Mister Dark, he says: "I'se gwine ter stay heah an' have sum fun outer
you. Ef you's skeered, Little Boy, jes' call on yo' Daddy's snore an'
yo' Mammy's dreams, an' yo' cat's meaw an' yo' little dawg's floppin'
tail. You must read me a story. Heah's er book. Heah's specticle-glasses
fer de dark. Now read an' let de fun begin."
I shakes my head, an' den I seemed jes' like er big piece o' gumbo. I
wuz tall an' den short, an' in an' den out an' square an' den round. I
says ter myself: "Ef I ends er foot ball, Mister Dark will have a great
big kick cum'in'." All at once I felt de book in my hand, de
specticle-glasses on my nose, an' I wuz tryin' ter read. I could read,
an' den I couldn't. I'd call de fust wud, an' den dat wud would jump on
all de udder wuds es I cum ter 'em, an' I'd jes' call dat wud right on
frum de top ter de bottom o' de page.
"Looker-heah, Little Boy," said Mister Dark, "you jes' cyarn't read.
Let's all laf." Den Mister Dark chuckled er laf, an' Mister Rain
spattered er laf, an' Mister Wind roared er laf, an' my cat meawed er
laf, an' my little dawg flopped er laf wid his tail, an' I lafed jes' er
little teeny bit, an' I wanted it back erg'in.
Mister Dark made er funny little noise, an' whut does you reckon
happened? My cat wuz on one knee, an' my dawg on de udder. De
specticle-glasses wuz on dey noses, an' dey read every wud in dat book.
Now what does you reckon dem wuds wuz erbout? Dey wuz erbout dat wud dat
played leap frog frum de top ter de bottom o' dat page when I tried ter
read, an' erbout dat rabbit an' dem hoecakes, an' how I wuz gwine ter
oversleep myself, an' how my mouf would wotter when I seed de rabbit's
bones picked clean.
Den I said ter Mister Dark: "Mister Dark, you's pokin' fun at me, an'
you's makin' my cat meaw fun at me an' my dawg flop fun at me wid his
tail; but I'se gwine ter beat you in de end fer I'se gwine ter sleep."
"'Scuse me fer readin'," meawed my cat, an' jumped down frum my right
knee.
"'Scuse me fer readin'," barked my dawg, an' jumped down frum my left
knee.
"'Scuse us too," mumbled de book an' de specticle-glasses.
"Now, my Little Boy," said Mister Dark, "ef you'll jes' shet yo' eyes
an' open yo' mouf you'll 'scuse me too to-morrow mawnin'."
I closed my eyes an' opened my mouf an' went ter sleep. I sleeped an'
sleeped an' sleeped, an' at last I waked up. Mister Daylight wuz dere as
big as de cabin-room, an' my Mammy wuz frying de hoecakes, an' my Daddy
wuz stewin' de rabbit, an' when I got all de glue outen my eyelids I
sed: "Mammy, I'se bin erway, an' I'se hongry."
"Give dat chile er cake," says Mammy.
"An' sum rabbit," says Daddy.
"An' give my cat an' dawg sum too," says I.
Den we all eat an' eat an' eat, an' all at once Mammy says:
"Look-er-heah, chile, you dun growed er whole pound last night."
"Yas'm," says I, "an' it wuz dis way. While you all wuz er snorin'
Mister Dark cumed in an' tried ter skeer me, but I jes' spunked up an'
closed my eyes an' opened my mouf an' swallowed Mister Dark right down
an' went ter sleep, an' course I'se bigger."
"Give dat smart chile er nudder cake," says Mammy.
Daddy puts de cake in my mouf, an' I starts ter swallow it 'fore I
thinks ter say: "I thank you." Den I tries ter say it an' swallow at de
same time, but I gits choked. Den I swallows an' swallows an' swallows
jes' dis way (Imitate swallowing), an' at last I swallows it down. Den I
reaches fer en nudder cake, but it ain't dere.
My cat, she meawed, an' my dawg's tail whopped on de floor, but I ain't
gwine ter tell no more stories, no I ain't, till my Mammy makes more
hoecakes, an' my Daddy stews more rabbit, an' de great big Mister Dark
cums back ter make me grow an' give me er appertite.