sez no, dat
she feels lak somethin' am happenin' at home.

"Mr. Nat begs her ter stay on an' enjoy herself, but when she won't
listen ter no reason at all he starts home. De mules creep an' poke,
but Mis' Lucy herself whups 'em up, an' dey gits home sooner dan dey am
expected.

"When dey drives up in de yard de oberseer am so busy whuppin' de
niggers what has done bad dat he ain't seed Mis' Lucy till she am right
on him, den she snatch de heavy bullwhup an' she strikes him two or
three times right in de face.

"Mis' Lucy look delicate, but she cuts de blood outen his cheek an'
she shets up one of his eyes an' brings de blood a-pourin' from his
nose. Den de meek little 'oman draws back de whup ag'in an' she 'lows,
'Git offen dis plantation, an' iffen ever I ketches you here ag'n I'll
shoot you, you beast.'

"Dat settled de oberseer's hash an' atter he left Mis' Lucy went ter
doctorin' cut up backs. Gran'mammy said dat dar wusn't no more trouble
wid de niggers an' Mis' Lucy done all of de punishin' herself.

"She made de meanest ones l'arn a whole passel of scripture, she punish
de chillun by makin' dem memorize poems an' sich. Sometimes she sont
'em ter bed widout supper, sometimes she make 'em work at night,
sometimes she prayed fer 'em, an' once in a coon's age she whupped. Dey
said dat she could really hurt when she meant to, but she whupped as de
las' thing ter do an' she whupped wid a keen little switch 'stead of de
leather.

"Once atter she had whupped a little nigger she said, 'Clarice, dis
hurt me wusser dan hit did yo'.'

"Clarice look at Mis' Lucy den she sez, 'Iffen hit hurt yo' wusser dan
hit did me I'se powerful sorry fer you.' Dat little gal wus my mammy.

"My gran'father wus named Jake, an' he 'longed ter a family by de name
of Middleton some whar in de neighborhood. Marse Nat ain't had no use
fer Mr. Middleton 'case he tried ter act up, an' he wus a New York
Yankee ter boot, what thought that he owned de heabens an' de yearth.
When gran'father Jake fell in love wid gran'mammy nobody ain't knowed
hit, 'case dere marsters am mad at each other an' dey knows dat dere
won't be no marryin' twixt de families.

"Time goes on an' gran'father runs away an' comes ter see gran'mammy,
but one night Mr. Middleton follers gran'father an' fin's him in
gran'mammy cabin.

"Mr. Middleton doan wait ter say nothin' ter nobody, when he peeps in
at de winder an' sees dem a-settin' at de table eatin' musk melons wha