CHAPTER XXI.
THE LIGHT BREAKS
One afternoon, a few days later, there came an hour of stifling heat,and Carolina, sitting in her little cottage room with "Science andHealth" on her knees, heard the rise and fall of voices in earnestdiscussion, which seemed to come from the back porch. When she appearedat the door to ascertain who it was, she found Aunt Calla, the cook atWhitehall, and Aunt Tempy, Flower's baby's mammy, in animatedconversation with Rose Maud, her own cook.
"Dar she is now!" exclaimed Calla. "Miss Calline, I was jes' awn my wayover hyah to ax yoh advice as to what I shall do wid dat no 'count Lilyob mine, when erlong come Sis Tempy in de Barnwells' cah'yall, sent byMiss Flower to say will you please come over to see de baby right away,en Sis Tempy done fetch me wid her."
"Is anything wrong with the baby?" asked Carolina, quickly.
"No'm! no'm!" cried Tempy. "Miss Flowah got somepin' mighty fine toshow you. Miss Callina, de lill fellah kin see!"
"Oh, Tempy, how glad I am to hear it!"
"Well'm, I reckon you is de one what otto hyah it fust," said the oldwoman, with a shrewd glance.
"Why, what do you mean?" asked Carolina.
The three women settled themselves with such an air of having come tothe point that Carolina felt reasonably sure that they had beendiscussing the affair, and that further concealment was no longer of anyavail. She was surprised to see that, instead of the hostility she hadfeared, each old woman had the appearance of eager curiosity if not ofreal interest.
"I means, Miss Callina, dat I believes--we all believes--dat you donekunjered" (conjured) "de chile en kyored him," said Calla.
"I ain't a-saying dat," put in Tempy. "I ain't a-saying but what you israised de spell what de voodoo done put awn de chile."
"En I tells um, Miss Callina," ventured Rose Maud, Carolina's own cook,"dat hit's yoh new religion what done it, en I tole em I believed datyou is de Lawd Jesus come down to yearth de secon' time, wid power toheal de sick, to cast out debbils, en to raise de dead."
"Rose Maud, Jesus was a man, and you know that He will never take theform of a woman," said Carolina, "so don't ever say such a foolish thingagain. But He gave that power to His disciples, and this new religionof mine you are talking about gives that same power both to men andwomen."
"Miss Callina," cried Tempy and Calla at the same time, "has you got datpower?"
"Ask Rose Maud," said Carolina.
"I done tole 'em, Miss Callina," cried Rose Maud. "But dey is bofedoubtin' Thomases. Dey won't believe until dey sees."
"Miss Callina," pleaded Calla, "I cain't believe jis' caze I _wants tuhso bad_. Ef you kin mek me believe, I would fall down awn my face widjoy. I ain't never been satisfied wid no religion. Sis Tempy will tellyou. Ise done jined de chutch en fell from grace mo' times den I kincount. But, missy, _even niggers_ want a trufe dat dey kin cling tuh!"
"Dat's a fack, Miss Callina!" broke in Aunt Tempy. "En ef you will jis'put awn yoh hat en go wid us in de Barnwells' cah'yall, en 'splaint'ings to us lake Jesus done when He tuk de walk to Emyus" (Emmaus),"you will be talkin' to thirsty sinners what are des a-begging of youfur de water ob life!"
Carolina remembered the great number of intelligent coloured faces whichwere scattered through the congregations of the beautiful white marblechurch, with its splendour and glory of stained glass, in New York, andshe wondered if here, in the pleadings of these three fat old colouredwomen in the pine forest of South Carolina lay the answer to the greatand ever burning question of the white man's burden. As she debatedswiftly, her heart leaped to the task. It was not for her to refuse tospread the truth when it was so humbly and earnestly desired.
"Come then," she said, "ask me questions, and I will tell you theanswers that my new religion teaches. You may come, too, Rose Maud."
The Barnwells' carryall went slowly out through the great avenue oflive-oaks from Carolina's little cottage at Guildford into the "bigroad" which led to Sunnymede. But no one thought of the incongruity ofthe three old coloured women and Jake, letting the horses drivethemselves, while he listened with pathetic eagerness to the clear,earnest tones of the white young lady, who simply and sincerely answeredthe questions all four asked of her with such painful anxiety and eagerunderstanding.
Meanwhile the storm, which the intense heat presaged, gathered, and theyhurried the horses in order to reach Sunnymede before it broke.
"Dat's all I ask," cried Aunt Tempy. "I don' need to ax no mo'questions. Miss Callina done fixed t'ings for old Tempy."
"I allus knowed dat I was a worshipper ob de unknown God," cried Calla."Ef I had 'a' knowed de right One, does y'all reckon He would 'a' let meget away? No, suh! De Lawd hol's awn tuh His own!"
The storm broke just as they reached Flower's little cabin in the drearystump-filled waste which had once been the handsome estate of the LaGranges. Flower met them at the door and welcomed them in.
"Hurry, Jake, and get the horses safe before the rain comes. AuntTempy, take Calla and Rose Maud to the kitchen and give them somesassafras tea. Oh, Cousin Carolina, dearest, did Tempy tell you? Oh,the blessed, blessed news! For two nights now, the lamb has turned overin his crib because the light hurt his eyes. I didn't send for you thefirst time because I wanted to be sure. I was reading the fourteenth ofJohn, and when I came to the verse, 'And if ye shall ask anything in myname, I will do it,' I just threw the Bible down and fell on my face onthe floor and begged God for my baby's eyesight. And, when I looked, hehad turned over. Oh, Cousin Carol, Cousin Carol, I think I shall go madwith joy!"
"Let me see him," cried Carolina, rushing past Flower and snatching upthe baby. "Oh, yes, dearest, I can see even a different expression inhis eyes. And see how he blinks in the light! Flower, your baby ishealed!"
"I know it," said Flower, reverently. "And I shall thank God for it onmy knees every day of my life."
A terrific flash of lightning at that moment almost blinded them. Itwas followed instantaneously by a clap of thunder which nearly rent thecabin in twain. Flower immediately seized her baby, with a face madeashen by fear, and looking apprehensively at windows and doors, shewhispered:
"The voodoo! Watch for her! She always comes in a thunder-storm!"
At the same time the three old women, with Jake, and Flower's blackcook, old Eloise Lu, stumbled into the room, crying:
"Foh de Lawd's sake, Miss Flower, honey, let us in hyah! De Day ofJudgment sho has come!"
"Nonsense!" cried Carolina, with a sternness none of them had eversuspected her of possessing. "For shame, you Tempy and Rose Maud andCalla! Where is your new religion? Where is your understanding of thetruth? Is God going to punish you for coming to Him as you just told meyou had come? Oh, faithless disciples! Now see if _I_ am afraid of alittle thunder and lightning!"
They straightened up under her words, and, with rapidly clearing faces,they watched her go toward the open door. The rain was coming straightdown with a terrific tropical downpour, and, as Carolina steppedsuddenly to the open door, she saw the same figure she had seen before,in the act of leaving a little clump of pine-trees to come nearer to thecabin. The figure spied Carolina at the same time, and, lifting a hand,beckoned to the girl. Without a thought of fear, but with rather a wildquestioning hope in her heart, Carolina, to the amazement of the cabininmates, and later on no less to her own, stepped out into the pouringrain and ran toward the shelter of the trees.
They all crowded into the doorway to see her go, and, when theyrecognized the other figure, they were speechless with awe.
Miss Carolina had deliberately gone to meet the voodoo and lift thecurse! Then she was indeed a chosen one of God!