hear me, nobody ever been more patient to you than I always been to like you, only Melanctha, I hear more things now so awful bad about you, everybody always is telling to me what kind of a way you always have been doing so much, and me always so good to you, and you never no ways, knowing how to be honest to me.  No Melanctha it ain’t ever in me, not to want you to have good luck come to you, and I like it real well Melanctha when you some time learn how to act the way it is decent and right for a girl to be doing, but I don’t no ways ever like it the kind of things everybody tell me now about you.  No Melanctha, I can’t never any more trust you.  I certainly am real sorry to have never any more to see you, but there ain’t no other way, I ever can be acting to you.  That’s all I ever got any more to say to you now Melanctha.”  “But Rose, deed; I certainly don’t know, no more than the dead, nothing I ever done to make you act so to me.  Anybody say anything bad about me Rose, to you, they just a pack of liars to you, they certainly is Rose, I tell you true.  I certainly never done nothing I ever been ashamed to tell you.  Why you act so bad to me Rose.  Sam he certainly don’t think ever like you do, and Rose I always do everything I can, you ever want me to do for you.”  “It ain’t never no use standing there talking, Melanctha Herbert.  I just can tell it to you, and Sam, he don’t know nothing about women ever the way they can be acting.  I certainly am very sorry Melanctha, to have to act so now to you, but I certainly can’t do no other way with you, when you do things always so bad, and everybody is talking so about you.  It ain’t no use to you to stand there and say it different to me Melanctha.  I certainly am always right Melanctha Herbert, the way I certainly always have been when I knows it, to you.  No Melanctha, it just is, you never can have no kind of a way to act right, the way a decent girl has to do, and I done my best always to be telling it to you Melanctha Herbert, but it don’t never do no good to tell nobody how to act right; they certainly never can learn when they ain’t got no sense right to know it, and you never have no sense right Melanctha to be honest, and I ain’t never wishing no harm to you ever Melanctha Herbert, only I don’t never want any more to see you come here.  I just say to you now, like I always been saying to you, you don’t know never the right way, any kind of decent girl has to be acting, and so Melanctha Herbert, me and Sam, we don’t never any more want you to be setting your foot in my house here Melanctha Herbert, I just tell you.  And so you just go along now, Melanctha Herbert, you hear me, and I don’t never wish no harm to come to you.”

Rose Johnson went into her house and closed the door behind her.  Melanctha stood like one dazed, she did not know how to bear this blow that almost killed her.  Slowly then Melanctha went away without even turning to look behind her.