PLACE: TUPELO, MISSISSIPPI IN THE EARLY 1940'S 1942

The sky was bright on a full moon night about two o'clock am. It was very quiet in the sharecroppers' quarters. In the faint distance, the sound of a newborn baby cries. Jim and his wife Jewel just had their first baby — an eight pound six ounce girl. Very pretty chocolate brown skin, hair straight like a mixed breed of Black and Indian. Jim, standing outside the door, rushes into the room when he hears the baby cry. As he entered, the midwife was carefully cutting the umbilical cord separating mother and baby. Jim stood there watching in awe.

Jim thought to himself, my first baby a beautiful little girl, a princess. My beautiful princess, that's gonna be her name — Princess. He leaned over and kissed Jewel, her face dribbling with sweat from the new birth. He told her how beautiful she was and she managed a smile as a sharp pain went through her stomach. The midwife prepared for the afterbirth. She asked Jim to leave the room, until the baby was cleaned up and his wife's stomach was wrapped around with a special cloth to keep down the stretch marks. Jim slowly backed out of the room with a big wide grin on his face and quietly closed the door. He walked outside, looked up at the full moon and let out loud yell, "Thank you Jesus, thank you Lord, thank you Holy Ghost." He rolled up a Prince Albert cigarette, called him back into the room.

Jennie, the midwife, cleaned up the baby washing her carefully making sure that the cord was sewed up. She then wrapped the baby in a small quilt and handed the baby to the mother. Jewel holds her new baby in her arms and the midwife says, "Oh, what a fine baby girl. Jennie, she is beautiful. Here's some chamomile tea, drink this it will help you to sleep." The midwife calls her daughter Joan to help her clean up all the mess. When they finished cleaning up, Jennie washed her hands and changed clothes. Then she sits down by the bed, eats a little bit of food and rears back in the rocking chair and closes her eyes. It's been a long night. She sleeps, catnapping and waking up every now and then, making sure everything is okay between Mother and baby. Jim says, "Yes, you need some rest, sleep now" He sighed, turning looked out the window, now the sun is shining bright looking over the fields of corn and cotton. "Time to hitch up the mules and go to work," he says to himself as he walks out the room. Jim, the new father plows the fields.

"Giddy up mule, go mule," as the plow cuts into the ground, turning over the dirt. He hears a horse galloping in his direction, he looks up, it's his boss, Mister Hinton.

Jim: "Good morning, Sir," he says, "How you feel this morning, Sir".

Hinton: "Much obliged, boy." How come you ain't out he plowing this land this morning.

Jim: I was up all night; my wife had a baby — an eight-pound baby girl.

Hinton: Well nigger you shoulda had a boy, we need more nigga boys than gals, next time you better have a boy or I'll have your woman myself and give her a fine half breed boy ya hear."

Hinton laughs and turns his horse to ride away. "Hey boy, I bet your old gal is a good lay. Soon as she gets well, I'll pay a visit." Hinton laughs again, turns away and rides off. Jim says to himself "over my dead body, ain't no goddamn peckerwood gonna screw my wife, I'll kill that son-of-a-bitch." Jim goes to the water trough where the mule is drinking, he washes his face, relaxes and cool off.

He takes a deep breath, sits for a moment and looks at the pocket watch his father gave him. "Uh, lunch time."

He unhitches the mules to feed them and takes them to a shade tree nearby. He ties them up while they eat. Jim stops by the well, pumps some water and puts his lips to the lip of the pump. He takes a drink and spit part of it out, wrenches his mouth and drinks.

Jim is 26 years old, a big strapping man at 6'3". He has brown muscular skin, a hard body and cold black eyes. He inherited his semi-straight hair from his great grandfather who was part Cherokee Indian. He walks to the porch, pats his dog Root, and smiles to himself. He washes his hands in a tub of water drawn from the well. He dries his hands, walks to the bedroom over to the bed and kisses his wife on the forehead. He picks up the baby and kisses her on the jaw. Tears came to his eyes at that moment, he had a flash that they had to leave Mississippi. He saw his little girl making it big as a singer in the big city. As he day dreamed, he was jolted back to reality by his wife calling him, "Jim, Jim." He looked at his wife and a tear rolled down his eyes.

Jim: "Yes, Jewel."

Jewel: "Don't hold her so tight you'll squeeze her to death."

Jim: "Oh baby girl I am sorry, I am just so happy to be a father, my little queen, my little princess, she gonna make us all proud one day."

Jewel: "Oh Jim stop daydreaming, go eat your lunch. There's hot biscuits, black eyed peas and okra, if you want it."

Jim walks back to the kitchen and looks to the left by the door, he sees a baby cradle with a rocker on both sides. "Where'd this come from?" Jewel replies, "Old man Hinton sent it for the baby by his Uncle Tom house nigger Joe."

Jim mutters under his breath, "That mutherfucker, I'll kill him. We got to get away from here." Jim sits down to eat. As he was eating, he was thinking of how he was going to get his family out of Mississippi. He thought of his friend Jessie who helped people get to Chicago.

For a price he would drive to Jackson. For a price they could catch the train North. Next Sunday he'd talk to Jessie at church. He knows he would have to sneak out late at night, walk about two miles through the fields to meet Jessie at a certain point or leave from Church on a Sunday. Then he'll drive about five hours to Jackson to the train that takes them to Chicago. Everybody knew that up North they were hiring everybody to work at the war plant and the slaughterhouse. All you had to say that you were leaving to fight for your country, and you wouldn't have no problem with the law when on the train.

After all, World War II had started in Germany, France and England. Before he knew it, he was through eating, heard the midwife call him, "Jim, Jim", it's 1:00, time to go back to work." Jim drank his last drop of milk, cleaned off his plate and put them in the dish tub with the rest of the dishes to be washed for supper. As he walked past the bedroom door, as saw that his wife Jewel was asleep with the baby on her stomach. Her eyes looked up at him and smiled with her big ole pretty eyes. He blew her a kiss, walked out the door to hitch up the mules.

"Damn this sun is hot, said Jim. I'm tired of this shit, kissing peckerwoods asses no sir, yes, sir, no ma'am, yes ma'am. Me and my family are getting out of here as soon as I can." Jim didn't have much money saved, only about $10.00 just enough to pay for the trip to Jackson. He hitched up the mules and went back to the fields. At six p.m. he took the mules to the barn to feed and give them water and brush them down He went home to wash up and eat dinner: black eyed peas, fatback greens, corn bread and lemonade. The old RCA radio was playing on the kitchen shelf. He heard Gabriel Heather, the announcer, talking something of the war in Germany overseas. Jim is not concerned about the war, he's only thinking of his wife and daughter, how he's gonna get the hell out of Mississippi.

He goes outside, rolls up a Prince Albert cigarette, sits down and rubs his dog's head. Old Root, he calls him.

He hears the sound of the critters and bullfrogs down by the creek. He looks up and sees a falling star and makes a wish. "God how can I get out of here?", he thinks. Always say when you make a wish on a falling star it will come true. He takes his last drag off his cigarette, put it out with his right foot, rubs his dog's head once again and walks into the house.

Jim undresses in the corner of the bedroom and falls asleep in the room next to his wife and baby. As he dozes off to asleep, he sees the midwife holding the baby and rocking the rocking chair. Knew the next day was Sunday and he would see Jesse and they would discuss how to get him and his family out of Mississippi.

Jim is dreaming about when he first started working for Mr. Hinton. As Jim is brushing down the mules in the barn, Old Man Hinton comes in, a real redneck. He drank a lot so he was red faced, about six feet tall, pot gut, and he held chewing tobacco in his right jaw. "Hey boy, shouts Old Man Hinton, How's them fields coming along. Ya know we planting that tobacco soon. I want them fields ready by next weekend to seed." Standing with his whip in his hand, his gun on his side one could tell the fear in Old Man Hinton's eyes. He was afraid of Jim, but he talked big with his gun on his side, but always stayed six or seven feet away from Jim. When he had his boys with him, he would get right up in Jim's face. As Old Man Hinton talked, his heart starts to pound and his mind went back when he first started working for Old Man Hinton. The year he didn't make his quota in the fields. It was his first time working by himself.

Old Man Hinton and his Boys John Lewis and V.J. tied him up in the barn and Old Man Hinton took the whip to him. Took three months to heal. Hadn't been for Jewel and her knowledge of herbs he would have died. She used slippery elm and comfrey to heal the sores on his back and legs. The crack of the whip brought Jim's thoughts back to the voice of Mr. Hinton. "Ya hear me nigga, I said by next week," as he cracked the whip again. "Yessah Boss, they be ready by next weekend," he said under his breath. "Yessah, next weekend."

It was 5:00 a.m. Sunday morning and the rooster crowed. Half walking up from slumber, Jim hears his daughter crying, Jewel is awake and the midwife asleep in the rocking chair. Jim drags himself up and rubs his eyes. He walks over to the bed, picks up his daughter and comforts her with his Southern charm, "It's alright, my little Princess." He goes to the kitchen and holding the baby in one arm he kindles a fire in the old wood stove and puts the iron eye over the flame. He pours some water in a little pan, puts in the glass baby bottle and waits for the bottle to warm up. He tests the bottle after about five minutes, making sure that it is not too hot, testing it on his arm, then gives it to the baby. She takes the nipple of the bottle and relaxes in his arm. He lays on the bed with the baby carefully so as not to crush her. He puts her half arm length away besides the cotton pillow his wife made.

At about 9:00 a.m. he is shaken gently by the midwife to get up, half awake he smells the bacon and coffee. The midwife takes the baby. He goes to the tub and washes his hands and face and sits down to eat breakfast. Afterward, his wife comes to the table. "Good morning", Jim says. "Good morning, Jim" as she serves his breakfast which consists of bacon, eggs, grits and Wonder bread. She sees a solemn look on Jim's face and says "What's wrong, Daddy, look like you just lost your best friend." "Nothing baby, just thinking to myself." He is wondering how they are going to leave. "'Bout what." "Going to church," he replies. Jim looks at his watch, it's 9:00 o'clock straight up (thinks to himself got two hours to get to church). It's 11:00 a.m., "You going to church with me this morning." "No Jim, I'm gonna wait while until I'm well. But why don't you go and let everybody know I am alright. All right, honey. I'll go and give them the good news about my precious little Princess."

Jim finishes his breakfast and leaves the house to go to the barn. He puts the saddle on the mule and checks the mule's shoes to make sure he's okay. He mounts the mule and starts his journey to church. He guides the mule out of the gate towards the road passing the fields of cotton, corn, and tobacco. He thinks about how he would approach Jesse about leaving, thought to himself didn't want to tell Jewel about leaving because women talk too much. Didn't want to take the chance for the boss to find out about them leaving here.

Jim arrives at church and greets his friends, John, James, Huck, relatives and a host of friends. He tells the Pastor about his new baby. The Pastor announces the arrival of the baby to the church and everybody cheers for him. The church sermon by Rev. Carlise Jones went well. "When my time is over I will fly away, Jim says to himself. I ain't ready to fly away. I want to ride out of this town forever." Church is over. After all shouting and dancing, dancing hand clapping, people exchanging hugs, saying goodbyes until next Sunday, or whenever.

Rev. Jones stood by the door and shook everybody's hand, kissing all the women on the jaw and shaking hands with all the men. The preacher had an old '36 Ford Coupe, six years old. After all this was 1942, didn't too many Negros own cars back then. But all the people in the church pitched in together and bought Rev, a car so he could make his visits and sneak previews, if you know what I mean. He and the Deacon's wife had it going on. The rumor was he was caught with Rev. Miley's wife by one of the young girls. She told him unless he did to her she would tell. The word is he's going with both of them but people lie all the time when it comes to preachers.

Jim approaches Jesse about getting his family out of Mississippi. Jesse sort of look at him and "Jim said "Shoestring." Jesse looked him dead in his eyes and showed a big wide grin. "Well okay then, let's go down by the big tree and talk. (Shoestring is the secret word used to let people know that certain people can help them leave the South like on a wing and a prayer. But if the wrong person uses it, trying to get information they would wind up dead — found in the river. So people know not to use that term loosely.) Jim and Jesse walk down by the big oak tree. Jesse told Jim that it would be $25.00; $10.00 each for him and his wife and $5.00 for the baby. Jesse told Jim to bring his wife and child next Sunday, if he had the money. Jim told him he only had $10.00 saved. But Old Man Hinton was going to pay him for the fields next weeks end $40.00 for three months plowing.

'Jim thought about the big, gold and jeweled pocket watch his father gave him. It was worth $400.00 he thought. He showed the watch to Jesse who looked at it and he knew it was worth at least $700.00 gold and all. Jesse told him if you don't get the money, I'll give you $300.00 for that watch. "I don't know about that, my father gave me this watch. Been in the family for over 100 years." Jesse, yes, I know (saying to himself) boy I could make $400.00 profit off that watch. "This is what I want you to do. When you take the corn to town next week for your boss Old Man Hinton, bring clothes for you, your wife and your baby leave them in the church basement. I medium cured smoked ham for your food, canned peaches, string beans you know they don't spoil too fast. You and your wife can eat a jar of string beans and a jar of peaches a day and canned pet milk for the baby about 10 cans put some well water in three or four gallon jugs and be sure to boil it before you bottle it. Cured smoked ham don't spoil." Jim says, "Okay, I got everything you said." Jesse gives him a note detailing all that he needs. Jim puts the note in his pocket, thanks Jessie and they walk back to the church. Jim mounts his mule and starts home. He gets in a wagon with his family and heads home. They pass the corn, tobacco and cotton as they approach the barn. Mr. Hinton is mounting his horse.

Mr. Hinton shouts, "hey boy". "Morning boss." Mr. Hinton asks, "You been to church boy." Jim replies, "Yessa Boss, I went to church." Mr. Hinton tells him, "I went to see your baby gal too bad she ain't a boy. We silo' could use some more nigga boys around here. Yo' wife look mighty fine, yes yes, mighty fine old gal. Cain't wait to see what she like in bed." Jim uses all his might to hold back his temper. His heart is beating profoundly, sweating he took about ten deep breaths and slid down to the barn floor. Old Man Hinton rode off on his horse saying, "Yes, cain't wait to see what it's like to get her in bed." Jim knowing and hoping this is his last week here, he decided right then and there that he would have to prepare everything right away to leave before he got hung from the highest tree. He slowly pulled himself up from the floor with the help of a plank nailed to the mule stall. His heart is beating, he is sweating and tears fall from his eyes. He stood up as Old Man Hinton rode away in the distance, alongside his wife and boys John Lewis and V.J. one on each side of his wife. Going to evening service about 5 miles in the opposite direction of his church.