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Show 152 UNCLE TOM'S CABIN: OR, Chloe this morning, I'll build your house all m·cr, and you shall have a room for a parlor with a carpet on it, when I 'm a man. 0, you '11 have good times yet ! " Haley now came to the door, with the handcuffu in his hands. "Look here, now, Mister," said George, with an air of great superiority, 118 he got out," I shall let father and mother know how you treat Uncle Tom! " "You're welcome," said the trader. "I should think you'd be ashamed to spend all your life buying men arid women, and chaining them, like cattle! I should think you'd feel mean! " said George. " So long as your grand folks wants to buy men and women, I 'm as good as they is," said Haley; 1' 'tan't any meaner selJin' on 'em, than 'tis buyin' ! " ''I '11 never do either, when I'm a man,'' said George j "I'm ashamed, tllis day, that I 'm a Kentuckian. I always was proud of it before;" and George sat very straight on his borso, and looked round with an air, as if be expected the state would be impressed with his opinion. " Well, good-by, Uncle Tom ; keep a stiff upper lip," said George. "Good-by, Mas'r George," said Tom, looking fondly and admiringly at him. "God Ahnigbty bless you! Ah! Kentucky ban't got many like you!" ho said, in the fuh1ess of his heart, as the frank, boyish face was lost to !lis view. Away ho went, and 'l'om looked, till the clatter of his horse's heels died away, the last sound or sight of his home. But over his heart there seemed to be a warm Sp<Jt, where those young hands had placed that precious dollar. Tom put up his hand, and held it close to his heart. "Now, I tell yo what, Tom," said Haley, as ho came up LIFE AMONG THE i..OWLY. 153 to tho wagon, and threw in tho h~d-cuffs, " I mean to start fa'r with yo, as I geu'ally do with my niggors ; and I 'II tell yo now, to begin with, you treat me fa'r, and I '11 treat you fa'r; I an't never hard on my niggcrs. Calculates to do the best for 'om I can. Now, yo sec, you 'd hotter jest settle down comfortab1c, and not be tryin' no tricks; because nigger's tricks of all sorts I 'm up to, and it's no usc. If niggcrs is quiet, and don't try to get off, they bas good times with me; and if they don't, why, it's tbar fault, and not mine." 'l'om assured llaley that ho had no present intentions of running off. In fitct, tho exhortation seemed rather a superfluous one to a man with a great pair of iron fetters on his feet. But Mr. Haley bad got in the habit of commencing his relations with his stock with little exhortations of this nature, calculated, as he deemed, to inspire cheerfulness and confidence, and prevent the necessity of any unplell8ant scenes. And hero, for the present, we take our leave of Tom, to pursue the fortunes of other characters in our story. |