Part 1 (2/2)
”And what was you doing down there to the bottom of the hill? What was you doing down there, Benny?”
Her voice had a hushed tenseness to it.
”I was watching, maw.”
”Watching, Benny?”
”That's what I was doing.”
His tone held a guarded sullenness.
”'Tain't no such a pretty sunset, Benny.”
”Warn't watching no sunset.”
”Benny--!”
”Well.” He spoke quickly. ”What d'you want to put it there for? What d'you want to do that for in the first place?”
”There was birds, Benny. You know there was birds.”
”That ain't what I mean. What for d'you put on that there uniform?”
”I ain't had nothing else. There warn't nothing but your grand-dad's ole uniform. It's fair in rags, Benny. It's all I had to put on to it.”
”Well, you done it yourself.”
”Naw, Benny, naw! 'Tain't nothing but an ole uniform with a stick into it. Just to frighten off them birds. 'Tain't nothing else. Honest, 'tain't, Benny.”
He looked up at her out of the corners of his eyes.
”It was waving its arms.”
”That's the wind.”
”Naw, maw. Waving its arms before the wind it come up.”
”Sush, Benny! 'Tain't likely. 'Tain't.”
”I was watching, maw. I seen it wave and wave. S'pose it should beckon--; s'pose it should beckon to me. I'd be going, then, maw.”
”Sush, Benny.”
”I'd fair have to go, maw.”
”Leave your mammy? Naw, Ben; naw. You couldn't never go off and leave your mammy. Even if you ain't able to bear this here farm you couldn't go off from your mammy. You couldn't! Not--your--maw--Benny!”
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