are ole they are looked after and hab nothing to do. I have heard people talk a lot of nonsense about de hard life of de plantation slabe. Dat not true, sar, wid a good massa. De slabe hab no care and he bery happy.
"'Cause, missy, dey say old slabe massa am one ob de best men in de whole ob Berginny, and I's 'fraid he catch Bingo and tie him up again." At that moment a shadow was seen in the distance, and Harry came bounding over the ground on the wings of the wind. "Ah!
"Now, look yar, Geo'ge," said the negro, remonstratively, "you is a slabe; das a fact, an' no application ob fut rule or compasses, or the mul'plication table, or any oder table, kin change dat. Dere you am a slabe! But you ain't a 'bused slabe, a whacked slabe, a tortered slabe, a dead slabe. You're all alibe an' kickin', Geo'ge!
The gasp that came from the coffee-hole when this speech was made had something very real in it, and immediately afterwards the pounding was redoubled. "Was the slabe white or black?" asked Mrs Lilly, with childlike simplicity, and more for the purpose of gaining time to think than anything else. "She was white," interposed Osman, "and very beautiful, in fact, one of the ladies of the harem."
"Cartain, Mr Fortescue, sar," answered the Krooboy, with conviction. "He lib for die now; what he want to tell me lie for? He no want debbil to come after him and say, `Hi, you M'Pandala, why you tell dem white men lie about slabe cauffle comin' down to de coas'? You come along wid me, sar! No, he not want dat, for cartain." "When did he tell you this, Cupid?" I demanded.
Didn't I slabe fer her granpar yeahs an' yeahs, an' wat I got ter show fer 't?" "You got no stripes on you back, an' you'd had plenty ter show ef you'd wuked fer any oder man. I 'member all about you slabin' an' how de good major use' to let you off. You know, too, dat he war so took up wid his book dat you could do foolishness right under his nose.
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