Iola Leroy; Or, Shadows UpliftedHarper, Frances Ellen Watkins
General
Iola Leroy; Or, Shadows Uplifted
Harper, Frances Ellen Watkins
African American women -- Fiction; African Americans -- Fiction
"Well, I do. Now, let me go on wid my story. De fust time I seed her, I
sez to myself, 'Dat's de gal for me, an' I means to hab her ef I kin git
her.' So I scraped 'quaintance wid her, and axed her ef she would hab me
ef our marsters would let us. I warn't 'fraid 'bout Marse Robert, but I
warn't quite shore 'bout Gundover. So when Marse Robert com'd home, I
axed him, an' he larf'd an' said, 'All right,' an' dat he would speak to
ole Gundover 'bout it. He didn't relish it bery much, but he didn't
like to 'fuse Marse Robert. He wouldn't sell her, for she tended his
dairy, an' war mighty handy 'bout de house. He said, I mought marry her
an' come to see her wheneber Marse Robert would gib me a pass. I wanted
him to sell her, but he wouldn't hear to it, so I had to put up wid what
I could git. Marse Robert war mighty good to me, but ole Gundover's wife
war de meanest woman dat I eber did see. She used to go out on de
plantation an' boss things like a man. Arter I war married, I had a
baby. It war de dearest, cutest little thing you eber did see; but, pore
thing, it got sick and died. It died 'bout three o'clock; and in de
mornin', Katie, habbin her cows to milk, lef her dead baby in de cabin.
When she com'd back from milkin' her thirty cows, an' went to look for
her pore little baby, some one had been to her cabin an' took'd de pore
chile away an' put it in de groun'. Pore Katie, she didn't eben hab a
chance to kiss her baby 'fore it war buried. Ole Gundover's wife has
been dead thirty years, an' she didn't die a day too soon. An' my little
baby has gone to glory, an' is wingin' wid the angels an' a lookin' out
for us. One ob de las' things ole Gundover's wife did 'fore she died war
to order a woman whipped 'cause she com'd to de field a little late when
her husband war sick, an' she had stopped to tend him. Dat mornin' she
war taken sick wid de fever, an' in a few days she war gone out like de
snuff ob a candle. She lef' several sons, an' I specs she would almos'
turn ober in her grave ef she know'd she had ten culled granchillen
somewhar down in de lower kentry."
"Isn't it funny," said Robert, "how these white folks look down on
colored people, an' then mix up with them?"
"Marster war away when Miss 'Liza treated my Katie so mean, an' when I
tole him 'bout it, he war tearin' mad, an' went ober an' saw ole
Gundover, an' foun' out he war hard up for money, an' he bought Katie
and brought her home to lib wid me, and we's been a libin in clover eber
sence. Marster Robert has been mighty good to me. He stood by me in my
troubles, an' now his trouble's come, I'm a gwine to stan' by him. I
used to think Gundover's wife war jealous ob my Katie. She war so much
puttier. Gundover's wife couldn't tech my Katie wid a ten foot pole."
"But, Aunt Katie, you have had your trials," said Robert, now that
Daniel had finished his story; "don't you feel bitter towards these
people who are fighting to keep you in slavery?"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account