Killer Angels, The - Michael Shaara [109]
Longstreet remembered a speech: In a land where all slaves are servants, all servants are slaves, and thus ends democracy. A good line. But it didn't pay to think on it.
Armistead was saying, "That Fremantle is kind of funny. He said that we Southerners were the most polite people he'd ever met, but then he noticed we all of us carry guns all the time, wherever we went, and he figured that maybe that was why. Hee." Armistead chuckled. "But we don't really need the limeys, do we, Pete, you think? Not so long as we have old Bobby Lee to lead the way."
Pickett's party was quieting. The faces were turning to the moon. It was a moment before Longstreet, slightly deaf, realized they had turned to the sound of the tenor singing.
An Irish song. He listened.
... oh hast thou forgotten how soon we must sever?
Oh has thou forgotten how soon we must part?
It may be for years, it may be forever...
"That boy can sing," Longstreet said. "That's 'Kathleen Mavourneen,' am I right?" He turned to Armistead.
The handsome face had gone all to softness. Longstreet thought he was crying, just for a moment, but there were no tears, only the look of pain. Armistead was gazing toward the sound of the voice and then his eyes shifted suddenly and he looked straight down. He knelt there unmoving while the whole camp grew slowly still and in the dark silence the voice sang the next verse, softer, with great feeling, with great beauty, very far off to Longstreet's dull ear, far off and strange, from another time, an older softer time, and Longstreet could see tears on faces around the fire, and men beginning to drop their eyes, and he dropped his own, feeling a sudden spasm of irrational love. Then the voice was done.
Armistead looked up. He looked at Longstreet and then quickly away. Out in the glade they were sitting motionless, and then Pickett got up suddenly and stalked, face wet with tears, rubbing his cheeks, grumbling, then he said stiffly, "Good cheer, boys, good cheer tonight." The faces looked up at him.
Pickett moved to the rail fence and sat there and said, "Let me tell you the story of old Tangent, which is Dick Ewell's horse, which as God is my final judge is not only the slowest and orneriest piece of horseflesh in all this here army, but possibly also the slowest horse in this hemisphere, or even in the history of all slow horses."
The faces began to lighten. A bottle began to move.
Pickett sat on the rail fence like old Baldy Ewell riding the horse. The laughter began again, and in the background they played something fast and light and the tenor did not sing. In a few moments Pickett was doing a hornpipe with Fremantle, and the momentary sadness had passed like a small mist. Longstreet wanted to move over there and sit down. But he did not belong there.
Armistead said, "You hear anything of Win Hancock?"
"Ran in to him today." Longstreet gestured. "He's over that way, mile or so."
"That a fact?" Armistead grinned. "Bet he was tough."
"He was."
"Ha," Armistead chuckled. "He's the best they've got, and that's a fact."
"Yep."
"Like to go on over and see him, soon's I can, if it's all right."
"Sure. Maybe tomorrow."
"Well, that'll be fine." Armistead looked up at the moon. "That song there,
'Kathleen Mavoumeen'?" He shrugged. Longstreet looked at him. He was rubbing his face. Armistead said slowly, "Last time I saw old Win, we played that,
'round the piano." He glanced at Longstreet, grinned vaguely, glanced away.
"We went over there for the last dinner together, night before we all broke up. Spring of sixty-one." He paused, looked into the past, nodded to himself.
"Mira Hancock had us over. One more evening together. You remember Mira.
Beautiful woman. Sweet woman. They were a beautiful couple, you know that?
Most beautiful couple I ever saw. He sure looks like a soldier, now, and that's a fact."
Longstreet waited. Something was coming.
"Garnett was there,