Chapter 7

After supper, we sat at the kitchen table, well, the White folks did, an' the niggers stood around an' leaned on the counters. We, includin' the niggers, drank coffee an' talked 'bout what ta do with all the treasure we found. We figured that there wuz no way we'd be able ta return the money, soz we agreed ta divide it up, half an' half, between us an' Jeb's family. That wuz a shit pot full of money, enough soz none of us would ever have ta work, again, ifen we didn't want ta. That wuz really true fer us when I figured in the nearly $4,000 in sausage profits we had salted away in various hidin' places.

The real problem wuz what ta do with the jewelry an' gold an' silver plates an' stuff we had. We'd look it over tomorrow ta see ifen there wuz any names on it or any other way we could identify the owners. We wuz pretty sure that there'd be no chance of findin' the original owners of the stuff, an' I sure as hell didn't want ta give it ta the politicians.

As fer the rings an' other jewelry, we could look that over fer identifyin' marks, but we didn't expect nothin' ta come of that. Jeb proposed that the women, includin' the niggers, look through them rings and such ta see ifen there wuz anythin' they wanted. We could try ta find some way ta sell the rest. The women's faces lit up at that suggestion, an' I wuz smart enough not ta object, even ifen I'd wanted ta. I did remind them that they wuz gonna find it hard ta wear that stuff where other people could see it, especially the niggers, unless they could come up with a real good story ta explain it.

Jeb's family an' niggers spent the night at our place, an' me an' him went ta look over his place the next mornin' while the women went through the jewelry. We wuz afeared that the raiders had pretty much destroyed the place while they wuz lookin' fer stuff worth stealin'. Jeb said that he did have a little gold stashed about, but he didn't think that the raiders would have found it in the short time they had ta look.

He wuz right 'bout that, but the raiders made up fer if by the way they trashed his house an' outbuildin's while they wuz lookin' fer stuff ta steal. Jeb's wife, Alice, did have some heirloom jewelry she'd been given by her mother an' grandmothers, an' the raiders did find an' steal that. We hoped that Alice would find it when she went through the rings and stuff, but we wuzn't very hopeful.

Jeb did find his gold where he had hidden it, soz that wuz OK. What he really cussed wuz that the raiders had tried ta burn his house, pro'bly out of frustration when they couldn't find much ta steal. The outer walls of his house wuz built of heavy oak logs what were a bitch ta set on fire. The interior wuz partitioned an' finished in sawmill lumber, soz that did burn some. In any case, it wuz gonna take a while ta git his house back in livable condition. A course, I told him that he could stay with us 'til he had his place back in order.

All of his stock wuz gone; pro'bly run off by the raiders. That, or they escaped when the fool raiders left the gates open. That wuzn't so much of a problem, cuz it wuz all properly branded, soz he should be able ta recover any what wuz still alive an' kickin'.

We went back ta my house ta see what the women had come up with an' ta git us some dinner. Martha an' Daisy, Jeb's cook, had rustled up a right tasty dinner fer us, soz, while we ate, Jeb related what we had found. Alice wuz pleased ta say that she had found all of her heirlooms among the jewelry, soz she wuz happy.

Afore I could say anythin' 'bout it, Jane said that Jeb an' his family could stay with us 'til his house wuz fixed up. I jus' agreed with her, an' let it go at that. Followin' that, all the women had ta show me an' Jeb the jewelry they wanted ta keep. Me an' Jeb ain't no fools, soz we took on over what they had found, though, in fact, I thought it all looked mighty fine.

The women said that they had examined the jewelry fer identification, but they didn't find nothing what could identify the original owner. They had looked at a lot of the other items an' had come ta the same conclusion. It looked like we might as well sell what we could an' keep the money as a prize of war. It seemed OK ta me, soz that wuz where we left it.

Inez said that the War ought ta be over pretty soon, soz we could make a trip ta Chicago an' try ta sell it, there. However, it would take several trips ta sell it all without arousing suspicion. Jeb said that he trusted me, soz I could handle the sale of the stuff, an' he would accept whatever I felt wuz due him. Damn! That wuz a friendly gesture, an' I agreed ta do it that way.

Thank God! The stupid War is over! Too bad that President Lincoln had ta die, but, at least, they caught the guy who did it. Well, now, maybe we kin git back ta a normal life. I shore as hell hope so. Jane's had her baby, a son she insisted on naming Jeff, Jr. He seems like a nice kid, I hope being called "JJ" don't ruin his attitude forever.

Josiah, Rastus, an' Martha are free. There ain't no nigger slaves any more. Personally, I'm glad. I asked them what they wuz gonna do, an' all three of 'em wanted ta stay here. I'm in favor of that, an' Jane is, too. Martha's daughter turned out as dark as Rastus, soz that wuzn't no problem, after all. Martha asked ifen she could name the girl Jane, an' my Jane wuz thrilled ta be asked. We all calls her "Little Jane," an' I 'spect she thinks her first name is "Little."

Rastus an' Josiah are now official employees of Burnside Sausage an' Bacon Co., an' they earns a wage, jus' like any other workin' man. Martha is employed as our cook an' housekeeper, an' she gits a wage, too. Now that we don't have ta worry 'bout the neighbors, we all eat at the same table, an' we like it better that way.

Rastus still escorts Inez an' Martha inta town on Saturday ta sell the sausage, but now he wears his gun on the outside of his shirt. He also still carries that cudgel, an' there ain't been no trouble in town, but I still worry 'bout the trip home. Inez wears her gun, too, an' we've been tryin ta git Martha ta wear one. She's finally given in enough ta promise wearin' one as soon as Little Jane is weaned.

We ain't hurtin' fer money, soz we have put off that trip ta Chicago ta sell the loot we have. Jane wants ta go after she's weaned JJ, an' I think that's a good idee.

Inez, Martha, an' Rastus wuz comin' home from town one Saturday when they wuz stopped by three road agents. Them bandits must of known that Inez had near $75 in her purse cuz of the way they acted. All three of the bandits had their guns out, but not cocked, when they come out of the brush an' ordered Inez ta stop the buckboard. Rastus wuz wearing his pistol in a shoulder holster left over from when he had ta hide the fact that he wuz carryin' a gun. As soon as Rastus seen them bandits come out holdin' their guns, he didn't hesitate.

Rastus drew so fast that it would of made yer head spin ta watch him. Since he wuz using a Starr DA, he didn't have ta cock they gun afore he fired it. Rastus took out the first bandit afore the last one had cleared the bushes, an' he got the other two afore they could cock their Colts. Afterwards, Inez complained that Rastus had hogged all of the fun by shootin' afore she could draw her own Colt, but she hugged him afterward to show that she wuz only teasin'.

They stopped long enough ta strip the bandits of their valuables an' tie the hosses ta the back of the buckboard afore comin' on home. I ain't shore how it happened, but the word got around on what happened, an' they never wuz bothered again on their way home from town.

Some of the White folks complained that a nigger had shot three White men, but that sort of thin' didn't go very far. Too many people knew that Rastus wuz protectin' a White woman when he shot them bandits. I ain't real shore, but I'll bet that some people took Rastus' side on account of they didn't want ta take a chance on missin' out on the sausage he wuz he'pin' ta bring inta town.

Our sausage, bacon, roast, an' ham business continued ta grow even though most folks wuz havin' a hard time makin' ends meet. We wound up sellin' on credit, sometimes, ifen we knew that the buyers wuz honest. We got by with that, an' never lost a penny cuz everybody would pay up, eventually. On the other hand, I did make a few nighttime visits ta folks what wuz havin' a real hard time. I'd toss a small purse of gold coins ta the front door an' shoot off my pistol afore ridin' away as fast as I could go. I don't know ifen anybody ever knew who that midnight rider wuz, but I kept that up fer several years 'til people could git on their feat. As it turned out, that's what Jane an' I used our share of the recovered loot fer.