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Show eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee foBBEs! j CAROLINE LEE'S SI6N f ! By EDWARD BREENE. I 'ABai ft! nasBBBB On ono ot the side streets near the P center of town tliero Is a curious old C-assafl gray house. It . wm j LiB Btands far back '"V. KasBBBsl from tho street (TRX(3BS. Fsbbbbbb! and looks for nil 1VV1bbbwW5 ' ''IbbbbbbI tho world llko n fVJnteJLgL fssBsfl Bour old man who RtsJSnLfPSi ! Lbbh proves of his new. AjvS'ffiSWlB HbbbbbI er and moro v BShbbbbI lH bora. Its fence haa bbbbbbSb I-'bbbbbbI long since fallen JBOsSi f -sbbbbbI Into decay and Is ifeg I H hold up hero i r pHH E sbbbbbI there by a groan- ' KgEsI !bbbbb1 lng post or a RM i bbbbbbI creaking wire. On IS3sl H L sbbbbbI tho rickety old Mps II j porch hangs a ' ' ' j H neat now shingle, bearing in bold black, j jH letters tho following; "I don't want LVbbbbI no niggers hangln' round here and I ibbbbbb1 don't want nothing to do with nlggera n ; nohow." It Is signed ."Caroline Lee." H-bbbbbb! Now, to a person born with almost iH as much curiosity as a cat, such a t SbbbbbI sign la like a red rag to a bull. How- i vH ever, for a long time, In spite of all I H could do, I never had a gllmpso ot - B the occupant, though I often heard a H somewhat cracked yet unmistakably sbbbbbI darky voice singing "At the cross, , At t'l the cross." , Then finally, one happy H afternoon I saw her, little and old and repass! wiry, black as the aco of spades, clad 1 sbbbbbI In calico skirt and bright rod sweator, j B and wielding an ax with all tho vigor flHl of a farm hand. Of courso I was over- r bbbbbb! Joyed at seqlng her, but I was still a I VA1 long way from' knowing what the sign I flBl meant I thought ot every way to be- r bbbbbb! como friends with hor, but none I H Bocmcd to suit, until Anally I had a ( PBJ happy thought hor dog. UbbbI When I meet a cat she always gives i H mo ono look and Immediately romom- 1 MB bers urgent business clsowhoro. But jjIBJ every dog seems to rocognlio In mo a jH boon companion, so from that time on i vwJ my path wasclear. Every day as I -ayHj went by I'd havo a visit with tho dog. '& while his mistress peeked surreptl- afl tlously from behind the curtains. At 'H tsst I was rowarded by a smile and ' bbbbbI a tentative "MawnlnV And such a tH smile! It waa for all tho world Ilka itVJ tho sun breaking through a tog. In 'Ibbbb! this way matters went until I camo flj to know hor better, and finally one (ibbbb! day I took my fate in my hands and I flH asked her to explain tho sign. I had IH been afraid Blio would tako my request -vl as' an ofTenao, but Instead sho smiled 'iHsl broadly and Invited me to "set down Jfl on tho porch step." Needless to say, CwJ I was only too willing to "set" KwJ "You Beo," sho said, "It's neah eight- MB eon yealm bIiico my olo man died down fvJ In Nashville and lot' mo with six chtl- Ion and nothln' to keop mo on. But BB lawd, Ah didn't euro; 'pears like Ah BJ knowed ov'yono In Noehvlllo, so Ah BB Jes' whlrlod In an' went to work. Ah BJ raised ov'y ono ot them chlllen, and 'tLI when they got married thoy Jes rlfl picked up ono after nuther and lor ', mo. Well. Ah didn't mln' that, but B looks llko ev'y time any one ofj them flj chlllen or their husban's got out o' .Bfl work and, that's mighty neah all tho 1H time they come to stay wtuTme. Ah 9BJ stood that tor a long time, and then BB Ah got klnda .ttred, so Jes' west to SB Missus White, that, ill, worked fo', BB and tole her Aljft male up my mind jflB to light out Mraa a powerful Una IBB wemecvMlsa White wus, and she tole IBB sae she was a-comln out hash, "and ifll would bring me long. She didn't .half flfl think Ah'd come, but peara like Ah'd got klnda desp'rlt. so Ah come, and B1 the only thing Ah prune win man lit- Bl tie ole grip and man dawg. 91 "Wall. Ah got along fine heah. too; Ml .you see. Miss' White knowed. lota o afl people roua' heah, and Ah had all IBS the work Ah could do. IK "But lawd, Ah hadn't been heah 'Mm more'n two months when them pesky pBJ chlllen o mine comes pllln' In on me IB like the wrath o' God. Seems like 1BJ they'd been writln' to some fool nig- gah heah, and they Just got It Into BJ their halds to como. They didn't have BJ no money, so Ah bad to let em stay - UJ till they got work. An' finally it was Bl Jos' as bad as ever; got so Ah couldn't Bl keep onough to cat in tho house to HJ feed mah dawg, lot alone mo. Ah H dldn t know what to do for a while, ITI and then ono day Ah got to thlnkln', Mj and went down to tho sign man nnd H had him paint mo that air sign. Them fl foot nlggahB done took tho hint, too; B an' Ah hain't never seo'd hldo nor B hair uf 'cm since." B "But don't you got lonoBomo for them Boimitlmen?" I asked. B "Lawd, honoy, If you'd been both- j erod with them llko Ah have, you j B wouldn't think Ah'd ovnh git lone- ' B Bomo; sldos," sho uddod, with a ; fl twlnklo In hor eye, "they's enough I whlto folks comes In heah to ask mo I 9 about that sign to keep mo from ovah I II gltttn' lonesome." ! |