FOLKS FROM DIXIE
grew to look on her as the source of all his disappointments. Then, as he walked Sixth or Seventh Avenue, he saw other coloured women who dressed gayer than Mandy, looked smarter, and did not wear such great shoes. These he contrasted with his wife, to her great disadvantage.
"Mandy," he said to her one day, "why don't you fix yo'se'f up an' look like people? You go 'roun' hyeah lookin' like I dunno what."
"Why n' you git me somep'n' to fix myse'f up in?" came back the disconcerting answer.
"Ef you had any git up erbout you, you 'd get somep'n' fu' yo'se'f an' not wait on me to do evahthing."
"Well, ef I waits on you, you keeps me waitin', fu' I ain' had nothin' fit to eat ner waih since I been up hyeah."
"Nev' min'! You 's might free wid yo' talk now, but some o' dese days you won't be so free. You 's gwine to wake up some mo'nin' an' din' dat I 's lit out; dat 's what you will."
"Well, I 'low nobody ain't got no string to you."
Mandy took Jim's threat as an idle one, so
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