since the war, that ain't sich a sho sign as it uster be. You see
plenty er po' white trash now a-ownin' fine homes and de quality rentin'
nothin' mo' than cabins."

"Well, Judy is the gal I mean, Aunt Mary, and I fancy they will come to
live with Mother at Chatsworth."

"Don' it beat all how Miss Milly's daughters is marryin' out and her
sons a-marryin' in? I done heard Miss Milly say hunderds er times that
she'd 'low her daughters to marry in but her sons must marry out, as
daughters-in-law is heaps mo' ticklish to git 'long wif than
sons-in-law. Here her three daughters is a marryin' an' going to all
kin's er outlan'ish places leavin' they ma an' they home; an' now the
boys is thinkin' bout takin' unto theyselves wives, an' one an' all say
they can't sleep nowheres but at Chatsworth, an' they mus' bring they
wives back home to keep comp'ny wif yo' ma! Mr. Paul's cou'tin' 'round,
but he manages to git stuck on too many gals at oncet and makes it hard
to settle hisself. I done noticed, howsomever, 'bout that kinder
whimsified lover, when he do settle down, he makes the bes' husband er
all. Men folks is gotter have they fling, and they bes' have it 'fo'
matrimony than durin' it.

"Dr. John was right hard hit wif that Miss Hunt what was a-visiting yo'
Aunt Clay 'til he seed her wif her hair all stringy an' out er curl that
time you all went on the night picnic and the creek riz so and mos'
drownded the passel of you. He ain't never paid no 'tention to her
since; but they do tell me that pretty, rosy-cheeked young lady he drove
out here las' week from Lou'ville is liable to be Mrs. Dr. John. What's
mo,' Ca'line tells me she is a trained nurse. She certainly do look lak
a lady and I tuck notice she eat lak a lady, ef she does hire herself
out in service. Pears lak to me that the mo' things the niggers thinks
theyselves too good to do, the mo' things the white folks decide they
ain't too good ter do fer theyselves."

"Why, Aunt Mary, of course Miss Graves is a lady. She belongs to one of
the very best families and is very well educated and certainly charming
and sweet. John will be lucky, indeed, if he can persuade her to have
him."

"Well, honey chile, ef you say so, 'tis so. 'Cose in days gone by a nuss
was a nuss, cep' some was good and some was bad, but now it seems some
is ladies an' some ain't."

"Here comes Mother," exclaimed Edwin, springing from his seat to go meet
his mother-in-law, who was opening the neat