CLARKE I ain't personatin' nobody but I been told dat Jim's got uh powerful lot uh chicken feathers buried in his back yard. I know one thing if I ever ketch his toe-nails in my chicken yard, I God, he's gointer follow his pappy and his four brothers. He's got to git from dis town of mine. (Enter a little girl right, very neat and starchy. She runs up to Rev. Sims.) GIRL Papa, mama say send her dat witch hazely oil she sent you after right quick. LINDSAY Whuss matter wid Sister Sims--poly today? SIMS She don't keep so well since we been here, but I reckon she's on de mend. HAMBO Don't look like she never would be sick. She look so big and portly. CLARKE Size don't mean nothin'. My wife is portly and she be's on de sick list all de time. It's "Jody, pain in de belly all day. Jody, pain in de back all night. LIGE Besides, Mrs. Simms ain't very large. She wouldn't weigh more'n two hundred. You ain't seen no big woman. I seen one so big she went to whip her lil boy an' he run up under her belly and stayed up under dere for six months. (General laughter) WALTER You seen de biggest ones. But I seen uh woman so little till she could go out in uh shower uh rain and run between de drops. She had tuh git up on uh box tuh look over uh grain uh sand. SIMMS Y'all boys better read yo' Bibles 'stead of studyin foolishness. (He gets up and starts into the store. Clarke and the little girl follow him.) Reckon Ah better git dat medicine. (The three exit into store) HAMBO Well, y'all done seen so much--be y'all ain't never seen uh snake big as de one Ah seen down round Kissimnee. He was so big he couldn't hardly move his self. He laid in one spot so long he growed moss on him and everybody thought he was uh log layin' there; till one day Ah set down on him and went to sleep. When Ah woke up ah wuz in Middle Georgy. (General laughter. Two women enter left and go in store after everybody has spoken to them) LINDSAY Layin' all sides to jokes now, y'all remember dat rattlesnake Ah kilt on Lake Hope was 'most big as dat one. WALTER (Nudgin' Lige and winking at the crowd) How big did you say it was, Joe? LINDSAY He mought not uh been quite as big as dat one--but jes' bout fourteen feet. HAMBO Gimme dat lyin' snake! He wasn't but fo' foot long when you kilt him and here you done growed him ten feet after he's dead. (Enter Simms followed by the girl with an all day sucker. Simms has a small package in his hand. SIMMS (Gives the package to the child and resumes his seat.) Run 'long home now. Tell yo' ma to put on uh pot uh peas. (Child exits right trotting and sucking her candy.) WALTER They's some powerful big snakes round here. We was choppin' down de weeds in front of our parsonage yistiddy and kilt uh great big ol' cotton mouf moccasin. SIMMS Yeah, look like me or some of my fambly 'bout to git snake-bit right at our own front do'. LIGE An' bit by uh Baptist snake at dat. LINDSAY How you make him out uh Baptist snake?