March: a novel by Geraldine Brooks

Author:Geraldine Brooks
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Historical - General, War stories, March family (Fictitious characters), Fathers and daughters, Historical, Family, Domestic fiction, Civil War, Fiction, Romance, Fiction - Historical, United States - History - Civil War, Historical fiction, War & Military, 1861-1865, American Historical Fiction, Soldiers, General, United States, History
ISBN: 9780143036661
Publisher: Penguin Books
Published: 2006-09-15T01:33:12.212000+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

First Blossom

Oak Landing, May 10, 1862

My dear,

There was great celebration here today. It would have been a notable day in any case, for we were at last to see the ginned and baled cotton loaded safely aboard ship and headed to market. The bales had been hauled down to the landing more than a week ago, but too much gunboat activity on the river made it impossible for a steamer to fetch them away, and every day that passed we feared a visit from the irregulars, who love nothing more than to see the labor of months set swiftly alight, or else bales slashed and spilled,into the river. But the boat came, and the cotton departed, and there was much merry making, which only became more intense with the unlooked for arrival of a second boat, the Mary Lou, which you will by now have guessed contained the cargo secured by your good offices. How I wish you and our generous donors could have seen the faces light with joy and disbelief as the kegs of molasses, the barrels of salt and herring, the soaps, the threads and yarns, the slates and copy books, the cases of dried herbs and simples, but especially the boxes of good used clothing. You would have blushed to see the women trying on skirts and prancing about like peacocks, as if these plain things were Paris gowns. I was gladdened to see such a good store of medicines, for the hot season grows increasingly unwholesome and agues are a constant threat. Every one of us had some cause for smiles and exclamations as the cargo was unloaded from the ship and the contents of each box disclosed.

I did not write to her of the one face not smiling. Mr. Canning stood so glum throughout the whole proceeding that I could not fathom his sour mood, and finally had to ask him. He answered through tight lips, “This is an extravagant liberality. You do no kindness to the Negroes.”

“But, Ethan,” I exclaimed (we had resorted to first names by now, not out of any affection but simply from the necessary intimacies of our proximity). “You sanctioned this. You encouraged me to seek this charity ... ”

“Yes. But I did not expect you to succeed in this degree. These people must learn that as they are paid, so, too, must they pay in turn to satisfy their wants. Yes, yes; I sanctioned some small relief effort, since we are not yet in a position to pay their wages-but this is beyond anything I imagined. No one I know in Illinois would give quality goods like this-and in such abundance!-to Negroes, in wartime, when there are whites in want.”

“Well, perhaps you need to widen your acquaintance in Illinois,” I replied, and walked off so as not to give way to my annoyance. Some of my female pupils were beckoning me, in any case, wanting me to admire how they looked in their new garments. In truth,

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