'You gave what winning takes: hunnud pussent'

In reading and writing, I found rhyme and reason, but not in arithmetic. As best he could, my boyhood best friend and mentor Jaybird explained it. Although illiterate, he had been taught by life’s most demanding teacher: experience. His wisdom filled many gaps in my education.

Take percentages, for example. The teacher’s explanation went over my head, but Jaybird’s made sense:

“Let's say you’ve got $100, and I konk you on the head with a stick, and take all yo’ money. I robbed you — hunnud pussent. But, if I take $50, I robbed you fifty pussent. If I take $10, I robbed you t...