Snake-bit Bob. He had been bitten by a rattlesnake when he was a boy,
and the limb had to be amputated, and its place was supplied with a
wooden peg. There were three or four other "Bobs" on the plantation, and
he was called _Snake-bit_ to distinguish him. Though lame, and sick a
good deal of his time, his life had not been wasted, nor had he been a
useless slave to his master. He made all of the baskets that were used
in the cotton-picking season, and had learned to mend shoes; besides
that, he was the great horse-doctor of the neighborhood, and not only
cured his master's horses and mules, but was sent for for miles around
to see the sick stock; and then, too, he could re-bottom chairs, and
make buckets and tubs and brooms; and all of the money he made was his
own: so the old man had quite a little store of gold and silver sewed up
in an old bag and buried somewhere--nobody knew where except himself;
for Uncle Snake-bit Bob had never married, and had no family ties; and,
furthermore, he was old Granny Rachel's only child, and Granny had died
long, _long_ ago, ever since the children's mother was a baby, and he
had no brothers or sisters. So, having no cause to spend his money, he
had laid it up until now he was a miser, and would steal out by himself
at night and count his gold and silver, and chuckle over it with great
delight.

But he was a very good old man; as Mammy used to say, "he wuz de piuses
man dar wuz on de place;" and he had for years led in "de
pra'r-meetin's, and called up de mo'ners."

One evening, as he sat on a hog-pen talking to Uncle Daniel, who was a
preacher, they began to speak of the wickedness among the young negroes
on the plantation.

"Pyears ter me," said Uncle Bob, "ez ef dem niggers done furgot dey got