“Now, auntie,” said the lessee, improving the occasion after the fashion of the divines, “you have a right to spend your earnings any way you please; you’re free. It’s none of my business what you do with your money. But if you would let me give you a little advice, I’d tell you all not to waste your money on fish, and candy, and rings, and breastpins, and fine hats. If you will have them, we’ll sell them to you, but you had better not buy so freely. Look how Ben. has wasted his money!” And he proceeded to read the following account:

Ben. Brown,Dr.
To one pair Boots$7 00
To one pair Mackerel50
To one pair Sardines50
To one pair One Ring1 00
To one pair Shirting2 00
To one pair Candy50
To one pair Mackerel1 00
To one pair Cheese50
To one pair Two Rings2 00
To one pair Breastpin and Ear-rings6 00
To one pair Whisky1 00
To one pair Whisky50
To one pair Tobacco50
To one pair One Ring1 00
To one pair Two Rings2 00
To one pair Mackerel50
To one pair Whisky50
To one pair Candy50
To one pair Sardines50
To one pair Candles50
To one pair One Ring1 00
To one pair Hat2 50
To one pair Tobacco50
To one pair One Skillet1 50
To one pair Candy50
    Total$34 50

As every item of this precious account was read, Ben. nodded his head. Presently the people began to laugh, and the reading ended in a roar. Ben., it seemed, had a good many sweethearts, and the whole plantation knew, better than his old mother did, where the wondrous succession of brass rings had gone. To the girls who wore them, the joke seemed particularly funny, and Ben. got no sympathy in his discomfiture.

About two hundred dollars served to complete the entire payment for sixty-five hands. Half of them had already been paid all, and more than all, that was due them, from the store. In such cases, the lessee, while giving the overseer strict instructions to credit them no more, unless in cases of absolute need, was very careful to conceal from them the entire amount of their indebtedness. “There’s danger of their running off,” he argued, “if they knew how deep they had got into us.”

One old woman asked for her full wages, saying she wanted to go to another plantation to be nearer her husband. “Don’t you know that you contracted with me for a year?” “Don’t know nuffin about it. I wants to go ’way.” “Haven’t you been well treated here?” “Yes.” “Well, I’m keeping my part of the contract, and you’ve got to keep yours. If you don’t, I’ll send you to jail, that’s all.”

On another plantation the mode of dealing with the negroes approached nearer the cash basis. Nearly all were well supplied with clothes and other necessaries, when hired, and there was, therefore, no necessity for giving them credit in the plantation store. Tickets were issued for each day’s work. If anything was wanted before the end of the month, the tickets were received for goods at their face value; but no goods were sold without payment either in money or tickets.

The payment began in the evening as soon as the day’s work was over. The proprietor took his place in the overseer’s room. The people gathered on the gallery and clustered about the door. As the names were called, each one entered the room, producing from some cavernous pocket-book or old stocking-foot a handful of tickets. The overseer rapidly counted them, the negro closely watching. Often it was insisted that there ought to be more. In every such case they were at once counted over again, slowly and distinctly. It rarely happened that this did not end the dispute. Sometimes, however, fresh search in some unexplored pocket, or a return to the quarters and examination of the all-concealing bed-clothes, would produce another ticket or two.

The number announced, the proprietor called off the amount earned, and counted out one-half of it, while the overseer wrote an informal due-bill for the other half, and the next name was called, while the slow-motioned negro was gathering up his change and due-bill.

Outside could be heard the grumbling of those who thought they ought to receive more, the chucklings of the better satisfied, the speculations of the unpaid as to how much they would get; and over all, the plans of the women as to what they would buy wid de money, fus’ time we’s go to Natchez. Sometimes one would be absent when the name was called. The rest shouted it in chorus, and presently the missing negro would come running up, tickets in hand, crying, “Heah me!” “Heah me!”