The Marrow of Tradition

by Charles W. Chesnutt

  XXIV

  TWO SOUTHERN GENTLEMEN

  The iron bolt rattled in the lock, the door of a cell swung open, andwhen Mr. Delamere had entered was quickly closed again.

  "Well, Sandy!"

  "Oh, Mars John! Is you fell from hebben ter he'p me out er here? Iprayed de Lawd ter sen' you, an' He answered my prayer, an' here you is,Mars John,--here you is! Oh, Mars John, git me out er dis place!"

  "Tut, tut, Sandy!" answered his master; "of course I'll get you out.That's what I've come for. How in the world did such a mistake everhappen? You would no more commit such a crime than I would!"

  "No, suh, 'deed I wouldn', an' you know I wouldn'! I wouldn' want terbring no disgrace on de fam'ly dat raise' me, ner ter make no troublefer you, suh; but here I is, suh, lock' up in jail, an' folks talkin''bout hangin' me fer somethin' dat never entered my min', suh. I swea'ter God I never thought er sech a thing!"

  "Of course you didn't, Sandy," returned Mr. Delamere soothingly; "andnow the next thing, and the simplest thing, is to get you out of this.I'll speak to the officers, and at the preliminary hearing to-morrow I'lltell them all about you, and they will let you go. You won't mindspending one night in jail for your sins."

  "No, suh, ef I wuz sho' I'd be 'lowed ter spen' it here. But dey say dey're gwine ter lynch me ternight,--I kin hear 'em talkin' f'm de winderser de cell, suh."

  "Well, _I_ say, Sandy, that they shall do no such thing! Lynch a manbrought up by a Delamere, for a crime of which he is innocent?Preposterous! I'll speak to the authorities and see that you areproperly protected until this mystery is unraveled. If Tom had beenhere, he would have had you out before now, Sandy. My grandson is agenuine Delamere, is he not, Sandy?"

  "Yas, suh, yas, suh," returned Sandy, with a lack of enthusiasm which hetried to conceal from his master. "An' I s'pose ef he hadn' gonefishin' so soon dis mawnin', he'd 'a' be'n lookin' after me, suh."

  "It has been my love for him and your care of me, Sandy," said the oldgentleman tremulously, "that have kept me alive so long; but now explainto me everything concerning this distressing matter, and I shall then beable to state your case to better advantage."

  "Well, suh," returned Sandy, "I mought's well tell de whole tale an' nothol' nothin' back. I wuz kind er lonesome las' night, an' sence I be'ntu'ned outen de chu'ch on account er dat cakewalk I didn' go ter, sohe'p me God! I didn' feel like gwine ter prayer-meetin', so I wentroun' ter see Solomon Williams, an' he wa'n't home, an' den I walk' downstreet an' met Josh Green, an' he ax' me inter Sam Taylor's place, an' Isot roun' dere wid Josh till 'bout 'leven o'clock, w'en I sta'ted backhome. I went straight ter de house, suh, an' went ter bed an' ter sleepwidout sayin' a wo'd ter a single soul excep' Mistuh Tom, who wuzsettin' up readin' a book w'en I come in. I wish I may drap dead in mytracks, suh, ef dat ain't de God's truf, suh, eve'y wo'd of it!"

  "I believe every word of it, Sandy; now tell me about the clothes thatyou are said to have been found cleaning, and the suspicious articlesthat were found in your room?"

  "Dat's w'at beats me, Mars John," replied Sandy, shaking his headmournfully. "Wen I lef home las' night after supper, my clo's wuz allput erway in de closet in my room, folded up on de she'f ter keep demoths out. Dey wuz my good clo's,--de blue coat dat you wo' ter deweddin' fo'ty years ago, an' dem dere plaid pants I gun Mistuh Cohen fo'dollars fer three years ago; an' w'en I looked in my closet dis mawnin',suh, befo' I got ready ter sta't fer Belleview, dere wuz my clo's layin'on de flo', all muddy an' crumple' up, des lack somebody had wo' 'em ina fight! Somebody e'se had wo' my clo's,--er e'se dere'd be'n somewitchcraf, er some sort er devilment gwine on dat I can't make out, suh,ter save my soul!"

  "There was no witchcraft, Sandy, but that there was some deviltry mightwell be. Now, what other negro, who might have been mistaken for you,could have taken your clothes? Surely no one about the house?"

  "No, suh, no, suh. It couldn't 'a' be'n Jeff, fer he wuz at Belleviewwid you; an' it couldn't 'a' be'n Billy, fer he wuz too little ter wearmy clo's; an' it couldn't 'a' be'n Sally, fer she's a 'oman. It's amyst'ry ter me, suh!"

  "Have you no enemies? Is there any one in Wellington whom you imaginewould like to do you an injury?"

  "Not a livin' soul dat I knows of, suh. I've be'n tu'ned out'n dechu'ch, but I don' know who my enemy is dere, er ef it wuz all amistake, like dis yer jailin' is; but de Debbil is in dis somewhar, MarsJohn,--an' I got my reasons fer sayin' so."

  "What do you mean, Sandy?"

  Sandy related his experience of the preceding evening: how he had seenthe apparition preceding him to the house, and how he had questioned Tomupon the subject.

  "There's some mystery here, Sandy," said Mr. Delamere reflectively."Have you told me all, now, upon your honor? I am trying to save yourlife, Sandy, and I must be able to trust your word implicitly. You musttell me every circumstance; a very little and seemingly unimportant bitof evidence may sometimes determine the issue of a great lawsuit. Thereis one thing especially, Sandy: where did you get the gold which wasfound in your trunk?"

  Sandy's face lit up with hopefulness.

  "Why, Mars John, I kin 'splain dat part easy. Dat wuz money I had lentout, an' I got back f'm--But no, suh, I promise' not ter tell."

  "Circumstances absolve you from your promise, Sandy. Your life is ofmore value to you than any other thing. If you will explain where yougot the gold, and the silk purse that contained it, which is said to beMrs. Ochiltree's, you will be back home before night."

  Old Mr. Delamere's faculties, which had been waning somewhat in sympathywith his health, were stirred to unusual acuteness by his servant'sdanger. He was watching Sandy with all the awakened instincts of thetrial lawyer. He could see clearly enough that, in beginning to accountfor the possession of the gold, Sandy had started off with hisexplanation in all sincerity. At the mention of the silk purse, however,his face had blanched to an ashen gray, and the words had frozen uponhis lips.

  A less discerning observer might have taken these things as signs ofguilt, but not so Mr. Delamere.

  "Well, Sandy," said his master encouragingly, "go on. You got the goldfrom"--

  Sandy remained silent. He had had a great shock, and had taken a greatresolution.

  "Mars John," he asked dreamily, "you don' b'lieve dat I done dis thing?"

  "Certainly not, Sandy, else why should I be here?"

  "An' nothin' wouldn' make you b'lieve it, suh?"

  "No, Sandy,--I could not believe it of you. I've known you too long andtoo well."

  "An' you wouldn' b'lieve it, not even ef I wouldn' say one wo'd mo'about it?"

  "No, Sandy, I believe you no more capable of this crime than I wouldbe,--or my grandson, Tom. I wish Tom were here, that he might help meovercome your stubbornness; but you'll not be so foolish, so absurdlyfoolish, Sandy, as to keep silent and risk your life merely to shieldsome one else, when by speaking you might clear up this mystery and berestored at once to liberty. Just tell me where you got the gold," addedthe old gentleman persuasively. "Come, now, Sandy, that's a goodfellow!"

  "Mars John," asked Sandy softly, "w'en my daddy, 'way back yander befo'de wah, wuz about ter be sol' away f'm his wife an' child'en, youbought him an' dem, an' kep' us all on yo' place tergether, didn't you,suh?"

  "Yes, Sandy, and he was a faithful servant, and proved worthy of all Idid for him."

  "And w'en he had wo'ked fer you ten years, suh, you sot 'im free?"

  "Yes, Sandy, he had earned his freedom."

  "An' w'en de wah broke out, an' my folks wuz scattered, an' I didn'have nothin' ter do ner nowhar ter go, you kep' me on yo' place, andtuck me ter wait on you, suh, didn't you?"

  "Yes, Sandy, and you have been a good servant and a good friend; buttell me now about this gold, and I'll go and get you out of this, rightaway, for I need you, Sandy, and you'll not be of any use to me shut uphere!"

  "Jes' hol' on a minute befo' you go, Mars John; fer ef dem peopleoutside should git holt er me befo' you _does_ git me out er here, I maynever see yo
u no mo', suh, in dis worl'. W'en Mars Billy McLean shot meby mistake, w'ile we wuz out huntin' dat day, who wuz it boun' up mywoun's an' kep' me from bleedin' ter def, an' kyar'ed me two miles onhis own shoulders ter a doctuh?"

  "Yes, Sandy, and when black Sally ran away with your young mistress andTom, when Tom was a baby, who stopped the runaway, and saved their livesat the risk of his own?"

  "Dat wa'n't nothin', suh; anybody could 'a' done dat, w'at wuz strongernuff an' swif' ernuff. You is be'n good ter me, suh, all dese years,an' I've tried ter do my duty by you, suh, an' by Mistuh Tom, who wuzyo' own gran'son, an' de las' one er de fam'ly."

  "Yes, you have, Sandy, and when I am gone, which will not be very long,Tom will take care of you, and see that you never want. But we arewasting valuable time, Sandy, in these old reminiscences. Let us get backto the present. Tell me about the gold, now, so that I may at once lookafter your safety. It may not even be necessary for you to remain hereall night."

  "Jes' one wo'd mo', Mars John, befo' you go! I know you're gwine ter dode bes' you kin fer me, an' I'm sorry I can't he'p you no mo' wid it;but ef dere should be any accident, er ef you _can't_ git me out erhere, don' bother yo' min' 'bout it no mo', suh, an' don' git yo'se'fixcited, fer you know de doctuh says, suh, dat you can't stan'ixcitement; but jes' leave me in de han's er de Lawd, suh,--_He'll_ lookafter me, here er hereafter. I know I've fell f'm grace mo' d'n once,but I've done made my peace wid Him in dis here jail-house, suh, an' Iain't 'feared ter die--ef I haf ter. I ain' got no wife ner child'n termo'n fer me, an' I'll die knowin' dat I've done my duty ter dem dathi'ed me, an' trusted me, an' had claims on me. Fer I wuz raise' by aDelamere, suh, an' all de ole Delameres wuz gent'emen, an' deirprinciples spread ter de niggers 'round 'em, suh; an' ef I has ter diefer somethin' I didn' do,--I kin die, suh, like a gent'eman! But ez ferdat gol', suh, I ain' gwine ter say one wo'd mo' 'bout it ter nobody indis worl'!"

  Nothing could shake Sandy's determination. Mr. Delamere argued,expostulated, but all in vain. Sandy would not speak.

  More and more confident of some mystery, which would come out in time,if properly investigated, Mr. Delamere, strangely beset by a vaguesense of discomfort over and beyond that occasioned by his servant'sdanger, hurried away upon his errand of mercy. He felt less confident ofthe outcome than when he had entered the jail, but was quite as muchresolved that no effort should be spared to secure protection for Sandyuntil there had been full opportunity for the truth to become known.

  "Take good care of your prisoner, sheriff," he said sternly, as he wasconducted to the door. "He will not be long in your custody, and I shallsee that you are held strictly accountable for his safety."

  "I'll do what I can, sir," replied the sheriff in an even tone andseemingly not greatly impressed by this warning. "If the prisoner istaken from me, it will be because the force that comes for him is toostrong for resistance."

  "There should be no force too strong for an honest man in your positionto resist,--whether successfully or not is beyond the question. Theofficer who is intimidated by threats, or by his own fears, is recreantto his duty, and no better than the mob which threatens him. But youwill have no such test, Mr. Wemyss! I shall see to it myself that thereis no violence!"