mith, Aunt Mandy Smith's boy, who had gone away from home
several years before, and who, rumour said, had become a great man, was
coming back, and "Little Africa," from Douglass Street to Cat Alley, was
prepared to be dazzled. So few of those who had been born within the
mile radius which was "Little Africa" went out into the great world and
came into contact with the larger humanity that when one did he became
a man set apart. And when, besides, he went into a great city and worked
for a lawyer whose name was known the country over, the place of his
birth had all the more reason to feel proud of her son.

So there was much talk across the dirty little streets, and Aunt Mandy's
small house found itself all of a sudden a very popular resort. The old
women held Erastus up as an example to their sons. The old men told what
they might have done had they had his chance. The young men cursed him,
and the young girls giggled and waited.

It was about an hour before the time of the arrival of Erastus, and the
neighbours had thinned out one by one with a delicacy rather surprising
in them, in order that the old lady might be alone with her boy for the
first few minutes. Only one remained to help put the finishing touches
to the two little rooms which Mrs. Smith called home, and to the
preparations for the great dinner. The old woman wiped her eyes as she
said to her companion, "Hit do seem a speshul blessin', Lizy, dat I been
spaihed to see dat chile once mo' in de flesh. He sholy was mighty nigh
to my hea't, an' w'en he went erway, I thought it 'ud kill me. But I kin
see now dat hit uz all fu' de bes'. Think o' 'Rastus comin' home, er big
man! Who'd evah 'specked dat?"

"Law, Mis' Smif, you sholy is got reason to be mighty thankful. Des'
look how many young men dere is in dis town what ain't nevah been no
'count to dey pa'ents, ner anybody else."

"Well, it's onexpected, Lizy, an' hit's 'spected. 'Rastus allus wuz a
wonnerful chil', an' de way he tuk to work an' study kin' o' promised
something f'om de commencement, an' I 'lowed mebbe he tu'n out a
preachah."

"Tush! yo' kin thank yo' stahs he didn't tu'n out no preachah. Preachahs
ain't no bettah den anybody else dese days. Dey des go roun' tellin' dey
lies an' eatin' de whiders an' orphins out o' house an' home."

"Well, mebbe hit's bes' he didn' tu'n out dat way. But f'om de way he
used to stan' on de chaih an' 'zort w'en he was a little boy, I thought
hit was des what