'fraid he might git 'em scratched up walkin' through de fields, so he
snuck his Marster's hoss out and rode to de dance. When Abraham rid up
dar in dem shiny boots, he got all de gals' 'tention. None of 'em wanted
to dance wid de other Niggers. Dat Abraham was sho sruttin' 'til
somebody run in and told him his hoss had done broke its neck. He had
tied it to a limb and sho 'nough, some way, dat hoss had done got
tangled up and hung its own self. Abraham begged de other Nigger boys to
help him take de deid hoss home, but he had done tuk deir gals and he
didn't git no help. He had to walk 12 long miles home in dem tight
shoes. De sun had done riz up when he got dar and it warn't long 'fore
his Marster was callin': 'Abraham, bring, me my boots.' Dat Nigger would
holler out: 'Yas sah! I'se a-comin'. But dem boots wouldn't come off
'cause his foots had done swelled up in 'em. His marster kept on callin'
and when Abraham seed he couldn't put it off no longer, he jus' cut dem
boots off his foots and went in and told what he had done. His marster
was awful mad and said he was a good mind to take de hide off Abraham's
back. 'Go git my hoss quick, Nigger, 'fore I most kills you,' he yelled.
Den Abraham told him: 'Marster I knows you is gwine to kill me now, but
your hoss is done daid.' Den pore Abraham had to out and tell de whole
story and his marster got to laughin' so 'bout how he tuk all de gals
away from de other boys and how dem boots hurt him dat it looked lak he
never would stop. When he finally did stop laughin' and shakin' his
sides he said: 'Dat's all right Abraham. Don't never let nobody beat
your time wid de gals.' And dat's all he ever said to Abraham 'bout it.

"When my sister got married, us sho did have a grand time. Us cooked a
pig whole wid a shiny red apple in its mouth and set it right in de
middle of de long table what us had built out in de yard. Us had
evvything good to go wid dat pig, and atter dat supper, us danced all
night long. My sister never had seed dat man but one time 'fore she