ver hit the other party with a broom as
it was a sure indication of bad luck. If Grandad had the rheumatics, he
would be sure of relief if he carried a buckeye in his pocket.

Of all the Ten Commandments, the one broken most by the negro was: Thou
Shalt Not Steal This was due mostly to the insufficent food the slaves
obtained. Most of the planters expected a chicken to suddenly get
heavenly aspirations once in a while, but as Mr. Fields says, "When a
beautiful 250 pound hog suddenly tries to kidnap himself, the planter
decided to investigate." It occured like this:

A 250 pound hog had been fruitless. The planter was certain that the
culprit was among his group of slaves, so he decided to personally
conduct a quiet investigation.

One night shortly after the moon had risen in the sky, two of the
negroes were seated at a table in one of the cabins talking of the
experiences of the day. A knock sounded on the door. Both slaves jumped
up and cautiously peeked out of the window. Lo there was the master
patiently waiting for an answer. The visiting negro decided that the
master must not see both of them and he asked the other to conceal him
while the master was there. The other slave told him to climb into the
attic and be perfectly quiet. When this was done, the tenant of the
cabin answered the door.

The master strode in and gazed about the cabin. He then turned abruptly
to the slave and growled, 'Alright, where is that hog you stoled.'
'Massa, replied the negro, 'I know nothing about no hog. The master was
certain that the slave was lying and told him so in no uncertain terms.
The terrified slave said, 'Massa, I know nothing of any hog. I never
seed him. The Good Man up above knows I never seed him. HE knows every
thing and HE knows I didn't steal him; The man in the attic by this time
was aroused at the misunderstood conversation taking place below him.
Disregarding all, he raised his voice and yelled, 'He's a liar, Massa,
he knows just as much about it as I do.'

Most of the strictly negro folklore has faded into the past. The younger
negro generations who have been reared and educated in the north have
lost this bearing and assumed the lore of the local white population
through their daily contact with the whites. The older negro natives of
this section are for the most part employed as domestics and through
this channel rapidly assimilated the employers viewpoint in most of his
beliefs and conversations.