l.

"How did we git los' f'om we's white folks? Dat's a sad story fur
Christmas, Juke, but ef you sesso--

"Hit all happened in one night, time o' de big break in de levee, seven
years gone by. We was lookin' fur de bank ter crack crost de river f'om
us, an' so boss done had tooken all han's over, cep'n us ole folks an'
chillen, ter he'p work an' watch de yether side. 'Bout midnight, whiles
we was all sleepin', come a roa'in' soun', an' fus' thing we knowed, all
in de pitchy darkness, we was floatin' away--nobody cep'n des you an' me
an' yo' mammy in de cabin--floatin' an' bumpin' an' rockin,' _an' all de
time dark as pitch_. So we kep' on--one minute stiddy, nex' minute
_cher-plunk_ gins' a tree ur some'h'n' nother--_all in de dark_--an' one
minute you'd cry--you was des a weanin' baby den--an' nex' minute I'd
heah de bed you an' yo' ma was in bump gins' de wall, an' you'd laugh
out loud, an' yo' mammy she'd holler--_all in de dark_. An' so we
travelled, up an' down, bunkety-bunk, seem lak a honderd hours; tell
treckly a _termenjus_ wave come, an' I had sca'cely felt it boomin'
onder me when I pitched, an' ev'ything went travellin'. An' when I put
out my han', I felt you by me--but yo' mammy, she warn't nowhar.

"Hol' up yo' face an' don't cry, boy. I been a mighty poor mammy ter
yer, but I blesses Gord to-night fur savin' dat little black baby ter
me--_all in de win' an' de storm an' de dark dat night_.

"You see, yo' daddy, he was out wid de gang wuckin' de levee crost de
river--an' dat's huccome yo' ma was 'feerd ter stay by 'erse'f an' sont
fur me.

"Well, baby, when I knowed yo' mammy was gone, I helt you tight an'
prayed. An' after a while--seem lak a million hours--come a pale streak
o' day, an' 'fo' de sun was up, heah come a steamboat puffin' down de
river, an' treckly hit blowed a whistle an' ringed a bell an' stop an'
took us on boa'd, an' brung us on down heah ter de city."

"An' you never seed my mammy no mo', gran'dad?" Little Duke's lips
quivered just a little.

"Yo' mammy was safe at Home in de Golden City, Juke, long 'fore we
teched even de low lan' o' dis yearth.

"An' dat's how we got los' f'om we's white folks.

"An' time we struck de city I was so twis' up wid rheumatiz I lay fur
six munts in de Cha'ity Hospit'l; an' you bein' so puny, cuttin' yo'
toofs, dey kep' you right along in de baby-ward tell I was able to start
out. An' sence I stepped out o' dat hospit'l do' wid yo' little bow-le