He turned impatiently, and said--"Let me alone, Ise engaged on particular business, dat wimmen don't know nufhn about conducting."
Lois' nose went up into the air, or rather would have gone, were it not so flat and heavy she could not elevate it.
"How high and mighty old niggers can be!" was her retort. For a day or two there was an air of mystery about Dan which offended Lois deeply, but she wouldn't ask any questions. "If my ole man has any secrets from me now at his time of life, well, I'll find 'em out," she said to herself. One forenoon he astonished her by saying--
"I dus. He's de kind of a gemman dat I likes to see 'roun. Whar's Miss Marie's eyes when she cahnt see how far s'perior he is to dose Norvern sogers who am jess libin' here now."
"Yer wouldn't like him so well if yer knew he was a 'sassin, would yer?"
The old negress was all attention. "A 'sassin, what's dat?"
"A wicked man what tries to murder anuder jess becase he lubs de same gal dat he does."
"I'll tell yer sumfing, but yer musn't tell. Ise had de secret a long time, but I cahnt keep it any longer."
"Why, Miss Marie, ob course. I 'lows Miss Helen is all right, but she cahnt--"
"Dar yo' go, way off from de subjict. What did he do?" Dan tiptoed nearer to his spouse. "Yer 'members de day Massa Walter was shot. I was in dem woods after rabbits, when I seed Massa Allison wid a musket, lying flat on his face in some high bushes. I felt it was kind o' queer; yo' know he's home on leab ob absence, and so I watched him. Quick I heard de report, and saw Massa Walter fall right down, and Massa Allison rund away fast as a deer. I picked up his hankcher and his name is printed right on it, and I've kep' it in my bussum ever since."
"You telling de troof? If yo' is, my symperthies go right ober to dat ar wounded boy."
"Ise telling de troof, ole woman. And now yo' see why Ise got no lub for Massa Allison."
"Well, we'd best keep dis yere news to ourselves. Yo' know a nigger's word never'd go before a white man's down here, so we'll jess keep our moufs shut."
But Aunt Lois' prejudices were strong yet, and it took some little persuasion on the part of Dan before she would acknowledge that Massa Walter was as nice as one ob deir "own Soudern men were."