The Mandie Collection (41 page)

“Yes, ma'am,” Mandie said, hurrying across the room to close the outside door and then releasing Snowball, who immediately came to sit by Aunt Saphronia and to watch the thread. Mandie sat back down and tried to watch Snowball and Aunt Saphronia at the same time.

The old woman finished joining the squares and smoothed them out on her lap. “See,” she said. And picking up another calico square, she began attaching it to the other side of the blue square.

“Oh, I see what she is doing,” Joe remarked with a little laugh. “She is making a checkerboard with calico squares and blue squares alternating.”

Aunt Saphronia looked at him, smiled, and said, “Yes, but not always.” When she had four squares sewn together, she laid them on the table and explained, “Not straight. Make crossways.” She indicated the corners of the squares would point upward and the blocks would run at angles across the quilt when finished.

“I believe I could do that,” Celia remarked.

“Long work, stitch, stitch, stitch,” Aunt Saphronia explained. “Then make bottom side, stuff inside.”

“Do you make other patterns, Aunt Saphronia?” Mandie asked.

“Yes,” the old woman replied, nodding her head. “More patterns.” She rose and went over to a huge chest at the other end of the room and raised the lid.

Mandie quickly followed her and saw stacks of quilts inside. She bent closer to look as Aunt Saphronia started pulling the quilts out. None of them resembled the mystery quilt she had found in the attic.

“Who made all these quilts, Aunt Saphronia?” Mandie asked.

“Lots people,” the old woman replied. She held up a quilt with red flowers all over it. “I make this when young.” She reached for another one as she laid that aside. “My mother make,” she continued as she held up another quilt. This one had lots of circles made into it.

The girls looked closely at the quilts. Celia was interested in the handiwork. Mandie was watching for a quilt that might look like the one she had found, with odd symbols scattered over it.

“Here is one I can make easy pattern for you to make,” the old woman said, holding up another one. This one had large blocks with crosses in the middle of each one.

Mandie quickly looked at this one and said, “It looks like people's names on the blocks.”

“Yes, make quilt and people friends sign name,” Aunt Saphronia explained. “Long ago I make this one. Now I make simple pattern for you to make. Do you wish?”

“Oh yes, Aunt Saphronia, I'd love to make a quilt and have all my friends and relatives sign their names on it like that. But it looks awfully hard to make,” Mandie explained.

Aunt Saphronia explained, “This called Album Block like this. I make pattern for you. Not so simple as Nine Patch Block, but I help. You can do it.” She hurried over to the table, where her supplies were.

“Do you think I could really make a quilt?” Mandie asked, really interested now.

“And, Mandie, could I help you?” Celia asked.

“Yes, that way we'd get finished quicker,” Mandie said with a big grin. Turning to Joe, she asked, “Do you want to help, too?”

Joe shrugged his shoulders and grinned back. “If I can be the first to sign my name on it,” he replied.

“Now, we cut two squares light, eight squares dark,” Aunt Saphronia explained as she began making a sample block. “Then cut one rectangle light, four rectangles dark.” She quickly cut the blue and white pieces, laid them on the table, and showed Mandie how to make the strips that would form the cross in the center of each quilt block.

“Oh, I do believe I could do that,” Mandie said excitedly.

“I will help you get started,” Aunt Saphronia offered.

“But I don't want to take your cloth. Aren't you going to use that blue and the white for something else?” Mandie said.

“No worry. More in attic,” Aunt Saphronia replied, smiling at her. “Now we begin.”

Mandie and Celia became so interested in quilt making, with Joe watching, that time flew. And suddenly Uncle Wirt came into the house.

“Must go now,” the old man told Mandie and her friends. “Morning Star say be back to eat.”

“Oh, I suppose we do have to go, Aunt Saphronia,” Mandie told the old woman.

“Come back tomorrow. We work more,” Aunt Saphronia said.

Mandie hugged her aunt, and Aunt Saphronia reached to include Celia and Joe in the embrace. “All come back tomorrow early, work all day,” she said.

“Yes, ma'am, we will,” Mandie promised, going over to pick up Snowball, who was asleep in front of the fireplace. Then looking at her friends, she said, “I wish we had told Morning Star that we would stay here all day today.”

“We will tomorrow,” Celia said.

Joe cleared his throat loudly and said, “Maybe Dimar and I will find something to do tomorrow while y'all make a quilt.” He grinned at Mandie.

As they all piled into Uncle Wirt's wagon, Mandie asked the old man, “Has anyone found Tsa'ni yet?”

Uncle Wirt shook his head as he drove the wagon into the road. “No,” he said. “Jessan back soon. He find.”

Mandie grinned at Joe and said, “Maybe Joe and Dimar could look for Tsa'ni tomorrow while Celia and I learn to make a quilt with Aunt Saphronia.”

Before Joe could reply, Uncle Wirt said quickly, “No look no more. Jessan find.”

When they arrived back at Uncle Ned's, Morning Star already had the noon meal cooked and ready to serve.

“Eat,” the old woman told them as they came into the house.

“I go home,” Uncle Wirt told her. “Back tomorrow.” As he left the room, he waved his hand at Uncle Ned, who was sitting near the fireplace.

Sallie was helping her grandmother with the food. “I am glad you are back,” she told Mandie and her friends as she laid silverware on the table.

“Oh, Sallie, I'm learning how to make a quilt,” Mandie excitedly told her. She set Snowball down, and he immediately jumped into the woodbox behind the stove.

“I am, too,” Celia added.

Grinning at Joe, Mandie said, “And so is Joe.”

“No more,” Joe said.

“We told Aunt Saphronia we'd come back tomorrow, Sallie. Can you go with us?” Mandie asked.

“We see,” Sallie replied.

Uncle Ned stood up and came to the table. “Sit, eat,” he told them.

“Eat,” Morning Star echoed as she placed the last dish on the table.

Everyone sat down at the table. Morning Star began passing the bowls of food. Mandie, sitting next to Joe, saw him quickly examine the meat on a platter.

“That's ham,” Mandie whispered to him.

“Ham and what else?” Joe said, still holding the platter.

“Turnips. Can't you smell them?” Mandie replied.

Joe quickly put some of the ham and turnips on his plate and passed it to Mandie.

“This looks good,” Mandie said, placing some of the ham and turnips on her plate and passing the dish on to Celia.

Sallie had been watching and listening. She spoke up, “My grandmother
knows you do not like owl stew. We will not cook owl stew while you are with us.”

Joe cleared his throat and said, “Thank you, Sallie, for telling me that. I suppose nobody likes everything, so it just happens I don't like owl stew.” He took a bite of the ham and turnips and added, “Now, this is delicious.”

Everyone had paused to listen to the conversation when Morning Star suddenly said, “Eat,” with a big smile. Everyone began eating.

Mandie looked down the table to Uncle Ned at the end and said, “Uncle Ned, Aunt Saphronia is teaching Celia and me how to make a quilt.”

Uncle Ned looked at her for a moment and then said, “Make happy, good quilt.”

“Yes, sir, it's going to be one that everyone signs their name on,” Mandie explained. “Aunt Saphronia showed us lots of old quilts, and I decided I wanted to make a quilt.”

“Good,” he said, and then turning to Morning Star, he spoke rapidly in Cherokee.

Mandie watched as Morning Star first frowned and shook her head and then turned and smiled at Mandie. She then spoke to Sallie as she glanced at Joe.

Sallie translated, “Mandie, my grandmother says every girl should learn how to make a quilt, also boys should help.”

“Please tell your grandmother, Sallie, that this boy is going to find Dimar and do some boy things with him, like maybe hunting,” Joe said with a big grin directed at Morning Star.

Sallie rapidly repeated the message in Cherokee to her grandmother. Morning Star grinned, nodded her head, and said, “Hunt, eat.”

“Yes, ma'am, we'll go hunting and bring back something to eat,” Joe told her.

“We hunt tomorrow,” Uncle Ned said, nodding his head in agreement.

While the meal dragged on, Mandie became impatient to get upstairs and search the roof for the missing quilt. Whoever had shut Snowball out on the roof might have also put the quilt out there, hoping Mandie would never find it.

However, she had to delay her plans again as Sallie made plans for them.

“After we finish eating, would you all like to walk over to the Cherokee schoolhouse?” Sallie asked the three young people. “I need to ask Mr. O'Neal for a book.”

“Yes,” Celia and Joe both agreed.

“Of course, Sallie,” Mandie added when she could think of no excuse to delay their visit in order that she might search the roof before they went.

As soon as they returned, she was definitely going to search the roof.

CHAPTER NINE

DANGER IN THE DARK

When the meal was over and the young people were preparing to walk over to the Cherokee schoolhouse, which was a short distance past the Cherokee hospital, Uncle Ned told Joe, “Take cart. Take firewood to school.”

“Yes, sir, I'd be glad to. Where is the firewood?” Joe replied as he and Mandie waited for Sallie and Celia to wash their hands after helping to clear the table. Mandie held her white cat in her arms.

“Barn, back,” Uncle Ned replied, motioning toward the back of his house. “Come.” He led the way out the door and into the backyard.

Sallie and Celia caught up with them, and Sallie explained, “All our people chop wood and give it to Mr. Riley for the school. They bring it here to put in one pile, and whoever has time takes it to him.”

They had all followed Uncle Ned into the barn in his backyard. He and Joe began loading the cart with wood from a bin in the corner.

“All this wood should last awhile,” Mandie remarked.

“Yes, weather warm now,” Uncle Ned replied.

“He still has to have wood to burn in his cookstove,” Sallie added.

They got the cart loaded, hitched up the horse, and left for the Cherokee schoolhouse.

“This will not take long, since we are using the cart,” Sallie said
as Joe drove through the rough trail. “Perhaps we will find something else to do when we return to my grandfather's house.”

“Maybe Dimar will be at your house when we go back and I can ask him about going hunting tomorrow with Uncle Ned and me,” Joe said, slowing the horse to go down a steep slope.

“Dimar may be hunting for Tsa'ni with Mr. Wirt today,” Sallie said.

“No,” Mandie said, clutching Snowball, who was trying to get free. “Uncle Wirt said he would not search anymore and that Jessan could find Tsa'ni when Jessan gets back from Asheville.”

“I wonder if Jessan has returned from Asheville,” Celia said.

“He should have returned by now, but he has not been to my grandfather's house today if he did,” Sallie explained.

“But maybe he has been out looking for Tsa'ni,” Joe suggested. “I sure hope someone finds that boy, because I don't want to have to spend my time doing it.”

“Yes,” all three girls agreed at once.

Suddenly the wheels of the cart started sliding, and Joe pulled tightly on the reins. “Hold on,” he told the girls.

In the sudden slowing of the cart, Snowball managed to get free from his mistress and jumped back into the woodpile, where he began howling as he stuck his claws into a piece of wood.

“Snowball, I can't reach you. You'll just have to hold on,” Mandie called to him as the cart jolted and finally came to a stop.

“Sorry,” Joe said, blowing out his breath and rubbing his hands together.

“We put too much wood on here for the steep road,” Sallie told him.

Mandie reached back and grasped Snowball and pulled him to her. “Snowball, you are going to stay with me whether you like it or not,” she told the cat.

Joe jumped down to look at the rough trail they had come over. He suddenly bent down to inspect a wheel. “I do believe we have a loose wheel,” he told the girls, who also stepped down. Mandie held on to Snowball.

They all stooped to look as Joe pushed and pulled on a front
wheel. “The nuts are loose,” he told the girls. He straightened up and looked in the bed of the cart. “And we don't have any tools, do we?”

“No, I do not remember seeing any tools when we loaded the wood,” Sallie replied.

“Sallie, how far are we from the schoolhouse?” Mandie asked. “Maybe we could walk on and get tools from Mr. Riley to come back and fix the wheel.”

“There is a short cut,” Sallie said. “It is not far if we walk.”

“Then let's go. Show us the way, Sallie,” Joe said.

Sallie cut through the woods, and the others followed. Soon they came into a large clearing.

“Look, there's the schoolhouse,” Mandie said, pointing ahead. The log building was just barely visible through a thicket of bushes.

“Yes, we are almost there,” Sallie agreed.

When they came out into another opening, the log schoolhouse stood before them.

Mandie stopped to look. “Is that a barn back there? Did Mr. Riley build a barn?”

As they continued on, Sallie replied, “Yes, since you were here all the men decided Mr. Riley needed a barn for his horse and for the firewood. They built it in three days.” She smiled at Mandie.