“What Hamp say sorter make me put on my studyin’-cap; but when you come ter look at it, suh, dey wan’t nothin’ ’tall fer me ter study ’bout. All I had ter do wuz ter try ter fin’ out what wuz behime it, an’ let it go at dat. When Marse Tumlin come home ter supper, I know’d sump’n wuz de matter wid ’im. I know’d it by his looks, suh. It’s sorter wid folks like ’tis wid chillun. Ef you keer sump’n ’bout um you’ll watch der motions, and ef you watch der motions dey don’t hatter tell you when sump’n de matter. He come in so easy, suh, dat Miss Vallie ain’t hear ’im, but I hear de do’ screak, an’ I know’d ’twuz him. We wuz talkin’ an’ gwine on at a mighty rate, an’ I know’d he done stop ter lisn’. “Miss Vallie, she ’low she ’speck somebody made ’im a present er dem ar things. I say, ‘Uh-uh, honey! don’t you fool yo’se’f. Nobody ain’t gwine ter do dat. Our folks ain’t no mo’ like dey useter wuz, dan crabapples is like plums. Dey done come ter dat pass dat whatsomever dey gits der han’s on dey ’fuse ter turn it loose. All un um, ’cep’ Marse Tumlin Perdue. Dey ain’t no tellin’ what he gun fer all dat trash. _Trash!_ Hit’s wuss’n trash! I wish you’d go out dar an’ look at dat ol’ bob-tail hoss. Why dat ol’ hoss wuz stove up long ’fo’ de war. By rights he ought ter be in de bone-yard dis ve’y minnit. He won’t be here two whole days ’fo’ you’ll see de buzzards lined up out dar on de back fence waitin’, an’ dey won’t hatter wait long nudder. Ef dey sen’ any corn here fer ter feed dat bag er bones wid, I’ll parch it an’ eat it myse’f ’fo’ he shill have it. Ef anybody ’speck I’m gwine ter ’ten’ ter dat ol’ frame, deyer ’speckin’ wid de wrong specks. I tell you dat right now.’ “All dis time Marse Tumlin wuz stan’in’ out in de hall lis’nin’. Miss Vallie talk mighty sweet ’bout it. She say, ‘Ef dey ain’t nobody else ter ’ten’ de hoss, reckin I kin do it.’ I ’low, ‘My life er me, honey! de nex’ news you know you’ll be hirin’ out ter de liberty stable.’ “Well, suh, my talk ’gun ter git so hot dat Marse Tumlin des had ter make a fuss. He fumbled wid de do’ knob, an’ den come walkin’ down de hall, an’ by dat time I wuz in de dinin’-room. I walk mighty light, bekaze ef he say anything I want ter hear it. You can’t call it eave-drappin’, suh; hit look ter me dat ’twuz ez much my business ez ’twuz dern, an’ I ain’t never got dat idee out’n my head down ter dis day. “But Marse Tumlin ain’t say nothin’, ’cep’ fer ter ax Miss Vallie ef she feelin’ well, an’ how eve’ything wuz, but de minnit I hear ’im open his mouf I know’d he had trouble on his min’. I can’t tell you how I know’d it, suh, but dar ’twuz. Look like he tried to hide it, bekaze he tol’ a whole lot of funny tales ’bout folks, an’ ’twan’t long befo’ he had Miss Vallie laughin’ fit ter kill. But he ain’t fool me, suh.