Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1910-06-03

"Old Bill had de heaves an was
slow. l rode under de stars twill I
scr a light wha' de sun comes up, an
all OBJ d sudden l hearn somepin dat
sounded lax thunder away off. l lis
tened, an l hearn anudder SCUM lax
de fus, den anudder an anudder.
ITS GURUS how de debbil makes us
believe what hain't so. De sun war
gwine to rise cl'ar, an dey WANT no
sign o. storm, but if l gwine go on an
git de widder | got to b'lieve 1t war
storm. Eff 1t war guns. dey war Yam
kee guns, an I got to go back to look
out TO mist'ess an de chin IN de
plantation. l rink nobody hab said
nothin' bout Yankee sojers bein' souf
of Nashville, so dat can't be Yankee
guns. Dat make it sartin dat It's
thunder. Git up, Bill l says; I'm
goin' on
"Fust off / had bad luck gittin' dar
when de funeral war goin' on. l
knowed l mustn't wait, but l sor Ben,
de niger wha' had de secon' chanel
befo' de wilder married Nose, crowd
In in to git de fust chanel now, an
dat made me hot to git ahead OBJ him.
He sor me an come up to me, an he
says, says he, Tom, yo' want de wild
der? Yes l says, says l, I does.'
Got Mars Phillips p'missionT No.
l says, I hain't.' 4 hab,' be says.
81 t'ink nothin' could be done twill
after de funeral, so l goes hurryin' to
Mars Phillips for omission. Mars
Phillips knowed me-he tink l mighty
fine nigger-so he glib me de omission,
an l went back to de cabin wha' de
wilder jist come home from the fu-
neral. Dare l see dat niger Ben jist
comm out. He looked at me kind O.
qua, but l goes In de cabin.
"'How yo' do, Tomr says de wilder,
says she.
"'How yo' do yo'selfT says l. I
reckon yo' feel porely, SEEM yo' los
yo' man,
"'Yes. | nebber git anudder SIGH
man as dat. He war mighty fine man.
"'You mought try says l. .Yo' know
l wanted yo' befo' yo' married Nose
"'Reckon yo' did,
IAN l want yo' now
"'Yo' mighty hatterin', Tom,' says
she, AN l mought be willin', but yo're
too late. / jis' proI1ised Ben a few
minute befo' 20 lem in
IL got up mighty quick an says
goodby "a was goin' out when de
wider called me back an says. says
s4e
"If Ben goes to glory befo' me I'll
TAX 70, Tom. Don feel bad bout 1t.
Yo' turn'n come sho'.'
when / goes out l see wha' l
! gwine done-leaben mist'ess an de chill
EN- to go lax a fool after a oman wild
anudder niger ahead o. me, an l
knowed well enough dat de guns l
hearn off in de east dat mawnin' at
sun up war Yankee guns. 1t war de
debbil tole me dey wal thunder. | jis'
mounted Bill. an l. lam him twill l
got to de plantation. 1t war full o.
Yankee sojers.
"Dey had gone into de manor house
an war a runnin' off wild all de SLIDER
an all de furniture an clothes dey
could kerry. When / come up mist'ess
war standin' on de gallery, lookin'
drefful.
"'Tom,' she said, 'whar yo' been?
A man rode up to de plantation at
5 o'clock dis mawnin' an tole us de
Yankees was marchin' down de pike to
Huntsville. 1 knowed dey'd be here to-
day, am l wanted yo' to hide de vara-
bles.'
81 'membered Kunnel Coolidge stand
in in dat same place on de gallery an
sayin' to me, Tom, I'm gwine to Leah
my family under 20 carr I just
dropped my head down, an l hain't
ris' it up since.
"Dem sojers come from anudder
kentry wha' dey been used to kerry off
all de val'ables dey kin git dere hands
on, an dey jis' cleaned out de town an
all de plantations round 1t. Eberyting
Mars Coolidge lef' in my car war
token, 'cludin' de PLAINLY. Eff | hadn'
been runnin' after a 'owan dat war
busy buryin' her fus' husban' an had
'membered wha' Kunnel Coolidge said
to me an what | said to Kunnel Coo
lidge I'd been thar to hide all de val
ables. | had a place all fixed fo' dat
away up in de trunk o. n o de trees
wha' dere war Il rotten hole. ! var
goin' to put EN- In a box I'd made fo'
'em a purpose, an l had a ladder ready
fo' to git up to de hole. that war xiv
cred all over wild branches. But goin'
after dat wilder dat l didn' git nohow
KEEP me from dom all dis, an | hain't
nebber fo'give' myself nohow."
Tom finished his story. looking more
distressed If possible than before. l
gave him something to help him to
feel better and asked:
"Are you still hoping for third place
with the widow?"
Reckon not" he replied. EFF I
marry dat oman l hab my sin always
befo' me-