My Jim Read Free Page B

and the other mens. Them mens aint do nothing but laugh.
    My body on fire. It hurt to be held. I tries to walk between Mama and Emma but I cant stops shaking. The fires in my head. I wants to take a iron to Tailor. I wants to burn his cabin down.
    Put your arm round my neck Mama say. We makes you a poultice to stop the burning. Dont worry bout Tailor. I gonna put something on him. He aint never gonna bother us again.
    When we gets to the cabin she rub me with witch hazel salve. She make a poultice of burdock leaves and put it on my stomach. She rub some dough in lard and linseed oil and wrap it round my arm. I sees where the whip tear open her back. Let me put some salve on you Mama. You keep quiet she say and I gonna make you some five finger tea. You best to drink it slow.
    Mama work the fields all day and tend the sick all night. She barely look up when I brings her biscuit and gravy. I tries to help her with her cures but sometimes I falls asleep. She wake me up to mind the sick babies. I cares for Jim when he fall down with the ague. He talking in tongues like a body possess. Cora say he burnt up in the head. He gonna be half crazy when he wake up she say. But every morning I makes him a tea of dandelion root and Indian ginger. And every night I gives him syrup from the bark of a river ash. Fore long he get better.
    When Jim come to he can see. Not ordinary things but things nobody else can see. Cora say he born with the veil. But I aint remember him born with nothing but a cord round his neck.
    He tell everybody a great water coming to take the living and the dead. That fall the river flood so bad half the town floating. Tailor in town walking near the graveyard when it happen. He seen bodies big like rotten wood drifting down Main Street and catching on horse draws. He watch it all from a tree. After the river go back down townsfolk call niggers to clean up the mess. Tailor say he stepping on bones scatter in mud. They gather the bodies and move the graveyard to higher ground.
    After that Jim say the sky gonna fall. White folks laugh at him but us niggers believes. In our world the sky always falling. One cold night we in the cabins sleeping close together to stay warm. Mas Watson ring the bell and wake us up. He say come see the sky falling. We all scared to death. Not Jim. He the first one out the cabins.
    Now the fever done left him he talk all the time. And grown folks listen. All us slaves comes out the cabins slowly. We walks close together holding onto each other. The night bright as day and all the stars falling from the sky. I never forgets it.
    Jim take me by the hand and lead me close to the Watsons. They all wrap up in they coats. Pointing up at the sky and smiling. I never seen the Watsons so happy. They give us a taste of hot cider. Jim walk me back to the cabins. Almost time to light the fires for morning. He whisper to me that night. I loves you all my life he say. Till the sky falls again. I never forgets it.
    Folks hear bout how Jim can see and they start coming to Clear Creek. He tell bout frost ruining the crops and boys falling through the ice on the river. He know bout other things too. Like when a mare gonna foal or who gonna shoot the first turkey. Tailor cant touch Jim now.
    We gots winter things to do. We mends our clothes and turns over our gardens. Us womens and girls gathers to sew quilts while the mens butcher the hogs.
    Jim aint with us much these days. Young Miss Watson want him with her all the time. He my Jim she tell everybody. He my nigger. Every day she want to know who she gonna marry. Aint no bigger than Jim and she asking who she gonna marry. Thats all she got to look forward to. I tells Jim to keep his mouth shut. He might can tell the weather and what the plants and animals gonna do. He might even know something bout us slaves. But he aint know nothing bout white folks and they doings.
    Jim all full with hisself and he aint listening to me. He tell Miss Watson she aint gonna