“Spose it is.” Dilsey said. “It aint hurt none of you and yourn, is it. Versh working and Frony married off your hands and T. P. getting big enough to take your place when rheumatism finish getting you.”
“They been two, now.” Roskus said. “Going to be one more. I seen the sign, and you is too.”
“I heard a squinch owl that night.” T. P. said. “Dan wouldn’t come and get his supper, neither. Wouldn’t come no closer than the barn. Begun howling right after dark. Versh heard him.”
“Going to be more than one more.” Dilsey said. “Show me the man what aint going to die, bless Jesus.”
“Dying aint all.” Roskus said.
“I knows what you thinking.” Dilsey said. “And they aint going to be no luck in saying that name, lessen you going to set up with himwhile he cries.”
“They aint no luck on this place.” Roskus said. “I seen it at first but when they changed his name I knowed it.”
“Hush your mouth.” Dilsey said. She pulled the covers up. It smelled like T. P. “You allshut up now, tillhe get to sleep.”
“I seen the sign.” Roskus said.
“Sign T. P. got to do allyour work for you.” Dilsey said. Take him and Quentin down to the house and let them play with Luster, where Frony can watch them, T. P., and go and help your pa.
We finished eating. T. P. took Quentin up and we went down to T. P.’s house. Luster was playing in the dirt. T. P. put Quentin down and she played in the dirt too. Luster had some spools and he and Quentin fought and Quentin had the spools. Luster cried and Frony came and gave Luster a tin can to play with, and then I had the spools and Quentin fought me and I cried.
“Hush.” Frony said, “Aint you shamed of yourself. Taking a baby’s play pretty.” She took the spools fromme and gave themback to Quentin.
“Hush, now.” Frony said, “Hush, I tellyou.”
“Hush up.” Frony said. “You needs whipping, that’s what you needs.” She took Luster and Quentin up. “Come on here.” she said. We went to the barn. T. P. was milking the cow. Roskus was sitting on the box.
“What’s the matter with himnow.” Roskus said.
“You have to keep him down here.” Frony said. “He fighting these babies again. Taking they play things. Stay here with T. P. now, and see can you hush a while.”
“Clean that udder good now.” Roskus said. “You milked that young cow dry last winter. If you milk this one dry, they aint going to be no more milk.”
Dilsey was singing.
“Not around yonder.” T. P. said. “Dont you know mammy say you cant go around there.” They were singing.
“Come on.” T. P. said. “Lets go play with Quentin and Luster. Come on.”
Quentin and Luster were playing in the dirt in front of T. P.’s house. There was a fire in the house, rising and falling, with Roskus sitting black against it.
“That’s three, thank the Lawd.” Roskus said. “I told you two years ago. They aint no luck on this place.”
“Whyn’t you get out, then.” Dilsey said. She was undressing me. “Your bad luck talk got themMemphis notions into Versh. That ought to satisfy you.”
“If that allthe bad luck Versh have.” Roskus said. Frony came in.
“You alldone.” Dilsey said.
“T. P. finishing up.” Frony said. “Miss Cahline want you to put Quentin to bed.” “I’mcoming just as fast as I can.” Dilsey said. “She ought to know by this time I aint got no wings.”
“That’s what I tellyou.” Roskus said. “They aint no luck going be on no place where one of they own chillens’name aint never spoke.”
“Hush.” Dilsey said. “Do you want to get himstarted”
“Raising a child not to know its own mammy’s name.” Roskus said.
“Dont you bother your head about her.” Dilsey said. “I raised all of themand I reckon I can raise one more. Hush now. Let himget to sleep if he will.”
“Saying a name.” Frony said. “He dont know nobody’s name.”
“You just say it and see if he dont.” Dilsey said. “You say it to himwhile he sleeping and I bet he hear you.”
“He know lot more than folks thinks.” Roskus said. “He knowed they time was coming, like that pointer done. He could tellyou when hisn coming, if he could talk. Or yours. Or mine.”
“You take Luster outen that bed, mammy.” Frony said. “That boy conjure him.”
“Hush your mouth.” Dilsey said, “Aint you got no better sense than that. What you want to listen to Roskus for, anyway. Get in, Benjy.”
Dilsey pushed me and I got in the bed, where Luster already was. He was asleep. Dilsey took a long piece of wood and laid it between Luster and me. “Stay on your side now.” Dilsey said “Luster little, and you don’t want to hurt him.”
You can’t go yet, T. P. said. Wait.
We looked around the corner of the house and watched the carriages go away.
“Now.” T. P. said. He took Quentin up and we ran down to the corner of the fence and watched thempass. “There he go,” T. P. said. “See that one with the glass in it. Look at him. He laying in there. See him.”
Come on, Luster said, I going to take this here ball down home, where I wont lose it. Naw, sir, you cant have it. If them men sees you with it, they’ll say you stole it. Hush up, now. You cant have it. What business you got with it. You cant play no ball.
Frony and T. P. were playing in the dirt by the door. T. P. had lightning bugs in a bottle. “How did you allget back out.” Frony said.
“We’ve got company.” Caddy said. “Father said for us to mind me tonight. I expect you and T. P. willhave to mind me too.”
“I’mnot going to mind you.” Jason said. “Frony and T. P. dont have to either.” “They willif I say so.” Caddy said. “Maybe I wont say for themto.”
“T. P. dont mind nobody.” Frony said. “Is they started the funeralyet.” “What’s a funeral.” Jason said.
“Didn’t mammy tellyou not to tellthem.” Versh said.
“Where they moans.” Frony said. “They moaned two days on Sis Beulah Clay.”
They moaned at Dilsey’s house. Dilsey was moaning. When Dilsey moaned Luster said, Hush, and we hushed, and then I began to cry and Blue howled under the kitchen steps. Then Dilsey stopped and we stopped.
“Oh.” Caddy said, “That’s niggers. White folks dont have funerals.” “Mammy said us not to tellthem, Frony.” Versh said. “Tellthemwhat.” Caddy said.
Dilsey moaned, and when it got to the place I began to cry and Blue howled under the steps. Luster, Frony said in the window, Take them down to the barn. I cant get no cooking done with all that racket. That hound too. Get them outen here.
I aint going down there, Luster said. I might meet pappy down there. I seen him last night, waving his arms in the barn.
“I like to know why not.” Frony said. “White folks dies too. Your grandmammy dead as any nigger can get, I reckon.”
“Dogs are dead.” Caddy said, “And when Nancy fell in the ditch and Roskus shot her and the buzzards came and undressed her.”
The bones rounded out of the ditch, where the dark vines were in the black ditch, into the moonlight, like some of the shapes had stopped. Then they all stopped and it was dark, and when I stopped to start again I could hear Mother, and feet walking fast away, and I could smell it. Then the roomcame, but my eyes went shut. I didn’t stop. I could smellit. T. P. unpinned the bed clothes.
“Hush.” he said, “Shhhhhhhh.”
But I could smellit. T. P. pulled me up and he put on my clothes fast.
“Hush, Benjy.” he said. “We going down to our house. You want to go down to our house, where Frony is. Hush. Shhhhh.”
He laced my shoes and put my cap on and we went out. There was a light in the hall. Across the hallwe could hear Mother.
“Shhhhhh, Benjy.” T. P. said, “We’llbe out in a minute.”
A door opened and I could smell it more than ever, and a head came out. It wasn’t Father. Father was sick there.
“Can you take himout of the house.”
“That’s where we going.” T. P. said. Dilsey came up the stairs.
“Hush.” she said, “Hush. Take him down home, T. P. Frony fixing him a bed. You all look after him, now. Hush, Benjy. Go on with T. P.”
She went where we could hear Mother.
“Better keep himthere.” It wasn’t Father. He shut the door, but I could stillsmellit.
We went down stairs. The stairs went down into the dark and T. P. took my hand, and we went out the door, out of the dark. Dan was sitting in the back yard, howling.
“He smellit.” T. P. said. “Is that the way you found it out.” We went down the steps, where our shadows were.
“I forgot your coat.” T. P. said. “You ought to had it. But I aint going back.” Dan howled.
“Hush now.” T. P. said. Our shadows moved, but Dan’s shadow didn’t move except to howl when he did.
“I cant take you down home, bellering like you is.” T. P. said. “You was bad enough before you got that bullfrog voice. Come on.”
We went along the brick walk, with our shadows. The pig pen smelled like pigs. The cow stood in the lot, chewing at us. Dan howled.
“You going to wake the whole town up.” T. P. said. “Cant you hush.”
We saw Fancy, eating by the branch. The moon shone on the water
