61. Cabritt pas connaitt goumé,[27] mais cui li batte la charge. (La chèvre ne sait pas le battre; mais son cuir [sa peau] bat la charge.)
"The goat does not know how to fight; but his hide beats the charge."--[_Hayti._]
[27] _Goumé_, or in some dialects, _goumein_, is said by Turiault to be a verb of African origin--_Étude sur la langage Créole_, page 142. Still we have the French word _gourmer_, signifying to curb a horse, also, to box, to give cuffs.
62. Cabritt qui pas malin pas gras. (La chèvre qui n'est pas maligne n'est pas grasse.)
"The goat that isn't cunning never gets fat."--[_Martinique._]
63. Cabrite qui pas malin mangé nen pié morne. (La chèvre qui n'est pas maligne, mange au pied du morne.)
"The foolish goat eats at the foot of the hill."--[_Hayti._]
64. Canari vlé rîe chôdier. (Le canari [le pot] veut rire de la chaudière [la marmite].)
"The clay-pot wishes to laugh at the iron pot."[28]--[_Trinidad._]
[28] "Pot calls the kettle black." The clay pot (_canari_) has almost disappeared from Creole kitchens in Louisiana; but the term survives in a song of which the burthen is: "_Canari cassé dans difé._"
65. Cancrelat sourti dans la farine. (Le cancrelat [ravet] sort de la farine.)
"The roach has come out of the flour-barrel."--Said to women of color who whiten their faces with rice-powder.--[_Mauritius._]
66. Canna pa ni d'leau pou lì baingnein i lè trouvé pou lì nagé. (Le canard n'a pas de l'eau pour se laver, et il veut trouver assez pour nager.)
"The duck hasn't enough water to wash with, and he wants enough to swim in."--Refers to those who live beyond their means.--[_Martinique._]
67. * Capon vive longtemps. (Le capon vit longtemps.)
"The coward lives a long time."[29]--[_Louisiana._]
[29] The word _capon_ is variously applied by Creoles as a term of reproach. It may refer rather to stinginess, hypocrisy, or untruthfulness, than to cowardice. We have in New Orleans an ancient Creole ballad of which the refrain is:
Alcée Leblanc Mo di toi, chère, _To trop capon Pou payé menage!_ C'est qui di ça,-- Ça que di toi chère, Alcée Leblanc!
In this case the word evidently refers to the niggardliness of _Alcée_, who did not relish the idea of settling $500 or perhaps $1,000 of furniture upon his favorite quadroon girl. The song itself commemorates customs of slavery days. Those who took to themselves colored mistresses frequently settled much property upon them--the arrangement being usually made by the mother of the girl. Housekeeping outfits of this character, constituting a sort of dowry, ranged in value from $500 to even $2,500; and such dowries formed the foundation of many celebrated private lodging houses in New Orleans kept by colored women. The quadroon housekeepers have now almost all disappeared.