Spake As a Dragon (31 page)

Chapter
Thirty-Four

GOING BACK TO
CAROLINA

A couple of days after the sheriff’s
deputy posted the
Eviction Notice
on the entrance post
Malinda was sitting on the back veranda watching the evening sun
drop behind the soft, rolling hills of Brindlee Mountain to her
west. There were just enough clouds to color the sunset in
brilliant shades of orange, red, yellow and white.
What a
wonderful picture this would make
, she thought. Her mind was on
the sunset and she did not hear the gentle hooves of a horse
stepping around the corner of the house.

“
Good evening Señorita,”
LaPree said tipping his hat with his hand.

“
What are you doing here
you scoundrel? And don’t be referring to me as a señorita, you know
I am a married woman!”

“
Ah yes, that is what I
have come this evening to talk to you about. You have not heard a
word from your man, what is his name, Robert, yes, that is right
Robert. But he has not posted you a letter since his leaving. Do
you not find this strange? You know, I don’t think your Robert is
comin’ back, so I thinks for me to call you Señorita is
correct.”

“
I’m telling you LaPree
get off my place!”

“
Now, now Señorita Malinda
do not be so hasty – it will not be as you say ‘your place’ in
another month or so, but I have a solution to your problem. You
see, I will own this place pretty quick now, and I have always
thought you to be a handsome woman Malinda – ah, Malinda, such a
pretty name too, I see no reason that you cannot stay on when I buy
this farm. Of course, some arrangements will have to be made if you
get my understanding.”

Getting up from her chair she moves
toward the door, “I’ll tell you what my understanding is Señore
LaPree – it’s this 12-gauge shotgun I’ve got standing here by my
door – I’m going to show you what my ‘understanding’ is you dirty
dog!” Malinda reaches inside the door, grabs the gun swings it
around to face LaPree but the yard is empty. LaPree has left as
silently as he arrived.

MOVING OUT

It was late spring; the sun was
getting pretty hot this time of the year in northern Alabama.
Removing her bandana to wipe the sweat, Sary speaks to Malinda,
“Lands sake Mizz Malinda is we gonna take everthin’ we’s got back
to Caroline?”

“
Oh, hush up Sary and keep
loading these wagons, you know we will have to live off of
everything we take with us.”

“
Yes’em, but I worried
‘bout that poor old hoss and them two mules, they got to haul all
of this stuff.”

“
I know, you’re right
Sary, that’s why I’ve been loading most of our heavier things in
the big wagon, those mules can pull that load pretty well. We’ll
give them plenty of rest along the way; we won’t be in a hurry.
Blaze can take care of this two-wheel cart, she isn’t used to
pulling a wagon, but the cart isn’t much different than pulling a
plow, she’ll be fine.

Sary replies, “In a few days it’s
gwine to be the 1
^st
of May. I’m thinkin’ that should be
‘bout right for us to get on the road, besides the notice is plumb
neer run out and we’s been lucky Simeon LaPree hasn’t been back for
them boys. Yeah, its time for us to get going whiles we
can.”

Wrong,
though Malinda,
he’s
been back all right, but you’re right about one thing – he was
after something all right, but it wasn’t the boys!

In a couple of days Malinda announced
that tomorrow morning they were to hitch the teams to the wagons,
grab their guns, tie the cow to the cart and they were going to
begin their adventurous journey to Carolina.

The sun was barely up and all the
Scarburg family, including Sary, had gathered in the front yard.
Mattie Ann was sniffling, and a tear could be seen at the edge of
Malinda’s eye.

“
Mama,” said William,
“let’s burn the place to the ground, the barn too before we go and
I’ll drop one of the dead barn animals down the water well then
I’ll pour in a gallon of kerosene. It ain’t right they should take
our home!”

“
Hush up with that kind of
talking boy, we’re a Christian family and we’re gonna remain a
law-abiding Christian family, do you hear me? I know it doesn’t
feel right, but taking out spite is not in our family’s nature, you
understand? Besides, we’ll need that kerosene before we reach
Scarlett.” William had his head bowed, but he nodded he understood.
“All right then, let’s get on these wagons, but before, bow your
heads,
“The fear of man bringeth a snare, but whoso putteth his
trust in the LORD shall be safe. Proverbs 20:25”

“
Miz Malinda,” said Sary,
“can I have my say too?”

“
Of course,” Malinda
replied.

Sary looks at all those getting ready
to get upon the wagons and asks them to kneel. In a circle they all
join hands as Sary begins,

“
Oh, Lords, be our guide
and our protector on this here journey we’s about to
take.

Watch over us. Protect us
from those low-down rascal thieves and them no-account ruffians on
the road. Don’t let no harm come to our body and soul. Now Lords
what you dos with them, now that’s your bizness, I jes prays you
learn them the error of their sinful lives.

Dear Lords, prop us up
with Your grace when we’s get plumb tuckered out. Helps us to
always be patient in any trouble, which may come our
way.

Keep us always mindful of
Your presence and love. May God in heaven ride with us on this
dangerous journey… and may you sends one of your angels to protect
us and give us a helping hand, if the need comes. Amen”

After a moment or two of silence
Malinda said, “Well, I guess that just about covers
it...”

“
No,” said Sary walking
toward their small family cemetery under the big old oak tree, “I
got to say good-bye to Jed, Jefferson and your sweet little
Margaret.”

“
Hold up Sary I want to go
with you.”

Walking toward the small cemetery to
pay their last respects Malinda asks Sary, “You’re sure we packed
Luke’s big family Bible?”

“
I’m sure Mizz Malinda. I
done put it in its wooden box.”

Chapter
Thirty-Five

BURIAL DETAIL

Robert was in hog heaven. Spring had
come and gone and he had one of the best jobs in the whole camp. Of
course, the Commandant Colonel Adams was still a hard man to deal
with.

After his demotion at Gettysburg from
General to Colonel, he seemed to take his bitterness out on
everyone and everything. He had become a very cruel and unforgiving
man. Any prisoner brought before him was dealt with in a harsh and
sometimes brutal and sadistic manner.

He even had a pair of wooden stocks
built in the middle of the prison. Prisoners guilty of minor
offenses had their heads and hands thrust through the stocks and
stood there sometimes for days. During periods of cold or rainy
weather prisoners in the stocks that were of poor physical
condition most times died a merciful death. Healthier ones
sometimes went days before the Colonel would allow them a few
morsels of food or a sip of water.

Robert tried his hardest not to fall
out of the good graces of the Commandant and did everything within
his power to please Sergeant Belue.

Blue could be just as ruthless, if not
more so, than the Colonel at times.

Robert remembered one time, especially
when two prisoners argued over the ownership of a wooden hardtack
box. The disagreement led to a round of fist-a-cuffs. Neither
prisoner was in good enough shape to do the other any actual harm,
but Sergeant Blue broke up the fight... well, better called the
wrestling match, “So you two want to see who is the better man,
huh?” Having procured another hardtack box he had the prisoners
fill both boxes with rocks. “Now hold these over your heads, the
first to drop their box will be the loser, the other may have the
cracker box.”

He summoned one of the black guards
and instructed him to jab them with his bayonet each time one of
the prisoners tried to lower his box. He stood the two men out by
the stocks and began the contest. The black guard was all too eager
to fulfill his orders. Once a box began to come down the guard
would thrust his bayonet into the body of the offender, sometimes
he would penetrate the skin an inch or so. Blood was streaming down
the legs of both men. It was beginning to puddle upon the ground,
but Blue would not allow them to stop. Finally, one of the men
dropped his box and he fell prostrate upon the ground, “Kill him,”
Blue said to the guard who immediately thrust his bayonet clean
through the man lying on the ground. The remaining man dropped his
box and fell to his knees. Blue said to the black guard, “He will
have no need of a cracker box either, kill him too.” The guard did
as ordered.

For a couple of months, all the talk
around the prison was about the peace talks – peace at last. The
summer was hot on that narrow spit of land between the Chesapeake
Bay and the Potomac River. The Bay and the River increased the
humidity to such a degree that any bit of fatigue duty resulted in
the death of some of the men. As the summer dragged on Robert
thought the Commandant was losing so many men, the Colonel might
hold back on the work details when the days were so hot. This was
not to be the case; in fact death among the prisoners had gotten so
bad Robert was assigned the detail of picking burial details for
the dead.

Robert loathed this assignment.
Picking people to dig graves in this hot, sweltering weather was
just like giving them their own death sentence. Men within the camp
would hide when they saw Robert walking among them.

The burial detail had gotten so sickly
Robert thought something must be done, so he approached Sergeant
Belue. Catching Blue by himself at the Commandant’s office Robert
asked, “Sergeant, I know you are aware of it, but I am burying
almost as many from the burial detail as I am the prison
dead.”

“
That’s good, the more we
can get rid of the better.”

Robert thought he would be bold,
however it might be a foolish move on his part, “Sarge, may I talk
frankly? The talk all over Point Lookout is the War is about over.
I know you have noticed in the past few weeks the amount of
prisoners arriving have almost stopped.”

“
What’s yer point
Bob?”

“
Blue, you and I have
somewhat become friends since I came to work for the Commandant,”
would you say that is true?”

“
Sure, I suppose I can
tolerate your Rebel arse, what yer trying to say?”

“
The men I have to pick
for burial details are so emaciated and starved they cannot be
effective workers. I would like to ask your permission to establish
a special group of prisoners as a permanent burial detail. I would
like you to give me permission to get the cook to provide these men
on burial detail extra rations so I can build up their strength and
stamina. Second, and this is personal Blue, and I speak not as your
enemy but as a friend – when this War ends Officers and Enlisted
men who have misused or abused their positions, now I’m not saying
this would include you, will certainly be held accountable. After
every war the Congress has established committees to oversee the
past conduct of the war, this will include maltreatment or abuse of
prisoners. Those in charge can and have, in the past, gone to
prison for their part. Compassion to those that have been in charge
might be used in their favor, I’m just saying in case a person was
to be charged.”

Blue sat with a blank stare on his
face, he blinked a couple of times as thought awaking from a dream
and said, “I see yer point Bob, tell the cook to do it, it makes
sense.”

Chapter
Thirty-Six

THE SWAMP FOX

“
Mama,” said Mattie Ann,
as she moved upon the seat with Malinda, “how far is it to
Scarlettsville?”

“
Hon, I really don’t know,
when we came to Alabama your father said it would take us about two
weeks to get there, but it took us nearly a month. Back then we had
your father, Uncle Jed and Jefferson, now it’s just us, so I say it
will take us a couple of months, if all goes well.”

“
What about my sister
Cecelia June, why don’t you ever talk about her? Will she be at
Scarlettsville when we get there?”

“
Baby girl, the reason I
do not talk about Cecelia to you is simply the fact that it is very
difficult to speak about her. You’re old enough now, so I’ll tell
you about her. She married Lester Smith in July of 1849, we left
for Alabama in ’52.”

“
Wasn’t she the oldest
Mama? What happened to her?”

“
Yes, she was hon, she was
my firstborn. Baby Paul was the second. A couple of years after we
left Scarlettsville she and Lester both died,” Malinda said with
tears streaming down her face. “In the 1830’s the Federal
government moved all the Indians from their homes in South
Carolina, but a lot of the Indians hid in the mountains and did not
go on the “Trail of Tears” march to Oklahoma. It was said, but
never proven, that the government sent Indian traders in among the
remaining tribes with smallpox-infected blankets. The government
wanted to remove all remaining Indians left in the East by trading
the infected blankets to the Indians. Your older sister Cecelia
June and her husband Lester ran a small store in Scarlettsville.
The government sent the smallpox blankets to their store before
moving them out to the Indians. Cecelia and Lester both came down
with the ‘pox and died soon after.”