Down Cums
De Litening And Fills De Bottle Full Up, And Cap'n
Franklin He Dun Cork Him Up Mighty Quick, And
Kotched De Litening An' Made De Telegraf.
But
it was de Lord - de Lord, not Cap'n
Franklin dat did all dis."
It was amusing to watch the varied expression
of the negroes, as they listened to this description
of the discovery of electricity, and the origin of
the telegraph. Their eyes dilated with wonder,
and their thick lips parted till the mouth,
growing wider and wider, seemed to cover more than
its share of the face. The momentary silence was
soon broken by a deep gurgle proceeding from a
stolid-looking negro, as he exclaimed: "Did he
kotch de bottle full ob litening, and cork him
up. Golly! I tort he wud hab busted hissef!"
"So he wud! so he wud!" roared the orator,
"but ye see 'twas all de Lord - de Lord's
a-doing it."
While in Florida I paid some attention to the
negro method of conducting praise meetings,
which they very appropriately call "de
shoutings." If I give some verbatim reports of the
negro's curious and undignified clerical efforts,
it is not done for the purpose of caricaturing
him, nor with a desire to make him appear
destitute of mental calibre; but rather with the hope
that the picture given may draw some sympathy
from the liberal churches of the north, which do
not forget the African in his native jungle, nor the
barbarous islanders of the South Seas.
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