 | 'Weh Down Souf and other Poems : |  |
37
FELL FRUM GRACE.
I've bin brung befo' dis meetin',
An' de truf I gwine to tell—
Yes, I took de jedge's chickens,
An' sense den my min's a hell.
So, my brudders, I pleads guilty,
An' I owns up lik' er man
Dat is kotched whil' doin' murder
Wid de blood upon his han's.
An' de truf I gwine to tell—
Yes, I took de jedge's chickens,
An' sense den my min's a hell.
So, my brudders, I pleads guilty,
An' I owns up lik' er man
Dat is kotched whil' doin' murder
Wid de blood upon his han's.
Gwine to tell a straight tale 'bout it—
Not a thing I gwine konseal,
'Cause my konshuns don' kondem me;
De Lod he knows how bad I feel.
Ez I passed Jedge Johnson's manshun,
Ez I'd of'en don' befo',
Dar I spied his hin-house open,
'Dout no lock upon de do'.
Not a thing I gwine konseal,
'Cause my konshuns don' kondem me;
De Lod he knows how bad I feel.
Ez I passed Jedge Johnson's manshun,
Ez I'd of'en don' befo',
Dar I spied his hin-house open,
'Dout no lock upon de do'.
38
Brudders, won't y'all own t'wuz temptin'?
So I kayed dem chickins off,
An' jes' only fur saf' keepin',
Took an' hid 'um in de lof'.
All night long I thought erbout it—
“Shell I tak' dem chickins back?”
But de ve'y nex' day wuz Krismus,—
Is y'all 'sprised I jumped de track?
So I kayed dem chickins off,
An' jes' only fur saf' keepin',
Took an' hid 'um in de lof'.
All night long I thought erbout it—
“Shell I tak' dem chickins back?”
But de ve'y nex' day wuz Krismus,—
Is y'all 'sprised I jumped de track?
Forty years bin in good standin',
Hoed my ro' in shade an' shine;
Nuther saint nor sinner suffud
From no low-down ack ub min'.
But, ez yuthers don' befo' me,
I jis' halted in de race,
An' de fus' thing dat I knowed un
I had tumbled down frum grace.
Hoed my ro' in shade an' shine;
Nuther saint nor sinner suffud
From no low-down ack ub min'.
But, ez yuthers don' befo' me,
I jis' halted in de race,
An' de fus' thing dat I knowed un
I had tumbled down frum grace.
Do' I makes a full confeshun,
Yet I feel I 'zerbs yer raf,
But in mussy sphar er sinner
Dat hez stumbled frum de paf;
An' I makes dis 'umble promis'
'Fore de chuch upon my knee,
Dat hereafter I shall try to
Let my neighbors chickins be.
Yet I feel I 'zerbs yer raf,
But in mussy sphar er sinner
Dat hez stumbled frum de paf;
39
'Fore de chuch upon my knee,
Dat hereafter I shall try to
Let my neighbors chickins be.
I jes' tol' de jedge erbout it—
He had of'en gin me lif',—
What y'all reggin dat he tol' me?
“Tak' dem fur my Krismus gif'.”
I so glad I couldn't thank him,
An' my eyes stretch wid surpris',
Den he sed dat I wuz hones'—
Gin me dollah, too, besiz'.
He had of'en gin me lif',—
What y'all reggin dat he tol' me?
“Tak' dem fur my Krismus gif'.”
I so glad I couldn't thank him,
An' my eyes stretch wid surpris',
Den he sed dat I wuz hones'—
Gin me dollah, too, besiz'.
Then up spoke the good old pastor:
“Ez de Lord duz always keep
Larg' kumpashun fur de strayin',
We forgibs dis erin' sheep.
Should Gabul serch dis congregashun
Fur de chickins dat don' gone,
I'm mighty feard we'd all be lackin',
So don' let us cast a stone.”
“Ez de Lord duz always keep
Larg' kumpashun fur de strayin',
We forgibs dis erin' sheep.
Should Gabul serch dis congregashun
Fur de chickins dat don' gone,
I'm mighty feard we'd all be lackin',
So don' let us cast a stone.”
40
Then the chuch burst into singing
As they'd never sung before,
And the preacher told the sinner:
“Go in peace an' sin no mo'.”
As they'd never sung before,
And the preacher told the sinner:
“Go in peace an' sin no mo'.”
| 'Weh Down Souf and other Poems : | |