Never shall we forget the experience of endeavoring to improvise a corn-cake the next morning for breakfast.
We went into the room, and found the table standing just as we had left it the night before,—not a dish washed, not a thing done in the way of clearing. On inquiry for Minnah, she was gone out to milking. It appeared that there were sixteen cows to be milked before her return. A little colored girl stood ready to wait on us with ample good nature.
"Lizzie," said we, "have you corn-meal?"
"Oh, yes'm!" and she brought it just as the corn had been ground, with the bran unsifted.
"A sieve, Lizzie."
It was brought.
"A clean pan, Lizzie. Quick!"
"All right," said Lizzie: "let me get a pail of water." The water was to be drawn from a deep well in the yard. That done, Lizzie took a pan, went out the door, produced a small bit of rag, and rinsed the pan, dashing the contents upon the sand.
"Lizzie, haven't you any dish-cloth?"
"No'm."