Confederate Gold and Silver

by Peter F. Warren

  Lee’s comments comforted Francis. He was also pleased Lee had taken the time to mention his father. “Thank you, sir. I will indeed tell my father you have sent your regards to him. I expect he is likely still moaning about both his injury and about missing the action of this war. He would have done the South proud with his service.” Francis had wanted to ask Lee more about why he had been summoned to meet with him, but knew it was not his place to ask. He knew when Lee was ready he would tell him.

  Lee smiled and then briefly nodded his head in agreement to what Francis had just said.

  Getting comfortable at the table, Lee was served his breakfast by a rather overweight corporal who, amongst other assignments, served as his cook. Major Taylor then sat down at the table next to Lee, quickly briefing him on a few unrelated matters. Captains McAulay and White, who had not been invited to sit at the table, stood respectfully off to the side of it, behind where Francis sat, quietly listening as Lee and Taylor spoke. “Major Taylor, have you made arrangements to contact the commanding generals of the respective states we discussed last evening and advised them to provide one sergeant each for this assignment?”

  “Yes, sir. I have personally dispatched couriers to each of them. The orders were sent out early this morning. The instructions directed the generals to make sure their sergeants were in Richmond within a week’s time, by August 4th in fact, to meet with Captain Francis at the Richmond train station.”

  “Very well.” Lee took a moment to sip the cup of coffee which had been set on the table for him before he spoke to Francis again.

  As he sat at the table, Francis could not help but hear Major Taylor mention his name to Lee. As Lee took another moment to drink his coffee, Francis wondered why he was being sent to Richmond. Patiently he waited to be told what his assignment was going to be.

  Putting his cup down, Lee looked at Francis for a moment before speaking. “Captain, I have an assignment for you. I hope your injury will not prevent you from accepting this assignment, but if you feel you cannot accept what I am going to ask of you due to your injury, nothing will be said about you declining this assignment. Before I tell you more about what is involved, I must ask you a question. Do not take offense with this as you know of my fondness and of my respect for your family. This assignment, if it is not properly kept in complete secrecy, could spell catastrophe for our cause. Captain, for the time being, can I trust you to keep this conversation secret from everyone except for those who are present here right now?”

  As he looked up at the others who were present around the table, Francis could not figure out what else to expect from Lee regarding the assignment he was being given, but sensed it was something very important. “Sir, you have not offended me or my family as we have the same respect for you. My entire family is proud to be from the South. We are here to serve you and the cause we have taken up arms for. Sir, as you can trust my family, you can also trust me.”

  Lee smiled at the answer Francis had given to his question as it had been the one he expected to hear. “Very well; now I must tell you one other important requirement for this assignment and I must know that you understand this point. Unless you find yourself in significant trouble, and I stress it has to be significant trouble, under no circumstances are you to tell anyone, other than those who are here right now, as well as President Davis and Treasury Secretary Memminger, of your movements. Do you understand what I am telling you?”

  Judiah was now more intrigued than ever. He now knew whatever assignment Lee had planned for him was obviously a very important one. As he listened to Lee speak to him, he could only guess what the assignment might be. “What could be so important that he needs to be assured complete secrecy will be maintained by my men and me?”

  “Sir, I promise you I will keep my orders to myself. My men will only know what they need to know unless something arises which may prevent me from completing my assignment. With your permission, and only after I know which of the men I can trust, I would like to tell one man what our final objective is, just so someone knows what has to be done in the event I am injured or killed.”

  “You have my permission to do so, captain, but only after you know for sure who you can trust. You must select someone you can trust and someone who the other men will follow; I suggest you select this person wisely. Do you understand that?

  “Sir, I do.”

  Lee remained quiet for a few moments before asking his next question. Before asking the question, he told Francis something about his grandfather’s past. It was an issue that Francis had no idea he knew about. “Captain, I know of your grandfather’s problems with alcohol. Do you use alcohol at all?”

  “Sir, I do not. General Lee, please, and with all due respect, if I am to be compared to anyone in my family, I wish to be compared to my great grandfather or to my father, not to a rogue member of my family, but I do understand why you have asked the question. My family is still embarrassed by the past conduct of a family member. I know my grandfather had a problem with alcohol, but I do not. When my two fingers had to be amputated recently the doctors offered me alcohol to help kill the pain I felt. They made this offer both before and after the surgery. I refused their offer as I would rather not succumb to the same vices as my grandfather did. Sir, if you check with those doctors they will verify my words to you, but I hope you believe me.”

  “Captain, that is a fair answer to perhaps an unfair question, but one I had to ask. You will soon understand why. And yes, I believe you. If I did not trust your words I would not have sent for you. Fair enough?”

  “Sir, that is fair enough for me. I am honored by the faith you have in me.”

  Satisfied by the brief interrogation he had forced Francis to endure in front of the others, Lee then gave him the details of his new assignment. He finished by telling Francis he was to immediately meet with President Davis and Secretary Memminger after arriving in Richmond. Then Lee concluded the meeting by telling Francis he needed only to report back to his command to collect his personal belongings as Major Taylor had already taken care of contacting his commanding officer. As Lee stood up from the table, so did Taylor and Francis. “Captain, I wish you well in your new assignment. It is safe to say the future of the Confederate States of America rests, to a large degree, in the success of your mission. God speed to you! When you have completed your assignment you are to report directly back to me.” After answering a couple of minor questions Francis had regarding his new assignment, Lee dismissed him.

  As Francis walked to where he had left his horse, he was momentarily overwhelmed by the responsibility given to him. Gathering himself, he mounted his horse and began the short ride back to his tent so he could collect his few personal belongings. Looking down at his injured hand, he hoped it would soon heal so he had one less problem to be concerned about.

  After Francis had left, Major Taylor motioned for Captains McAulay and White to join Lee at the table. As they did, Taylor poured them each a cup of coffee. “Gentlemen, you can now report back to President Davis that I have made my choice. Captain Francis has proved himself well in battle and in previous administrative tasks he has been given. Despite the injury to his hand, I am confident he will do well in this assignment. Please tell President Davis I trust him completely and that I know his family very well. I would not have chosen him if I did not have a strong degree of faith in him. He is an excellent officer to lead this assignment. Do you each agree?”

  Neither captain had known of Francis before they had heard his name first mentioned by Lee, but they knew if he was Lee’s choice to lead the assignment, then he was their choice as well. Lee, even with his rank as the Commanding General of the army, was an easy man to speak with, but they both also knew captains did not challenge decisions made by generals. “Sir, we will advise President Davis of your choice of Captain Francis to lead this assignment. We will recommend final preparations begin so we are read
y when he arrives in Richmond.” Rising from the table, they thanked Lee and Taylor for their hospitality, saluted Lee, and soon began the ride back to Richmond.

  ******

  It was just before noon when the four sergeants selected to represent the Army of Northern Virginia in this assignment located Francis as he was finishing up packing his saddlebags with his personal items. As they walked towards his tent they all eyed his heavily bandaged left hand, but no one said anything to him about his injury. After a few brief introductions, he advised them they had been selected for this assignment because of their loyalty to the army and because of their fighting skills. “Most importantly,” Francis told them “you have each been selected because your commanding officer has deemed you to be one of the most trustworthy men within his command. This is not going to be the easiest assignment you have had, so I need to know each of you are committed to this assignment as I expect you men will work the hardest to make sure we are successful. Being Virginians and all, I have to be able to trust you more than I might trust the others who are being selected. Speak now if you have any issues.”

  Hearing none, Francis and his four new men soon mounted their horses and started their ride to Richmond. As they started out, he eyed each of the four sergeants who now rode with him. As he did, he realized at twenty-eight years of age he was probably at least three to four years older than they were. Francis was young for a captain, but had risen in rank because of his father’s reputation as a soldier, and because of his own fighting and leadership skills. He had quickly demonstrated these skills soon after the war had broken out, showing an almost lack of fear in battle. He had gained the attention of others because of that lack of fear. It was a trait most men did not possess. While the South had at least one other brilliant cavalry officer in J.E.B. Stuart, what Francis may have lacked in reputation, he was certainly Stuart’s equal when it came to fighting.

  Beginning the ride to Richmond, they soon left the protection of the Confederate camp and its surrounding area. Francis wanted to arrive as early as possible so he could properly plan for his assignment. As he rode with the others through the countryside, he could not help but think of the money he would soon be responsible for protecting. He could not imagine what a great deal of money really looked like. While he had come from a well-to-do family, he had never really seen much money as his family had traded and bartered for many of their needs. His father had never really spoken about how much real money the family had and he had never given too much thought about it either as he had been far more interested in being the typical country boy growing up.

  As they rode south, Francis prayed he and his men would perform well together as he did not want to embarrass those who had chosen him for this mission. Nor did he want to disgrace his family.

  In the weeks to follow, Captain Francis and his men would face several challenges during their assignment. It was his job to complete the assignment and to bring his men back alive. One of the tasks would be somewhat completed, the other would not. Despite the many difficult challenges he would face, Francis would not disgrace his family or his uniform.

  Summer, 2011

  5

  A Tree Reveals Her Secret.

  “When the sun’s at his back and the winds in his face, it’s just him and the wheel;

  He wouldn’t take a million for the way it makes him feel . . .”

  Kenny Chesney—Lyrics to his song ‘Boats’

  The day after he agreed to purchase his new boat, one which was everything but new, Paul also purchased a used truck so he could tow the boat to and from a storage facility close to his home. He appreciated the offer Steve had given him, one which allowed the pontoon boat to be moored at the marina for the rest of the summer, but he had declined the offer. He planned on mooring it at one of the marinas situated along the Waccamaw River as the water in the river was generally not as rough as the constantly changing tides were inside Murrells Inlet. For now though, he decided he would keep the boat at the storage facility until he found a marina he liked along the river.

  The truck he purchased was a used 2002 Chevy V-8 Silverado four door. It had four wheel drive capability and was one with a tow package already installed on it. The truck was pewter in color and had just over 72,000 miles on it. While it had a couple dents on the front hood, the rest of the truck was in very good condition despite it being close to ten years old. He purchased it for only $2,500.00 from a widow who had recently lost her husband. She had priced it on the low end so it would sell quickly as she wanted one less sad memory of her late husband being around the house. As he drove the truck out of her driveway on the morning he purchased it, Paul could not help but to think his good luck was still continuing.

  After buying the truck, Paul stopped for a late breakfast at the Waccamaw Diner on Frontage Road, just off Highway 17 in Murrells Inlet. With Donna having started her new job earlier in the week, he had already made the diner his new place to grab a quick breakfast and to read the paper.

  After ordering his breakfast, and after opening up the sports section of The Sun News, a local newspaper in the Myrtle Beach area, Paul glanced out the diner window at his newly purchased truck. He caught himself smiling at the excitement of soon picking up the pontoon boat he had dreamed about owning for years. Drinking his coffee as he looked out the window, he had one other pleasant thought. “Retirement life is working out pretty well so far!”

  “Here you go, sweetheart,” Betty Repko said as she placed Paul’s breakfast of scrambled eggs, home fries, and sausage down on the table. “You’re becoming a regular here, ain’t ya? I’ve seen ya here three times this week.” Paul introduced himself to Betty, telling her he had just recently moved to the area from Connecticut after retiring.

  “Well imagine that, another Yankee moving to South Carolina!” Betty quickly laughed at her own good-natured joke. He could tell from her demeanor she had just been joking with him when she had called him a Yankee. “Let me tell ya something, if y’all are going to become a Southern gentleman we are going to have to teach ya to eat grits with your breakfast, not home fries,” Betty again joked. Paul made a face to show his lack of interest in the creamy cornmeal Southern delicacy. The expression he made caused Betty to laugh at her suggestion regarding the grits. “If ya are going to become a regular here, ya also need to be sitting on the other side of the diner, that’s where those old fools who have lived here for years sit. All they do is complain about you Yankees moving here, complain about not catching enough fish, and generally lie to each another about how much sex they are having. The way they describe it, their women are always pissed off about something, so I know for a fact they aren’t getting any. Besides being a bunch of complainers, they’re all lousy tippers too!” Betty had just told him far more than he cared to know. She soon left the booth where he was sitting and walked back behind the diner’s lunch counter, carrying a tray of dirty dishes she had cleared from the booth next to his.

  Outside of her rough language, Betty reminded him of many of the waitresses he had known in diners back home. They were often cheerful hard working single moms who were trying to earn a living by being nice to their customers. From the friendly banter they had with their customers, they hoped to be rewarded with enough tip money to help them pay their bills and to care for their kids. For some of them, they also held out hope they might even find someone decent enough to care for them. Betty was only different than the other waitresses he had known back home because she was a bit older and because she talked with the Southern drawl he loved to hear these days.

  Starting to eat his breakfast, Paul glanced over towards the section of the diner where Betty had told him the diner’s regular morning customers tended to sit. As he did, he saw Chubby sitting in one of the booths with a couple of other guys. Next to their booth sat four other guys who he could tell were part of Chubby’s group of friends. Seeing them sitting there, Paul thought the guys with Chubby
fit his description of Southern rednecks. They all wore baseball hats, all had work pants on, and some of them were wearing shirts that were either ripped or torn. Most of them had not shaved for a few days. As he continued to look at them between bites of his breakfast, he could not figure out why, but those were the people in life he always had an appreciation for. Southern rednecks or Northern rednecks, it did not matter, they were the hard working guys in life who spent their down time just enjoying the simple pleasures that life offered, pleasures like hunting and fishing. Chubby’s friends all appeared to be going fishing later as they seemed dressed for it. From where he sat in the diner, he could also see several different types of fishing boats on trailers in the parking lot. The trailers were hitched up behind several types of Ford and Chevy pickup trucks. The rear windows of two of the trucks had a variety of NASCAR, Ducks Unlimited, and America—Love it or Leave it! stickers displayed on them; a third truck had red and white window tinting in the form of a Confederate flag filling up most of its rear window.

  As he sat finishing his breakfast, Paul heard Chubby’s voice yell out to him as he was walking to the door. “Hey, partner, y’all coming by for the boat this morning?” Nodding his head, he gave Chubby a thumbs up to indicate he would be there. His mouth was too full of the last bites of his scrambled eggs to answer him. “Alright then, we will be ready for y’all when ya get there,” Chubby replied as he gave a wave at the same time. Looking up from his plate, he could not help but notice that one of the guys Chubby had been sitting with now stood in the diner’s doorway for several moments staring at him, really almost glaring at him, before walking out to the parking lot to get into Chubby’s truck. Paul wondered what the glare had been about, but soon returned to finishing his breakfast. As he cleaned his plate with his last piece of buttered rye toast, he watched Chubby and his friends as they drove off in the direction of the marina. As he watched them, Betty stopped to refresh his coffee. She saw him staring out the window.