Spake As a Dragon (45 page)

The rest of the evening they sang
carols ate popcorn balls made with sorghum syrup and drank hot
sassafras tea. If only Robert had been there to celebrate with
them.

THE KNOCK

During the night the snow had
continued to fall, by morning the ground was covered with at least
eight inches and the wind was howling around the eves of the house.
Sary was already up putting the finishing touches on the Christmas
turkey before sticking it into the oven. She peeked out the kitchen
window and watched the wind whipping the snow around.
‘My
,’
she thought, ‘
glad I’m not out in this here blizzard.’
She
could hear the door flapping on the hayloft at the barn.
‘Got’s
to git them boys to go fetch them pups and brang’em up here to this
warm fire.’
She had already chunked up the fire in the sitting
room and old Kentucky Lead had found himself a nice toasty spot
lying nearby.

It was approaching daylight on
Christmas day everyone but Sary was still asleep snuggled up warmly
in his or her bed.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Someone was
pounding on the front door. Sleep still in his eyes; Sam, who had
been sleeping on a pallet by the fire, goes to see who could be
making this confounded noise so early in the morning. Standing on
the porch was Jethro, the foreman at Scarburg Mill.

“
Sorry to wake you so
early Mr. Sam, but this here feller comes ridin’ through this
morning and he says to me, sez he, ‘ you know any folks hereabouts
named Scarburg?’ I sez to him, “I shore do,” and he gives me this
here. Sez he, ‘get this to them right away.’” Jethro sticks out his
hand, which contains a paper that appears to be a
letter.

Sam takes the letter, invites Jethro
in to get warm, but Jethro says he must return home to his family,
it is after all Christmas day he says.

Sam shuts the door walks over close to
the fireplace throws another log on and turns the letter over. It
is addressed to:

Mrs. Malinda Scarburg

Scarlettsville, South
Carolina

Running up the stairs, he bursts into
Malinda’s bedroom, yelling, “Mizz Malinda! Mizz Malinda! There’s a
letter for you.”

Still half asleep she answers, “What
Sam? A letter you say, well bring it here.”

Malinda tears the seal from the letter
and begins to read, she places her hand to her mouth as she
continues, “Oh no! This cannot be true, surely it cannot
be!”

By now the rest of the household is
awake and standing in the bedroom as Malinda reads the letter.
William is the first to speak, “What is it Mother, bad news? Who
could be writing you a letter?”

“
Listen everyone, this
letter is from your Father. Well, actually it is from a gentleman
named Dr. William Mayo who lives in Rochester, Minnesota. He states
in this letter that Robert was alive in March of this year and was
in a prisoner of war camp at a place called Point Lookout,
Maryland.

Mr. Mayo says he was a Captain with
the Union army and knew Robert and they had become friends. The
Captain left Point Lookout in late March and believed Robert was
going to be exchanged fairly soon thereafter. He says he remembered
Robert talking of Scarlettsville and the Scarburg Mill and thought
maybe some of Robert’s family still lived nearby, so he posted this
letter to Scarlettsville in the hope we would receive
it.

He goes ahead and says if Robert got
released he would have been taken by boat up the James River to a
place called City Point, Virginia. He said City Point was a large
Union supply depot during the War, and they maintained a big
hospital there. The hospital cared for both Union and Confederates.
He says Robert was in pretty bad shape in March and this Doctor is
just hoping he made it to City Point’s hospital. He thinks it will
take the Union a while to move the supplies from the docks and
warehouses at City Point and many of the wounded would not be able
to be moved very soon either.

If Robert has not returned home, he
thinks there is a chance that Robert could still be alive and
possibly could be in that hospital! He finally ends with a sad note
saying for me not to get my hopes up too much, it could be in all
likelihood that Robert never made it to City Point and if he did
they might not have been able to save him. Doctor Mayo said the
last time he spoke to Robert before leaving Point Lookout, Robert
had asked him to promise that he would write me and tell us where
he was. The doctor just wanted me to know he had kept his promise
and he knew we wanted to know what had happened to
Robert.”

Turning the letter over to its front
Malinda said, “This is splendid information, isn’t it? But there is
some bad news - this letter was posted nearly four months
ago!”

For a moment complete silence envelops
the room – is was as if no one dared to breathe finally little
Lizzie speaks, “Mama does this mean my Papa is coming
home?”

“
Baby,” said Malinda, “I
don’t know for sure, but maybe!”

“
Mama, when I say my
prayers at night I ask God to let Papa come home, and Mama Sary
says Gods answers our prayers.”

Malinda looked at her baby girl and
thought,
‘the mind of a child is full of bliss, and the reality
of this old world is foreign. She will never give up hope, and I
can’t bear to tell her the truth that her Father is probably never
coming home.’

Chapter
Fifty-Seven

CHANGE OF PLANS

Everyone gathered in the
parlor.

William, Isaac, Stephen and Tom Henry
had trudged through the blizzard to the barn. Sary had given them
some sage advice as they were putting on their coats, “Now boys
y’alls be real careful, this blizzard is a mighty one. Y’all stick
close to one another.” To the boys this wasn’t dangerous it was a
grand adventure. After a round or two of snowball fights and
throwing Tom Henry into the biggest snow drift they could find,
they returned covered from head to foot in the snow but with all of
Kentucky Lead’s pups.

Christmas had almost been forgotten,
except for the smell of the turkey gobbler Sary had roasting in the
oven, as Malinda began to talk, everyone formed a circle around
her, “Now the plan of yesterday, as you now know, has been changed.
Sam, you and Nate cannot leave Monday and go to find the gold in
Kentucky. Our first priority must be Robert and City Point,
Virginia. I believe, in all my heart he is still alive and we must
go to him.”

“
What about Matthew and
the soldiers false legs?” Asked William.

“
All in due time William,
right now I need something too, a husband and a father to all you
children. Once we find Robert the

creek of gold will still be there and
we can pan the gold for Matthew and Mark.”

“
Mother, may I have a
say?” Asked William.

“
Of course son, everyone
speaks their minds, we are a family and that includes you too
Sary.”

“
All right, here is my
suggestion – let me and Sam return to Kentuck. He knows where the
gold creek is located. We will pan a couple of bags of gold and go
on up to Pennsylvania to help out Matthew and Mr. Holmes. Luke, you
and Nate take the wagon to that hospital in Virginia. Isaac has
been helping Sam at the Mill, so he and Stephen can take over
there. Mother you Sary, Catherine and Ora Lee stay here and keep
the rest of the family safe. We will all be fine, Sam and I know
how to use the Colts and Henrys, and we can carry the pass that
President Davis gave Luke just in case we happen upon some Rebs
that believe the War is still going on.”

“
No, William you and Sam
are too young to be going that far alone. It is not
safe.”

“
Mother, since this War
started there is no one young anymore. Youth disappeared with that
first cannon shot at Fort Sumter in April of ’61. This War has made
us much older than our years, Sam and I will be fine, I’m telling
you.”

Sary speaks up, “I’m agin it! Don’t
none of y’all leave this place. Mr. Robert will come home if he is
alive, if he ain’t then y’all haulin’ yer selves all the way up
there will be fer naught. I sez jest let it play out and we will
see what happens. We is all safe livin’ here.”

“
You make the most
reasonable sense Sary, but this isn’t the time to be reasonable.
You’re right William – you and Sam head out just as soon as the
snow melts, and Luke you and Nate take the wagon and start to
Virginia. One way or the other we must find out about your
father.”

Luke answers, “We will Mother, but
Nate and I can make considerable more time on horseback than with
the wagon. If we find Father and he is unable to ride, I’ll figure
something out at that time.” Looking at Sary, “You think your bird
might be about ready to eat?”

“
Yes sir, Mr. Luke I’m
shore that old gobbler is ready for this Christmas dinner,” with a
far away look as though she remembered Christmases past she adds,
“This Christmas of... 1865.”

BACK TO
KENTUCKY

It has taken the snow almost a week to
melt, but now mounted on their horses in the front yard are
William, Sam, Luke and Nate.

The rest of the family stands on the
front porch as Malinda says, “You know I don’t have to say it, but
I will – you all be safe and come back home to us.”

“
Good-bye Mother,” said
William, “We are taking Kentucky Lead with us, I believe he would
like to see his home once again too.” He and Sam spur their horses
and begin their ride back to the Cumberland Mountains of
Kentucky.

Reaching down from his horse Luke
holds Catherine’s face in his hands and gives her one last kiss.
“You and Mother take care of the family, I will come back! Always
remember, I love you.” Riding out of the yard Nate and Luke turns
one last time and wave their hats as they ride out of
sight.

Luke and Nate are about three days
riding north when sitting around a roaring campfire Luke asks,
“Darn, if it isn’t about as cold as I have seen in quite a while,
you doing okay Nate?”

“
Nah, I mean yeah, I’m
okay Luke, I’m jezt sittin’ here thanking ‘bout my place in North
Carolinny. How fer is it once we gets into that state?”

“
Well,” says Luke, “we
should be crossing the line into North Carolina sometime tomorrow,
your farm is about a two-day ride to the east. Why? You thinking
you might want to go see your old place?”

“
Yeah, Luke that’s what I
been thanking.”

“
I’ll tell you what Nate,
that’s about a four or five day detour, two going and two coming
back, but I’ll promise you this Nate, whether we find Father or not
on the way back we’re going to ride over to your place and check it
out, what do you think?”

“
Thanks, Luke, that makes
me feel a lot better. I know there ain’t nothin’ there now, but I’d
like to see fer myself. I’d like to see that Elsa and Nate Junior
got a proper burial place.”

“
Not to worry Nate, I
totally understand – we’ll go find your place on the way back. We
will make sure they have been put away nicely.”

This same night almost two hundred
miles due west William and Sam had made camp for the night on the
banks of the Tennessee River. They had left South Carolina, made
their way through the Smokey Mountains and were now on the
outskirts of Knoxville, Tennessee. In a few more days, they should
be in the Cumberland Mountains of Kentucky. So far, the trip had
been un-eventful, which was most desirable for the two of
them.

Four days later Sam said to William,
“William look yonder, off to the northwest see that blue smoke –
that ain’t smoke William thems the Cumberlands. We’ll be at the
farm tomorrow or no later than the next for sure. I hope the
farmhouse is still there.”

Sam was right. Late in the afternoon
of the second day they arrived at the gate leading to Sam’s place.
From the road, they could see the farmhouse was still standing. Sam
could wait no longer, “Come on William,” he said spurring his horse
into a gallop. William followed close behind.

Entering the yard, everything seems to
be in place, but overgrown with weeds and grass of the past fall.
The barn is still there and up on the hillside above the house Sam
could see the markers for his father and mother’s
graves.

Once inside, the house appears to be
just as it had been left. The furniture is covered with dust and
one of the windowpanes is broken, but all in all, it is in pretty
good shape. “Let’s get a fire going Sam, I’m freezing.”

Sam, William and Kentuck sit warming
themselves when William mentions the outlaw’s horses. “Sam, those
horses should still be over in the back pasture. I think we need to
go round up a couple of those fresh ponies to ride into the
mountains and get started in a couple of days. I’ll wager they will
be glad to see some human faces.”

“
William it is going to be
a while before we will be able to venture into those hills, and we
will not be riding horses.”

“
What?” Exclaimed William.
“I thought we would be able to go in a couple of days, and you’re
saying with no horses? What am I missing Sam?”