The Broken Sword Part 14

"I am Mr. Seymour, and my business is to ask your protection."

"Ah indeed, you are the rebel who has been giving our people so much trouble." the brute replied.

"I am sure you do not wish to annoy an old man who is trying to live peaceably at home."

"Yes. I do sir, and I will hear nothing more from an infamous villain like you."

"My people white and black have my authority to do as they will; to insult and a.s.sault rebels and to make reprisals whenever they think proper."

Thus day by day the uncrowned satraps were collecting material for the coming carnival of vice and crime.

CHAPTER XIII.

A KNIGHT OF THE WHITE CAMELIA.

At early dawn in the language of the excited servant, "Dere is sich a fl.u.s.tration agwine on outen old misses flower gyarden as I never seed in my born days."

With this exclamation her young mistress was aroused from her slumber by the old negro as she knocked violently at the door of her bed chamber in a state of great perturbation.

"Fur de land sake! Miss Alice if yu wants to see a sho nuff harricane run outen here as peart as yer ken. De stracted n.i.g.g.e.rs big und leetle has finely tuck de plantashun. Oh my sole, de heabens and de yearth has c.u.m togedder!"

Alice rushed to the window and was horrified at the sight before her.

She heard a jargon of boisterous defiant noises graduated from inarticulate sounds to higher and varying keys with occasional s.n.a.t.c.hes of a disgusting song in falsetto.

"We de bosses is er gwine to be, Kase ole Linc.u.m dun set us free, In de year of Jubilo."

She saw to her disgust and mortification a score or two of negro children romping like cattle through her sainted mother's flower garden.

They were plucking the dahlias and roses and other varieties of flowers with ruthless hands, and blowing their petals. .h.i.ther and thither with their vile breath into the air. Such desecration was never dreamed of by Alice and she spoke angrily to the disgusting little vagrants and attempted to drive them from the premises.

"Yer jes shet yer ole mouf, dats what, ole po white trash. Us yung uns haint eben er studdin you. Is us Maria?"

"Dat us aint," pertly responded Maria. "Yers ole po white trash, dats what my farder and my mudder ses you is, and us cullud ladies haint ergwine to mess wid you nary bit und grane. Us is agwine to pull all dese ole flowers und fling em on de groun, und us aint er skert of nary ole skeer-crow lak yer is nudder."

And with these sundry and divers exclamations, Maria and Susan joined hands and danced a break-down upon the flower beds, while the other negro children big and little clapped hands and sang in shrill piping notes another stanza of the song.

"De bellion it is dun und fell, Und ole Marsa is gon to--well, In de year of Jubilo."

Alice attempted again to drive them away with her father's cane, when they aligned themselves in positions of attack, and with brick-bats, fragments of slate and gla.s.s and other weapons of improvised battle challenged in angry volleys.

"We's jes dars yu to put yer ole foot outen dat do und we'll mash yer hed wid er brick," and with that one of the missiles went cras.h.i.+ng through the imported plate gla.s.s of the front door, when the wicked vermin scampered away with the warning cry.

"Dey is er c.u.mmin, Dey is er c.u.mmin, looker dare, looker dare," and hid around chimney corners and among the brick underpinning.

Clarissa had viewed proceedings from the window of the kitchen with as much interest as though it were a battle of real blood and thunder, and running out of a door around a corner where she saw the kinky head of "Sofy Ann" peeping, she seized her by her hair and soused her over head and ears, in a hogshead filled with rain water that stood near the kitchen "Fo Gord!" she exclaimed, "I don't know whedder to drown yer outen out ur to baptize yer hed fomost. I'm gwine to wash offen yer sins ef I nebber duz no mo," and she kept ducking the little n.i.g.g.e.r until she was "moest drowned sho nuff." "Dar, now, I'm agwine to turn yer loose dis time, yer imp of Satun; jest let me ketch yer wun mo time in ole missis flower garden lak er hoss wid de blind staggers, und yer fokes will hab to sen fur de crowner. Take yersef clean clear outen my site, yer pizened varmint." The little negro, blubbering, spitting, coughing and bellowing, sneaked away toward the office looking back with savage glances, with eyes that stood out like a lobster's.

At this point of time the sound of wheels was heard down the roadway and going to the door Alice saw a lady of uncertain age with a very keen aspect, smartly dressed, alighting from a road cart. As she was approaching the door Alice at once recognized her as the lady who accompanied Mr. Jamieson, the Englishman, to the mansion only a short time before and whom that gentleman had addressed as his niece.

"Will you give me the key to the office, Miss?" she asked pertly addressing Alice.

"Now, dearies," she called to the negro children who had gathered suspiciously around her, "Just go to the schoolroom; I will be with you directly."

"Will you give me the key to the office Miss?" she asked this time with much emphasis.

"Indeed, I have no control over the office, it is my father's, madam, and he has his books and papers in it and doesn't wish them disturbed."

"My father is not in the house just now. Perhaps you had better wait until he returns."

"Oh, indeed, miss, I carn't, I am a bit late just now, and I must be prompt, miss, or I shall lose my position. It doesn't matter about your father's books and papers, miss, that is a trifle; I guess I can find a place for the books and papers if you do not choose to remove them yourself. Get a move on you, Miss, if you please, as I remarked, I am a bit late this forenoon."

"I do not wish to give you the key, madam," again replied the girl, "What is your business upon my father's premises unbidden?"

"Ah, indeed, what impudence! Did I ever, I guess you will find out quickly, miss! Will you give me the key miss, or shall I drive home again and report you to Mr. Laflin?" The name Laflin was, figuratively speaking, the burglar's tool that unlocked every door in this populous county. With many wicked thoughts Alice delivered the key to the school-mistress and with her arms around the necks of two negro girls she trooped off to the office; the door was opened and into the room the mistress and pupils entered.

"Oh, dear, dear, dear! exclaimed the school marm piteously. Whatever shall I do with all this rubbish? Come here, dear gyurls and boys, be a bit lively and remove these disgusting old things. Take them to the lady of the house; I guess she will know what to do with them. We carn't have thes trifles in the school room; no indeed we carn't" and pell-mell, helter skelter, topsy turvey, books, periodicals and papers were thrust out of doors into boxes, barrels, anything, anywhere as if they were so many burglars "taken in the act."

Poor Alice cried and sobbed; but a new regime was fast crowding out the memory of the olden days, it was the welding of an intermediate link between the waning and the waxing--the disappearing and the appearing civilizations.

"Now, dear gyurls and boys," said the mistress. "Take your seats. I guess we will begin. Charlie, come here, dear. You are a sweet little boy and I guess your mamma thinks so, too. How old are you, dear?"

"Seben, agwine in leben," answered the little black urchin quickly.

"Who made you, Charlie?"

"Who made me?" repeated the little negro saucily.

"Yes, who made you?"

"Oh I dunno, dat dere boy dere sez ole satan made me und him too."

"Oh, the precious little heathen," exclaimed the school marm, discouragingly, "Did you ever hear of G.o.d?" she asked again.

"Yes mum, I dun und seed him wun time, when me und Jake wus a rabbit huntin."

"Oh dear, dear, dear! Where did you see G.o.d? And what was he like?" she asked.

"Seed him down de crick," answered the negro smartly.

"What was he like?"

"What wus he lak?" echoed Charlie, digging into his pockets with both hands and standing upon one barefoot. "Lak a jacker lantern c.u.m outen de groun."

"What became of him?" asked the lady.

"What c.u.m of him?" asked Charlie "He flewed clean erway," answered Charlie as smartly as before.