"Whar you bin dat you ain't nebber seed no 'nolias befo'?" queried Tennessee as she listened to Jeanne's expressions of admiration as a particularly handsome clump of magnolias came into view on the western bank. The channel of the river at this point ran so close to the shore that the perfume of the creamy blossoms was very perceptible. "I've always lived in New York City," replied Jeanne. "I saw some magnolia trees once in Maryland, but I never saw them in blossom. Aren't they beautiful?" "Yes, honey. Dey is purty fer a fac'," replied the negress. "I allers laked de 'nolias myself, and dat wuz de reason dat I named my darter so, but we called her Snowball fer short." "You did?" laughed Jeanne. "Why, Tenny, Snowball isn't any shorter than Magnolia. Why didn't you call her 'Nolia,' if you wished to shorten the name?" "My ole marster, he done it," was the reply. "Ole marster say, 'Tenny, dat li'l pickaninny too white ter be named anything so yaller as a magnolia. Better call her Snowball.' Ole marster allers would hab his joke, and dat gal of mine wuz jist as brack as de nex' one. I didn't want my chile called Snowball. It wuzn't stylish nohow, but would you b'lebe me, chile? De fust thing I knowed, white and culled wuz a callin' her Snowball, an' den I did, too." "Where is she now, Tenny? I should think you would want her with you on these trips." "Chile, chile, dat's de thing dat tears dis hyar old heart ob mine," said the woman, her eyes filling with tears. "Ole marster say she was a 'likely gal' an' she wuz, ef she wuz mine. Dey made much ob her and would hab her roun' dem all de time. Seem laik nobody could do for 'em laik Snowball. Den ole marster tuk sick and died an' ole missus she say she hab ter sell us all, kase she didn't hab no money any mo'. An' Massa Cap'n he bought me but 'nother man bought Snowball an' tuk her down to Loosyanny." "Why, that is awful!" cried Jeanne, her eyes overflowing, her heart full of sympathy for the darky. She had often heard tales of this kind but this was the first time that this phase of slavery had been brought home to her. A child torn from its mother appealed to her, so many miles from her own dear mother, as nothing else could have done. "Why didn't Captain Leathers buy her too?" she asked. "He seems like a kind man." "He is, honey. 'Deed he is," replied Tenny wiping her eyes, "an' he did try, but the yudder man had bought her fust an' he wouldn't gib her up. I can't blame him fer she wuz a likely gal. Lawsie, chile, dat gal wuz smarter'n a whip!" "How long has she been gone, Tenny?" "'Twas befo' de wah broke out. Massa Cap'n he wanted a good cook, an' I sutinly am dat, so he tuk me. He say dat I'se ter hab my freedum too, but shucks! what's freedum ter me? I'd rudder hab my gal dan all de freedum in de world." "Yes; I suppose so," said Jeanne dreamily. "Still, Tenny, if you had your freedom you could go to look for Snowball."