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Plantation echoes

Chapter 11: LAMENTATION.
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About This Book

A short collection of poems written in a period phonetic dialect that evokes rural plantation life and folk-song rhythms. The pieces range from playful and humorous to plaintive and reflective, depicting work, home, music, seasonal change, and communal gatherings through repetition, colloquial idiom, and musical cadence. Many poems adopt a performative voice and narrative vignette form to capture local speech and sentiment. Several passages employ slang and stereotyped language rooted in their historical moment, which modern readers may find offensive.

LAMENTATION.

When de rent cums due
An’ yo’ haben got er dollah,
An’ yo’ hab to hunt
Fo’ er nuddah place to wollah,
De wintah’s dun cum,
An’ de coal pile’s sinkin’,
Dey’s nufin’ in de cupboard
An’ yo’ stummuck am er tinkin’,
How yo’ head wool geddahs!
How yo’ hunt an’ scratch!
Fo’ to skibbah up er dollah
Beats de ol’ Sam Patch!
When yo’ sot an’ ’fleck,
Seems befo’ yo’ keeps er bobbin’
De possum an’ de coon,
An’ de peach an’ apple cobblin’.
Yo’ dream bout summah,
Wid de joocy wattah millun,
Dat yo’ sotin’ in de middle
An’ yo’ stummuck jes’ er fillin’,
How yo’ mouf does wattah!
How yo’ stummuck jes’ jump!
An’ yo’ eyes am all er twinkle
An’ yo’ hump! hump! hump!
When de night cums on
An’ dey hain’t er nuf de kibbah,
While yo’ bunk an’ snooz
Fo’ to keep yo’ fum de shibbah,
De coal’s dun sinkin’
Till it am no mo’,
De weddah am at zero,
De worl am kibbahd in de sno’,
How yo’ head wool geddahs!
How yo’ hunt an’ scratch
Fo’ to skibbah up er dollah
Beats de ol’ Sam Patch!