“Look at dat!” Hitch Diamond exclaimed in tones of wonder and admiration. “Made a fire by rubbin’ two sticks ag’in’ each odder. I done tried dat a thousan’ times, but I didn’t make nothin’ but sweat!”
“Whut you reckin she done built dat fire fer, Hitch?” Vinegar inquired with chattering teeth.
“Mebbe she wants to dry out dem clothes she’s got on,” Hitch surmised.
“I dunno,” Vinegar responded in fearful tones. “It ’pears to me dat it’s mighty nigh dinner-time, an’ I’s done heerd tell dat sometimes dose here she-heathens _eats folks_.”
“Oh, hush, nigger!” Hitch mourned, sinking down upon a bench at the far end of the room. “Don’t start no news like dat! Please, suh, Revun Atts, git yo’ religium wuckin’ ag’in’ her right now!”
“I don’t know how!” Vinegar lamented. “I ain’t never had no expe’unce on dis kind of job.”
“Whut do de Bible say do?” Hitch demanded.
“It say, ‘Watch an’ pray,’” Vinegar told him.
“Dat ain’t gwine do no good in dis case,” Hitch declared with conviction. “You mought as well pour dem advices back into de jug. Leasewise I cain’t figger out how it kin do any good. But ef you wants to try it, you do de prayin’ an’ lemme watch.”
“I’s mos’ too close to dis fire, Hitch,” Vinegar remarked uneasily. “I prefers to pray in de kitchen.”
“I’ll go wid you,” Hitch declared eagerly.
The two men entered the only other room to the log cabin, each blocking the other in his eagerness to be the first to get through the door. Diada promptly followed them, and the two men backed against the wall, looking in vain for some way of escape for Diada was between them and the door.
Hanging from the rafters in the kitchen were half a dozen strings of smoked sausages in skins.
Diada reached up and clawed down one of the strings and proceeded to eat the sausage raw. Like a child chewing a thread, she began at one end and lapped up link after link of the sausage. When that had been devoured, she snatched down another string and began on the end of that. Then she snapped off a link and offered it to Vinegar Atts.
“No’m; thank ’e, mum,” Vinegar said. “I likes to watch you chawin’ it. Fer Gawd’s sake, don’t nibble at dat sausage like dat--_eat a plenty_!”
Hitch Diamond pulled down two more strings of the sausage and handed them to her.