"Girls," said Viola, "we are going to study the book, copies of which we are holding in our hands. It is called the Bible. Let me ask some questions about it, and you try to answer them."
"Have you seen the Bible before today?"
Susanna Spink replied: "I seed one onct, when I went to a camp meetin' near Honey Crick. A man read out of a book he called de Bible, and then he talked and talked a long, long time."
"The Bible tells us a lot about many good men and women. Perhaps you have heard of some of these. Who was Moses?"
"Was he nigger Mose's dad?" asked one of the girls.
"No, he lived many years ago, and was a great leader of the Hebrew people. Did you ever hear of David?"
Profound silence.
"He was a mighty king of the Jews, and also a man who wrote many beautiful songs. One of his songs millions of children know. It begins: 'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.' Have any of you ever heard it?"
One or two raised their hands indicating they had heard it.
"Let us turn to it, the twenty-third psalm, and we shall read it together."