Page 85 - my-people-abbie-harris-beck

COUSIN BELL

Cousin Bell is what we called her, lived at Edith, Georgia, across the Suwannee
River from Fargo, Georgia. Cousin Bell was left with 3 children, Emma, Hamp and
Franklin Allen. Cousin Bell had acres and acres of pine trees. When she needed money
she had pine trees cut. She always shared the money with her grown children. Cousin
Bell had her a new home built with a fire place in every room so she could spit her snuff.

One year when Cousin Bell was having a lot of timber cut ,she was getting on in years and
thought that she needed to keep 50 thousand at home for she didn't know what was
ahead for her. Her daughter, Emma did not like it because her mother did not give her
any money. Emma's small children came to see their grandmother and told her about their
mother fussing because she had not given Emma any money this time. It was night and
the children had stayed to eat supper. They were still talking about how their mother was
fussing because of not giving her any of the money. The small children lived 5 or 6 miles
from Grandmother Bell. They still had to walk home in the night and were still talking
about how their mother was about not getting any money. Cousin Bell had enough. She
told the children to w ait. She went to her bedroom, came back with 20 thousand dollars
in her hand, placed it in a paper bag and said: "Take this to your maw and tell her this is all
she will ever get from me" The children ran home with the 20 thousand dollars in the
paper bag, late at night 6 miles from home.

Annie Crews CBell Allen's Housekeeper ..
Margaret Harris, Bel 1 Allen