DEBATE.
Ef’n uh man er woman hab salbation in deah hearts, will dey be feared ter babtiz wha’ shirks [sharks] is?
“Aunt Tillie, is de ’bate commence?”
“No, indeed, honey, but you almos’ late fuh de feas’—dar’s resins, ammons an’ dates lef’.”
“Is dem dates? Bless Gord, I tho’t dey wuz dried ’simmons; well, I’ll teck some resins an’ dates. How cum de ’bate not commence?”
“Why, Phillis, dey got word ter ’speck three loads ub people fum Kyarline County, an’ two loads fum Queen Anne’s an’ Kent.”
“Now, hush!”
“Y-a-s dey did! So dey’s waitin’; besides, dey ain’ got all de books outin de kyart. Uncle Reubin Viney fotch uh wheelbarr load hissef, an’ dey tell me Damon Mink is so ’thused fuh his side, dat fuh two weeks he has bin speakin’ ter hissef. How cum you so late, Phillis? We had uh lot ub plum-puddin’.”
“Well, dat lars chile ub Miss Mary’s is pow’ful hyard ter put ter sleep; when I commenc’ ter nuss de chile I had jes’ larnt dat new hym, “Git on board little chillun’”, an’ I am sut’ny sorry Pawson Demby fotch dat hym ter de chuch, kase dat chile mecks me sing it ober an’ ober, till I sho’ly ’spise de chune. Mon dat, de chile wuz bo’n on de fus’ ub de moon; lars yeah wuz leap yeah, an’ da wuz only three full moons, an’ dat chile wuz bo’n on one ub dem moons. ’Cose Miss Mary kyant help dat. Dey tells me cats bo’n on de full ub de moon neber mecks mousers, an’ chickens hatched on de full ub de moon is fussin’ all de time and neber mecks good layers.
“I lef’ home plenty time er nuff ter git ter de feas’. De moon wuz so bright I tuck de parf th’oo de peach archard, ’stead er gwine roun’ by de road; you see, it cuts orf erbout uh harf mile. When I wuz ’bout harf way th’oo de archard I saw in de parf uh hooppo-will singin’ fuh deah life, goin’ jes’ like uh pump handle; an’ wussa yit, when I look good da wuz two ub ’em. Dey say it’s bad luck fuh nine year ef’n you flush uh hooppo-will, so what mus’ it be ef’n you flush two? I wudn’ hab flushed dem two hooppo-wills fuh uh load ub watermillions—so I walked heah erlong de ribber sho’; den I wuz almos’ skeer’d stiff, fuh I recommember’d what I had fogot, an’ dat wuz, dat lars’ wintah Scipio Jones wuz mus’-rattin’ an’ uh Jack-uh-ma-lantern tuck an’ led him in de watah clean up ter his neck, jes’ erbout wha I wuz walkin’, kep him in de ribber fuh two hours, uh laffin’ at an’ sassin’ him.”