Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1880-01-12
Three ThunderbOlts.

~ mug Va nAooOo "AoA JVu uonS A"AS
ed ?"
"Not very far from the Kentucy blue
grass region, Uncle Marcellino; but you
see l did not improve my opportunities;
and you have always been such pious,
respectable man since you've been our
coachman, that l should never have sup
posed that you knew any more about the
turf than l."
"Well, de fac OBJ it is, madam, you
can't allus judge by 'pearances. Here's
dis yere Thun 'erbolt, quiet hoss as
ebber paced along 'fo' any lady's coupe,
and yet | shouldn't be 'prised eff Thun-
'erbolt had speed in him too when he
was young"
"Why is it that you always call any
horse you have charge of Thunderbolt :?
When you were Judge Kimball's coach
man you gave that name to his horse,
and he told me that when he found you
you were driving dray of your own,
and the miserable beast that drew it re-
joiced in the same astounding title"
"Dat am fac, madam. / allus calls
any bit of hossfesh l has any ting to do
wild Thun 'erbolt. | names 'em for three
Thun'e 'erbolts dat happened to come to-
gedder one day-Thun erbolt, the little
town nigh to Savannah where l done
got religion; Thun' 'erbolt. Massa Proud
fits boss dat won de races; an right
smart crock of thun'er dat shook de
camp-meetin', an made US all tink it
war Gabr'el's horn blowin' for sho. Use
under a depression now dot p'r'aps Cab
rel did glib it just little toot. calm an
easy like. He lowed muffin short of a
tech O. dat ar horn would call dis Mig
gers soul out OBJ Egyp's darkness, an
reduce me to take up my Christian cross,
an run Thun' erbolt at de races"
"Why Marcellino, what do you mean ?
Not, l hope, that it's Christian duty to
race horses ?'
at war my Christian duty on dat
'casion, madam, dough l amt nebber
felt no call to it sense. Is red my title
clar as a deep-water Baptiss fo' nigh on
to ten var, but eff | should hear de an
gel OBJ de Lord calm to me agen, as be
did dat night, you'd see dis child pranc-
in down de home stretch once mo-"
"Tell me about it, Uncle Marcellino. "
s.Ws~4 e~.A~Lb.--:-- -c---.-----~h,=-~--
dam 2"
"Yes, ast..winter."
"An' did you go out to Bonaventure p
'Yes, we rode out to the cemetery,
The live-oaks, with their festoons of fu.
neral Spanish moss, form one of the
most magnificent and impressive avenues
have ever SEEM
"Nebber could bar dem libe-oaks
allus looks to me like parcel OBJ beg
gars wild dar clo' tored in tatters. Neb
Der can get ober de feelln' dat deys &
poh, low down, disrespectful kline oil
tree, for all dey grows so high. d.
branches is all naked an cole, spite O.
de rags streamin' from 'em. An wher
de moss don't look like rags, it 'mind
me OBJ gray har, an l feel zif | orte
make de tree present OBJ parole oil
har-pins or hankchiff to do it up wild
You didn't go no furder dan Bonavon
ture, reckon 2"
"No; is there anything to see p
And then Marcellino told me of tn
little village of Thunderbolt overlookin,
the Savannah River, and itself overlook
ed and overshadowed by a grove o
Druid-like live oak, lifting their gaun
bare arms to heaven. their dishevelle,
gray locks and unkempt boards of mos
waving mournfully in the slightes
breeze. The town ordinarily wore
forlorn, forsaken air, and the sombr
little houses seemed to have gathere
under this grove by the river side a
mournfully as the captive daughters {
Zion who hung their harps on the wi
lows that fringed the rivers of Babylon
This was Marcellino's simile. He sta
ed, too, that there were two occasion
when the city put aside its sackclot
and woke the harp to strains of gayt
|, measure. The first was at the time
the spring races Qor the horsey men (
Savannah had established a trottin
park at Thunderbolt), and the secon
was whenever the colored Baptists a.
pointed camp-meeting in their vicinit.
One year not very long after the la
war both of these festivities chanced
fall upon the same time. and the Druic
of Thunderbolt shook their withert
limbs and tore their hair in disapprob
tion of the revelry going on beneat
them.
Marcellino was one of the negro
|
t master after the passage of the Civ
> Rights Bill, with no perceptible chan,
of condition except that his master nc
: gave him his money with which to pu
= chase his clothes, instead of taking Il
r trouble to buy them for him. The W
had made far greater change in t
g circumstances of Marcellino's form