sons only, she attacked the
matter in hand with characteristic vigour:

"Zeke's not home much, is he?"

"Right smaht he ain', no'm." Zenie's face was all expectant smiles.
Not a shadow seemed to linger near it.

Mary Louise allowed her gaze to travel about the room. In the entire
atmosphere of the place was no besmirching suggestion of toil. She
returned again to Zenie. The latter was like some tropical flower in
full bloom. She began, selecting carefully her ground: "You haven't
any place to put your baby, no one to watch him while you work, have
you?" This was spoken with all the force of conviction.

Zenie's face wreathed itself in another smile. "I ain' do no mo'
wuk--not ontil Zeke he come home."

Mary Louise paused and drew breath. She began again: "If there was
somewhere you could put him, someone who could look out for him, or if
it was so that you could keep an eye on him yourself--why, you could
go to work again, like you used to."

The brightness of Zenie's smile began to fade. "Yas'm. Yas'm, reckon I
could." She turned her attention to the child in her arms and her
voice, as she continued, was liquid soft. "Zeke's doin' so good--I
ain' aim to wuk out no mo'. Jes' keep house heah fo' him."

Then Mary Louise, sensing defeat, struck; struck unerringly for her
objective which she judged to be the vulnerable spot; struck with
characteristic vigour and direct: "I'll give you six dollars a week if
you'll come and do the cooking for Miss Susie, for this summer." She
paused and observed the effect.

Zenie had suddenly acquired all the coy graces of a maid receiving a
long-expected proposal. She cast her eyes discreetly down, toyed at
the rocker edge with her shoe, and smiled.

"You won't have to clean up the house. Landy does that. You won't have
to do a single thing but cook." The speech ended with a rising
inflection. Mary Louise's eloquent picture inspired even herself with
hope.

"Mis' Burrus done offa me seven."

There was a momentary silence, during which time Mary Louise
marshalled her routed forces. Directly she gallantly renewed the
attack: "I'll give you seven then. And you can have all the time off
you want, whenever you get through with the dishes." She had come, in
a way, prepared for shocks, but the whirlwind manner of her
recklessness was leaving her a bit breathless.

Zenie's face at once assumed a look of concern and lifting her head
she pondered far-off possibilities. "Zeke, he home