Mrs. Bellmont found her one day quietly reading her Bible. Amazed and half crediting the reports of officious neighbors, she felt it was time to interfere. Here she was, reading and shedding tears over the Bible. She ordered her to put up the book, and go to work, and not be snivelling about the house, or stop to read again.
But there was one little spot seldom penetra-ted by her mistress' watchful eye: this was her room, uninviting and comfortless; but to her-self a safe retreat. Here she would listen to the pleadings of a Saviour, and try to penetrate the veil of doubt and sin which clouded her soul, and long to cast off the fetters of sin, and rise to the communion of saints.
Mrs. Bellmont, as we before said, did not trou-ble herself about the future destiny of her ser-vant. If she did what she desired for HER bene-fit, it was all the responsibility she acknowledged.
But she seemed to have great aversion to the notice Nig would attract should she become pious. How could she meet this case? She re-solved to make her complaint to John. Strange, when she was always foiled in this direction, she should resort to him. It was time something was done; she had begun to read the Bible openly.
The night of this discovery, as they were retiring, Mrs. Bellmont introduced the conver-sation, by saying:
"I want your attention to what I am going to say. I have let Nig go out to evening meet-ings a few times, and, if you will believe it, I found her reading the Bible to-day, just as though she expected to turn pious nigger, and preach to white folks. So now you see what good comes of sending her to school. If she should get converted she would have to go to meeting: at least, as long as James lives. I wish he had not such queer notions about her. It seems to trouble him to know he must die and leave her. He says if he should get well he would take her home with him, or educate her here. Oh, how awful! What can the child mean? So careful, too, of her! He says we shall ruin her health making her work so hard, and sleep in such a place. O, John! do you think he is in his right mind?"
"Yes, yes; she is slender."
"Yes, YES!" she repeated sarcastically, "you know these niggers are just like black snakes; you CAN'T kill them. If she wasn't tough she would have been killed long ago. There was never one of my girls could do half the work."
"Did they ever try?" interposed her husband.
"I think she can do more than all of them together."
"What a man!" said she, peevishly. "But I want to know what is going to be done with her about getting pious?"
"Let her do just as she has a mind to. If it is a comfort to her, let her enjoy the privilege of being good. I see no objection."
"I should think YOU were crazy, sure. Don't you know that every night she will want to go toting off to meeting? and Sundays, too? and you know we have a great deal of company Sundays, and she can't be spared."
"I thought you Christians held to going to church," remarked Mr. B.
"Yes, but who ever thought of having a nig-ger go, except to drive others there? Why, according to you and James, we should very soon have her in the parlor, as smart as our own girls. It's of no use talking to you or James. If you should go on as you would like, it would not be six months before she would be leaving me; and that won't do. Just think how much profit she was to us last summer. We had no work hired out; she did the work of two girls--"
"And got the whippings for two with it!" remarked Mr. Bellmont.
"I'll beat the money out of her, if I can't get her worth any other way," retorted Mrs. B. sharply. While this scene was passing, Frado was trying to utter the prayer of the publican, "God be merciful to me a sinner."
