scarlett’s child was a girl, a small bald-headed mite, ugly as a hairless monkey andabsurdly like frank. no one except the doting father could see anything beautiful about her, but theneighbors were charitable enough to say that all ugly babies turned out pretty, eventually. she wasnamed ella lorena, ella for her grandmother ellen, and lorena because it was the mostfashionable name of the day for girls, even as robert e. lee and stonewall jackson were popularfor boys and abraham lincoln and emancipation for negro children.
she was born in the middle of a week when frenzied excitement gripped atlanta and the air wastense with expectation of disaster. a negro who had boasted of rape had actually been arrested, butbefore he could be brought to trial the jail had been raided by the ku klux klan and he had beenquietly hanged. the klan had acted to save the as yet unnamed victim from having to testify in open court. rather than have her appear and advertise her shame, her father and brother wouldhave shot her, so lynching the negro seemed a sensible solution to the townspeople, in fact, theonly decent solution possible. but the military authorities were in a fury. they saw no reason whythe girl should mind testifying publicly.
the soldiers made arrests right and left, swearing to wipe out the klan if they had to put everywhite man in atlanta in jail. the negroes, frightened and sullen, muttered of retaliatory houseburnings. the air was thick with rumors of wholesale hangings by the yankees should the guiltyparties be found and of a concerted uprising against the whites by the negroes. the people of thetown stayed at home behind locked doors and shuttered windows, the men fearing to go to theirbusinesses and leave their women and children unprotected.
scarlett, lying exhausted in bed, feebly and silently thanked god that ashley had too much senseto belong to the klan and frank was too old and poor spirited. how dreadful it would be to knowthat the yankees might swoop down and arrest them at any minute! why didn’t the crack-brainedyoung fools in the klan leave bad enough alone and not stir up the yankees like this? probably thegirl hadn’t been raped after all. probably she’d just been frightened silly and, because of her, a lotof men might lose their lives.
in this atmosphere, straining watching slow fuse burn toward a barrel of gunpowder,scarlettcame(as) rapidl(nerve) ybacktost(as) rength.the(a) healthy vigor which had carried herthrough the hard days at tara stood her in good stead now, and within two weeks of ella lorena’sbirth she was strong enough to sit up and chafe at her inactivity. in three weeks she was up,declaring she had to see to the mills. they were standing idle because both hugh and ashleyfeared to leave their families alone all day.
then the blow fell.
frank, full of the pride of new fatherhood, summoned up courage enough to forbid scarlettleaving the house while conditions were so dangerous. his commands would not have worried herat all and she would have gone about her business in spite of them, if he had not put her horse andbuggy in the livery stable and ordered that they should not be surrendered to anyone excepthimself. to make matters worse, he and mammy had patiently searched the house while she was illand unearthed her hidden store of money. and frank had deposited it in the bank in his own name,so now she could not even hire a rig.
scarlett raged at both frank and mammy, then was reduced to begging and finally cried all onemorning like a furious thwarted child. but for all her pains she heard only: “there, sugar! you’rejust a sick little girl.” and: “miss scarlett, ef you doan quit cahyin’ on so, you gwine sour yo’ milkan’ de baby have colic, sho as gun’s iron.”
in a furious temper, scarlett charged through her back yard to melanie’s house and thereunburdened herself at the top of her voice, declaring she would walk to the mills, she would goabout atlanta telling everyone what a varmint she had married, she would not be treated like anaughty simple-minded child. she would carry a pistol and shoot anyone who threatened her. shehad shot one man and she would love, yes, love to shoot another. she would—melanie who feared to venture onto her own front porch was appalled by such threats.
“oh, you must not risk yourself! i should die if anything happened to you! oh, please—”
“i will! i will! i will walk—”
melanie looked at her and saw that this was not the hysteria of a woman still weak fromchildbirth. there was the same breakneck, headlong determination in scarlett’s face that melaniehad often seen in gerald o’hara’s face when his mind was made up. she put her arms aroundscarlett’s waist and held her tightly.
“it’s all my fault for not being brave like you and for keeping ashley at home with me all thistime when he should have been at the mill. oh, dear! i’m such a ninny! darling, i’ll tell ashleyi’m not a bit frightened and i’ll come over and stay with you and aunt pitty and he can go back towork and—”
not even to herself would scarlett admit that she did not think ashley could cope with thesituation alone and she shouted: “you’ll do nothing of the kind! what earthly good would ashleydo at work if he was worried about you every minute? everybody is just so hateful! even unclepeter refuses to go out with me! but i don’t care! i’ll go alone. i’ll walk every step of the way andpick up a crew of darkies somewhere—”
“oh, no! you mustn’t do that! something dreadful might happen to you. they say thatshantytown settlement on the decatur road is just full of mean darkies and you’d have to pass rightby it. let think— darling, promise me you won’t do anything today and i’ll think ofsomething. pro(me) mise me you’ll go home and lie down. you look right peaked. promise me.”
because she was too exhausted by her anger to do otherwise, scarlett sulkily promised and wenthome, haughtily refusing any overtures of peace from her household.
that afternoon a strange figure stumped through melanie’s hedge and across pitty’s back yard.
obviously, he was one of those men whom mammy and dilcey referred to as “de riff-raff whutmiss melly pick up off de streets an’ let sleep in her cellar.”
there were three rooms in the basement of melanie’s house which formerly had been servants’
quarters and a wine room. now dilcey occupied one, and the other two were in constant use by astream of miserable and ragged transients. no one but melanie knew whence they came or wherethey were going and no one but she knew where she collected them. perhaps the negroes wereright and she did pick them up from the streets. but even as the great and the near great gravitatedto her small parlor, so unfortunates found their way to her cellar where they were fed, bedded andsent on their way with packages of food. usually the occupants of the rooms were formerconfederate soldiers of the rougher, illiterate type, homeless men, men without families, beatingtheir way about the country in hope of finding work.
frequently, brown and withered country women with broods of tow-haired silent children spentthe night there, women widowed by the war, dispossessed of their farms, seeking relatives whoscattered and lost. sometimes the neighborhood was scandalized by the presence offoreig(were) ners, speaking little or no english, who had been drawn south by glowing tales of fortuneseasily made. once a republican had slept there. at least, mammy insisted he was a republican,saying she could smell a republican, same as a horse could smell a rattlesnake; but no one believedmammy’s story, for there must be some limit even to melanie’s charity. at least everyone hoped so.
yes, thought scarlett, sitting on the side porch in the pale november sunshine with the baby onher lap, he is one of melanie’s lame dogs. and he’s really lame, at that!
the man who was making his way across the back yard stumped, like will benteen, on awooden leg. he was a tall, thin old man with a bald head, which shone pinkishly dirty, and agrizzled beard so long he could tuck it in his belt. he was over sixty, to judge by his hard, seamedface, but there was no sag of age to his body. he was lank and ungainly but, even with his woodenpeg, he moved as swiftly as a snake.
he mounted the steps and came toward her and, even before he spoke, revealing in his tones atwang and a burring of “r s” unusual in the lowlands, scarlett knew that he was mountain born.
for all his dirty, ragged clothes there was about him, as about most mountaineers, an air of fiercesilent pride that permitted no liberties and tolerated no foolishness. his beard was stained withtobacco juice and a large wad in his jaw made his face look deformed. his nose was thin andcraggy, his eyebrows bushy and twisted, into witches’ locks and a lush growth of hair sprang fromhis ears, giving them the tufted look of a lynx’s ears. beneath his brow was one hollow socketfrom which a scar ran down his cheek, carving a diagonal line through his beard. the other eyewas small, pale and cold, an unwinking and remorseless eye. there was a heavy pistol openly inhis trouser band and from the top of his tattered boot protruded the hilt of a bowie knife.
he returned scarlett’s stare coldly and spat across the rail of the banister before he spoke. therewas contempt in his one eye, not a personal contempt for her, but for her whole sex.
“miz wilkes sont me to work for you,” he said shortly. he spoke rustily, as one unaccustomed tospeaking, the words coming slowly and almost with difficulty. “m’ name’s archie.”
“i’m sorry but i have no work for you, mr. archie.”
“archie’s m’fuss name.”
“i beg your pardon. what is your last name?”
he spat again. “i reckon that’s my bizness,” he said. “archie’ll do.”
“i don’t care what your last name is! i have nothing for you to do.”
“i reckon you have. miz wilkes was upsot about yore wantin’ to run aroun’ like a fool byyoreself and she sont me over here to drive aroun’ with you.”
“indeed?” cried scarlett, indignant both at the man’s rudeness and melly’s meddling.
his one eye met hers with an impersonal animosity. “yes. a woman’s got no bizness botherin’
her men folks when they’re tryin’ to take keer of her. if you’re bound to gad about, i’ll drive you. ihates niggers—yankees too.”
he shifted his wad of tobacco to the other cheek and, without waiting for an invitation, sat downon the top step. “i ain’t sayin’ i like drivin’ women aroun’, but miz wilkes been good to me, lettin’
me sleep in her cellar, and she sont me to drive you.”
“but—” began scarlett helplessly and then she stopped and looked at him. after a moment shebegan to smile. she didn’t like the looks of this elderly desperado but his presence would simplify matters. with him beside her, she could go to town, drive to the mills, call on customers. no onecould doubt her safety with him and his very appearance was enough to keep from giving rise toscandal.
“it’s a bargain,” she said. “that is, if my husband agrees.”
after a private conversation with archie, frank gave his reluctant approval and sent word to thelivery stable to release the horse and buggy. he was hurt and disappointed that motherhood had notchanged scarlett as he had hoped it would but, if she was determined to go back to her damnablemills, then archie was a godsend.
so began the relationship that at first startled atlanta. archie and scarlett were a queerlyassorted pair, the truculent dirty old man with his wooden peg sticking stiffly out over thedashboard and the pretty, neatly dressed young woman with forehead puckered in an abstractedfrown. they could be seen at all hours and at all places in and near atlanta, seldom speaking toeach other, obviously disliking each other, but bound together by mutual need, he of money, she ofprotection. at least, said the ladies of the town, it’s better than riding around so brazenly with thatbutler man. they wondered curiously where rhett was these days, for he had abruptly left townthree months before and no one, not even scarlett, knew where he was.
archie was a silent man, never speaking unless spoken to and usually answering with grunts.
every morning he came from melanie’s cellar and sat on the front steps of pitty’s house, chewingand spitting until scarlett came out and peter brought the buggy from the stable. uncle peter fearedhim only a little less than the devil or the ku klux and even mammy walked silently andtimorously around him. he hated negroes and they knew it and feared him. he reinforced his pistoland knife with another pistol, and his fame spread far among the black population. he never oncehad to draw a pistol or even lay his hand on his belt. the moral effect was sufficient. no negrodared even laugh while archie was in hearing.
once scarlett asked him curiously why he hated negroes and was surprised when he answered,for generally all questions were answered by “i reckon that’s my bizness.”
“i hates them, like all mountain folks hates them. we never liked them and we never ownednone. it was them niggers that started the war. i hates them for that, too.”
“but you fought in the war.”
“i reckon that’s a man’s privilege. i hates yankees too, more’n i hates niggers. most as much asi hates talkative women.”
it was such outspoken rudeness as this that threw scarlett into silent furies and made her long tobe rid of him. but how could she do without him? in what other way could she obtain suchfreedom? he was rude and dirty and, occasionally, very odorous but he served his purpose. hedrove her to and from the mills and on her round of customers, spitting and staring off into spacewhile she talked and gave orders. if she climbed down from the buggy, he climbed after her anddogged her footsteps. when she was among rough laborers, negroes or yankee soldiers, he wasseldom more than a pace from her elbow.
soon atlanta became accustomed to seeing scarlett and her bodyguard and, from beingaccustomed, the ladies grew to envy her her freedom of movement. since the ku klux lynching, the ladies had been practically immured, not even going to town to shop unless there were half adozen in their group. naturally social minded, they became restless and, putting their pride in theirpockets, they began to beg the loan of archie from scarlett. and whenever she did not need him,she was gracious enough to spare him for the use of other ladies.
soon archie became an atlanta institution and the ladies competed for his free time. there wasseldom a morning when a child or a negro servant did not arrive at breakfast time with a notesaying: “if you aren’t using archie this afternoon, do let me have him. i want to drive to thecemetery with flowers.” “i must go to the milliners.” “i should like archie to drive aunt nelly foran airing.” “i must go calling on peters street and grandpa is not feeling well enough to take me.
could archie—”
he drove them all, maids, matrons and widows, and toward all he evidenced the sameuncompromising contempt. it was obvious that he did not like women, melanie excepted, anybetter than he liked negroes and yankees. shocked at first by his rudeness, the ladies finallybecame accustomed to him and, as he was so silent, except for intermittent explosions of tobaccojuice, they took him as much for granted as the horses he drove and forgot his very existence. infact, mrs. merriwether related to mrs. meade the complete details of her niece’s confinement beforeshe even remembered archie’s presence on the front seat of the carriage.
at no other time than this could such a situation have been possible. before the war, he wouldnot have been permitted even in the ladies’ kitchens. they would have handed him food throughthe back door and sent him about his business. but now they welcomed his reassuring presence.
rude, illiterate, dirty, he was a bulwark between the ladies and the terrors of reconstruction. hewas neither friend nor servant. he was a hired bodyguard, protecting the women while their menworked by day or were absent from home at night.
it seemed to scarlett that after archie came to work for her frank was away at night veryfrequently. he said the books at the store had to be balanced and business was brisk enough now togive him little time to attend to this in working hours. and there were sick friends with whom hehad to sit. then there was the organization of democrats who forgathered every wednesday nightto devise ways of regaining the ballot and frank never missed a meeting. scarlett thought thisorganization did little else except argue the merits of general john b. gordon over every ottergeneral, except general lee, and refight the war. certainly she could observe no progress in thedirection of the recovery of the ballot. but frank evidently enjoyed the meetings for he stayed outuntil all hours on those nights.
ashley also sat up with the sick and he, too, attended the democratic meetings and he wasusually away on the same nights as frank. on these nights, archie escorted pitty, scarlett, wadeand little ella though the back yard to melanie’s house and the two families spent the eveningstogether. the ladies sewed while archie lay full length on the parlor sofa snoring, his graywhiskers fluttering at each rumble. no one had invited him to dispose himself on the sofa and as itwas the finest piece of furniture in the house, the ladies secretly moaned every time he lay down onit, planting his boot on the pretty upholstery. but none of them had the courage to remonstrate withhim. especially after he remarked that it was lucky he went to sleep easy, for otherwise the soundof women clattering like a flock of guinea hens would certainly drive him crazy.
scarlett sometimes wondered where archie had come from and what his life had been before hecame to live in melly’s cellar but she asked no questions. there was that about his grim one-eyedface which discouraged curiosity. all she knew was that his voice bespoke the mountains to thenorth and that he had been in the army and had lost both leg and eye shortly before the surrender. itwas words spoken in a fit of anger against hugh elsing which brought out the truth of archie’spast.
one morning, the old man had driven her to hugh’s mill and she had found it idle, the negroesgone and hugh sitting despondently under a tree. his crew had not made their appearance thatmorning and he was at a loss as to what to do. scarlett was in a furious temper and did not scrupleto expend it on hugh, for she had just received an order for a large amount of lumber—a rushorder at that. she had used energy and charm and bargaining to get that order and now the mill wasquiet.
“drive me out to the other mill,” she directed archie. “yes, i know it’ll take a long time and wewon’t get any dinner but what am i paying you for? i’ll have to make mr. wilkes stop what he’sdoing and run me off this lumber. like as not, his crew won’t be working either. great balls of fire!
i never saw such a nincompoop as hugh elsing! i’m going to get rid of him just as soon as thatjohnnie gallegher finishes the stores he’s building. what do i care if gallegher was in the yankeearmy? he’ll work. i never saw a lazy irishman yet. and i’m through with free issue darkies. youjust can’t depend on them. i’m going to get johnnie gallegher and lease me some convicts. he’llget work out of them. he’ll—”
archie turned to her, his eye malevolent, and when he spoke there was cold anger in his rustyvoice.
“the day you gits convicts is the day i quits you,” he said.
scarlett was startled. “good heavens! why?”
“i knows about convict leasin’. i calls it convict murderin’. buyin’ men like they was mules.
treatin’ them worse than mules ever was treated. beatin’ them, starvin’ them, killin’ them. andwho cares? the state don’t care. it’s got the lease money. the folks that gits the convicts, theydon’t care. all they want is to feed them cheap and git all the work they can out of them. hell,ma’m. i never thought much of women and i think less of them now.”
“is it any of your business?”
“i reckon,” said archie laconically and, after a pause, “i was a convict for nigh on to fortyyears.”
scarlett gasped, and, for a moment, shrank back against the cushions. this then was the answerto the riddle of archie, his unwillingness to tell his last name or the place of his birth or any scrapof his past life, the answer to the difficulty with which he spoke and his cold hatred of the world.
forty years! he must have gone into prison a young man. forty years! why—he must have been alife prisoner and lifers were—“was it—murder?”
“yes,” answered archie briefly, as he flapped the reins. “m’ wife.”
scarlett’s eyelids batted rapidly with fright. the mouth beneath the beard seemed to move, as ifhe were smiling grimly at her fear. “i ain’t goin’ to kill you, ma’m, if that’s what’s frettin’ you.
thar ain’t but one reason for killin’ a woman.”
“you killed your wife!”
“she was layin’ with my brother. he got away. i ain’t sorry none that i kilt her. loose womenought to be kilt. the law ain’t got no right to put a man in jail for that but i was sont.”
“but—how did you get out? did you escape? were you pardoned?”
“you might call it a pardon.” his thick gray brows writhed together as though the effort ofstringing words together was difficult.
“ ‘long in ‘sixty-four when sherman come through, i was at milledgeville jail, like i had beenfor forty years. and the warden he called all us prisoners together and he says the yankees are acomin’
a-burnin’ and a-killin’. now if that’s one thing i hates worse than a nigger or a woman, it’sa yankee.”
“why? had you— did you ever know any yankees?”
“no’m. but i’d beam tell of them. i’d beam tell they couldn’t never mind their own bizness. ihates folks who can’t mind their own bizness. what was they doin’ in georgia, freein’ our niggersand burnin’ our houses and killin’ our stock? well, the warden he said the army needed moresoldiers bad, and any of us who’d jine up would be free at the end of the war—if we come outalive. but us lifers—us murderers, the warden he said the army didn’t want us. we was to be sontsomewheres else to another jail. but i said to the warden i ain’t like most lifers. i’m just in forkillin’ my wife and she needed killin’. and i wants to fight the yankees. and the warden he sawmy side of it and he slipped me out with the other prisoners.”
he paused and grunted.
“huh. that was right funny. they put me in jail for killin’ and they let me out with a gun in myhand and a free pardon to do more killin’. it shore was good to be a free man with a rifle in myhand again. us men from milledgeville did good fightin’ and killin’—and a lot of us was kilt. inever knowed one who deserted. and when the surrender come, we was free. i lost this here legand this here eye. but i ain’t sorry.”
“oh,” said scarlett, weakly.
she tried to remember what she had heard about the releasing of the milledgeville convicts inthat last desperate effort to stem the tide of sherman’s army. frank had mentioned it that christmasof 1864. what had he said? but her memories of that time were too chaotic. again she felt the wildterror of those days, heard the siege guns, saw the line of wagons dripping blood into the red roads,saw the home guard marching off, the little cadets and the children like phil meade and the oldmen like uncle henry and grandpa merriwether. and the convicts had marched out too, to die inthe twilight of the confederacy, to freeze in the snow and sleet of that last campaign in tennessee.
for a brief moment she thought what a fool this old man was, to fight for a state which hadtaken forty years from his life. georgia had taken his youth and his middle years for a crime thatwas no crime to him, yet he had freely given a leg and an eye to georgia. the bitter words rhett had spoken in the early days of the war came back to her, and she remembered him saying hewould never fight for a society that had made him an outcast. but when the emergency had arisenhe had gone off to fight for that same society, even as archie had done. it seemed to her that allsouthern men, high or low, were sentimental fools and cared less for their hides than for wordswhich had no meaning.
she looked at archie’s gnarled old hands, his two pistols and his knife, and fear pricked heragain. were there other ex-convicts at large, like archie, murderers, desperadoes, thieves,pardoned for their crimes, in the name of the confederacy? why, any stranger on the street mightbe a murderer! if frank ever learned the truth about archie, there would be the devil to pay. or ifaunt pitty—but the shock would kill pitty. and as for melanie—scarlett almost wished she couldtell melanie the truth about archie. it would serve her right for picking up trash and foisting it offon her friends and relatives.
“i’m—i’m glad you told me, archie. i—i won’t tell anyone. it would be a great shock to mrs.
wilkes and the other ladies if they knew.”
“huh. miz wilkes knows. i told her the night she fuss let me sleep in her cellar. you don’t thinki’d let a nice lady like her take me into her house not knowin’?”
“saints preserve us!” cried scarlet, aghastmelanie knew this man was a murderer and a woman murderer at that and she hadn’t ejectedhim from her house. she had trusted her son with him and her aunt and sister-in-law and all herfriends. and she, the most timid of females, had not been frightened to be alone with him in herhouse.
“miz wilkes is right sensible, for a woman. she lowed that i was all right she ‘lowed that a liarallus kept on lyin’ and a thief kept on stealin’ but folks don’t do more’n one murder in a lifetime.
and she reckoned as how anybody who’d fought for the confederacy had wiped out anything badthey’d done. though i don’t hold that i done nothin’ bad, killin’ my wife. ... yes, miz wilkes isright sensible, for a woman. ... and i’m tellin’ you, the day you leases convicts is the day i quitsyou.”
scarlett made no reply but she thought,“the sooner you quit me the better it will suit me. a murderer!”
how could melly have been so—so— well, there was no word for melanie’s action in taking inthis old ruffian and not telling her friends he was a jailbird. so service in the army wiped out pastsins! melanie had that mixed up with baptism! but then melly was utterly silly about theconfederacy, its veterans, and anything pertaining to them. scarlett silently damned the yankeesand added another mark on her score against them. they were responsible for a situation thatforced a woman to keep a murderer at her side to protect her.
driving home with archie in the chill twilight, scarlett saw a clutter of saddle horses, buggiesand wagons outside the girl of the period saloon. ashley was sitting on his horse, a strained alertlook on his face; the simmons boys were leaning from their buggy, making emphatic gestures; hugh elsing, his lock of brown hair falling in his eyes, was waving his hands. grandpamerriwether’s pie wagon was in the center of the tangle and, as she came closer, scarlett saw thattommy wellburn and uncle henry hamilton were crowded on the seat with him.
“i wish,” thought scarlett irritably, “that uncle henry wouldn’t ride home in that contraption.
he ought to be ashamed to be seen in it. it isn’t as though he didn’t have a horse of his own. hejust does it so he and grandpa can go to the saloon together every night”
as she came abreast the crowd something of their tenseness reached her, insensitive though shewas, and made fear clutch at her heart.
“oh!” she thought. “i hope no one else has been raped! if the ku klux lynch just one moredarky the yankees will wipe us out!” and she spoke to archie. “pull up. something’s wrong.”
“you ain’t goin’ to stop outside a saloon,” said archie.
“you heard me. pull up. good evening, everybody. ashley—uncle henry—is somethingwrong? you all look so—”
the crowd turned to her, ripping their hats and smiling, but there was a driving excitement intheir eyes.
“something’s right and something’s wrong,” barked uncle henry. “depends on how you look atit. the way i figure is the legislature couldn’t have done different.”
the legislature? thought scarlett in relief. she had little interest in the legislature, feeling that itsdoings could hardly affect her. it was the prospect of the yankee soldiers on a rampage again thatfrightened her.
“what’s the legislature been up to now?”
“they’ve flatly refused to ratify the amendment,” said grandpa merriwether and there was pridein his voice. “that’ll show the yankees.”
“and there’ll be hell to pay for it—i beg your pardon, scarlett,” said ashley.
“oh, the amendment?” questioned scarlett, trying to look intelligent.
politics were beyond her and she seldom wasted time thinking about them. there had been athirteenth amendment ratified sometime before or maybe it had been the sixteenth amendmentbut what ratification meant she had no idea. men were always getting excited about such things.
something of her lack of comprehension showed in her face and ashley smiled.
“it’s the amendment letting the darkies vote, you know,” he explained. “it was submitted to thelegislature and they refused to ratify it.”
“how silly of them! you know the yankees are going to force it down our throats!”
“that’s what i meant by saying there’d be hell to pay,” said ashley.
“i’m proud of the legislature, proud of their gumption!” shouted uncle henry. “the yankeescan’t force it down our throats if we won’t have it”
“they can and they will.” ashley’s voice was calm but there was worry in his eyes. “and it’llmake things just that much harder for us.”
“oh, ashley, surely not! things couldn’t be any harder than they are now!”
“yes, things can get worse, even worse than they are now. suppose we have a darky legislature?
a darky governor? suppose we have a worse military rule than we now have?”
scarlett’s eyes grew large with fear as some understanding entered her mind.
“i’ve been trying to think what would be best for georgia, best for all of us.” ashley’s face wasdrawn. “whether it’s wisest to fight this thing like the legislature has done, rouse the north againstus and bring the whole yankee army on us to cram the darky vote down us, whether we want it ornot. or—swallow our pride as best we can, submit gracefully and get the whole matter over withas easily as possible. it will amount to the same thing in the end. we’re helpless. we’ve got to takethe dose they’re determined to give us. maybe it would be better for us to take it without kicking.”
scarlett hardly heard his words, certainly their full import went over her head. she knew thatashley, as usual, was seeing both sides of a question. she was seeing only one side—how this slapin the yankees’ faces might affect her.
“going to turn radical and vote the republican ticket, ashley?” jeered grandpa merriwetherharshly.
there was a tense silence. scarlett saw archie’s hand make a swift move toward his pistol andthen stop. archie thought, and frequently said, that grandpa was an old bag of wind and archiehad no intention of letting him insult miss melanie’s husband, even if miss melanie’s husband wastalking like a fool.
the perplexity vanished suddenly from ashley’s eyes and hot anger flared. but before he couldspeak, uncle henry charged grandpa.
“you god—you blast— i beg your pardon, scarlett— grandpa, you jackass, don’t you say thatto ashley!”
“ashley can take care of himself without you defending him,” said grandpa coldly. “and he istalking like a scalawag. submit, hell! i beg your pardon, scarlett.”
“i didn’t believe in secession,” said ashley and his voice shook with anger. “but when georgiaseceded, i went with her. and i didn’t believe in war but i fought in the war. and i don’t believe inmaking the yankees madder than they already are. but if the legislature has decided to do it, i’llstand by the legislature. i—”
“archie,” said uncle henry abruptly, “drive miss scarlett on home. this isn’t any place for her.
politics aren’t for women folks anyway, and there’s going to be cussing in a minute. go on, archie.
good night, scarlett.”
as they drove off down peachtree street, scarlett’s heart was beating fast with fear. would thisfoolish action of the legislature have any effect on her safety? would it so enrage the yankees thatshe might lose her mills?
“well, sir,” rumbled archie, “i’ve hearn tell of rabbits spittin’ in bulldogs’ faces but i ain’t neverseen it till now. them legislatures might just as well have hollered ‘hurray for jeff davis and thesouthern confederacy’ for all the good it’ll do them—and us. them nigger-lovin’ yankees havemade up their mind to make the niggers our bosses. but you got to admire them legislatures’ sperrit!”
“admire them? great balls of fire! admire them? they ought to be shot! it’ll bring the yankeesdown on us like a duck on a june bug. why couldn’t they have rati—radi—whatever they weresupposed to do to it and smoothed the yankees down instead of stirring them up again? they’regoing to make us knuckle under and we may as well knuckle now as later.”
archie fixed her with a cold eye.
“knuckle under without a fight? women ain’t got no more pride than goats.”
when scarlett leased ten convicts, five for each of her mills, archie made good his threat andrefused to have anything further to do with her. not all melanie’s pleading or frank’s promises ofhigher pay would induce him to take up the reins again. he willingly escorted melanie and pittyand india and their friends about the town but not scarlett. he would not even drive for the otherladies if scarlett was in the carriage. it was an embarrassing situation, having the old desperadositting in judgment upon her, and it was still more embarrassing to know that her family andfriends agreed with the old man.
frank pleaded with her against taking the step. ashley at first refused to work convicts and waspersuaded, against his will, only after tears and supplications and promises that when times werebetter she would hire free darkies. neighbors were so outspoken in their disapproval that frank,pitty and melanie found it hard to hold up their heads. even peter and mammy declared that it wasbad luck to work convicts and no good would come of it. everyone said it was wrong to takeadvantage of the miseries and misfortunes of others.
“you didn’t have any objections to working slaves!” scarlett cried indignantly.
ah, but that was different. slaves were neither miserable nor unfortunate. the negroes were farbetter off under slavery than they were now under freedom, and if she didn’t believe it, just lookabout her! but, as usual, opposition had the effect of making scarlett more determined on hercourse. she removed hugh from the management of the mill, put him to driving a lumber wagonand closed the final details of hiring johnnie gallegher.
he seemed to be the only person she knew who approved of the convicts. he nodded his bullethead briefly and said it was a smart move. scarlett, looking at the little ex-jockey, planted firmlyon his short bowed legs, his gnomish face hard and businesslike, thought: “whoever let him ridetheir horses didn’t care much for horse flesh. i wouldn’t let him get within ten feet of any horse ofmine.”
but she had no qualms in trusting him with a convict gang.
“and i’m to have a free hand with the gang?” he questioned, his eyes as cold as gray agates.
“a free hand. all i ask is that you keep that mill running and deliver my lumber when i want itand as much as i want.”
“i’m your man,” said johnnie shortly. “i’ll tell mr. wellburn i’m leaving him.”
as he rolled off through the crowd of masons and carpenters and hod carriers scarlett felt relieved and her spirits rose. johnnie was indeed her man. he was tough and hard and there was nononsense about him. “shanty irish on the make,” frank had contemptuously called him, but forthat very reason scarlett valued him. she knew that an irishman with a determination to getsomewhere was a valuable man to have, regardless of what his personal characteristics might be.
and she felt a closer kinship with him than with many men of her own class, for johnnie knew thevalue of money.
the first week he took over the mill he justified all her hopes, for he accomplished more withfive convicts than hugh had ever done with his crew of ten free negroes. more than that, he gavescarlett greater leisure than she had had since she came to atlanta the year before, because he hadno liking for her presence at the mill and said so frankly.
“you tend to your end of selling and let me tend to my end of lumbering,” he said shortly. “aconvict camp ain’t any place for a lady and if nobody else’ll tell you so, johnnie gallegher’stelling you now. i’m delivering your lumber, ain’t i? well, i’ve got no notion to be pestered everyday like mr. wilkes. he needs pestering. i don’t.”
so scarlett reluctantly stayed away from johnnie’s mill, fearing that if she came too often hemight quit and that would be ruinous. his remark that ashley needed pestering stung her, for therewas more truth in it than she liked to admit. ashley was doing little better with convicts than hehad done with free labor, although why, he was unable to tell. moreover, he looked as if he wereashamed to be working convicts and he had little to say to her these days.
scarlett was worried by the change that was coming over him. there were gray hairs in hisbright head now and a tired slump in his shoulders. and he seldom smiled. he no longer lookedthe debonair ashley who had caught her fancy so many years before. he looked like a mansecretly gnawed by a scarcely endurable pain and there was a grim tight look about his mouth thatbaffled and hurt her. she wanted to drag his head fiercely down on her shoulder, stroke the grayinghair and cry: “tell me what’s worrying you! i’ll fix it! i’ll make it right for you!”
but his formal, remote air kept her at arm’s length.
思嘉生了一个女儿，小家伙不大，头上光秃秃的，丑得像只没毛的猴子。她长得像弗兰克，真是可笑。父亲特别疼爱她，只有他才觉得认为女儿长得好看。不过邻居们出自好心，都说小的时候丑，长大了就漂亮了，小孩子都是这样。女儿取名爱拉·洛雷纳，爱拉是为了纪念外婆爱伦，洛雷纳是当时女孩子最流行的名字，正象生了男孩子取名罗伯特·李，或叫“石壁杰克逊，"黑人生了孩子就叫亚伯·林肯，或者叫"解放"。
这孩子是在一个星期的中间出生的。那时亚特兰上空笼罩着一片紧张，人心惶惶，觉得大难临头。一个黑人夸耀说他强奸了一个白种女人，于是就被抓起来了，但是还没来得及审判，三k党就冲进监狱，悄悄把他绞死了。三k党这样做，是为了使那个尚未暴露姓名的不幸的女人不必到公开的法庭上去作证。这个女人的父兄哪怕把她杀了，也不会让她抛头露面，去宣扬自己的耻辱。因此市民们认为把这个黑人绞死似乎是一个合情合理的解决办法，实际上这也是惟一可行的体面的解决办法，但是军事当局却大发雷霆，他们弄不明白这个女人为什么不能当众作证。
军队到处抓人，宣称即使把亚特兰大所有的白人男子全都关进监狱，更要把三k党消灭干净，黑人非常紧张，也很不满，暗地里抱怨说要放火烧白人的房子进行报复。谣言满天飞，有的说北方佬抓住肇事者要统统绞死，有的说黑人要集体暴动，反对白人，老百姓关门闭户，待在家中，男人们也不敢去上班，怕留在家里的妻子儿女无人保护。
思嘉身体虚弱，卧床休养，默默地感谢上帝，艾希礼头脑清楚，没有参加三k党，弗兰克年纪太大，精神不济所以也没有参加。否则北方佬不定什么时候就突然出动，把他们抓起来，那有多么可怕呀！现在的情况就够糟的了，三k党里那些没有头脑的年轻人怎么就不能暂时不添乱，不这样刺激北方佬呢？说不定那个女人根本没有被奸污，说不定她只是受了惊吓，胡言乱语，而很多人却可能因为她而送命。
气氛十分紧张，就好像看着一根点燃的导火线慢慢向一桶炸药烧去。在这样气氛下，思嘉倒很快恢复了体力。她充沛的精力曾帮她在塔拉渡过难关，现在又要发挥更大的作用。生下爱拉·洛雷纳不到两周，她就能坐起来，还责怪女儿不爱动，又过了一个星期她就下地了，她非要去照料厂子不可。厂子目前没有人管，因为休和艾希礼都不敢整天把家眷扔下不管。
然而她遇到了沉重的打击。
弗兰克刚刚做父亲，非常高兴，就鼓足勇气阻挡思嘉外出，因为外面情况的确很危险。思嘉本不必为此事着急，她可以不予理睬，径自出去办事就是了，可是弗兰克已经把她的马和车封闭在车房里，而且发了话，除了他本人以外，谁也不准动用，更糟糕的是在思嘉卧床的时候，弗兰克和嬷嬷在家里细心搜寻，把她藏的钱都找出来了，而且用弗兰克的姓名存在了银行里，因此思嘉现在连车也没法雇了。
思嘉对弗兰克和嬷嬷大发雷霆，接着又软下来，苦苦哀求，最后她像一个得不到满足而急得发狂的孩子，整整哭了一上午，虽然她这么痛苦，却只听见人家说：“哎呀，宝贝儿！
别耍小孩子脾气呀！"或者说：“思嘉小姐呀，你要是再哭啊，你的奶就要变酸了，孩子吃了是要肚子疼的哟！"思嘉气冲冲地跑出去，穿过后院，来到媚兰家里，嘶哑着嗓子诉说她的委屈，宣称就是走着也要到木才厂去，她要让亚特兰大所有的人都知道，她嫁给一个多么卑鄙的坏蛋，她可不能像个没有头脑的顽皮孩子，让人家耍着玩儿。她要带上一支手枪，谁威胁她，就打死谁，反正已经打死过一个人了，她想----的确很想----再打死一个。她要----媚兰本来连自家大门口都不敢迈出，听她说要这样干，吓得心惊胆颤。
“哎呀，你可千万不能冒险呀！你要是有个三长两短，我也就活不成了。你可千万----““我偏去！我偏去！我走着----"媚兰看着她，发现她不像是一个产后休弱的女人在撒气。
思嘉脸上那种天不怕地不怕、无所畏惧的表情，和她父亲杰拉尔德·奥哈拉拿定主意的时候脸上的表情一模一样，媚兰对这种表情是很熟悉的。她伸出胳臂搂住思嘉的腰，搂得紧紧的。
“都是我不好，我没有你那么勇敢，这几天艾希礼到厂里去，我不敢让他去。唉，亲爱的，我真糊涂！亲爱的，我会告诉艾希礼，我一点也不害怕，我可以过来和你和皮蒂姑妈作伴，让他去上班----"思嘉自己很清楚，当时艾希礼是不可能独自应付局面的，所以她就大声说：“你这样干没用！他要是老惦记着你，去上班又有什么用？没有一个人不可恨！就连彼得大叔都不肯和我一起出去。可是我不怕！我自己去。我要一步一步走着去，总能在什么地方找几个黑鬼干活儿----”“不行，不行！你千万不能这样。你会出事的，听说迪凯特街上的棚户区有许多为非作歹的黑鬼，你还必须从那儿经过不可。让我想一想----亲爱的，答应我你今天什么事情也不做，让我想想办法。回家去休息会儿吧，你的脸色很不好。
你要答应我。”
思嘉由于大发脾气，此时已经筋疲力尽，也就只好这样了。她垂头丧气地表示同意，然后就回家去了。家里人想与她和好，都被她顶了回去。
那天下午，一个陌生人穿过媚兰家和矮树篱笆，一拐一拐地走进了皮蒂姑妈的后院，虽然他就是嬷嬷和迪尔茜所说的那种"无业游民"，媚兰小姐在街上遇见就会把他们接到家里，让他们住在地窖里。
媚兰这所房子有三间地下室，过去两间人住，一间放酒。
现在迪尔茜住着一间，另外两间住的是衣衫褴褛的可怜的过路人，川流不息，除了媚兰，谁也弄不清楚他们从哪儿来，到哪儿去，也只有她知道是在哪儿遇上他们的。也许那两个仆人说的是对的。她确实是在街上遇见他们的。不过既然有些重要人物和不那么重要的人物到她的小客厅里来，不幸的人们也就可以到她的地窖里来，吃点东西，睡一觉，带上点吃的，再赶路。到这里住宿的，一般都是过去南部联盟的兵，他们粗鲁，没有文化，无家可归，他们也没有亲人，四处流浪，寻求工作。
在这里过夜的还往往有面色黝黑、饱经风霜的农村妇女，带着一大群金黄头发、默不作声的孩子。这些妇女在战争中失去了丈夫，丢掉了农场，正在到处寻找失散的亲人，令人吃惊的是附近有时还会出现外国人，他们不会讲或者只会讲一点英语，他们是听了花言巧语，以为南方的钱好挣，才到这里来的。有一天，一个共和党人在这里过夜，起码嬷嬷非说他是个共和党人，她说共和党人她能闻出来，就像马能闻到响尾蛇一样，当然谁也不相信嬷嬷说的这一套。因为大家认为媚兰慈爱也会有个限度，至少大家希望如此。
那陌生人走进后院时，思嘉正在侧面的回廊上，怀里搂着小女儿，在11月微弱的阳光下晒太阳。思嘉一看见他就想：“是的，他一定是媚兰的那帮瘸腿狗。他还真是个瘸子呢！“这个人装着一条假腿，走起路来和威尔一样，一拐一拐的。他是一个高个子的瘦的老头，头发已经脱落，头皮红得发亮，看上去很脏，灰白胡子长得可以塞到腰带底下。他满脸皱纹，面无表情，看上去60开外，但身体看上去还较确朗。
此人其貌不扬，虽然装了假腿，走起路来却和长虫一样快。
他上了台阶，朝思嘉走来，还没讲话，思嘉发现他鼻音很重，带卷舌音，这在平原地带是很少见的，因而断定他是在山里长大的。他的衣服虽然破旧不堪，却和大部分山里人一样，有一种沉静而高傲的神气，决不容许别人冒犯，他的胡子上有嚼烟叶的口水，嘴里含着一大团烟叶，显得脸都有些变了形。他的鼻子又窄又高，两道眉毛下边是一个空洞，腮帮子上有一条很长的伤疤，形成一条对角线，一直插到胡子里。另一只眼睛很小，冷淡而无光，那是一只呆板无情的眼睛。在他的腰带上挂着一支沉甸甸的手枪，很显眼，破靴子的口上还露着一把单刃猎刀的刀柄。
他冷冷地回敬了思嘉一眼，隔着栏杆啐过一口痰来，这才开始说话，"他那只独眼中有一种蔑视的眼光，但不是蔑视她个人，而是针对整个女性。"“威尔克斯小姐让我来给你干活，"他简捷地说。他说起话来结结巴巴，好像不习惯于说话，说得很慢，很费劲，"我叫阿尔奇。"“很抱歉，我没有活儿给你干，阿尔奇先生！““阿尔奇是我的名字。"“请原谅，那你姓什么？"他又啐了一口痰，"这不干你的事。"他说，"你就叫我阿尔奇吧。"“你姓什么我不管！我没有活儿给你干。”“我看不然，威尔克斯小姐说你要像个傻瓜似的到处乱跑，很不放心，所以派我来给你赶车。"“是吗？"思嘉说。这人说话如此放肆，媚兰多管闲事，这使她感到很生气。
他那只怀着敌意的独眼与思嘉的眼光相遇，但这敌意并不是对她而来的，"是啊，男人要保护自家女人，女人就不该找麻烦，你要是非出去不可，我就给你赶车，你憎恨那些黑鬼，也憎恨北方佬。"他把嘴里烟叶从一边倒到另一边，没等主人让，就在最高一磴台阶上坐下来。"别以为我愿意给女人赶车，可是威尔斯小姐待我好哇，她让我住在她的地窖里，是她让我给你赶车的。"“可是----"思嘉无可奈何地说。但她刚一开口就又停住了，对这个人端详起来。过了一会儿，她脸上露出了笑容，这个老家伙的相貌她并不喜欢，可是用了他，事情就好办多了。
有他赶车，思嘉就可以进城去，到木材厂去，或者去找顾客，有他做保镖，谁也不用怕她不安全。一看他那副模样，谁也不会说什么闲话。
“就这样吧，"她说。"但是这件事得征求我丈夫的同意。"弗兰克单独和阿尔奇谈了谈，也勉强同意了，接着就给车房发话。思嘉的马车可以启用了。他原本期望思嘉做了母亲以后会变，现在他失望了，而且有些难过。但一转念，又觉得如果思嘉非要到那些该死的木材厂去，阿尔奇可就来得太巧了。
对于这样一种安排，刚开始整个亚特兰大都感到惊讶。阿尔奇和思嘉在一起很不协调，一个是面貌凶恶的脏老头子，拖着一条假腿，耷拉在挡泥板上，一个是衣着整洁的漂亮少妇，双眉紧蹙，若有所思，只见他二人不停地在城内外到处奔波，彼此很少说话，显然是互相嫌弃。他们在一起，显然是各有所需，他需要的钱，而她需要有人保护。城里的女人都说，起码这比她在光天化日之下和那个叫巴特勒的男人驾着车到处跑要好。她们都在纳闷，不知道瑞德·巴特勒这些日子到哪里去了。三个月以前，他突然消失了，就连思嘉也不知道他到哪里去了。
阿尔奇是个沉默寡言的人，别人不跟他说话，他是一声不吭的。回答别的问话，也是含含糊糊地说不清楚。每天早上从媚兰的地窖里出来，就坐在皮蒂姑妈房前的台阶上，一面嚼烟叶，啐唾沫，一面等候思嘉。思嘉一出来，彼得便把她的马车从车房赶出来。彼得大叔很怕阿尔奇，只是不像怕魔鬼和三k党那么厉害罢了。就连嬷嬷也是摄手摄脚地从他身旁走，过不敢出声。他憎恨黑人，黑人也知道，而且怕他。
除了原有的手枪和猎刀以外，他又增加了一把手枪，他在黑人中间，真是远近闻名。他从来不真的拨出手枪，甚至不必往腰带上伸手，只凭心理上的影响就足够了，只要是阿尔奇在附近黑人是连笑也不敢笑的。
有一次，思嘉出于好奇心，问他为什么仇恨黑人。他的回答使思嘉出乎意外，因为其时不管问他什么问题，他总是回答说：“这不干你的事。"这一回，他是这样回答的：“我憎恨他们，我们山里人都憎恨他们。我们从来就不喜欢他们，从来不理睬那玩艺儿。这场战争就是他们闹出来的。就冲着这个，我也不能不憎恨他们。"“可是你也参加打仗了。"“我认为那是一个男人应该干的。我也恨那些北方佬，比恨黑人更厉害，我最恨的是多嘴多舌的女人。"阿尔奇露骨地说出这样无礼的话，顿使思嘉感到不快，恨不得把他甩掉，但是离开他又怎么办呢？还有什么别的办法让她象这样想到哪儿去，就到哪儿去呢？他既无礼，又肮脏，有时甚至身上有股怪味儿，但是他能解决问题。思嘉去木材厂，他送她，接她，还送她一家家去找她的顾客，在她谈生意或下指示的时候，他就一边啐唾沫，一边望着远处发呆。她一下车，他也下车，紧紧跟在后面。她要是和粗鲁的工人，黑人或北方的军队打交道，他一般总是待在身边，寸步不离。
没多久，人们就对思嘉和她的保镖看惯了，看惯了以后，妇女们就开始羡慕她的行动自由，自从三k党绞死人以后，妇女几乎是被软禁起来了，即便是进城买东西，也一定六七个人结伴而行。而这些女人们生来喜欢交往，这样一来，她们就坐立不安，因此就把面子撂在一旁，来找思嘉，求她把阿尔奇借给她们用用。她倒也挺大方的，只要自己不用，总是让他去为女友效力。
阿尔奇转眼间就仿佛成了亚特兰大专营保镖行业的人，妇女们争先恐后地在他闲暇的时候雇用他，几乎每天早上吃早饭的时候都有一个孩子或者黑人仆人送来一张条子，上面写道：“今天下午如果您不用阿尔奇，能否让我雇用一下，我要到公墓去献花。"或者说：“我要去买一顶帽子。""我想让阿尔奇赶车送内利姑妈出去兜兜风。"还有的说：“我需要到彼得斯大街去一趟，但爷爷身体不大好，不能陪我去，能不能让阿尔奇----"姑娘，太太，寡妇，他都去给她们赶车，对她们统统表现出那种不以为然的鄙视态度，很显然，除了媚兰之外，他是不喜欢女人的，和对待黑人和北方佬的态度一样。妇女们刚开始对他的无礼感到惊讶，但后来也就习惯了，再加上他沉默寡言，只是有时候吐些嚼烟叶的唾液，大家自然把他和赶的马同样看待，而忘记了还有他这样一个人。有一次，梅里韦瑟太太把侄女生孩子的所有细节跟米德太太说了遍，压根儿没想起阿尔奇就坐在车前赶车。
只有在当前这种局势之下才会出现这样的情况。在战前，妇女们连厨房也不会让他进的，她们在后门口拿给他一些吃的，就把他打发走了。现在大家都欢迎了，因为有他在场就感到安全。他粗鲁，没有文化，而且肮脏，但他有能力地保护妇女们免受重建时期各种恐怖行为的威胁。他以保镖为业，保护妇女的安全，这样她们的丈夫白天就可以去工作，夜晚有事也可以出去了。
渐渐思嘉发现，自从阿尔奇来给她干活之后，弗兰克常常晚上出去，他说店里的帐目需要结。现在生意好，上班时间顾不上结帐。有时他说朋友生病了，需要去照料一下。另外还有一个民主党人的组织，每星期三晚上聚会，研究怎样重新获得选举权，而弗兰克从未缺席。思嘉觉得这个组织聚在一起不会谈别的，只是议论戈登将军怎样比其他各位将军功劳大，仅次于李将军，他们还要把整个战争重打一遍，她看得清楚，在重新争选举权方面没取得什么进展。弗兰克显然是很喜欢参加这些聚会的，因为他总是待到最后，待到很晚。
艾希礼有时也出去照料病人，他也参加民主党人的聚会，而且常常是和弗兰克同一天晚上出去，每逢这种时候，阿尔奇就护送皮蒂、思嘉、韦德和小爱拉穿过后院，到媚兰家去，两个家庭在一起渡过这个夜晚，这几个女人做针线活儿，阿尔奇说直挺挺地躺在客厅里的沙发上打呼噜，每呼一声，他那灰白胡子就跳动一阵。没人请他在沙发上坐，而且这沙发是全家最精致的一件家具，每次见他往上前一躺，还把靴子放在漂亮的软垫上，她们就心疼得不得了。可是她们谁也没有这个勇气出来阻拦他。有一次，他说幸亏他一躺下就会睡着，否则一帮女人像一群母鸡似的不停地唠唠叨叨，会使他发疯的。大家一听，更不敢阻拦他了。
有时思嘉也纳闷，阿尔奇到底是哪里人，在媚兰的地窖里住下之前是干什么的，但一直没敢问他。一看他那独眼的严厉的面孔，好奇心也就消失了。她只晓得，听他的口音，他是北方的人山里人，他当过兵，在南方军队投降之前不久，他受了伤，丢了一只眼睛、一条腿。有一天，她大骂休·埃尔辛，倒使得阿尔奇全盘托出了自己的经历。
有一天早上，这个老头儿赶着车送思嘉到休经管的木材厂去，思嘉发现厂子没开工，黑人都不在，休无精打采地在树底下坐着，工人都不见人影，他也不知道怎么办好，一看这情形，思嘉怒火冲天，便毫不客平地和休发作起来，因为她刚弄到一份购买大宗木材的定单，而且要得很急，这份定单是她费了很大精力，搭上自己的姿色，而且争了半天才弄到手的，而木材厂现在却不开工。
“送我到那个厂子去，"她向阿尔奇吩咐道：“我知道路上要走很长时间，饭也吃不上了。不过我花钱雇你又是为了什么呢？我要让威尔克斯先生把手上的活儿停下来，先把我这批木材赶出来。说不定他那里也没开工呢。这可就好了！我从来没见过休·埃尔辛这样蠢货！等约翰尼·加勒格尔一把商店盖好，我就把他赶走。加勒格尔在北方佬军队里干过事，这有什么关系？他能干活儿。我从没看见爱尔兰人有发懒的。
我再也不雇自由的黑鬼了。那些人靠不祝我要把加勒格尔找来。再雇上几个犯人，他会让他们干活儿的，他----"阿尔奇一听这话，转过头来看着她，眼睛里充满了恶意，接着他用沙哑的声音带着冷酷的怒气说：“你什么时候雇来犯人，我什么时候走。"思嘉大吃一惊，说：“哎呀！这是为什么"“我知道雇犯人是怎么回事，我管它叫谋杀犯人，买人就像买骡子一样，他们受到的待遇连骡子都不如，他们挨打，挨饿，还要遭杀害。有谁过问呢？政府不管。政府已经把钱拿到手了。雇犯人的，他们也不管。他们只想花最少的钱给他们一口饭吃，让他们干最多的活儿。见鬼去吧，太太，我从来看不起女人，现在就更看不起女人了。"“这和你有什么关系嘛？"“有的，"他的答话十分简单。他停顿了一下又接着说：“我当犯人当了将近四十年。"思嘉倒抽了一口冷气，霎那间，倚在靠垫上直往后缩。原来阿尔奇这个谜和谜底在这里，他之所以不愿说出自己的姓和出生地，不愿谈自己的经历，原因就在这里，他说话不流利，对社会采取冷酷、仇恨的态度，原因也在这里。四十年啊！他入狱的时候肯定还年轻。四十年啊！他一定是判的无期徒刑，而判无期徒刑的人----“是不是因为----杀人？"“是的，"他坦率地答道，同时抖了抖缰绳，"杀了老婆。"思嘉吓得直眨眼睛。
胡子遮盖着的嘴唇好像动了动，仿佛他在讥笑思嘉这样害怕。"你要是怕我杀你，感到紧张，那你可以放心，太太，我是不会杀你的。我不会无故杀死任何一个女人。"“你杀了你的老婆！"“她和我兄弟乱搞，他跑了，我就把她杀了。放荡的女人就该杀，法律不应该为了这个就把一个人关起来，可却把我关起来了。““可是----你是怎么出来的呢？跑出来的吗？还是赦免了？"“可是说是赦免，“他紧紧地皱了皱那两道灰色的浓眉，好像连续讲话有困难。
“早在1864年，谢曼打到这里，当时我在米莱吉维尔监狱，四十年来我一直关在那里，狱长把我们这些犯人都召集起来，对我们说，北方佬来了，他们杀人，放火，现在除了黑鬼和女人以外，我要是还有什么更恨的东西，那就是北方佬。"“那是为什么？你曾经----你是不是