The Curse of the Black Mingo

By W. W. Brock

The dark, stagnant water of the Black Mingo Swamp holds many secrets, some of them evil. When young sharecropper boys stumble onto a treasure that the swamp had hidden for over a century, their lives are catastrophically changed. One loses his arm, one loses hope, and both lose their parents. One will blame a curse while the other counts his ble

• Language: English
• Publisher: Purple Sage Entertainment
• Release date: Jul 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9780997818697

Book preview

Table of Contents

Dedication

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

Epilogue

Acknowledgements

THE CURSE OF THE BLACK MINGO

By

W. W. Brock

DEDICATION

I would first of all like to dedicate this book to my wife, the love of my life, without whose support and encouragement, I would not have started writing.

Secondly, to the memory of the late Bob Holliday, a good friend who allowed me the run of his property on the Black Mingo Creek, and told me stories about the rich history of the area.

R.I.P. Bob, I hope this suits you.

PROLOGUE

The slight breeze of the late September evening did little to cool the six Tory sentries that were standing watch outside of the Red House tavern as Tory Colonel John Ball strategized with the Loyalists inside. Not only did the breeze provide little relief from the late season warm spell that gripped the region, it also did nothing to deter the hoards of voracious mosquitoes swarming out of the steaming swamp of the Black Mingo Creek. Named for the waters black from the rotting vegetation that drifted slowly in the sluggish current just a few hundred feet from the tavern, the Black Mingo was also home to a variety of wildlife deemed dangerous by the King’s men, including the alligator and the cottonmouth moccasin.

Set apart from the supplies and baggage that stood in the grove surrounding the Red House, was a wagon loaded with what appeared to be small casks of lead shot and powder, one being slightly larger and much heavier than the rest. In this cask was a small fortune in Loyalist gold and old English sovereigns earmarked for General Cornwallis’ efforts against the rebel forces.

The sound of frogs croaking, and the buzzing of the swarm of insects seemingly intent on drawing the life's blood from the sentries was suddenly joined by the clatter of unmuffled horses’ hooves on the Willtown Bridge a mile from the camp. At first, it was just the clopping of a single animal, and then the sentries heard the clopping magnified as a superior force of patriots led by Lieutenant Colonel Francis Marion, known widely as ‘The Swamp Fox’, rode across the oak-planked bridge in an effort to surprise Colonel Ball’s Tory troops.

One of the sentries fired a warning shot from his .75 caliber ‘Brown Bess’ musket, and the alarm was raised before Marion and his rebels could mount an attack. As Colonel Ball ordered his men into a defensive position with the hope of ambushing the attackers, several of the Tory regulars hitched a team of horses to the heavily laden wagon and made for Sheppard’s Ferry in an attempt to get the cargo to the eastern side of the Black Mingo Creek. Within a few short minutes, musket fire from both sides erupted, and muzzle flashes lit the pitch-black night, spooking the team as they tried desperately to load them onto the small barge. Two of the sentries took their coats off and threw them over the horse’s heads in an attempt to calm the nervous animals. Once the ferry was loaded, the men pulled hard on the rope that ran from one side of the channel to the other and through to heavy iron rings attached to the sides, in an effort to get the vessel into the main stream and out of sight of the approaching forces under the leadership of Captain Thomas Waites.

Suddenly, a musket ball grazed the rump of the more skittish of the two horses, which caused him to rear up and fall against the other in a blind panic, pushing it to the side of the ferry deck. As the weight shifted to the side, the barge started to heel over, and the left rear wheel of the heavy wagon slid off the narrow deck, further endangering the men and their precious cargo. The two sentries found themselves struggling in the darkness with the unruly team that was prepared to bolt at the slightest opportunity. It was only by shear will borne out of fear and desperation that the two frightened men finally managed to ground the ferry on the east side of the river. The terrified horses, sensing that they were close to dry ground, lunged against the rope barrier blocking the end of the ferry and broke through, dragging the heavy wagon at a dead run up the dark road leading through the Black Mingo swamp with the two sentries running behind, trying in vain to catch the team.

With the swerving wagon swinging from one side of the road to the other, the horses thundered up the road until the spokes of the left rear wagon wheel, damaged when it slid off the ferry, broke under the stress. The wagon slid sideways and pitched precariously to the left, spilling its cargo, with one cask rolling down the embankment into the inky blackness of the swamp bottom, where it slowly started to sink unseen into the mucky ground.

That night a fearsome storm brought rain which deluged the area, flooding the swamp and wiping out all traces of the cask which remained undisturbed for the next century and a half as the river channel shifted ever so slightly through hurricane and storm, year after year.

CHAPTER ONE

Tommy…Danny…come on boys, supper is ready! From a half a mile away, the boy’s mother’s voice reached their ears.

Tommy Hale was a tow headed boy of twelve who spent every minute he wasn’t working with his father in the cotton fields the family share cropped, fishing in the Black Mingo Creek. Today he was also watching his eight-year-old brother Danny as they filled their stringer with catfish and a few bream.

Come on Danny, he said as he rolled the line around the end of his cane pole, Momma is going to be real mad if we don’t get home before dark again. Remember what she said she would do with that razor strop. She’s going to be plenty mad because of you wearing your shoes down here anyway.

The boys had just gotten their once a year shoes because school would start back in a month, and Danny was in love with his ankle top brogans, so-named because of their resemblance to the shoes worn by soldiers in the civil war.

Okay Tommy, I’m ready to go, Danny replied as the boys picked up the stringer of fish and headed back up the path to the small sharecropper’s shack they lived in.

We ain’t gonna make it, Danny, unless we cut through the swamp. You scared? Tommy asked the younger boy.

I ain’t scared, Tommy, let’s go! and with that, Danny took off across the soggy swamp bottom at a run, with Tommy close behind.

Tommy soon overtook his baby brother and was about ten feet ahead of him in the thickest part of the swamp when he heard Danny cried out, Tommy, wait. I’ve lost my shoe!

Danny’s foot had broken through a hole in the swamp bottom covered by a rotted root and a layer of moss. The young boy knelt down in the moss and reached his arm down in the hole to retrieve his shoe, which was deep under the stagnant water of the swamp. Just as his fingers reached the shoe, an unseen cottonmouth moccasin, one of the most evil tempered of the poisonous snake family, struck Danny just above the elbow of his right arm. The boy screamed loudly just as Tommy reached him and beat the snake with the tip of his cane pole, forcing it to loosen its grip and slither away.

Tommy, I’ve been bit! Danny cried out, clutching his arm with his left hand.

Tommy got hold of his brother and helped him through the tangle of undergrowth until they came back to the road. By this time, Danny was delirious and could not walk, so Tommy picked him up and started toward the house as fast as he could carrying the extra weight of his brother.

Danny, Danny, stay awake do you hear? Tommy kept calling to Danny as they got closer and closer to the house, but Danny was unresponsive.

Momma, Momma, help us! Tommy cried out repeatedly as the little shack came into view.

The door was flung open and both Danny’s mother and the boy’s father came running out as they heard Tommy’s cries.

He’s been snake bit, Pop. I got him here as fast as I could, Tommy said through his tears as his father took Danny from him and ran into the house.

Donna, make us a poultice while I try to get some of this venom out of the boy’s arm, Marvin Hale shouted directions to his wife, Tommy, go get the mule saddled, I’ve got to take Danny to Georgetown to see old Doc Ellers if he is going to stand a chance. Run now son. We have to hurry!

Marvin quickly tied a tourniquet above the boy’s elbow, and then made two small incisions across the fang marks with his pocketknife. As soon as blood began to flow, he leaned forward and sucked what venom he could out of the puncture marks.

Is the poultice ready yet? he asked impatiently. Marvin knew that unless they hurried, Danny would certainly die from the snake venom that was already in his bloodstream.

Here it is! Donna responded as she handed a salt, hops, and grease poultice to her husband, My maw used to make this whenever there was a snake bite.

The mule is ready, Pop! Tommy’s shout came through the front door of the cabin.

We’ve got to go! exclaimed Marvin as he shouldered his son and made for the door. It will probably be midnight before we get there,

Marvin, you take care of our boy. It smells like rain tonight, so take this slicker with you, Donna Hale said as she handed the slicker to her husband without taking her eyes off Danny.

As they reached the front door, Danny’s right hand, knotted up in a small fist, relaxed, and a small coin fell to the floor with a ringing sound. Donna reached down, picked it up in amazement, and fixed her stare on the shiny gold object.

It’s gold Marvin, it’s gold! she exclaimed as Marvin mounted the mule.

We’ll deal with that later, wife. Take care of things until we get back and pray that the Lord will intervene tonight, Marvin said as he rode the mule away at a fast pace.

That night it started raining, lightly at first, and then in torrents accompanied by great bolts of lightning and peals of thunder. Marvin made it across the Black Creek Bridge, and was halfway to Georgetown when the timber bridge washed out from the high water now flooding the swamp. What had smelled like rain to Donna Hale was in fact an early season hurricane that had just come on land below Charleston, South Carolina.

The ride to Doc Ellers’ through the driving wind and torrential rain took Marvin almost seven hours. By the time he arrived and woke the doctor, Danny’s arm was black from the elbow down because the tourniquet had been on for so long. Doc Ellers, grumpy in the best of times, was curt and very abrupt with Marvin when he saw the condition of the boy’s arm.

What idiot put this tourniquet on? he demanded.

I did, Doc, was all the Marvin could think to say in the presence of this intimidating old man.

What you’ve done is cost this boy his arm! It will have to come off immediately, and even then I don’t know if we can save him or not,

Marvin felt like his legs were going to buckle under him at the news that his little boy was going to lose the arm.

I was afraid he would die from the snake bite, Doc. We were always told to put a tourniquet above the bite, He managed to stammer.

The tourniquet was just on too long, Marvin, Doc Ellers’ tone softened as he saw the father’s duress, Putting the hops and salt poultice has drawn out the poison and kept the boy alive. Stay with him here in the clinic while I see if someone can get over here in this blasted rain to take you all to the hospital. We need to move quickly before gangrene sets in,

The rest of the night was a blur to Marvin. Exhaustion threatened to take him over, and it was only with a great effort, and his concern for Danny, that he managed to stay awake while they operated on the boy. Finally, Marvin heard footsteps coming from the area of the operating room.

Mr. Hale? an older nurse asked.

Yes, ma’am, is my boy okay? Marvin replied.

He will be fine in a few days. Doctor Ellers said for you to leave him here to rest. It will be at least a week before the boy can go home. You should go get some sleep, The nurse replied with an air of superiority in her voice. She had seen many of these dirt-poor share croppers come to the doctor for help when they were sick, or most likely dying, and thanked her lucky stars she wasn’t like them.

I want to see him before I go, Marvin said stubbornly.

Just for a few minutes then, he is still under the chloroform and will not be responsive, She replied sternly.

Marvin thanked the nurse, and then followed her to the ward where little Danny was lying on his back on a small cot, his right arm now just a white bandaged stump. Tears of anguish flooded his eyes as the tired man leaned over and whispered to his son, I love you, Danny. Pop loves his little boy,

After a gentle kiss on the boy’s head, Marvin left the hospital and walked back to the doctor’s house to retrieve his old faithful mule that had been waiting patiently through the worst of the storm.

Let’s go home Rufus, Marvin spoke into the mule’s ear before climbing into the saddle.

The mule turned and started for home as if he had understood his master’s command.

CHAPTER TWO

With her long Chestnut colored hair and sparkling blue eyes, Donna Hale was an attractive woman by anyone’s standards, especially when compared to most of the women farming the low country with sharecropper husbands. She knew the day she caught the eye of Todd Greene, the landowner’s oldest son, her days on the farm were drawing to a close, although she showed him no more than a brief smile when he had visited the farm with his father, Colonel Samuel Greene. When the gold coin had fallen from the hand of her youngest son, her mind could think of nothing except escape, even though Danny’s life hung by a thread, dependent solely on the good Lord’s mercy, and Marvin’s ability to get him to the doctor in time. As Marvin rode away, and the violent storm began to build strength, so did Donna’s plan start to blossom as her hand grasped the old British Sovereign even tighter.

The storm had blown itself out by evening on the next day as Marvin rode his very tired old mule up the path to the small cabin where they lived. It would be hard to break the news to Donna and Tommy about Danny’s arm, but he knew they somehow would all get through this trial, even though it seemed insurmountable at the time.

As he got to the house he called loudly for his eldest son, Tommy, come out here and take care of the mule for me!

Tommy came out of the cabin and just stood on the porch as if he were in a trance. It was evident he had been crying.

It’s all right boy, your brother will be home in a few days. Now take the mule to the barn and give him plenty of oats.

She ain’t here, Pop. Momma has left with the feller that was over here with Colonel Greene. She told me to take care of the place until you got back, The story burst from Tommy’s lips.

What? When did she go, boy? Marvin’s lack of sleep and physical exhaustion had brought him to the breaking point. He was having a hard time understanding what Tommy had just told him.

They left around three o’clock in Mr. Greene’s new automobile. She had her best Sunday meeting dress on and a bag with her, Tommy told his father the hard news.

Get the mule some oats and water, Tommy. I have something to do before we put him up, Marvin replied with a blank look on his face as he got off the mule and headed into the house.

As Tommy ran to get the mule some oats and a bucket of water, Marvin went to the bedroom and pulled an old blanket out from under the bed. After Marvin laid the blanket and its contents on the bed, he un-wrapped his 30-40 Krag-Jorgensen carbine that he had carried with Colonel Teddy and the rest of the Rough Riders in the glory days, as he often called them. He placed a few of the one-hundred and eighty grain loads in his coat pocket, and headed back to the door with the rifle.

Tommy, Marvin took his son in his arms, I’ve got something to do that might keep us apart for a while. Whatever happens tonight, I want you to know I love you. Now you had best pack your school things and what clothes you can carry. Then just wait for them that come to take you somewhere else.

With that, Marvin mounted the mule and rode back down the path to the highway, taking the turn away from Georgetown that led to the old roadhouse sitting above the swollen river. There he knew he would find his wife and her lover.

After about an hour and a half, Marvin heard the loud shouting and music from the roadhouse before he could see it. He stopped Rufus in a small grove of trees up on the main road, tied his reins off to a sapling, and then patted the faithful mule’s neck before loading the Krag and walking quietly through the mud to the side door of the bar.

As Marvin walked in, he immediately saw Donna sitting with Todd Greene at the far end of the smoke filled room. Todd was facing away from Marvin and saw the horror in Donna’s eyes just as the first bullet from the Krag-Jorgensen entered the back of his head, killing him instantly. Marvin worked the butter smooth bolt on the Krag, and then walked slowly and deliberately toward his now hysterical wife who was splattered with the blood and grey matter from Todd’s shattered skull.

As men and women dove out of the windows and fled through the other screen door, tearing it off its hinges, Marvin took careful aim and shot his screaming wife directly between the eyes, knocking her out of the chair backwards. As he stood over her lifeless body, he worked another round into the rifle, and then placed the muzzle under his chin before pulling the trigger, oblivious to the small gold coin that dropped to the floor from Donna’s lifeless fingers.

It was morning before the sheriff came driving slowly up the path to the Hale’s cabin. Tommy was sitting on the porch waiting with is small bag packed. His eyes were red from crying all night at the thought that his whole family was suddenly gone. He picked up his bag and walked slowly and stiffly to the open door of the waiting automobile.

I’m so sorry, Tommy, Sheriff Orland Tate said to him as gently as he could, I’m going to have to take you to the county home for a spell until we can find another family to take you and Danny in.

Have you heard from my Pop, sir? Tommy asked in a broken voice.

I’m afraid your father and mother won’t be coming home, son. It is just you and Danny. Do you have any relatives we can get in touch with? Sheriff Tate asked as the Buick automobile bounced along the path to the road.

Yes sir. My Aunt Lily lives in Charleston. There ain’t any grand folks, Tommy replied with a forlorn look on his face.

That’s all right, if your Aunt can’t take you in, we’ll find a family here that will be glad to have you. Plenty of folks would like to have a couple of hard working boys to help with chores around the farm. You’ll see, Sheriff Tate answered.

Tommy grew silent as he thought about Danny, and his Momma and Pop. If only Danny hadn’t found that gold coin, if only…

CHAPTER THREE

Danny Hale woke from his stupor late in the evening after the operation that had taken his arm, but had saved his life. Of course, the lad would not look on it with such benevolence for quite a few years, and tonight he still did not realize the arm was gone, only that it hurt like blue blazes. He looked to his left side because it seemed easier to move his head in that direction, and, at the first, thought there was an angel sitting beside his bed with the most beautiful deep blue eyes.

Are you an angel? Danny asked groggily as the person sitting there noticed he was awake.

No, Danny. I am just a nurse that is going to look after you for the next couple of days, The pretty woman said with a smile.

Is my Pop here? Danny asked weakly, I remember waking up on the mule, and I thought Pop would be here when I woke up again.

The nurse had heard about Marvin gunning down Todd Greene and Danny’s mother.

No Danny, he had to get back to the farm and check on things there. I am certain he will be back tomorrow. Now why don’t you get some sleep while I tell Doctor Ellers you have woken up, And with that she got up and walked out of the room, but not before giving Danny a sad smile.

If Danny noticed the sadness in the pretty nurse’s smile, he didn’t show it, and in just a few minutes, the boy drifted back off into a fitful sleep.

The cold touch of Doc Ellers’ stethoscope woke Danny again, and he gave a start as he saw the old doctor leaning over him with the stub of a cigarette between his lips and the earpieces of the stethoscope in his ears.

Awake, eh? Doc Ellers said as he finished his examination, Well, you are doing just fine, young fellow. Another day or two and you’ll be ready to go home, He knew as soon as the words came out of his mouth the choice was a poor one. He turned to the nurse in an unusual state of embarrassment and said gruffly, Ester, get this young man some hot food and make sure he gets plenty of rest.

Yes doctor, was all she got out as the old man turned away and left the ward. Her heart was broken for little Danny Hale, but there was not much she could do for him except pray that, somehow, God would intervene in this tragedy. She tucked Danny back in and fluffed his pillow before leaving to get him a tray of food.

Danny dozed back off as Ester walked away. The pain in his right arm was a dull throbbing sensation that seemed to go all of the way to his fingertips, but the boy was too groggy from the anesthetic and small amount of morphine to wake up completely. He heard a gentle voice call out to him, Danny, Danny.

Yes Mama, He answered, still asleep.

Danny, I’ve got you some food. Wake up now so you can eat, Ester’s voice broke through the fog and Danny opened his eyes. He just stared at Ester for a moment.

I can’t move my arm Ma’am, He said as he tried to lift his right arm.

I know Danny. Let me help you with your food, Ester replied with a smile as she fixed the pillows so the boy could sit up and eat. She patiently fed him slowly, bite after bite while she cautioned him not to eat too much. One of the after effects of the ether was nausea and vomiting, but Danny seemed to have a small appetite, and the food in his stomach would help him sleep. The doctor would be the one to talk to Danny when the time was right about the loss of his arm and his parent’s deaths. Ester’s main job now was to comfort the young boy whose ordeal had broken her heart.

CHAPTER FOUR

Lily Hale Abercrombie led a quiet life in the Charleston Hotel where she kept a suite of rooms. She was a widow