Plez was quite ready for a reckless dash of this kind, and in less than
twenty minutes old Patsy was informed that Mr Null had arrived. The old
woman was much affected by the information. She was uneasy and restless,
and talked a good deal to herself, occasionally throwing out a moan or a
lament in the direction of her "son Tom's yaller boy Bob's chile." The
crazy quilt, which was not yet finished, though several pieces had been
added since we last saw it, was laid aside; and by the help of the above
mentioned great granddaughter the old hair trunk was hauled out and
opened. Over this hoard of treasures, Aunt Patsy spent nearly two hours,
slowly taking up the various articles it contained, turning them over,
mumbling over them, and mentally referring many of them to periods which
had become historic. At length she pulled out from one of the corners of
the trunk a pair of very little blue morocco shoes tied together by
their strings. These she took into her lap, and, shortly afterward, had
the trunk locked, and pushed back into its place. The shoes, having been
thoroughly examined through her great iron-bound spectacles, were thrust
under the mattress of her bed.
That evening, Uncle Isham stepped in to see the old woman, who was
counteracting the effects of the cool evening air by sitting as close as
possible to the remains of the fire which had cooked the supper. She was
very glad to see him. She wanted somebody to whom she could unburden her
mind. "Wot you got to say 'bout Miss Annie's husband," she asked, "wot
done come to-day?"
"Was dat him?" exclaimed the old man. "Nobody tole me dat."
This was true, for the good-natured Letty, having discovered the
mistake that had been made, had concluded to say nothing about it and to
keep away from Aunt Patsy's for a few days, until the matter should be
forgotten.
"Well, I spec Miss Annie's mighty glad to git him back agin," continued
the old man, after a moment's reflection. "He's right much of a nice
lookin' gemman. I seed him this ebenin' a ridin' wid Mahs' Junius."
"P'raps Miss Annie is glad," said the ole woman, "coz she don' know. But
I ain't."
"Wot's de reason fur dat?" inquired Isham.
"It's a pow'ful dreffle thing dat Miss Annie's husband's done come down
h'yar. He don' know ole miss."
"Wot's de matter wid ole miss?" asked Isham, in a quick tone.
"She done talk to me 'bout him," said the old woman. "She done tole me
jus' wot she think of him. She hate him from he heel up. I dunno wot
she'll do to him now she got him. Mighty great pity fur pore Miss Annie
dat he ever come h'yar."
"Ole miss ain't gwine ter do nuffin' to him," said Isham, in a gruff and
troubled tone.
"Don' you b'lieve dat," said Aunt Patsy. "When ole miss don' like a
pusson, dat pusson had better look out. But I ain't gwine to be sottin'
h'yar an' see mis'ry comin' to Miss Annie."
"Wot you gwine to do?" asked Isham.
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.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account