Flight to Canada by Ishmael Reed

Author:Ishmael Reed [Reed, Ishmael]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Suspense
ISBN: 9780684847504
Publisher: Avon
Published: 1976-08-01T04:00:00+00:00

16

“… AND ALSO, ROBIN, DON’T forget to order a few more cartons of Crisco. We seem to be always running out.”

Uncle Robin is mounted on Swille’s personal beautifully gold-harnessed horse, Beauvoir, rumored to have sired both Lee’s horse Traveller and Davis’ Tartar. It was doing a fancy Spanish trot in place. Uncle Robin wears a silk top hat, riding jacket, white silk ascot, long black boots, and holds a whip which thickens out into a point like the end of a blacksnake’s tail.

“And be careful with that whip, Robin. It’s my pride and joy.”

“Yessir, Massa Swille.”

After sending Robin, followed by the two wagons, to the city for supplies, Swille looks out over his land, six times as big as Monaco. A flock of mockingbirds flies overhead. The lilacs, bordering the path down which Robin’s caravan was now leaving, sway slightly; the drawbridge descends.

He turned and opened the door of his house, said to be the very door on Arthur’s house in Camelot. The Prime Minister who had traded it as collateral on a personal loan was forced to resign when the deal was discovered by the London Times. Attempts to recover it were futile. Swille threatened to make England giggle into its tea. Swille wanted London Bridge but was overbid by a Texan who later sold it to the Arabs as the Brooklyn Bridge.

He climbed the spiraling staircase on the sensuous plush rugs and entered the second story of the house. He came to his wife’s room, put his ear to the door. Silence.

Swille entered his own room. It was time for a “Siesta” he noted by looking at his watch. He walked over to his closet and opened it. “Ah, there they are. Don’t they shine? Aren’t they wonderful? My lovelies, my darlings, my pets.” He takes one of the whips to his bosom and rubs it. “My cowskin one! A kiss for you! My bullwhip! A caress for you! My chains. My beautiful chains. If Gladstone could only see these. My paddles.”

His collection was better than Gladstone’s. Gladstone had invited him to his English country house for a “spanker” and to see his exotic whips and chains, but when he told Gladstone, Lord of the Exchequer, about the collections in the South, Gladstone caused a “sensation” by making a pro-Confederate speech on the floor of Parliament. He urged England to recognize the Confederacy.

Swille removed his jacket, picked up a copy of The Southern Planter which had a special edition on the new “fettering” devices. They were all right, but they couldn’t compare with his. His had been based upon those described in Henry’s History, 1805 edition, Volume VII. He had had them shipped over from a deserted English castle. To make sure they were effective, he had Jim, the black stud, try them on him personally. He always tried out the fettering equipment personally so’s to determine whether he’d gotten his money’s worth. He loved the sound of the screams coming from various parts of the plantation, day and night.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.