good to me, Melanctha, dear one," Jeff said,
after a long, tender silence. "You certainly are very good to me,
Melanctha, darling, and me so bad to you always, in my acting. Do you
love me good, and right, Melanctha, always?" "Always and always,
you be sure of that now you have me. Oh you Jeff, you always be so
stupid." "I certainly never can say now you ain't right, when you say
that to me so, Melanctha," Jeff answered. "Oh, Jeff dear, I love you
always, you know that now, all right, for certain. If you don't
know it right now, Jeff, really, I prove it to you now, for good and
always." And they lay there a long time in their loving, and then Jeff
began again with his happy free enjoying.

"I sure am a good boy to be learning all the time the right way you
are teaching me, Melanctha, darling," began Jeff Campbell, laughing,
"You can't say no, never, I ain't a good scholar for you to be
teaching now, Melanctha, and I am always so ready to come to you
every day, and never playing hooky ever from you. You can't say ever,
Melanctha, now can you, I ain't a real good boy to be always studying
to be learning to be real bright, just like my teacher. You can't say
ever to me, I ain't a good boy to you now, Melanctha." "Not near so
good, Jeff Campbell, as such a good, patient kind of teacher, like
me, who never teaches any ways it ain't good her scholars should be
knowing, ought to be really having, Jeff, you hear me? I certainly
don't think I am right for you, to be forgiving always, when you are
so bad, and I so patient, with all this hard teaching always." "But
you do forgive me always, sure, Melanctha, always?" "Always and
always, you be sure Jeff, and I certainly am afraid I never can stop
with my forgiving, you always are going to be so bad to me, and I
always going to have to be so good with my forgiving." "Oh! Oh!" cried
Jeff Campbell, laughing, "I ain't going to be so bad for always, sure
I ain't, Melanctha, my own darling. And sure you do forgive me really,
and sure you love me true and really, sure, Melanctha?" "Sure, sure,
Jeff, boy, sure now and always, sure now you believe me, sure you
do, Jeff, always." "I sure hope I does, with all my heart, Melanctha,
darling." "I sure do that same, Jeff, dear boy, now you really know
what it is to be loving, and I prove it to you now so, Jeff, you never
can be forgetting. You see now, Jeff, good and certain, what I always
before been saying to you, Jeff, now." "Yes, Melanctha,