My Flock in Yankee Blue: A Chaplain’S Diary

By M. J. P. Padre

Join Pastor Joshua Campbell as he anguishes over accepting a calling as chaplain of his towns militia during the American Civil War. Feel his guilt as he disrupts the only life his family knows. Follow him on the battlefields where he makes a life-or-death decision amid the brutality of a confederate cavalry charge. Experience with him the living hell of field hospitals during the throes of battle. Listen with him to the agonizing last breaths of the young men he baptized as babies as he writes their final words to their families. Watch the secret battle he wages with God that drives him unmercifully and has him looking to a release that he has come to understand, but disdains.

See the life of an American Civil War chaplain come alive in this debut novel, part one of a series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jan 24, 2017
• ISBN: 9781524578633

M. J. P. Padre

Author Biography MJP Padre is a historical writer of note and is known for his first novel, My Flock in Yankee Blue: A Chaplain’s Diary, Part One. He has been a columnist for a community newspaper in the Sacramento, California area, as well as a columnist in a local sports magazine. He retired as a Major from the California State Military Reserves where, during his 23-year career, he served on five general staffs, commanded a company of soldiers and spent six years as a military historian in the state’s Military History Command. MJ, his wife Sharon and their two cats Rocky and Molly make their home in Sacramento, California.

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Copyright © 2017 by M. J. P. Padre.

EDITED BY: DEANNA DAVIS

Library of Congress Control Number:   2017901168

ISBN:      Hardcover      978-1-5245-7861-9

      Softcover      978-1-5245-7862-6

      eBook         978-1-5245-7863-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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Rev. date: 01/24/2017

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Chapter One – Leaving Our Home

Chapter Two – Transitions

Chapter Three – Army Life; Final Goodbyes

Chapter Four – There Is No Longer a God

Chapter Five – Marching, Fighting and Personal Battle

Chapter Six – Battles and Sharing Truths

Chapter Seven – Guilt and Letters from Home

Chapter Eight – The Revival

Chapter Nine – Counseling, Great Worries, Company Competition

Chapter Ten – Changes

Chapter Eleven – Counseling, Michael, Marching Orders

Chapter Twelve – Personal Sadness

Chapter Thirteen – The Siege at Chattanooga

Chapter Fourteen – Siege Lifted, Battle Again

Dedications

To my wonderful wife Sharon, whose support, patience and love gave me the determination to carry on until I was finished.

To my parents Ed and Dorene, who instilled the love of writing and history in me at a young age and encouraged me to someday write a story of my own.

To Chaplain Chappie Smith, a friend and colleague who read my ideas and told me to write, as I had something to say.

To 1st Sgt. Melvin Champion. Mel, may you rest in peace. From, your thankful Captain

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

They say that the backbone of any book is the editor. Deanna Davis was incredible, as both my editor and my typist, correcting grammar and punctuation while she typed out all my hand-written manuscript pages. She suggested changes to words or phrases that have made for better paragraphs or descriptions. I would like to thank her family for their patience in allowing her the time to help me; I am indebted to them. And thank you, Deanna, for everything. MJP

I would also like to thank Louis and Loye Ann Olker and Dr. David E. Maas, retired, of the Wheaton College History Department for their help with this book. And to Allen Davis, thank you for reading my manuscript and giving it a final edit and your approval.

CHAPTER ONE

Leaving Our Home

Sunday, April 13, 1862, Marshalton, Wisconsin

It has been a long day. In church today I spoke of the horrible sin of one man owning another. I spoke of men and women having no control over being sold like livestock. I spoke of these poor people being inspected on the auction block like barn animals for others to decide whether or not they will be used to work in a field picking crops or for domestic work for the rest of their lives. I spoke of men and women and children being sold for profit, and families being split apart.

I think that the President must make a declaration that these people be set free. Our men who are fighting this war must have more than just saving the Union as their cause to fight. We have a militia in town, but they want to join the Army with the intention of bringing the Union back together, while I am trying to instill in them the goal of freeing the slaves from the horror of this sin against man. I pray that someday I will see an end to this, and that a black man will be able to walk free and will not live in fear of being enslaved again.

Wednesday, April 16

I received a letter from a Seminary friend today who lives in Tennessee. He tells me that there was an awful battle at a place called Shiloh. He said that a fire broke out and it was horrible, as many wounded men were burned to death. From what he says, that was a Union victory. We have not had many since the war started last year. We have a General named Grant who is finally able to win, and this is good, as many of the soldiers and officers who served in the old Army before the war left to join the Confederacy when the states began to secede back in April a year ago, and they have done well against us.

Dr. Hamilton stopped by this evening and told me that Aunt Emily and Uncle John had been asking that I stop by and visit, as she is not doing well. He told me she does not have a great deal of time left. The cancer has taken most of her organs now and she may only have days left. He said I should go over early tomorrow, for this is when she will have most of her strength, and that she generally goes off to sleep in the late morning now.

Thursday, April 17

I visited with Aunt Emily and Uncle John this morning for a while. Aunt Emily lay in her bed holding my hand, with a small smile on her lips. She still has her long blonde hair, but it is lightly streaked with gray from a long life of helping Uncle John keep the farm. Her green eyes, which used to sparkle all the time, have lost a lot of their sparkle and looked tired as she was lying there. Uncle John has taken very good care of her during this terrible ordeal; he has not moved from her bedside unless someone from the church has gone over to relieve him so he could go to the barn to sleep on the mattress he had put there. At one point she looked up at me and softly said, Joshua, you have always had my love. Watch over John for me and help him raise the boys. Then she softly closed her hand around mine and drifted off to sleep.

Uncle John and I went into the kitchen and talked for a while. He said that this has been the worst experience of his life and asked me how God could do something like this to anyone. I told him that people forget there are two powers that control things and that one is the Devil and he is the one that causes all of the illnesses and bad things to happen to the good people on earth.

The one thing we do know, though, is that if a good person has accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior, then he will join God in Heaven when he leaves this earth to have Everlasting Life with the Lord. Uncle John and I both know that Aunt Emily accepted Jesus as her Savior many years ago and that she will be welcomed into Heaven when her time comes. I pray sincerely that when her time comes, it will come quietly while she sleeps and there will not be any suffering in her last moments. This would be fearful for her and cause great pain for Uncle John and whoever is with him.

Her death will be extremely hard on Uncle John, as he lost his son and daughter-in-law in the fever that took my parents and Uncle Jack a few years back. It took him months to come through that, and many were worried about him. Had it not been for Aunt Emily and his responsibility for his grandsons, Jonathan and Arthur, who knows what would have happened to him. I am greatly concerned about him; he will again have to be strong for the boys as they go through their own grief. Even though they are 18 and 17, Jonathan and Arthur still need Uncle John’s guidance. Mary, Michael, James and I must take a large part in helping Uncle John and the boys in their grieving, even while we experience our own. And being 18 and 17 as well, Michael and James still need the same extra care as their cousins. We are all going to need the help of the folks from church.

Saturday, April 19

Dr. Hamilton came by and told me that Aunt Emily passed away during the night and that she went quietly in her sleep. Uncle John and the boys were with her. Uncle John had asked for me to come by because he needed someone to talk to. I took Michael and James with me, as Jonathan and Arthur are their closest friends and I felt that the boys from both families needed to mourn together. Mary stayed at home and spent the day preparing a supper for us all.

Uncle John and I shed some tears at first, as neither of us had done that yet. Uncle John was handling it much better than I thought he would, but I know that when he realizes that she is really not here anymore, it will hit him hard. When he finds that he is not there sponging her forehead with a damp cloth, feeding her broth, changing her nightgowns or bedding, getting her cool water to drink, brushing her hair like he did every morning, or enjoying the small talk they made every day like a husband and wife do, this is when it will become a reality for him, when he really will need help. I have seen this time and again in my ministry when a person has lost a husband or wife, and have been told by that person to tell my wife every day that I love her and give her a hug and kiss. To make time to talk to her, just the two of us, undisturbed … call it our time. When he really feels it, Uncle John is going to need help from friends who have been where he is, who have gone through the same pain. Mary and the boys and I will be there as often as we can for him and the boys. We will have him and the boys over for supper as often as possible so we know that they are getting good meals.

Sunday, April 20

This day was absolutely not what I expected it to be. I worked all week on a wonderful sermon about the Trinity: how Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit are all one in the same. Being able to explain this to people so they understand it is a very difficult thing to do. I labor through this every year around Easter and hope that some of the members of my parish understand what I am trying to tell them.

When I stood up at the pulpit and began my good morning to the congregation, Adam Schuester came through the door. He was dressed in a much disheveled blue shirt and stained brown pants splattered in mud. The side seam of his right boot had come apart, and his dirty sock hung out. He looked like he had not shaved in a week, and apparently had not bathed in a while, for a number of ladies pulled out handkerchiefs and covered their noses. He was swaying slightly and was intoxicated, which is his usual condition. I welcomed him to church and many of my parishioners looked aghast. There was much grumbling, and a number of the children and older youths snickered, though were immediately hushed by their parents. Adam sat down in the last row and tried to straighten his shirt, to no avail. He gave me a crooked smile and nodded his head. I told the choir to begin. From the back of the church I heard a beautiful baritone voice singing loudly, perfectly in tune, and it was incredible: it was Adam. When we finished singing, Adam gave me a crooked smile, lay down in the pew and fell asleep. After a time, he was snoring softly. I changed my sermon to one about -how we cannot know all about our fellow man and the true mysteries there are about people and why they do what they do. When I finished, I decided not to have the choir sing the closing songs, and we all very quietly left the church so as not to awaken Adam.

We met for our usual Sunday Social, where the ladies discussed quilting, cooking, children, who needs help with whatever projects the Ladies’ Committee is working on and other things. The men all talked of farming and hunting and fishing, and in particular of a pack of wolves that has been raiding the livestock. The farmers are getting together a hunting party to go after them.

When the Social was over, I went back over to close up the church and found Adam was gone. The collection basket had been left on the altar, and I thought how strange that was. I went to move it and found twenty cents in it; apparently Adam had left something for the church, which moved me. Adam is a very nice man and has never given anyone any problems at all. Whenever there is a community project, he is usually one of the first people to be there to help. From what everyone says, he never used to drink until he came back from the war with Mexico in the ’40s. Daniel Granger has him do odd jobs down at the stables and gives him a small salary and a place to live at the back of the barn. Daniel told me quietly one afternoon that he had gone to the stables one evening, heard some screaming and groaning from Adam’s room, and rushed in to look. When he got to the room, he found Adam sitting on his bunk screaming, Look out! Oh, God! They got you! And then Adam started to cry and shake. He then woke up and looked at Daniel, staring with a look of agony. After a moment he just lay back down, closed his eyes, rolled over and did not move. My father-in-law, Michael, was in that war; he was a Major in the Cavalry, and I wonder if he has dreams like that or ever had a problem with alcohol.

Monday, April 21

We had Aunt Emily’s service today. I asked during the service if anyone would like to say a few words about her. A number of people had some very good stories to tell, as she and Uncle John were one of six original couples (my parents were another of those couples) who settled Marshalton so many years ago. They talked of her being one of the first people who taught the children simple reading out of the Bible, and basic math, writing and spelling until we had a school mistress come to town many years ago. They talked of how she helped when children were sick, when she would come over and bring different broths that would help. Dr. Hamilton talked about how much help she had been to him in delivering children throughout the community over the past twenty years, and many of the mourners nodded their heads in agreement. A number of ladies talked about how wonderful she was on the Ladies’ Committee for so many years and how much vision she had for the future of their church community.

When we left for the cemetery, there were three times as many people waiting outside as there were in the church. Everyone traveled by buggy or wagon, or walked a mile out to Marshalton Memorial Cemetery. This service was as difficult for me to do as the services for my parents, Uncle Jack, and Uncle John and Aunt Emily’s son and daughter-in-law, William and Dorothy. I had to be strong for Uncle John, Jonathan, Arthur, Mary, Michael and James, and I could not give in to my grief as I did the service. In my own time and my own place, I will give into my own grief, as now I must be strong for the others.

Tuesday, April 22

I stopped over at Uncle John’s this afternoon, and he was sitting on the porch with a cup of coffee. I could tell he had not slept well. He started telling me how he, Aunt Emily, my parents and a few young couples and their parents came to this place to set up homesteading. They built their cabins and survived the first winter 45 years ago. He told me about my grandparents, who passed away when I was very small, and that nobody knew who was more proud of me, my father or grandfather. He talked of when all the children started coming and how he and Aunt Emily had only one of three survive, and that was William. He told me about my older brother, Ezekiel, who passed away at a year old from a lung congestion he caught during the winter. He told me how Grandmother and two other women who were midwives had helped in the birth of most of the men and women in town who are my age now. They only lost one child and mother in childbirth; the father took his five-year-old little boy back East, where they had come from, and no one heard from them again. My grandmother and grandfather passed away from the fever that passed through the community when I was six years old. I became very sick with it, too, and was lucky to have survived. Aunt Emily had knowledge of different plants and roots from a book she had brought with her and made various potions that helped a number of people survive the fever.

As it approached suppertime, I left Uncle John and the boys. One of the ladies from the church had come by and brought a stew for them to warm up for supper, along with fresh corn bread. I think between Mary and the other ladies they will be fine for a while. Mary has already told me that she and the other ladies will be going over in a week to start teaching them how to cook basic meals. Thankfully, Uncle John has hogs, cattle, milking cows, chickens, all kinds of smoked meats and plenty of vegetables and eggs stored up, as well as deer and turkey to hunt. They have plenty of food, but little knowledge of how to prepare it. I will be there as much as I can to help them back into their lives as they work through their grief.

Thursday, April 24

It was a quiet day today, which was nice for a change. Mary and I talked while she did some quilting to get ready for her weekly get-together with her friends from her quilting group tomorrow. I reflect tonight on our time together: when we first met and I knew I was going to marry her; of the first night I had supper with her aunt and uncle and my parents; how nice it was to be able to talk with her and hear her voice; how nervous I was when I asked her father for permission to marry his daughter and what I would have done if he had said no. I can still feel the elation I felt when he said yes and said, Welcome to the family, and shook my hand. I think about how wonderful a home she has made for me and the boys, how loving she is and how much we enjoy being intimate together. I think of how great a mother she is to our boys, mixing love with discipline where and when it is needed to help raise two wonderful boys. She truly amazes me with her intelligence about so many things I am ignorant of. I cannot wait for each day to start so I can share another one with her. She is my best friend and I can talk to her about anything. We have been through some hard times together, especially when the fever came through five years ago and took so many friends and family, and James became sick.

I remember when his fever broke and he regained his strength. Lying in bed, he looked at me and said he wanted to be a minister and do the Lord’s work. I remember asking him why and he said, I was spared when so many others were not. I want to serve God when others are in need like I was. I want to show them that God is always in their lives, whether it is a time to be joyous or sad, he is always in your life. I want to share the words in the Bible with them to show them the right way to live. Since then, he has always led us in grace and has helped me in all activities at the church, in every way I have asked him. Whenever he has helped me, he has always had a smile on his face, and his red hair and freckles are a regular sight to all who pass by.

Michael has grown to be a fine young man and is off to Lawrence Medical School and Hospital in Chicago in the fall. He will make a fine doctor, with his keen mind and patience, as well as his ability to make quick and accurate decisions. He also knows when it is time to be serious, but tempers this with a great sense of humor; he enjoys a good joke and enjoys telling one. He has been studying every summer with Dr. Hamilton in the subjects of biology, chemistry, physiology, pharmacology, anatomy and different diseases and their cures and treatments. Dr. Hamilton says that if they allow him to take a series of exams as his first semester starts, he may be allowed to pass through the first year of these subjects and start second year studies sooner.

Saturday, April 26

Mary, Uncle John, Jonathan, Arthur, Michael, James and I went fishing today down at the river. Mary packed a lunch and we made a fire, for it was cold by the river, and ate and relaxed. The boys did not end up fishing and just huddled amongst themselves and talked quietly while we adults talked together. Uncle John said that he and the boys needed to start working the farm again because the ladies were bringing over so much food that he and the boys were starting to gain weight. Uncle John reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and poured a good measure of it into his cup. I was stunned, as Uncle John has never taken a sip of liquor in his life that I know of; Aunt Emily would not have allowed it. I am so against alcohol, for it will ruin a man or woman’s life. It gets a grip on a person before he is aware of it, and then it has him like it does Adam Schuester. Alcohol is the work of the Devil because it will cause a person to be happy one moment, but then to be morose, angry, suicidal, murderous … it is the tool of the Devil. I know that Uncle John has turned to it to take away the pain and the grief of losing Aunt Emily, but this will affect the boys very much and the change will not be good. The other problem with alcohol is that a person cannot see that it has become a problem and that it only helps him during the time he is under its influence. The only time a person can stop is if he wants to and is able to see that he is destroying his life and the other lives around him. I am very angry at the Devil Alcohol for coming into Uncle John’s life during a time of weakness. I wonder if he used to drink and quit because of Aunt Emily. I do not know what to do. All I can do is try and talk with him when he is in a sober moment, when it is just the two of us alone, and see if I can help him. I will talk with Dr. Hamilton about this and see if he can help me help Uncle John.

Sunday, April 27

I gave my sermon today about Jesus gathering his twelve disciples. I spoke about how each of us are his disciples, for he has gathered us along the way during our lives and we follow his teaching and the way of life a Christian should love. I told them that we have a responsibility to show those in the community by our actions how a person who follows God’s path should walk and live. I said that even those men who sleep during church services are setting a good example, because they are showing that they are so comfortable in God’s house that they can fall asleep. Everyone had a good laugh as the wives poked their husbands to wake them up. One of the men said loud enough for others to hear, Oh, over already? This brought out another hearty laugh from everyone.

At the Social after church, the ladies and men discussed the May Day events and Town Dance next Saturday. The women talked about the contests for the best preserves, pies, quilts and things of this nature, and the men spoke of the livestock show, annual May horse race and the big horseshoe contest. I have been asked to be a judge in the apple pie contest again this year. I have never turned it down, but I have a bellyache for the rest of the day and never eat supper that night. After this week the town needs something to be excited about and get it moving forward again. Mary and I have been very busy helping with the planning for the church’s involvement with this event. This will be the last big celebration until July 4th. Everyone will be involved in bringing in the fields of corn and wheat crops over the next couple months, and that will not give most of the farmers and their wives, sons, daughters and farmhands time off until the crops are in and ready for market.

Wednesday, April 30

I went to see Uncle John today, to see how he and the boys are doing. I found the boys very quiet and forlorn, trying to cook some eggs and bacon for breakfast. They had really made a mess and everything they had tried to cook was badly burned and not eatable. Their clothes were all haphazard and not washed, and the boys looked rather ragged, something Aunt Emily would not have put up with. It was a bad situation, and it was obvious that Aunt Emily had taken very good care of all the domestic needs of the boys and Uncle John. I looked over at Uncle John; he was slumped in his chair with a three-quarters empty bottle of whiskey. I asked the boys how long this had been going on. They said he had been like this since Monday, after one of the ladies from the church brought something for supper. I told the boys to put on coats, put some clothes in a bag, get a horse for each of them and get Teal, their dog. They were to follow me home and spend a couple days with Mary and me. I poured out the whiskey and threw the bottle across the yard into a rubbish pile. The boys did not say very much on the way home, nor have they said much today. They talked to my boys a bit when they came home from school, but have obviously gotten to the point where they feel lost without their grandfather being able to give them guidance.

Thursday, May 1

I went over to see if Uncle John was sober. I hoped to be able to talk with him a little and tell him the boys were with me and all right, and could stay with Mary and me until he was ready for them to come home. I was hoping that he was not too angry with me for taking them and not leaving a note, but at the time I was just so upset that I completely forgot. What I found has left me beyond words with grief and sorrow, as the Devil Alcohol has destroyed another family. When I arrived at Uncle John’s, I found the door open and the inside cold. I looked over at his chair and found an empty whiskey bottle lying on the floor. I went to the barn, praying that I would not find the worst. I found another empty whiskey bottle, and that his horse was gone. I went back into the house, and it was then that I found a scribbled note. It read, I kant stay here. I luv the boyz but hav tu leeve. somone tak kar of the boyz. I went home, sat down with the boys at our kitchen table and showed them the note. I told them that Mary and I would be the ones to take care of them. The boys broke down and started crying, and so did Mary; it has been just too much over the past couple of weeks for all of us. My boys will also be devastated, as Uncle John and Aunt Emily were like a third set of grandparents to them. They will also be upset for Jonathan and Arthur, like Mary and I are.

I then went to the church and started ringing the bell; we only ring the bell when there is a crisis. Those who were able to, came, and I explained the situation. Some of the men said they would travel up to 10 miles around the area to see if they could find him, and that we more than likely would not find him if he has traveled farther than that. We can only hope that he can be found and be talked into coming home. I pray that they do not find the worst, and that he has just ridden off, so that he might still come home someday.

Saturday, May 3

We have kept all four boys out of school since Wednesday. Last night at supper, we all decided to go to the celebration today so the boys could see their friends for the first time since Uncle John left, hopefully to avoid any awkwardness when they return to school on Monday. Arthur had the opportunity to see Imelda, and that had a great impact on his spirits, as they are very much in love and everyone expects them to be married next summer. Jonathan was able to spend some time with the other young men in the militia, and that picked up his spirits a bit too, so both of the boys are doing better tonight and ate a good supper. Mary and I think we are over the hardest part, but we still have to take the boys back to the farm. Some of the ladies and Mary are planning to go over on Monday to give the house a good cleaning, for nothing has been done since Aunt Emily got really sick. All of the rest of the boys’ clothes will be packed up and given to a couple of the ladies to wash. Aunt Emily’s clothes will be put into the community clothes closet so that whoever is in need of clothes can get some. When it is decided what the boys will do, then the house will be ready for them. The livestock have been taken care of by Uncle John’s farmhands, so the boys have not had to worry about that. The farmhands have been under the supervision of Mr. Haycock, the lead hand for the past five years, who knows the business of running the farm.

Sunday, May 4

I had intended on giving my sermon on the ills of alcohol, but decided yesterday that it is a subject that is not necessary to address right now. We have all seen the effect alcohol has on a man and his life, and how it affects those around him. I spoke instead of faith, that with faith all things can happen and that we should always act as the Lord has told us. I spoke of the story in Matthew where the Roman Centurion came to Jesus and told him that his servant was very ill, and that because of the amount of faith the Centurion had, Jesus was able to heal the servant. I told them that the Lord will heal us of many things in our time in many ways."

Thursday, May 8

Someone has offered the boys a very good price for the farm, the equipment, the stock, the unharvested crops and all the rest of the orchards and acreage. But Arthur has decided that he wants to keep the farm. Jonathan has already joined the militia and will be going off to war soon when the militia joins with the Army, so he agrees with Arthur; it will give him a place to come home to after the war, and they can work it together. The boys and Mr. Richardson, who has the adjacent farm, will get together to figure out what the wheat crop should bring this coming year and then go to the bank on Monday and talk with Mr. Poppington about the balance in Uncle John’s account. After that they will visit Judge Henry’s office (he is fortunately in town for the next couple weeks) to see about getting the property and bank account put in the boys’ names.

Friday, May 9

We met with Emil Richardson and walked the wheat field for a while, and he said the boys should clear a good amount of money from the crop. Emil knows this crop as well as he knows his own, for he and his wife, Marilyn, were also one of the original six families in the community, each of whom owns a farm of 360 acres. They and Uncle John and Emily Aunt had helped each other bring in their crops for over 45 years. The boys will have to compare the expense of bringing in the crop to what is still in Uncle John’s account, to see if they need to take out a loan to be able to pay the farmhands’ wages or pay for any machinery that might need repair before they get started. Emil said that he will go to the bank with us, and if the boys need a co-signer and a person to vouch for the value of the crops, he will be very happy to do this in case Mr. Poppington has any concerns.

Sunday, May 11

I spoke today about the importance of a mother during all the parts of our lives, for both sons and daughters, and the things our mothers teach us about how to live and how to treat each other. I told stories about my mother, and it was a wonderful service. Afterwards, our Social was very enjoyable. Everyone left happy and the mothers had large smiles on their faces.

Monday, May 12

We met with Mr. Poppington today and found out that Uncle John had enough money in his account to cover all of the possible costs of bringing in the crop this year. We also met with Judge Henry about the farm and bank documents. At first the judge was hesitant, but Emil and I told him that we will be there to guide the boys, and so will Imelda’s parents, who have a strong interest in Arthur’s future since Imelda and Arthur will be marrying next summer after they graduate. Judge Henry very specifically asked if Arthur was going to have Mr. Haycock run the farm while he finished twelfth grade. We were all surprised at the answer, but accepted it, even though we are a little concerned. Jonathan and Arthur have decided that Arthur will finish school this year and will not return for the twelfth grade; he will start work on the farm, and that will become his life. We had all expected that Mr. Haycock would run the farm until Arthur graduated next year and then Arthur would settle down to farming. Arthur said that he did not want to start a new marriage while learning how to run a farm and bring in a crop all at the same time. He said it would not be right for Imelda, as it will be a very confusing time at first for him, and that he wanted to get the confusion out of the way this year so that next year when they get married he will be able to have a better idea of what will be expected of him when running a farm. He also said that it will give him time to get the house ready to be a home for the two of them. It will give them the time to pick out any furnishings they might want to have, and that can be done in a leisurely fashion, instead of everything happening at once. It was very obvious that he and Jonathan had thought this out carefully and we adults could not argue with what they had planned.

Judge Henry said that, considering that someone had to hire the hands to bring in the crops, pay the existing hands and make legal decisions in the future, including being responsible for the taxes on the farm and the crops, as well as the fact that it looks as if Uncle John will not be returning, he is granting approval of the boys being the legal owners of the farm and being responsible for all things thereof. There was no sense in arguing with them, as the farm and bank account were going into their names. Emil said that he would be right there the entire time to help them, and, along with Mr. Haycock, would be there to make it all go well. After that, we all went back to the bank and met with Mr. Poppington to show him that everything was approved by Judge Henry, and that they boys were able to make deposits and withdrawals by themselves. I sure hope we have done the right thing by the boys, who are still so young.

Tuesday, May 13

After school today, Mary and the boys and I went over to the farm. There were a number of ladies finishing up the cleaning and replacing the old stored vegetables with new. They had a meal of cold meats, cheese, fresh bread with butter and milk for supper for the boys. Mary will be going over every night for the next week or two to teach the boys some easy recipes so that they can cook some good meals.

Elda and Ezra Winkle were there with their daughter, Imelda. The Winkles, Mary and I had the opportunity to sit down with the young couple and explain that under no circumstances can they be at the farm together without adult supervision. We told them that we would all try to make sure that we made time at least once per week for them to see each other. We also came up with a plan that made Jonathan happy: every Sunday evening the two boys will have supper with Elda, Ezra and Imelda. This will give Imelda and Arthur a chance to sit on the porch and visit, and it will guarantee Jonathan one good meal per week. The young couple thanked us very much for understanding their wishes, because they wanted to be respectful in their relationship, but did not know how to do that. We adults are going to do our best to give them guidance during the next year, but at the same time, let them make their own decisions.

Thursday, May 15

Mary spent the day at Jonathan and Arthur’s, showing them how to make corn bread and beans. Tomorrow she is going to show them how to make biscuits and fried bacon. On Sunday, we are having them over to supper and she will show them how to stew a chicken and give them a recipe for a hearty beef or venison stew. Next Monday, she plans on teaching them how to tend the garden so they will have fresh vegetables to keep up their health. As time goes on, she will teach them more recipes, and I think they will be fine.

Saturday, May 17

Some of the men in the community get together every Saturday in town to march around, calling it military drill. They are the local militia, and are made up primarily of boys 18 to 21 years old, with two officers and two Sergeants. The group has about 125 men in it most days, when everyone comes to town. Their commander is 45 years old and is the son of one of the original six families. His last name is Davis. His second in command is John Von Lysch, a man in his early 30’s, and the son of one of the men who works in the bank. Neither of these men have any military experience, so they are leaving all of the training up to two veterans from the war with Mexico: 1st Sgt. Hampton and Sgt. Dow.

After they finish marching, they have a midday meal that is provided by the ladies in town. Then they march out of town to a place they have set up down by a stand of oaks, where they practice with their guns. The men have many different kinds, as they use their personal guns. The Sergeant has them line up in three rows, one row behind the