Kincaid's Battery
Page 47
XLVII
FROM THE BURIAL SQUAD
The pinioned girl tried to throw back her head and bring their eyestogether, but Anna, through some unconscious advantage, held it to hershoulder, her own face looking out over the garden.
"Ah, let me be glad for you, Flora, let me be glad for you! Oh, think ofit! You _have_ him! have him at home, to look upon, to touch, to call byname! and to be looked upon by _him_ and touched and called by name! Oh,God in heaven! God in heaven!"
Miranda's fond protests were too timorous to check her, and Flora'sceased in the delight of hearing that last wail confess the thought ofHilary. Constance strove with tender energy for place and voice: "Nan,dearie, Nan! But listen to Flora, Nan. See, Nan, I haven't openedSteve's letter yet. Wounded and what, Flora, something worse? Ah, ifworse you couldn't have left him."
"I know," sighed Anna, relaxing her arms to a caress and turning hergaze to Flora. "I see. Your brother, our dear Charlie, has come back tolife, but wounded and alone. Alone. Hilary is still missing. Isn't thatit? That's all, isn't it?"
Constance, in a sudden thought of what her letters might tell, began toopen one, though with her eyes at every alternate moment on Flora aseagerly as Miranda's or Anna's. Flora stood hiddenly revelling in thatcomplexity of her own spirit which enabled her to pour upon herquestioner a look, even a real sentiment, of ravishing pity, whilenevertheless in the depths of her being she thrilled and burned anddanced and sang with joy for the very misery she thus compassionated. Bya designed motion she showed her grandmother's reticule on her arm. Butonly Anna saw it; Constance, with her gaze in the letter, was drawingMiranda aside while both bent their heads over a clause in it which hadgot blurred, and looked at each other aghast as they made it out toread, "'--from the burial squad.'" The grandmother's silken bag savedthem from Anna's notice.
"Oh, Flora!" said Anna again, "is there really something worse?"Abruptly, she spread a hand under the bag and with her eyes still in theeyes of its possessor slid it gently from the yielding wrist. Droppingher fingers into it she brought forth a tobacco-pouch, of her ownembroidering, and from it, while the reticule fell unheeded to thefloor, drew two or three small things which she laid on it in herdoubled hands and regarded with a smile. Vacantly the smile increased asshe raised it to Flora, then waned while she looked once more on therelics, and grew again as she began to handle them. Her slow voice tookthe tone of a child alone at play.
"Why, that's _my_ photograph," she said. "And this--this is hiswatch--watch and chain." She dangled them. A light frown came and wentbetween her smiles.
With soft eagerness Flora called Constance, and the sister and Mirandastood dumb.
"See, Connie," the words went on, "see, 'Randa, this is my ownphotograph, and this is his own watch and chain. I must go and put themaway--with my old gems." Constance would have followed her as she movedbut she waved a limp forbiddal, prattling on: "This doesn't mean he'sdead, you know. Oh, not at all! It means just the contrary! Why, I sawhim alive last night, in a dream, and I can't believe anything else, andI won't! No, no, not yet!" At that word she made a misstep and as shestarted sharply to recover it the things she carried fell breaking andjingling at her feet.
"Oh-h!" she sighed in childish surprise and feebly dropped to her knees.Flora, closest by, sprang crouching to the rescue, but recoiled as thekneeling girl leaned hoveringly over the mementos and with distendedeyes and an arm thrust forward cried aloud, "No! No! No-o!"
At once, however, her voice was tender again. "Mustn't anybody touchthem but me, ever any more," she said, regathering the stuff, regainedher feet and moved on. Close after her wavering steps anxiously pressedthe others, yet not close enough. At the open door, smiling back inrejection of their aid, she tripped, and before they could save her,tumbled headlong within. From up-stairs, from downstairs came servantsrunning, and by the front door entered a stranger, a private soldier inswamp boots and bespattered with the mire of the river road from hisspurs to his ragged hat.
"No, bring her out," he said to a slave woman who bore Anna in herarms, "out to the air!" But the burden slipped free and with a clearedmind stood facing him.
"Ladies," he exclaimed, his look wandering, his uncovered hair matted,"if a half-starved soldier can have a morsel of food just to take in hishands and ride on with--" and before he could finish servants had sprungto supply him.
"Are you from down the river?" asked Anna, quietly putting away hersister's pleading touch and Flora's offer of support.
"I am!" spouted the renegade, for renegade he was, "I'm from the verythick of the massacre! from day turned into night, night into day, andheaven and earth into--into--"
"Hell," placidly prompted Flora.
"Yes! nothing short of it! Our defenses become death-traps andslaughter-pens--oh, how foully, foully has Richmond betrayed her sistercity!"
Flora felt a new tumult of joy. "That Yankee fleet--it has pazz' thosefort'?" she cried.
"My dear young lady! By this time there ain't no forts for it to pass!When I left Fort St. Philip there wa'n't a spot over in Fort Jackson aswide as my blanket where a bumbshell hadn't buried itself and blown up,and every minute we were lookin' for the magazine to go! Those _awful_shells! they'd torn both levees, the forts were flooded, men who'd losttheir grit were weeping like children--"
"Oh!" interrupted Constance, "why not leave the forts? We don't needthem now; those old wooden ships can never withstand our terribleironclads!"
"No! not under this roof--nor in sight of _thosethings_"]
"Well, they're mighty soon going to try it! Last night, right in theblaze of all our batteries, they cut the huge chain we had stretchedacross the river--"
"Ah, but when they see--oh, they'll never dare face even the_Manassas_--the 'little turtle,' ha-ha!--much less the great_Louisiana!_"
"Alas! madam, the _Louisiana_ ain't ready for 'em. There she lies tiedto the levee, with engines that can't turn a wheel, a mere floatingbattery, while our gunboats--" Eagerly the speaker broke off to receiveupon one hand and arm the bounty of the larder and with a pomp ofgratitude to extend his other hand to Anna; but she sadly shook her headand showed on her palms Hilary's shattered tokens:
"These poor things belong to one, sir, who, like you, is among themissing. But, oh, thank God! _he_ is missing at the front, _in_ thefront."
The abashed craven turned his hand to Flora, but with a gentlepromptness Anna stepped between: "No, Flora dear, see; he hasn't a redscratch on him. Oh, sir, go--eat! If hunger stifles courage, eat! Buteat as you ride, and ride like mad back to duty and honor! No! not underthis roof--nor in sight of _these things_--can any man be a ladies' man,who is missing _from_ the front, at the rear."
He wheeled and vanished. Anna turned: "Connie, what do your letterssay?"
The sister's eyes told enough. The inquirer gazed a moment, thenmurmured to herself, "I--don't--believe it--yet," grew very white,swayed, and sank with a long sigh into out-thrown arms.