Catherine's Cross by Millie West Page A

outside, but we hear a soldier address Colonel Hubbard and he asking them about the readiness of a ship that suppose to be departing the wharf by three. I hear him get mad because a number of soldiers is drunk and asleep on the wharf. He tell everyone of them they should get ready for court martial if they still there in five minutes. We peep from behind the tarp and Colonel Hubbard grab one man by the uniform and pull him up from dock. He slap him and tell him to report to duty. We watch the man stumble from the pier toward a group of soldiers. We close the tarp and move to the back behind the cargo.
    After a few minutes I hear Colonel Hubbard tell another soldier to put “it” on board. I don’t know what “it” is, but I hear one of the soldiers get excited and tell Colonel Hubbard that Leutenant Jeffrey and General Sherman is on they way to the wharf. The tarp fly open and a soldier place a trunk inside the area where we is hiding. We can hear the soldiers talking and Scipio whisper that he want to see what inside that trunk. I bout scared to death, but Scipio put his hand over my mouth and he say “quiet” real soft like.
    There is no lock on the trunk and he open it up. We look inside. There is treasure inside that is probably finer than what the wise men brought Jesus when he stay at the manger. Scipio pick up some of the items and we look close at them. There is silver, gold coins, and jewelry that I never saw the like of. One necklace made of gold with a cross and red stones on it. Scipio say, “This bout the most beautiful thing I ever see.”
    â€œThis is it,” Jenks gasped.
    We being real quiet but I think I is breathing so hard that those soldiers can hear me. I knows if they catch us they gonna kill us. He hands me the gold cross and I don’t want to touch it cause I scared it gonna brand me. I tell him to put it back in the trunk and close it before those soldiers return. He does and I breathe deeply.
    After a few minutes, I hear General Sherman and Leutenant Jeffrey take leave of Colonel Hubbard. General Sherman ask, “When this ship gonna get underway?”
    Colonel Hubbard say as long as the rain subsides and winds stay below twenty knots the ship will sail at three. As soon as they gone, a soldier reaches into where we hiding and takes the trunk out. There is a sliver of an opening in the tarp. I see Colonel Hubbard lift that trunk lid. He look inside and feel those pieces like he fondling a . . . My mama would whip me if she know what I was thinking. He turns toward us and I think we had it, but then I see he just kind of staring into space. There is a look of want in his eyes like I never see on a man afore. It kind of scary.
    He put a lock on the trunk and then the soldiers load it taking it down to the hold. We scared to move, but some time later we hear a soldier say that ship is getting ready to sail. There is commotion on the dock and we think we can slip out the back and mix in with the soldiers. Just as we about to leave, Scipio part the tarp and we can see down at the other end of the wharf. There is one soldier standing down there and he kind of hiding. We can see him, but from where he is, I don’t think the soldiers launching the ship can see him. The ship gets underway toward Port Royal Sound and we see that soldier throw some lit smoking material into the boat as it go by. As he leave his hiding place he have a look of satisfaction kinda like the cat that ate the canary. He the drunk soldier that Colonel Hubbard slap. After he gone, we lift the tarp and go out between cargo pallets.
    Just before dark we sit near Leutenat Jeffrey in his tent. He writing a letter to his wife. All of a sudden there a great commotion at the wharf. A sloop done arrived and say they witness a ship burn near St. Helena Sound. The sails on fire and by the time they get to it the ship done sank and they can’t find no survivors. Colonel Hubbard look like he