thirty years or more since Daddy Jake had done any work. He had a very
comfortable cabin; and although his wives (for the old man had been
married several times) were all dead, and many of his children were now
old and infirm, he had a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren
who attended to his wants; and then, too, his master cared very
particularly for his comfort, and saw that Daddy Jake had good fires,
and that his clothes were kept clean and mended, and his food nicely
cooked; so the old man passed his days in peace and quiet.

The children found him now lying stretched out on a bench in front of
his cabin, while Polly, his great-granddaughter, was scratching and
"looking" his head.

"We've come for you to tell us about the Owl, Daddy," said Diddie, after
she had given the old man some cake and a bottle of muscadine wine that
her mother had sent to him.

"All right, little misses," replied Daddy; and, sitting up on the bench,
he lifted Tot beside him, while Diddie and Dumps sat on the door-sill,
and Dilsey and Chris and Riar and Polly sat flat on the ground.

"Well, yer see de Owl," began Daddy Jake, "he usen fur ter see in de
daytime des same ez he do now in de night; an' one time he wuz in his
kitchen er cookin' uv his dinner, wen hyear come de Peafowl er struttin'
by. Well, in dem days de Peafowl he nuber had none er dem eyes on his
tail wat he got now; his tail wuz des er clean blue."

"Did you see him, Daddy?" interrupted Dumps.

[Illustration: "'STRUCK'N UV DE CHIL'EN."]

"No, honey, I ain't seed 'im wen he wuz dat way; dat wuz fo' my time;
but den I know hit's de truf, do'; his tail wuz er clar blue dout'n no
eyes on it; an' he wuz er pow'ful proud bird, an', 'stid er him 'ten'in
ter his bizness, he des prumeraded de streets an' de roads, an' he
felt hisse'f too big fur ter ten' ter his wuck. Well, de Owl knowed dat,
an' so wen he seed de Peafowl walkin' by so big, an' him in de kitchen
er cookin', it kinter hu't his feelin's, so he tuck'n holler'd at de
Peafowl,

"'Whooo cooks fur you-oo-a?
Whooo cooks fur you-oo-a?
I cooks fur my folks,
But who cooks fur y'all-ll-l?'

"Now he jes done dat out'n pyo' sass'ness, caze he knowed de Peafowl
felt hisse'f 'bove cookin'; an' wen de Peafowl hyeard dat, he 'gun ter
git mad; an' he 'lowed dat ef'n de Owl said dat ter him ergin dey'd be
er fuss on his han's. Well, de nex' day de Owl seed him comin', an' he
'gun fur ter scrape out'n his pots an' s