The Titans (27 page)

Eliza, said with conviction. "I hope we'll have the suit finished on time. However, you do realize the work for the military takes precedence-was "Naturally. That's of first importance to everyone." The Titans371 Her glance at Margaret was meant to make the girl feel uncomfortable. It did. "Will I see you at church this evening, Eliza?" "I'll be there." "Good day, then. Come along, you ungrateful child!" Mrs. Honeyman seized Clovis by the ear lobe and marched him out. The closing door muffled his squeals and the laughter of a group from the elite home guard unit, Company F, just passing. The moment the door clicked, Eliza Marble charged toward her niece like an infantryman on the attack.

"Margaret, your comments to Mrs. Honeyman were entirely out of line! You're making it very difficult for me to deal with our regular customers." Margaret bristled. "I try to be courteous. What's wrong with saying what I believe?" "Nothing-except when you argue against the war. This is a Southern city-was "And I was born a Southerner! At least I've always considered Kentucky part of the South. I just think the war's foolish. I think it can't be won. I only asked Mrs. Honeyman an honest question. How will your customers feel when their sons die? Or come home like Papa-?" Aunt Eliza shook her head. "Despite the regrettable fact that army life left your father in the thrall of spirits, I've always been proud of the Sergeant's service to-was "His service destroyed him!" Though the older woman looked angry for a moment, she said nothing. She pursed her lips; drew a deep breath. Touched Margaret's hand gently: "I understand. But try to see my point of view-was Shame-faced, Margaret said, "I win. I'm sorry I 372Cy at the Edge of War spoke sharply. It seems that's all I do lately. Fly off the handle-was "I know one reason. That young man." Margaret's silence was an admission that Eliza Marble had hit on the truth. The older woman went on: "I don't blame you for being in a turmoil. Romance does that to young girls. And Mr. Kent's certainly good looking. Quite polite, too. Perhaps-was She paused. "Perhaps it's time I asked one or two questions about him." Margaret fretted, aware of time hurrying by. But she wanted to make amends: "All right." "First of all-and most important-is Mr. Kent a cold-water man?" "No, he isn't." She glided from the truth to a fib. "I don't believe he takes anything stronger than beer, though." "No distilled spirits?" "I've never seen him suffering the effects of spirits." It was a truth that evaded a lie. Gideon had in fact told her of several occasions when a supply of busthead had been smuggled into camp, and an evening of surreptitious celebrating had been followed by a morning of pounding headaches and bleary vision. But she didn't consider drinking liquor a sin, as Aunt Eliza did Regrettable as it was, men sometimes needed liquor to ease their anxiety or their suffering. The Sergeant was a perfect example. Eliza Marble, however, would never have agreed. She was an ardent member of the temperance movement Supporting her niece and the Sergeant wasn't the sole reason she was always short of funds. She spent sizable sums to help pay the expenses of reformed drunkards who came to Richmond to lecture to the local Temperance Union. And she collected books and pamphlets on the evils The Titans373 of drink. She owned a rare copy of An Inquiry into the Effect of Spiritous Liquors on the Human Body and Mind, a classic on the subject even though it was years old. The tract's author was Dr. Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration, surgeon general of the Continental Army, and later professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Eliza was famous at local temperance meetings for her ability to rise and repeat in ringing tones Dr. Rush's description of the way "ardent spirits" affected an individual: was They cause hgn in folly to resemble a calf. In stupidity, an ass. In roaring, a mad bull. In quarreling and fighting, a dog. In cruelty, a tiger. In fetor, a skunk. In filthiness, a hog. And in obscenity, a he-goat."" Margaret knew the litany by heart Aunt Eliza's library included several other publications of note-among them the six color illustrations prepared by Dr. Sewell of Columbian College, which showed the degeneration of the human stomach from a pale pink-the "Healthfuf" state-to a condition in which bilious purples, browns and blacks demonstrated "Death by Delirium Tremens." She owned an 1855 first edition of Mr. T. S. Arthur's classic work, Ten Nights in a Barroom and What I Saw There, as well as a paper-covered copy of the stage dramatization and sheet music for the play's plaintive Lamont, "Father, dear father, come home with me now," which was sung in the drama by a golden-haired child seeking to rescue Papa from the evils of the Sickle and Sheaf Tavern. Further, Aunt Eliza possessed rock-like faith in the scientific accuracy of Khtredge's pamphlet recounting horrific stories of tosspots who had exhaled too close to an open flame, caught fire and beer incinerated by the alcohol in their systems. "I trust he doesn't frequent taverns?" Aunt Eliza continued. 374Cy at the Edge of War "Not that I'm aware." Another fib for which she felt guilty. But she didn't want her aunt to deny her permission to see Gideon. "Good. Even John Adams knew the evils of taverns. He called them the spawning ground of diseases, vicious habits, bastards and legislators." M Margaret felt it wiser to refrain from smiling. "Yes, she said soberly, "I remember." "So Mr. Kent is not a victim of the viper in the bottle-?" "Oh, definitely not" "I'm delighted to hear it. Now to a somewhat more delicate subject Has your relationship with him progressed beyond-that is-has it led to-physical intimacies?" Margaret flushed again. "Aunt Eliza, we're only friends!" "Then the answer is no?" Truthfully this time: "That's right" I'm pleased. You understand the reason for my concern. With emotions running so high, it would be easy for a young girl to be carried away into-behavior she would later regret." Never having been married, even a circumlocution pertaining to sex was enough to make Eliza Marble beet-faced. "Aunt Eliza, you've been very generous to Papa and me-was The older woman gestured. "Bosh! Weak though he is, the Sergeant is my brother. You two are my only family." "That's why I wouldn't do anything to hurt you or dishonor you." Aunt Eliza hugged her. "Thank you. You've answered my questions." "I have one more thing to say. I truly apologize for offending Mrs. Honeyman. I know I spoke out of turn, but I can't help how I feel This war is wrong. Because The Titans375 it's hopeless. Principles don't win battles. Men and guns win them. And the North has more of both." "Child, there hasn't even been any fighting yet-to " "But the Yankees are gathering in Washington. I've heard they'll be across the Potomac by the end of the month." "It's possible. However-was She looked determined. "The people of Virginia have always been willing to stand up for what they believe. Now is no exception. If there's ever been an hour when Virginians were called on to show courage, that hour has come." "I appreciate what you're saying, but-was The outburst came against her will: "You've seen what courage did to Papa! It ruined his life!" "And yours?" Aunt Eliza asked softly. "No, please-I didn't mean that. Ill always take care of him. I love him. But women like Mrs. Honeyman don't have a notion of what war is going to cost! Poverty instead of prosperity. Mutilations and wounds instead of strength and health. Pain and death instead of happiness and life--" Aunt Eliza was thin-lipped again. "And for that reason you believe we should be submissionists?" "No, we-oh, I don't know. I don't know-was she cried. Eliza Marble put her arm around her niece. "We do what we must, child. Former President Quincy Adams once said that if the sections of the country no longer felt a magnetism of common interests and sympathies, then it was better for the sections to go their separate ways. 'Let the disunited states part in friendship"-that's exactly what he said. A Yankee, too. But he was correct. We've suffered too long under the abuse of those Northern mobocrats." "Aunt Eliza, the war's our fault! I'm not averse to the South defending its rights by legal means, but-was 376Cy at the Edge of War "Legal means were exhausted years ago. We were simply too witless to realize it." "'So instead, we chose to start an insurrection." "Which Old Abe means to put down so he can free the nigras." "He's never said that! Why, over and over, he's promised he'll never interfere with slavery in the South. He really wishes every black in the country could be shipped over the water and resettled in Liberia." Eliza scoffed: "Do you really think he won't interfere? Lincoln's going to be controlled by men like that abolitionist he put in charge of his treasury-was "Chase." "Yes. And Thad Stevens, the Congressman who keeps a mongrel nigra woman right in his own house in Pennsylvania. No-was An assured shake of her head. "This had to come. Ever since they hung that maniac Brown for trying to start an uprising, you could feel the mood of the state change." That was true enough. Once the immediate terror of John Brown's aborted raid had passed, militia organization and drill throughout the city had intensified. "But we mustn't allow ourselves to get depressed, Margaret. Most everyone believes the fighting-if any- will be of very short duration." "Evidently Mr. Lincoln doesn't feel that way." "I suspect his call for additional volunteers is just a bluff." "Forty-two thousand men? To serve for three years-?" "Or less, if there's a speedy conclusion to-w "That doesn't sound like a bluff to me! Besides, what difference does it make how long a man serves? It only takes a second for him to become like-like-was She stopped; turned away. Long ago, she'd vowed to put an end to these arguments. She seemed powerless to doit The Titans377 Aunt Eliza sighed again. "You're an admirable girl, Margaret. Spirited. Determined-you know how much I admire the way you took your education into your own hands because we couldn't afford a proper girl's school. I love you like my own. But you do have some peculiar ideas-misguided ones, frankly. I think you'll abandon them when you realize our cause is just. As a church-going woman, I've never approved of slavery. I think it should be abolished-and would be, one day, if left to run its course. Many people in Virginia feel the same way. But it's gone beyond the matter of the nigras now. It's gone to a question of our Constitutional rights. And who's to say Mr. Kent won't come out of it unscathed? Not every young chap who joins an army suffers what the Sergeant-was She drew a quick breath, realizing her blunder. Awkwardly, she patted her niece's arm: "Enough glum talk. Neither of us can change what's going to happen. So we might as well take each day's blessings and appreciate them. Go meet your young man. You'd better have something to eat first-was She went behind a counter and knelt. Margaret heard the rattle of the cashbox lid. In a moment, Eliza pressed a fifty-cent bill into Margaret's hand. The pink paper bore a portrait of balding, bespectacled Governor Letcher. "Take this. Buy an ice at Pizzini's. You've half an hour until Mr. Kent comes in from Camp Lee, don't you?" Margaret nodded. She was ashamed of her inability to control her temper. Despite good intentions, she was beginning to be caught up in the city's hysteria. She held out the bill. "Thank you, Aunt Eliza, but you keep this. I'm not hungry. And the shop needs every penny." "Nonsense. La Mode has never made so much money." 378Cy at the Edge of War "Taken in so much, you mean." "Either way, let's enjoy it while it lasts." She tucked the bill back into her niece's fingers. "Be thankful you've a young man who likes you. I-was A resigned, almost sad shrug. "comI never had a beau. I was too plain, I suppose. Or too religious. But you're lucky. Mr. Kent seems very upright Your words about his refusal to drink liquor are most reassuring. I also happen to know he comes of reputable people down in Lexington." Margaret gasped: "How did you learn that?" She'd told her aunt very little of what she knew about Gideon's family. She feared an adverse reaction on two counts: His stepfather was a member of a notorious profession. And his true father's history was even more suspect. He was a former Virginia circuit rider who'd been thrown out of his church for pronouncements against slavery, then turned to journalism-Yankee journalism comin Washington. "When the welfare of my niece is involved, I make it my business to ask questions," Aunt Eliza replied. "Now you do as I say. Stop for an ice at the Palace of Sweets. But avoid the soldiers-except for Mr. Kent." At last, Margaret laughed. "That's impossible. Six months ago, there were thirty-seven thousand people in Richmond. Now the population's doubled-and most of the new arrivals are military men. They seem to feel wearing a uniform gives them the right to approach any young lady they meet Even so, most of them are gentlemen-was But not all. She'd been the target of some ugly, lustful glances from members of out-of-state units. She didn't want Aunt Eliza to worry, though: "I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself. Besides, I'll be meeting Gideon while it's still daylight" The Titans379 "Have a good time. Make sure you don't go home alone after dark." "I'm planning to come back and help Willa and the other girls. Gideon will have drill again this evening." And I don't want him to see that terrible little place where comwe live. I don't want him to see that pathetic man who glories in having everyone call him Sergeant-and whose sole friend is another army man he hasn't seen in over a decade. The man her father revered-the only person with whom he took the trouble to correspond-seemed to share a common misery with the Sergeant Military service had left him totally unfit for civilian life. He, too, had a drinking problem. He couldn't make a go of any business he tried. Yet Margaret's father reveled in the occasional letters he received from the man in Illinois. He always referred to the man by his old army nickname, Uncle Sam, as if it were something to be proud of, instead of a reminder of the inability to succeed at anything except killing other men while wearing a uniform. What an idol to worship! A sot doomed to failure and obscurity for the rest of his life- "Then we can ride home together on the horsecar after I finish at Still Paul's," Aunt Eliza said with a satisfied nod. "Hurry along, now. Enjoy this wonderful weather and your soldier's company while you can." The words meant in kindness lingered in Margaret's mind, a fearful reminder: While you can. Margaret returned to the workroom for her spoon bonnet and shawl, though she doubted she'd need either in the mellow May twilight In fact, she already felt 380Cy at the Edge of War warm under Che layers of crinoline that stiffened the skirt of her long-darted walking dress. Two years ago, when she was just coming into fun physical maturity and beginning to have those disturbing thoughts about intimacy with a man after marriage, a lady from Church Hill had ordered the dress, then died of a seizure during a spell of steamy summer weather. Since the woman's measurements matched Margaret's, Aunt Eliza had given her the dress as a birthday present The gold fabric was still bright, and complemented her brown eyes and hair. But she wished propriety didn't demand all the bulky petticoats, not to mention lace-trimmed