GERMANNA_COLONIES-L Archives
Archiver > GERMANNA_COLONIES > 1998-04 > 0893049500
From: "Thom Faircloth" <>
Subject: Jacob Klodsloe Part 4
Date: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 01:18:20 -0400
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
------=_NextPart_000_003D_01BD6BFA.34CA2160
Content-Type: text/plain;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
"I am ---------'s son," I cried, much pleased at the fortune which =
had sent me to my father's friend of his youth. "And I am sure," I =
continued. "you are Mr. Jacob Klodsloe, whose name is almost a household =
word in our family, so often has my father spoken of you, and deplored =
the long separation.
My host took me by the hand, and for a minute seemed to go back in =
memory, while he scanned my features for traces of resemblance to the =
boy friend of long ago. If he saw what he looked for he made no sign, =
but there was no lack of demonstrations of pleasure at my coming. His =
wife also was pleased to give me the little attentions that, to a =
stranger in a strange land, serve to banish homesickness and loneliness. =
One of the boys rode my house to the stable and piled its manger with =
fodder, oats and hat.
After these preliminaries and a refreshing bath, I sat down with the =
family to a good supper of fried chicken and ham and eggs, and butte, =
and creamy milk, and biscuit, preserves, syrup, honey, et cetera. I had =
an appetite sharpened by a long ride in the crisp October air, and the =
home feeling that had come suddenly after the exile sensation of a =
lonely journey in a strange land, made it one of the most delightful =
festal hour's of my life. Good cheer was over all, and our tongues ran =
glib and free. After supper was cleared away my host took the family =
bible and read the twelfth chapter of Romans and, all kneeling, prayed a =
tender, confiding prayer to our heavenly father. The younger members of =
the household now retired for the night. The father was longing to hear =
more from his old friend, and taking seats before a blazing wood fire in =
the sitting room, he proceeded to ask questions in rapid succession, =
which I answered as best I could. Having drawn me dry, he grew gradually =
confidential and began to tell about his own career after the college =
parting, at the beginning of the civil war. And by easy degrees =
branched off into tales of his early boyhood, his later youth, and his =
checkered pilgrimage in the west, since he had come to be a family man. =
His simple tale recalled what had been passing through my mind during =
the day. And it occurred to me that as a story of one of the common =
millions it might merit the telling to an audience of the common people =
like himself, not in a way to please the literary critics, but so as to =
enlist the sympathy of a common humanity. If it should give one here =
and there, whose life if full of toil, a moment or two of interesting =
reading, the writer will be satisfied.
This unpretentious narrative is about one of the nameless thousands =
who came upon the scene in the early forties, accepted his obscure lot =
with cheerfulness, and as best he could did the duties that fell to =
hand, leaving results to an All-wise Providence. He was a part of the =
events narrated and in these details will be found a correct outline of =
life as it existed in a portion of this country half a century ago. It =
shows the country boy, and how he grew and made, and was made by his =
surroundings. He was one of the unknown coral builders - who having done =
his little part, gave way to his successor, but certain that with his =
contemporaries, tho' each added but an atom, the sum of it all was fifty =
years of unexampled progress. It would be according to the real facts, =
to call this tale an autobiography, tho' it goes for the present, no =
further than the boyhood of its subject. At the very start the narrative =
breaks the unity of time, skipping the first years and beginning at the =
civil war, for that was the event of life to that generation which is =
now fast passing away. With them dates were reckoned backward and =
forward from the war.
As a rule the old soldiers love to tell their war experiences, but =
my host referred to that period with apparent repugnance, and related =
but a single incident of the last year of the contest, and it was the =
last service he rendered as a confederate soldier. As he proceeded with =
the recital, it was as if he were again looking at the charging =
regiments, and hearing the crash of musketry and the shock of cannon.
Encouraged by my close attention he went on uninterruptedly:
TO BE CONTINUED:
Old People are like Libraries On Fire, We Must Read Their Books Before =
It Is Too Late.
Researching:Alligood, Blizzard, Council, Cross, Downen, Faircloth, =
Farmer, Green, Grissom, Hunsaker, McMillan, South, Thaggard, Wallace, =
Wilhoit, Yeager.
------=_NextPart_000_003D_01BD6BFA.34CA2160
Content-Type: text/html;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<META content=3Dtext/html;charset=3Diso-8859-1 =
http-equiv=3DContent-Type>
<META content=3D'"MSHTML 4.71.1712.3"' name=3DGENERATOR>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> "I am =
---------'s=20
son," I cried, much pleased at the fortune which had sent me to my =
father's=20
friend of his youth. "And I am sure," I continued. "you =
are Mr.=20
Jacob Klodsloe, whose name is almost a household word in our family, so =
often=20
has my father spoken of you, and deplored the long =
separation.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> My host took me =
by the hand,=20
and for a minute seemed to go back in memory, while he scanned my <FONT=20
color=3D#000000>features </FONT>for traces of resemblance to the boy =
friend of=20
long ago. If he saw what he looked for he made no sign, but there was no =
lack of=20
demonstrations of pleasure at my coming. His wife also was pleased to =
give me=20
the little attentions that, to a stranger in a strange land, serve to =
banish=20
homesickness and loneliness. One of the boys rode my house to the =
stable=20
and piled its manger with fodder, oats and hat.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> After these =
preliminaries and=20
a refreshing bath, <FONT color=3D#000000>I </FONT>sat down with the =
family to a=20
good supper of fried chicken and ham and eggs, and butte, and creamy =
milk, and=20
biscuit, preserves, syrup, honey, et cetera. I had an appetite =
sharpened=20
by a long ride in the crisp October air, and the home feeling that had =
come=20
suddenly after the exile sensation of a lonely journey in a strange =
land, made=20
it one of the most delightful festal hour's of my life. Good cheer =
was=20
over all, and our tongues ran glib and free. After supper was cleared =
away my=20
host took the family bible and read the twelfth chapter of Romans and, =
all=20
kneeling, prayed a tender, confiding prayer to our heavenly father. The =
younger=20
members of the household now retired for the night. The father was =
longing to=20
hear more from his old friend, and taking seats before a blazing wood =
fire in=20
the sitting room, he proceeded to ask questions in rapid succession, =
which I=20
answered as best I could. Having drawn me dry, he grew gradually =
confidential=20
and began to tell about his own career after the college parting, at the =
beginning of the civil war. And by easy degrees branched off into =
tales of=20
his early boyhood, his later youth, and his checkered pilgrimage in the =
west,=20
since he had come to be a family man. His simple tale recalled =
what had=20
been passing through my mind during the day. And it occurred to me that =
as a=20
story of one of the common millions it might merit the telling to an =
audience of=20
the common people like himself, not in a way to please the literary =
critics, but=20
so as to enlist the sympathy of a common humanity. If it should =
give one=20
here and there, whose life if full of toil, a moment or two of =
interesting=20
reading, the writer will be satisfied.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> This =
unpretentious narrative=20
is about one of the nameless thousands who came upon the scene in the =
early=20
forties, accepted his obscure lot with cheerfulness, and as best he =
could did=20
the duties that fell to hand, leaving results to an All-wise =
Providence. =20
He was a part of the events narrated and in these details will be found =
a=20
correct outline of life as it existed in a portion of this country half =
a=20
century ago. It shows the country boy, and how he grew and made, =
and was=20
made by his <FONT color=3D#000000>surroundings</FONT>. He was one of the =
unknown=20
coral builders - who having done his little part, gave way to his =
successor, but=20
certain that with his contemporaries, tho' each added but an atom, the =
sum of it=20
all was fifty years of unexampled progress. It would be according to the =
real=20
facts, to call this tale an autobiography, tho' it goes for the present, =
no=20
further than the boyhood of its subject. At the very start the narrative =
breaks=20
the unity of time, skipping the first years and beginning at the civil =
war, for=20
that was the event of life to that generation which is now fast passing =
away.=20
With them dates were reckoned backward and forward from the =
war.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> As a rule the old =
soldiers=20
love to tell their war experiences, but my host referred to that period =
with=20
apparent repugnance, and related but a single incident of <FONT=20
color=3D#000000>the </FONT>last year of the contest, and it was the last =
service=20
he rendered as a confederate soldier. As he proceeded with the =
recital, it=20
was as if he were again looking at the charging regiments, and hearing =
the crash=20
of musketry and the shock of cannon.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2> Encouraged by my =
close=20
attention he went on uninterruptedly:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT size=3D2>TO BE CONTINUED:</FONT></STRONG></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2>Old People are like Libraries On =
Fire, We Must=20
Read Their Books Before It Is Too Late.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D2>Researching:Alligood, Blizzard, =
Council, Cross,=20
Downen, Faircloth, Farmer, Green, Grissom, Hunsaker, McMillan, South, =
Thaggard,=20
Wallace, Wilhoit, Yeager.</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>
------=_NextPart_000_003D_01BD6BFA.34CA2160--
This thread:
| Jacob Klodsloe Part 4 by "Thom Faircloth" <> |