The Waterboy and Robert Smalls

The Waterboy

 

I wuh with Robert on the ineclad Kekuk when they tack Charleston hahber. They wuh a whole fleet of ineclads tack that hahber that day, in a straight line, one afta thudder. Them black ship, steamin out black smoke, it blowin in the winter wind. I never forget id. I thought it wuh goin be over that day, that we ud win the war and take over Charleston and all the brethren sistuh be free.

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Robert wuh a pilot in the Navy, and he tuck me long on that battle. They had me carrin water, was all, so I seen all what happen.

Them gun from Moss Island staht firin fust. You see the flame leap out, and then the smoke, then you hear the gun, then bout tha time you see the ball hit the water. It thow up a cloud uh water and steam something awe full, bout fitty feet high. And quick as we in range, they staht firin boom boom boom one right atter dudder. And them ship steamin on in a line, black, with that black smoke blowin.

And I don know why they put Robert in the last ship, when he the one that knowed the hahber bettern any them Yankee. They aint never been in there, when Robert the one done laid mos the mine and schung them net and knowed that whole hahber like the backa he hand.

They staht firin fum Sullivans, too, and then out fum Fote Sumptuh. And then that whole hahber lit up with fire and smoke, and the ball roaring this way and that, and it sound like the enduh the world. Them ball shriek through the air like a screamin haint in the fahst at night, when you know them haints is flyin and screamin and lookin for soul to steal.

And I watch them sailor get sket. I wuh plenty sket myseff. But them fahmboy from up North, they skettuh death. When I us a chap, I learnt how not to be so sket. You see them people whip and hang and beat and drag thew the screet and what all, and it do sompin to you atter while, and they caint hardly scare you like a normal man. I watch my daddy beat down to his knees when I a little chap, beat down in the mud by that ovuhseeuh, whip him till he bleedin all over, roun top his head.

I done see a alligator eat a boy out in uh rice field one mawnin, grab that boy and he let out one yep and then he underwater and you aint see nothin but black water trouble and trouble and trouble. A slave see enough thing you caint hardly scare him like them poor white boy us sket.

And once all the fote staht to firin, thing start to go bad for them ineclad. The fust un started gettin all tangle up in the net them rebel laid cross the hahber. Robert laid bunch a them net heseff. Dem ineclad got to turnin sideway and hung up and all bine up. And they staht firin they gun, too, but they too far out to hit them fote, and they just firin and turnin and all foul up.

And by this time the noise sompin awe full. And I seen some them sailor so scared they caint move, they just stand there with they eye wide open like they seen the haint pohin out uh hell. And that Captain, he mo than a little sket heseff, and Robert say let him take the ship in, he can get the ship in the hahber heseff, and the Captain he say go head.

And Robert, he aint sket uh nothin. I aint never seen him sket uh nuthin, and he tol that wheelman was steerin that ship get over heah on the lahbud, run round them ship on the lahbud, and he told that engine man give he flank speed, and we went boilin on past them ship, and we head right in towed Fote Sumptuh.

And them rebel start firin like somebody done stuh up a hornet nest. Like somebody done tow up four or five hornet nest at oncet. It wuh like, well, I caint describe it.

And them ball start to hittin that ine ship, and it wuh like you inside a bell and God awe mighty swing a giant sledge hard as he can, and that ship bouncin this way and thudder evy time one of them balls hit.

It like the end of the world.

And Robert, he commence to get mad.

Them other, they skettuh death. I seed men peein theyselves and the pee runnin down they legs, and they white as haints. And they this one boy done curl up in the corner on the deck, huggin his knee and cryin. And he jerk and scream out evy time one uh them ball hit.

And Robert he tell em start firin them gun. And he mad. He the maddest I evuh see a man. And he pull that ship right up front of Fote Sumptuh and he tell em fire the goddam gun, blow that goddam fote outta water. And they fire them gun fast as they could load em and light um, and the noise uh make you deaf. Like bein inside a thunderstorm with the lightning and the thunder coming out you nose. It wuh hell. I tell you, it wuh hell.

And them rebel, they gots to turn they gun down to shoot at the Kekuk. Robert take that ship right up to em, and we firin them gun jus fast as them sailor could load em. And them ball hittin that ship like ringin a lahm bell when they a fire in town, only each one, it like God awe mighty done hit you with the hammer of judgment, and it knock you clear cross that ship, them gun in the fote so close now. And Robert, he just madder and madder. He goan take Charleston hahber, and aint nobody goan stop him.

And they one ball hit that ship, and bust the wheelman head wide open standin next to Robert, and Robert splattuh with the blood and the brain that wheelman, and then Robert grab the wheel and he keep on goan. He like a crazy man. He aint havin none of it.

And we stay in that hahber, I don't know, it might a been five, six year. It might a been a hole lifetime. It might a been two tree lifetime. It might a been all the lifetime evuh been live. It like time done stop. It like I been in hell and seen the debbil, and all them demon, and all them haint, and I aint uh fed of nothing now I live thew that.

And them other ship aint come in like Robert done. They all stay out at the bar and aint come in close. And Robert up underneath that fote fightin like he the angel uh God fightin the debbil heself, but that fote ain't goan nowhere. It just bouncin them ball off. You see the brick a flyin when them ball hit, but it aint done nothin to them rebel.

And atter while, atter long, long while, a long time atter evvy man on that ineclad done give up hope and knowed he wuh a dead man, atter while even Robert knowed we wuh gettin blowed to bit. Them ball wuh hittin like they beatin us with the butt end a cannon. Finely Robert turn and steam back outta the hahber, and by that time all them other ineclad done turn and run out ahead of us.

We got back out in the ocean, with the rest the fleet, and that Kekuk, she wuh done blowed apot. She wuh takin on water, and we fought the rest that day trying to keep the water outtn her and keep her floatin, and Robert, he fought the hardess, and I saw what it mean to he, and I work like I doin the laud's work down in that ship to keep that ocean out.

But we cant keep the whole ocean outn that ship. That ineclad done been blowed to bit. I wuh up on the other ship when it finely went down. And Robert the last man on the Kekuk. He jump off that ship and swim away when she go down the water for good.

That Robert, I tell you. He wunt skettuh nothin. That man aint uh fed of nothin scepter laud God awe mighty in he glory

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