"Yas, sah, Mr. George," said an old negro, "we got ter keep clean; we got ter keep clean, sah, or dar ain't no hope o' de salwation."
"Why, then, don't you go and wash yourself?"
"Whar—whar—what, sah? W'y doan I go wash merse'f?"
"Yes, and put on a clean shirt. You are as dirty as you can be."
"Oh, now, yere, I ain't talkin' 'bout dat sorter keepin' clean. I waz talkin' 'bout keepin' clean in the faif, sah, in de faif. I ain't got no time ter fool erlong wid de waters o' dis yere life. Whut I means is ter keep yer speret clean, washed in the dewdraps o' de New Jerusalem; means, as I tells you, dat we mus' keep clean in de faif, sah—keep clean in de faif."
—Arkansaw Traveler.