equently got nothing. Seeing that, I tossed her
a silver piece, which she caught. Grinning her thanks, she shouted,
"Now, clar de track, you nigs; start de music. I'se gwine to gib de
gemman de breakdown."

And she did; and such a breakdown! "We w'ite folks," though it was no
new thing to the Colonel or Tommy, almost burst with laughter.

In a few minutes nearly every negro on the plantation, attracted by the
presence of the Colonel and myself, gathered around the performers; and
a shrill voice at my elbow called out, "Look har, ye lazy,
good-for-nuffin' niggers, carn't ye fotch a cheer for Massa Davy and de
strange gemman?"

"Is that you, Aunty?" said the Colonel. "How d'ye do?"

"Sort o' smart, Massa Davy; sort o' smart; how is ye?"

"Pretty well, Aunty; pretty well. Have a seat." And the Colonel helped
her to one of the chairs that were brought for us, with as much
tenderness as he would have shown to an aged white lady.

The "exercises," which had been suspended for a moment, recommenced, and
the old negress entered into them as heartily as the youngest present. A
song from Cato followed the dance, and then about twenty "gentleman and
lady" darkies joined, two at a time, in a half "walk-round" half
breakdown, which the Colonel told me was the original of the well-known
dance and song of Lucy Long. Other performances succeeded, and the whole
formed a scene impossible to describe. Such uproarious jollity, such
full and perfect enjoyment, I had never seen in humanity, black or
white. The little nigs, only four or five years old, would rush into the
ring and shuffle away at the breakdowns till I feared their short legs
would come off; while all the darkies joined in the songs, till the
branches of the old pines above shook as if they too had caught the
spirit of the music. In the midst of it, the Colonel said to me, in an
exultant tone:

"Well, my friend, what do you think of slavery _now_?"

"About the same that I thought yesterday. I see nothing to change my
views."

"Why, are not these people happy? Is not this perfect enjoyment?"

"Yes; just the same enjoyment that aunty's pigs are having; don't you
hear _them_ singing to the music? I'll wager they are the happier of the
two."

"No; you are wrong. The higher faculties of the darkies are being
brought out here."

"I don't know that," I replied. "Within the sound of their voices, two
of their fellows--victims to the inhumanity of slavery--are lying dead