says that an Irishman
is only a negro turned wrong side out, and I told her so yesterday
morning when she was fussing with me."

"Say, rather, when we were fussing together; I don't think the fault was
all on her side."

"But, Mrs. Lasette, she had no business calling me a nigger."

"Of course not; but would you have liked it [any] better if she had
called you a negro?"

"No; I don't want her to call me anything of the kind, neither negro nor
nigger. She shan't even call me black."

"But, Annette, are you not black?"

"I don't care if I am, she shan't call me so."

"But suppose you were to say to Miss Joseph, 'How white your face is,'
do you suppose she would get angry because you said that she looked
white?"

"No, of course not."

"But suppose you met her hurrying to school, and you said to her, how
red and rosy you look this morning, would that make her angry?"

"I don't suppose that it would."

"But suppose she would say to you, 'Annette, how black your face is this
morning,' how would you feel?"

"I should feel like slapping her."

"Why so; do you think because Miss Joseph----"

"Don't call her Miss, she is so mean and hateful."

"But that don't hinder her from being Miss Joseph; If she is rude and
coarse, that is no reason why I should not have good manners."

"Oh, Mrs. Lasette you are too sweet for anything. I wish I was like
you."

"Never mind my sweetness; that is not to the point. Will you listen to
me, my dear?"

"Of course I will. I could listen to you all night."

"Well, if it were not for signs there's no mistaking I should think you
had a lot of Irish blood in your veins, and had kissed the blarney
stone."

"No I haven't and if I had I would try to let----"

"Hush, my child; how you do rattle on. Do you think because Miss Joseph
is white that she is any better than you are."

"No, of course not."

"But don't you think that she can see and hear a little better than you
can?"

"Why, no; what makes you ask such a funny question?"

"Never mind, just answer me a few more questions. Don't you think if you
and she had got to fighting that she would have whipped you because she
is white?"

"Why, of course not. Didn't she try to get the ruler out of my hand and
didn't because I was stronger."

"But don't you think she is smarter than you are and gets her lessons
better."

"Now you are shouting."

"Why, Annette, where in the world did you get that slang?"

"Why, Mrs. Lasett