Part 6 (2/2)

”Well, I don't know what you would call good luck,” said Blount. ”The fact is, I had a little trouble, coming in.”

”Trouble? In what way?”

”Well, it happened this way,” said he, with a quick glance about him.

”I don't like to mention such things, but I suppose you ought to know. This was about a couple of negroes back in the country a way.

You know, I am a sort of deputy sheriff, and I was called on to do a little work with those same negroes. I suppose you know, ma'am, that those negroes used to run this whole state a few years ago, though they ain't studying so much about politics to-day.”

”I know something of that,” said Mrs. Ellison. ”That was soon after the war, they tell me. But they gave that up long ago. They don't bother with politics now.”

”No,” resumed Blount. ”They're not studying so much as they used to.

Not long ago I had a number of northern philanthropists down here, who came down to look into the ”conditions in this district.” I said I'd show them everything they wanted; so I sent out for some of my field hands. I said to one of them, ”Bill,” said I, ”these gentlemen want to ask you some questions. I suppose your name is William Henry Arnold, isn't it?” ”Ya.s.sah,” said Bill. ”You was county supervisor here some years ago, wasn't you, Bill?' 'Ya.s.sah,' said Bill. I said, 'I beg your pardon, Mr. William Henry Arnold, but will you please step up here to my desk and write your name for these gentlemen?'

'Why, sho'! boss,' said he, 'you know I kain't write mah name.'

'That's all,' said I.

”'Now, gentlemen,' said I, 'exhibit number two is Mr. George Was.h.i.+ngton Sims. 'George,' said I, 'you used to be our county treasurer, didn't you?' He said he did. 'Who paid the taxes, then, George?' said I. 'Why, boss, you white folks paid most of 'um.' 'All right, Mr. George Was.h.i.+ngton Sims,' said I, 'you step up here and write your name for these gentlemen.' He just laughed. 'That'll do,'

said I.

”'Exhibit number three,' said I to these northern philanthropists, 'is our late distinguished fellow citizen, Abednego Shadrach Jones.

He was our county clerk down here a while back. 'Nego, who paid the taxes, time you was clerk?' He was right uncomfortable. 'Why, boss,'

said he, 'you paid most of 'um, you an' the white folks in heah. No n.i.g.g.ah man had nothin' to pay taxes on.'

”'You know that we white folks had to pay for the schools and bridges, and the county buildings--had to pay salaries--had to pay the county clerk and the janitor--had to pay everything?' I said to him. 'Ya.s.sah,' said Nego.

”'You were elected legally, and we white folks couldn't out-vote you, nohow?' 'Ya.s.sah,' said he. 'I s'pose we wus all 'lected legal 'nough.

I dunno rightly, but dey all done tol' me dat wuz so.'

”'Nego,' said I, 'step up here to your boss' desk and write your name, just like you do when I give you credit for a bale of cotton.'

Nego he steps up and he makes a mark, and a mighty poor mark at that.

'You can go,' I said to him.

”'Now, gentlemen,' said I to them, 'do you want exhibits number four and five and six?' And they allowed they didn't.

”There was one fellow in the lot who stepped up to me and took my hand. He was a Federal colonel in the war, but he said to me, 'Colonel Blount, I beg your pardon. You have made this plainer to me than I ever saw it before. It would be the ruin of this country if you gave over the control of your homes and property and let them be run by people like these. You have solved this problem for yourselves, and you ought to be left to solve it all the time. As for us folks from the North, we are a lot of ignorant meddlers; and as for me, I'm going home.'”

Blount fell silent, musing for a time. ”Some folks say, 'Educate the negro,'” he resumed finally, ”they say 'Uplift him.' They say 'Give him a chance.' So do I. I will give him more than a chance. I will let the negroes do all they can to help themselves, and I'll do the balance myself. But they can't rule me, until they are better than I am; and that's going to be a long while yet. Const.i.tution or no const.i.tution, government or no government, the black rule can't and don't go in the Delta! It wouldn't be _right_.

”Now, I'll tell you about those two poor fellows to-day,” he continued. ”There was Tom Sands, who works on a plantation about twelve miles from here. He has been getting drunk and beating his wife and scaring his children for about three months. Judge Williams had him up not long ago and bound him over to keep the peace, and when I last saw the judge he told me to take this negro up, if I was going by there any time, and bring him up and put him in jail for a while, until he got to behaving himself again. You know we have to do these things right along, to keep this country quiet.

”Well, when we were coming in from the hunt, we pa.s.sed within a few miles of his cotton patch, and I rode over to see him. He was out in the field, and I found him and told him he had to come along. He refused to come. He swore at me--and he was not even a county surveyor in the old days! Then I ordered him in the name of the law to come along. He picked up a piece of fence rail and started at me.

I had to get down off my horse to meet him. I own I struck him right hard. There was another boy, a big black negro, that must have come in here lately from some other part of the country, a big, stoop- shouldered fellow--well, he started for me, too. I took up the same piece of fence rail and knocked him down.

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