Roots: The Saga of an American Family Chapters 71-75 Summary

This chapter starts with bad news: the gardener has passed away. Kunta feels sad, naturally, but also guilty—he hasn't been visiting his friend much since Kizzy's birth.
The Massa gives them a half day off the following day, so they're able to hold a funeral. They bury his body and Kunta thinks about the mourning rituals back in Juffure.

Kunta's so shaken by the gardener's death that he completely forgets that Kizzy's second birthday is coming up until Bell mentions it. Whoops.
He only has five days, so he carves a "beautiful Mandinka doll out of pine wood" that he polishes "until it shone like the ebony carvings of his homeland" (72.4). Dude just knocked it out of the park.
Kunta's joy is cut short when Belle tell him that Anne will be coming by for the weekend, and that she wants to hold the party in the big house.
He storms out and goes to the place where he hid the doll. He considers breaking it, but restrains himself.
A few weeks later, Kunta gets even worse news: Anne wants Kizzy to come over to her house for a day. Even Bell is upset by this.
Kunta ends up bringing Kizzy home that night, which is really the first time they've been alone together. They have a great time, and Kunta joyously teaches her a few words of Mandinka.
One day, Kizzy and Anne are playing and end up inside Kunta's hut, where Anne sees Kunta's gourd. Massa Waller hears about this and becomes suspicious that Kunta is performing "voodoo" (72.25).

Every two weeks, Kunta gives the Massa a ride to church. He's been observing these services with increased interest because the annual "'big camp meetin'' of black Christians will be happening soon (73.4).
Kunta doesn't want to go, but he's forced to give everyone a ride in the buggy. That'd be bad enough, but Bell reveals that she also wants to get Kizzy christened.
There's a huge mass of people at the gathering. The ceremony is led by a passionate black preacher who baptizes people by dunking them in the water. Kunta is horrified.
Even worse, he sees Bell in line with Kizzy in her arms. Kunta runs over, hobbled foot and all, but doesn't make it in time. Kizzy's been baptized.

Kizzy is now seven years old, so Belle's begun training her to work around the big house. She still gets the day off whenever Anne drops by, however.
Kunta still loves giving Kizzy rides in the buggy and teaching her Mandinka words.
He's also started telling her about her African heritage, the story of his enslavement, and even the power dynamic between her and Missy Anne. That's heady stuff for a seven-year-old.

Kunta hears more news about Haiti: Toussaint, the leader of the country after its revolution, has fought back a few revolts of his own, supported by the United States.
Meanwhile, the slave trade has been intensifying with the invention of the "cotton gin," which makes the production of cotton faster than ever (75.18).