“‘Sandy, is I eber tol’ you I wuz a cunjuh ‘oman?’

“Co’se Sandy had n’ nebber dremp’ er nuffin lack dat, en he made a great ’miration w’en he hear w’at Tenie say.  Bimeby Tenie went on:—­

“‘I ain’ goophered nobody, ner done no cunjuh wuk, fer fifteen year er mo’; en w’en I got religion I made up my mine I would n’ wuk no mo’ goopher.  But dey is some things I doan b’lieve it’s no sin fer ter do; en ef you doan wanter be sent roun’ fum pillar ter pos’, en ef you doan wanter go down ter Robeson, I kin fix things so you won’t haf ter.  Ef you’ll des say de word, I kin turn you ter w’ateber you wanter be, en you kin stay right whar you wanter, ez long ez you mineter.’

“Sandy say he doan keer; he’s will-in’ fer ter do anythin’ fer ter stay close ter Tenie.  Den Tenie ax ’im ef he doan wanter be turnt inter a rabbit.

“Sandy say, ‘No, de dogs mought git atter me.’

“‘Shill I turn you ter a wolf?’ sez Tenie.

“’No, eve’ybody ’s skeered er a wolf, en I doan want nobody ter be skeered er me.’

“‘Shill I turn you ter a mawkin’-bird?’

“’No, a hawk mought ketch me.  I wanter be turnt inter sump’n w’at’ll stay in one place.’

“‘I kin turn you ter a tree,’ sez Tenie.  ’You won’t hab no mouf ner years, but I kin turn you back oncet in a w’ile, so you kin git sump’n ter eat, en hear w’at ‘s gwine on.’

“Well, Sandy say dat’ll do.  En so Tenie tuk ’im down by de aidge er de swamp, not fur fum de quarters, en turnt ’im inter a big pine-tree, en sot ’im out ‘mongs’ some yuther trees.  En de nex’ mawnin’, ez some er de fiel’ han’s wuz gwine long dere, dey seed a tree w’at dey did n’ ’member er habbin’ seed befo’; it wuz monst’us quare, en dey wuz bleedst ter ‘low dat dey had n’ ’membered right, er e’se one er de saplin’s had be’n growin’ monst’us fas’.

“W’en Mars Marrabo ‘skiver’ dat Sandy wuz gone, he ’lowed Sandy had runned away.  He got de dogs out, but de las’ place dey could track Sandy ter wuz de foot er dat pine-tree.  En dere de dogs stood en barked, en bayed, en pawed at de tree, en tried ter climb up on it; en w’en dey wuz tuk roun’ thoo de swamp ter look fer de scent, dey broke loose en made fer dat tree ag’in.  It wuz de beatenis’ thing de w’ite folks eber hearn of, en Mars Marrabo ’lowed dat Sandy must ‘a’ clim’ up on de tree en jump’ off on a mule er sump’n, en rid fur ernuff fer ter spile de scent.  Mars Marrabo wanted ter ’cuse some er de yuther niggers er heppin’ Sandy off, but dey all ‘nied it ter de las’; en eve’ybody knowed Tenie sot too much sto’ by Sandy fer ter he’p ’im run away whar she could n’ nebber see ‘im no mo’.

“W’en Sandy had be’n gone long ernuff fer folks ter think he done got clean away, Tenie useter go down ter de woods at night en turn ’im back, en den dey ’d slip up ter de cabin en set by de fire en talk.  But dey ha’ ter be monst’us keerful, er e’se somebody would ‘a’ seed ’em, en dat would ‘a’ spile’ de whole thing; so Tenie alluz turnt Sandy back in de mawnin’ early, befo’ anybody wuz a-stirrin’.