s rhymes were very apt, and there are men
living to-day who can repeat some of the extemporaneous satires composed
by this negro. He had the reputation among the blacks of being an
uncompromising friend of the whites. In the town, he was a privileged
character; he could do and say what he pleased. He was a fine cook, and
provided possum suppers for those who sat up late at night, and
ice-cream for those who went to bed early. He tidied up the rooms of the
young bachelors, he sold chicken-pies and ginger-cakes on public days,
and Cephas, whose name was mentioned at the beginning of this chronicle,
is willing to pay five dollars to the man or woman who can bake a
ginger-cake that will taste as well as those that Ike Varner made. He
was a happy-go-lucky negro, and spent his money as fast as he made it,
not on himself, but on Edie, his wife, who was young, and bright, and
handsome. She was almost white, and her face reminded you somehow of the
old paintings of the Magdalene, with her large eyes and the melancholy
droop of her mouth. Edie was the one creature in the world that Ike
really cared for, and he had sense enough to know that she cared for him
only when he could supply her with money. Yet he watched her like a
hawk, madly jealous of every glance she gave another man; and she gave
many, in all directions. Ike's jealousy was the talk of the town among
the male population, and was the subject for many a jest at his expense.
His nature was such that he could jest about it too, but far below the
jests, as any one could see, there was desperation.

In spite of all this, Ike was the most popular negro in the town. His
wit and his good-humour commended him to the whole community. He had
moved his wife and his belongings into the country, two or three miles
from town, on the ground that the country is more conducive to health.
Ike's white friends laughed at him, but the negro couldn't see the joke.
Why should a negro be laughed at for taking precautions of this sort,
when there is a whole nation of whites that keeps its women hid, or
compels them to cover their faces when they go out for a breath of fresh
air? The fact is that Ike didn't know what else to do, and so he sent
his handsome wife into exile, and went along to keep her company.
Nevertheless, all his interests were within the corporate limits of
Shady Dale, and he was compelled by circumstances to leave Edie to pine
alone, sometimes till late at night. Whether Edie