bushes, an' de ugly forns--dem war our bad ways--war atween
us; but love, like de sun, shone down on us, and we grow'd. We grow'd
till our heads got above de bushes; till dis little branch an' dat
little branch--dem war our holy feelin's--put out toward one anoder, an'
we come closer an' closer togedder. And dough we'm old trees now, an'
sometime de wind blow, an' de storm rage fru de tops, and freaten to
tear off de limbs, an' to pull up de bery roots, we'm growin' closer an'
closer, an' nearer an' nearer togedder ebery day. And soon de old tops
will meet; soon de ole branches, all cobered ober wid de gray moss, will
twine round one anoder; soon de two ole trunks will come togedder and
grow inter _one_ foreber--grow inter one up dar in de sky, whar de wind
neber'll blow, whar de storm neber'll beat; whar we shill blossom an'
bar fruit to de glory ob de Lord, an' in His heabenly kingdom foreber!

'Yas, my chil'ren, you hab started on a long journey, an' nuffin' will
git you fru it but _love_. Nuttin' will hole you up, nuffin' will keep
you faithful to one anoder, nuffin' will make you bar wid one anoder,
but love. None ob us kin lib widout it; but married folks want it most
ob all. Dey need it more dan de bread dey eat, de water dey drink, or de
air dey breafe. De worle couldn't gwo on widout it. De bery sun would
gwo out in de heabens but fur dat! An' shill I tell you why? You hab
heerd massa Robert talk 'bout de great law dat make de apple fall from
de tree, de rock sink in de water; dat bines our feet to de round 'arth
so we don't drop off as it gwo fru de air; dat holes de sun an' de stars
in dar 'pointed places, so dat, day after day, an' yar after yar, dough
dey'm trabblin' fasser dan de lightnin' eber went, dey'm right whar dey
should be. He call it 'traction, an' all de great men call it so; but
dat ain't de name! It am LOVE. It am GOD, fur GOD am love, an' love am
GOD, an' love bines de whole creashun togedder! An' shill I tell you how
it do it? Does you see dis hand? how I open de fingers; how I shet'm up;
how I rise de whole arm? Does you see dis foot, dat I does wid jess de
same? Does you see dis whole body, how I make it, in a twinklin', do
jess what I like? Now what am it dat make my hand move, an' my whole
'body turn round so sudden, dat I'se only to say: 'Do it,' an' it'm
done? Why, it am ME. It'm _me_, dat libs up yere in de brain, an' sends
my _will_ fru ebery part--fru ebery siner, an' ebery muscle, an