A Tragedy strikes home

Harriett was behind in her chores, thus the reason she rushed to get supper ready on this evening. It was Friday, and as has been the Hall household tradition, fried fish was the main entree along with a side-dish of smothered potatoes, prepared in such a way as one would notice the steaming pearl like surface onions speckled throughout the bowl. She gently placed a serving bowl of hot and creamy vegetable soup on the table alongside the hot buttered biscuits. Already on the table was a bowl of leftover fried chicken that had been reheated for this festive like supper. There was a small can filled with molasses along with a bowl of fresh churned butter to accompany the meal. Bowls of creamed corn and fried okra with freshly cut carrot sticks and sliced tomatoes helped to make up the feast.

She took a step back from the table to view the entire scene so that she could make sure she got everything on the table. The oblong table had three chairs, a two-person bench and a stool, just enough to seat everyone in the Hall family. "Oh, the corn fritters," she said out loud turning to take them off the iron stove top and placing the semi-warm pan on the table. Just in time too, as she could hear the creaky wheels of the family's horse drawn wagon coming down the hill headed for her cabins front door. She knew the sound of the horse team because she heard them returning from old man Jennings' farm six days a week over the last few years. Sometimes seven days a week during the planting and harvesting seasons of the year. She could count on her husband's old hunting dogs, Sadie, the Mama dog, and her three young pups barking at the sight of Frank Hall and the kids coming home.

Harriett, patted her short cropped hair, checked to ensure her full bodied apron was spotless as could be while covering her modest house dress. She smiled as she was once again pleased at the preparation she had put in to make this meal for her loved ones. She opened the front door, shielding her eyes with her right hand and stepped out on the porch into the late evening sun.

It was quite a scene, Sadie and the pups were barking and milling around the walkway to the cabin. You could also tell that Mama Dog was making sure one of the pups didn't run out in the road only to get trampled by a spooked horse or worse, run over by the wagon wheel. "Sadie, stay back there now," commanded Edward Hall, nineteen, the only boy and oldest child of the Halls. He was sitting in his customary place beside his father as the wagon came to a stop in front of the walkway.

"Whoa, whoa team," shouted Frank Hall as he attempted to calm down the skittish horses that were obviously annoyed by the barking and jumping around of the little pups. In defense of the pups, the eight week old dogs had not been around long enough to know if this wagon full of people and especially those two strange and mammoth animals were friend or foe. They were just doing their barking, jumping around, and turning flips routine to alert whoever was there that a possible intrusion of people, wagon, and exceptionally large animals were going on here. Sadie had stopped barking and looked on in amusement at her offspring's act.

"Hi Mama!" Eighteen year old Versia, seventeen year old Lummie, almost thirteen year old Gracie, and eleven year old Lena yelled almost in unison out to their Mama.

"Hey girls, get yourselves in here so you can help me finish setting the table," Harriett instructed half scolding. Gracie and Lena jumped out of the wagon at her command, ran and tried to hug Harriett as shooed them inside the cabin.

The two oldest girls, body style and facial features identical to their mother, moved slow and deliberate like the young ladies they thought they were each waiting for Edward to give them a hand at getting down from the wagon. Afterwards, Edward told his father that he would take the team and wagon down to the half built barn house/stable, unhook them and be back in a flash for supper.

Frank playfully bent his lean five-nine frame down to the dogs' level. By now, he was through stroking and greeting Sadie, nodded his head in approval as all of his attention now turned to his cute and petite five foot, brown skinned wife still standing in front of the cabins doorway looking like a little angel with the slowly disappearing evening sun glistening off her face. There were no words as they both embraced in appreciation of each other. With the pups still barking, arms around the others waist, Frank and Harriett went inside, closing the door behind them.

"How was it?" Harriett asked.

"A day like any other day this time of year, worked our butts off from the time we got there until we left," replied Frank.

At various time throughout the years, the entire Hall family members, excluding Mama Harriett, worked in some capacity for Lee Jennings farm for over eighteen years. This was in spite of the Hall household sitting on land that was given to Harriett by her father, Pete Belin. Old man Belin, like Mr. Jennings' father was an early 1800s settler in the Pleasant Hill community of Banks. By the time, Harriett whom he nicknamed "Haig" and her four brothers became adults they each received forty acres. For Frank and Harriett having the land was one thing, working the land was a slow process. Oftentimes it cost more money than they ever could save. It was even harder to get a local loan on the property. None of the forty acre properties was what one would call prime farming land and all needed a lot of work even with all the brothers helping each other out. Something always came up.

Thus, old man Jennings had come to know Frank Hall as a "nigger he could count on". He might not say it like that to Franks face but Mr. Jennings had grown to respect the hard working Frank and his family. He knew any money he paid Frank or the family members would be used to attend to their own property. Although the children attended school outside of the planting season from March to late June and harvest time in late September through October, Arkansas schools were closed down to allow for all hands on deck at these peak farming periods. There were areas on the Halls' land where they planted the normal food staples such as tomatoes, cabbage, greens, corn, potatoes and beans. Therefore, they had the double duty of attending to their small crops while working for...