when he sees dis handsome critter; but if he don’t
use her up in less dan dat time, he’ll do what
he neber done afore! I tell you, sar, it’s
surprisin’ to see how much work he’ll get
out ob his niggars; goes ahead ob anyting you eber
heard ob; dat’s de way he’s made such
a power ob money. He says he’s tried it
faithfully, year in and year out, and he’s thoroughly
convinced dat de way to make anyting by dis niggar
business, is to get de work; if dey wont work widout
de whip, why, put it on! get dar steam up some way
or oder, and when one lot gibs out, get a fresh stock!
I’ll tell you what, sir, Killall understands
it; he’ll sell dar hides for shoe leather radder
dan let his niggars stand idle!’ When I hear
dat, missy, my bery blood boil, and ’pears like
I couldn’t keep my hands off from de villain;
but I know dat if I make any resistance, it fare all
de worse wid Phillis, and I get sent to de whippin’-place,
into de bargain; so I only grind my teeth, and look
on, like I didn’t know any better; but, missy,
didn’t I wish I white man den, jus’ for
de sake ob sabin’ my wife and young uns? for
I lib wid Phillis so long I couldn’t help feeling
’tached to her. Ole massa, he not ’pear
to like de idea ob parting wid Phillis jus den, for
he know right well dat he not get anoder like her bery
soon, and so he tells de trader dat de niggar ’pear
bery well, but as for de real work, he got a dozen
dat go ahead ob her, and if de gemman want de real
workin’ niggar, dey step round de oder side de
plantation; but de trader, he keep his eye on Phillis,
like he understand de business too well to be put
off dat way, and he say to massa, tell you what ’tis,
mister, dat gal may not hab de genuine work ’bout
her now, but if she get tinder old Killall’s
lash, dar be no trouble bout dat, and den when she
good for notin’ else, after de work all out ob
her, she might keep a little ob her looks, ’nough
to make her go for a hundred or so. But massa,
he not like to gib her up, and dey talk a long time
togeder, and I hears de trader say,—’de
gal should square off all de old affair, wid five
hundred to boot;’ till by and by massa gibs in,
and de bargain was closed, bery much to de satisfaction
ob both parties. But dey not stop to ask how
we like de idea ob being separated for life! dey not
tink dat perhaps de mother find it hard to leabe her
chil’en. De trader ’pear bery much
pleased wid his bargain, and he slipped a cord round
Phillis’s arm, and tell her to go wid him.
O, missy, dat was de awfullest minute in my life!
Poor Phillis look at de chil’en, den at me, and
wid one long, piercing shriek, dat I hear many times
since, she clung round my neck, begging me to go wid
her, to sabe her from de dreadful place where dey
would take her! But afore I could say one word,
the trader, wid a dreadful curse, seize her by de
throat, and in his hurry to get her away, stumbled
ober one ob de young uns wid his great heaby boots,
dat was made ’spressly to kick de fractious
niggars, as he called it, and de chile neber breathe