rs there took up with
the idea that the doctor was mebby the feller the bishop had been
prophesying about, and for a sign and a omen and a miracle of his grace
and powers was going out to Big Bethel to turn 'em white. Poor devils,
they didn't see but what being turned white orter be a part of what they
was to get from the coming of that there Messiah.

News spreads among niggers quicker than among whites. No one knows how
they do it. But I've hearn tales about how when war times was there,
they would frequent have the news of a big fight before the white folks'
papers would. Soldiers has told me that in them there Philippine Islands
we conquered from Spain, where they is so much nigger blood mixed up
with other kinds in the islanders, this mysterious spreading around of
news is jest the same. And jest since nine o'clock the night before, the
news had spread fur miles around that Bishop Warren's Messiah was on his
way, and was going fur to turn the bishop white to show his power and
grace, and he had with him one he had turned part white, and that was
Sam, and one he had turned clear white, and that was me. And they was to
be signs and wonders to behold at Big Bethel, with pillars of cloud and
sounds of trumpets and fire squirting down from heaven, like it always
use to be in them old Bible days, and them there niggers to be led
singing and shouting and rejoicing into a land of milk and honey,
forevermore, AMEN!

That's what Sam says they are looking fur, dozens and scores and
hundreds of them niggers round about. Sam, he had lived in town five
or six years, and he looked down on all these here ignoramus country
niggers. So he busts out laughing at first, and he pertends like he
don't take no stock in any of it. Besides, he knowed well enough he
wasn't spotted up by no Messiah, but it was the dope in the bottles done
it. But as he told about them goings-on Sam got more and more interested
and warmed up to it, and his voice went into a kind of a sing-song like
he was prophesying himself. And the other two niggers quit pertending to
fool around the team and edged a little closeter, and a little closeter
yet, with their mouths open and their heads a-nodding and the whites of
their eyes a-rolling.

Fur my part, I never hearn such a lot of dern foolishness in all my
life. But the doctor, he says nothing at all. He listens to Sam ranting
and rolling out big words and raving, and only frowns. He climbs back
into the buggy ag