“‘Locked, Sir.’
“‘Where’s the key?’
“‘In my pocket, Sir.’
“‘Let’s have it!’
“So I handed it out, and when all on us felt so kind’a tender, and his speakin’ so cross, and not carein’ anything for it, oh! it did seem that he was worse than ever. ☜
“‘Go,’ says he, ‘but be back in season.’ Oh! how stern! Well, we comes to Mr. Tucker’s house, and Mrs. Tucker cried and wrung her hands in agony; and Rebecca, her sister, cried and screamed, and Edwin, her brother, made a dreadful adoo; and Susan says, ‘why, don’t be frightened so, for I ain’t hurt any;’ and so we sat down and told all about it, and talked a good while, and Susan said, ‘but I shall always remember that I owe my life to Peter, and he’s my noble friend.’ Well, pretty soon supper was ready; we all sot down, I ‘mong the rest, although I was a poor black outcast—and Susan, she sat down and drinked a cup of tea, and they wanted her to go to bed, but she wouldn’t, and she axed me if I wouldn’t have this, and if I wouldn’t have that; and, in fact, the whole family seemed to feel grateful, and I think I never enjoyed myself better than I did at that table. I didn’t think so much of the victuals as I did of the folks.
“Well, arter supper Mrs. Tucker says, ‘well, Susan, what you goin’ to give Peter?’
“‘Why, Ma, anything that Pa will let me.’ ‘Pa says anything, my dear, that Peter wants out of the store, you may give him.’
“So Pa hands Susan the key and says, ‘go into the store and give him a good handkerchief, and I’ll be in by that time.’ So we went in, and she gin me the handkercher, and then Mr. Tucker come in, and took down two pieces of handsome English broad-cloths,—oh! how they shone! one piece was green, and t’other was blue, and says he, ‘Peter, you may have a suit off of either of them pieces you like best, from head to foot.’
“I says, ‘I can’t pay for ’em, and master would thrash me, if he knew I bought ’em.’