What's more, said I, I heard the shot
that was fired. Being at that time unfortunately engaged in walkin'
from Richmond to Washington, I was makin' for the nearest town when
night came on. So I had to sleep in that barn down the road. I had all
the dates right in my mind, and the hour, and the whole business
pictured out puffect, as Joey'd say. I didn't give him a chance to do
much talkin'. I sees I had him guessin', so I just sailed in and told
him just how it happened, claimin' that the nigger told it to me after
I had jumped out and grabbed him as he run past me in the road,
thinkin', says I, there had been some skullduggery goin' on or he
wouldn't be chasin' his legs off. Well, sir, that uncle o' your'n, for
all his bluff, was sweatin' like a horse. Somehow, he forgot to have
me kicked out.
"My story was, that after I'd grabbed the nigger he told me he hadn't
done the shootin', and begged me to let him go. He said the shootin'
had been done by the old man's son, and a lot more stuff like that. To
clinch the business, I said the nigger, scared half to death, told me
about getting a deed signed that night and about a will that had been
substituted, and so on and so forth.
Pages:
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276