The Grantville Gazette Vol 5 Part 5

They had two of these saws and also a machine that was so simple that I believe one of our smithies could easily build one. They call it a come-along because it makes things come along. The machine had a lever, a ratchet, and a windla.s.s drum, with cable and hooks, so that one man could lift a ton if he worked patiently with the lever and ratchet. The rope was made of steel wire, but that was the only new idea in this machine.

Their shovels were more finely forged than any shovel I have seen, but they were just shovels. By the end of the day, they had helped us recover five more bodies. Three of those would have taken days to get out without the saw and the come-along.

These men claimed special training in what they call rescue and recovery work, and they had with them two items that were horrible proof of that. They called them body bags. These were made of the finest oiled canvas, with a remarkable sliding fastener to hold each closed, and with many handles very finely sewn to the sides all around. These bags were good for only one thing, and that was for carrying the dead out of difficult places.

While I am talking about strange tools, I should say something about the engine that is even now being used to build the promised road up from the bottom of the pit to Schwarzburg. It is yellow, and the size of a small hut. For most of last week, it has sat beside a great pile of charcoal near a huge mill building not far below us, doing nothing. On Friday, though, a man came out of the mill building and climbed onto this engine, and it seemed to come to life with a rumble like distant thunder. It pushes things around. It has a great blade, like a broad shovel on the front, and it pushes with the power of many oxen. That first time we saw it used, it was put to use shaping that pile of charcoal.

Today, as I watch, there are just five men working slowly up the side of one of the mountains within the pit. They are using their marvelous saws to cut the trees in the path of the road they are building. Sometimes they use the come-along to pull the fallen trees where they want them. One of the men is working the great engine I mentioned. With this machine alone, he is doing the work of fifty or one hundred men cutting a road into the side of the mountain. I believe he will complete this road by noon, yet it must be almost a mile in length.

But, let me say more about my conversation with Mark O'Reilly. Although his German was not good, he had with him a remarkable little book, a dictionary. Part of it contained English words and their German equivalents, and part contained German words and their English equivalents, all organized by the alphabet. There was one problem with this book. His dictionary contained German as it will be spoken more than three centuries in the future. With his bad German and this dictionary, however, we spoke of some of the most remarkable things.

One curious thing came out. I have been speaking of the pit, because from Schwarzburg, it appears that Grantville lies at the bottom of a great pit that has opened up in our lands. The people from Grantville refer to what has befallen them in different terms. They call it the Ring of Fire because, for a fleeting moment when their town was inexplicably transported to our doorstep, they were surrounded by a strange circle of fire.

They have no understanding at all of how this happened. Whatever devilment there is behind what happened, whatever G.o.d's purpose may be in this, it is no clearer to them than it is to us. They may have wondrous tools, and they do indeed appear to come from our future, but they are afraid of the same things we are., They fear not having enough food to eat, and fear that the war that is sweeping south after the fall of Magdeburg will consume them.

The people of Grantville know of the war that plagues our lands. They call it the Thirty Years' War, because, from the point of view of their future, it lasted thirty years. Mark O'Reilly says that this war murdered one third of the population of Germany. Yes, murder is the word he used. He said that, from this and other wars of religion, the Church of his day, not just the church of the popes, but also the many Protestant churches have learned that they must tolerate each other even when they disagree deeply about doctrine.

This is the most remarkable thing of all. In this town of Grantville, there are many Protestant churches and also a Catholic church. He said that the different churches disagree on many matters of theology, but that they have been there for many years, and living in peace despite these differences. All of them have used the Catholic calendar for many years, not because of any Catholic victory, but because they have agreed that Pope Gregory's calendar is more rational than the old calendar.

Among the men from Grantville working with us, Mark O'Reilly and one other were Catholic, one was Lutheran, one was Presbyterian, which I take to be a kind of Calvinist, and one from some Protestant group called the Church of Christ. Strangely, the Presbyterian said he had a Catholic wife, but even more remarkable than this was the fact that Mark O'Reilly did not know the religions of most of the men he was working with. He had to ask, and he only thought to do so in response to my questions.

I learned that there are indeed Jews in town. One Jewish family is headed by a goldsmith who has been a respected merchant in town for many years. This Rebecca Abrabanel who signed the letter we saw last week is indeed Jewish, but she and her father are from our world, from Amsterdam. You may measure the warmth of their welcome by the fact that she seems to have taken a very high seat on this emergency committee they have established to rule their town. Mark O'Reilly did say, though, that he thought the head of this emergency committee, a man named Michael Stearns, was some kind of Protestant.

Again, note my words. He thought. It seems that he has never inquired about this matter. I am not talking about a man who lacks curiosity or judgment. This man was most curious, deeply concerned about the safety of his men and of the men from Schwarzburg, and very interested to learn what I had to say. Despite this curiosity, despite being well educated, despite the fact that he had a sharp wit, he had never inquired. I can only conclude that we will find this Grantville to be very different from any place we have ever imagined.

Mark O'Reilly said that he was no scholar of religion, but he knew far more of the Bible than the Catholic laymen I have met. When I questioned how Grantville's religions could be so tolerant, he quoted a doc.u.ment with which I am unfamiliar, saying that all men are made equal, but then he showed how this follows from the book of Genesis, since we are all descended from Adam and Adam himself was created in G.o.d's image. The logic of this argument is very compelling. If indeed every man is an image of G.o.d himself, not in the idolatrous sense but because that is indeed how G.o.d made us, then indeed, it would be disrespectful of G.o.d himself for us to treat each other with anything less than respect, even when we may disagree deeply.

Martin, as a brother in Christ, as my roommate of many years when we studied together in seminary, I beg your help in trying to digest what has happened here.

I write as your most humble and troubled friend, Hermann Decker.

Susan's Story

By Paula Goodlett and Gorg Huff

Grantville

August, 1632 "I don't know about you, Susan," Tina said, "but I'm getting out of here before she wakes up. The last thing I want to deal with is Mom and one of her weepy hangovers."

"C'mon, Tina. The hangovers are easier to live with than what's really going to happen today," Susan remarked, resignedly. "Considering the racket they made last night, today's performance will be the 'I'm so embarra.s.sed' show. Or maybe it will be the 'I have a right to a life of my own' show. Again."

Deepening her voice, Tina announced "Welcome, viewers, to One Life in Grantville starring . . . Veeelllmmmaaa Hardesty!"

Pretending their life was just a soap opera helped them handle some of their mother Velma's more outrageous actions. It gave them something to laugh about in a life that had become more and more difficult. Susan continued their usual routine with: "In today's episode the adventure continues. Will Velma find the man of her dreams? Or, will she continue her never-ending search? Tune in tomorrow . . ."

Susan stopped abruptly when she saw the tears in Tina's eyes. "Don't, Tina," she pleaded. "It doesn't help to cry. We figured that out years ago."

Tina wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and sniffed. "It wasn't so bad before the Ring of Fire. Mom at least tried to act sort of respectable back then. Now she's not even trying. People are noticing and starting to make remarks."

"Yeah, I've heard them, too. It's not like we can even hope to grow up and move away to start over. With only about three and half thousand up-timers, someone will always remember who raised us." Susan looked intently at Tina, forehead creased with worry. "Let's grab a few things and go see Grampa Fred. I have an idea."

"Will it get us out of this trailer and away from Mom? Will we be able to escape this constant parade of admirers?"

"Maybe," Susan answered. "I hope so. Mom's just getting worse and worse. Maybe Grampa can help us find a way."

"Grampa, we need to talk to you."

Fred Logsden's face lit up when he saw his granddaughters. There hadn't been much happiness in his life lately. His wife, Susan, had died a few months ago, leaving him alone in the house. The rumors surrounding his former daughter-in-law were another cause for concern. Young Susan and Tina were his closest family since the Ring of Fire had left his son, Carney, back up-time.

It was hard to tell the girls apart if you didn't know them. They both had long honey-colored hair and were nearly the same height. Tina at sixteen was just a bit taller and more finished looking than her sister. Susan, two years younger, seemed to be balanced on the edge between child and young woman.

"Girls, come on in." He opened his arms for hugs. "It's so good to see you."

Released from the three-way hug, Susan looked around the small living room. "Grampa, if Gramma Susan could see this place she'd be chasing you with a broom. It's a mess! Why don't you hire a housekeeper?"

"Because I don't want some strange woman running around my house clucking at me," Fred remarked. "I pick up every day or so. Just leave stuff alone."

"Nope," Tina and Susan said in unison, as they swept through the room. As Fred watched in surprise, order emerged from chaos. In less than ten minutes the dirty dishes were soaking, the piles of clothing and papers were sorted and put away, and the furniture was dusted.

"We'll finish it later, Grampa," Susan said. "Right now we really need to talk to you. It's pretty important."

"Is Velma at it again, girls?" Fred asked.

"Yesterday she had beer for breakfast. She says she can't afford coffee, but that's just an excuse." Tina grimaced. "She drinks off and on all day and then brings a man home every night. We never know who's going to be there when we wake up. Last week, one of Mom's men tried to open our bedroom door. We always lock it, but the door itself isn't very strong. He was probably just trying to find the bathroom, but it still scares me, Grampa."

"Mom never has had any sense about men," Susan added. "The Ring of Fire just gave her a reason to act stupid here at home. She can't just hop in her car and go to another town anymore. We've got to do something. Why should we have to live with this? It's wrong, Grampa. Mom can live the way she wants to, but Tina and I shouldn't have to be afraid to get up and go to the bathroom at night."

"I heard she was running pretty wild lately, girls. I didn't realize it was that bad, though." Fred's grizzled face showed his distress. "I guess when Cory left with the Army and Pam moved out, Velma must have thought you two were too young to realize what was going on."

"You mean that Mom wanted us to be too young to understand," Tina said. "She's acting like some kind of tramp. We're not too young to know what that means. I'm over sixteen, Grampa. I could quit school and get a job if I wanted to. The only reason I haven't tried to leave before is because it would leave Susan alone with Mom. I'm not going to leave her there, by herself, with Mom acting this way. Especially not while some of those guys seem more interested in Susan than they do in Mom."

"Why would they be interested in Susan?" Fred asked. "Are they thinking she's, she's-!?"

"No, it's not that. It's the money," Tina explained. "She's got a lot of money now, since she sold the Barbies. Mom never pays any attention, so I don't think she even knows about it yet. It makes me wish I hadn't broken all of my dolls."

Fred looked at the younger sister. "Susan, are you one of those 'Barbie Dolls' I've been hearing about? The little girls who got rich from selling their toys?"

"We don't call ourselves 'Barbie Dolls,' Grampa. We're the 'Barbie Consortium.' We took the money from the sale of the dolls and invested it. We even hired Helene Gundelfinger to do the legal stuff. We tell her what we want and she buys stock for us. Right now I have a lot of stock, but no cash. Helene says if I leave the stock alone I'll have a lot of money someday. Right now, I'd have to sell some stock to get any money.

"A couple of Mom's boyfriends seemed to think I could give them an edge with Other People's Money. I can't, really. They need to talk to Sarah or David. I don't know enough about business or technical stuff yet. Grampa, all I really want to do is finish school and lead a normal life. Mom's making that impossible. Can we come live with you?"

"Well, it's been pretty lonesome around here since your Gramma died. I'd like to have the company, but Velma always insisted on keeping you with her. She got pretty mad when your dad tried to get custody after the divorce. I'm pretty sure she hasn't changed her mind about that."

Fred paused a moment. Velma had put on a good show during the custody battle. Enraged that Carney had called her an unfit mother, she had pulled out every trick she knew to disprove his statement. Somehow, she had managed to look like a respectable and caring mother. The judge had ruled in her favor.

Fred shook his head, and brought his mind back to the present. "Still, times are different now. You two aren't safe living with Velma. Let's go talk to Maureen Grady. She works for the Child Protection Agency. Maybe she'll have an idea."

"We brought overnight bags, Grampa. Mom won't even notice we've left yet," Tina said. "And we're not going back there. If Mom decides to get nasty, we'll just have to get nasty right back."

Maureen Grady wasn't much help.

"I understand the way you feel, girls," she'd said. "I really do. But you aren't being abused according to the law. I can't take action against Velma when nothing bad has happened. Taking lovers isn't against the law."

Fred Logsden was nearly engulfed in rage.

"You mean to tell me that we can't do anything to protect these girls? We have to wait for one of them to be raped or beaten?"

"Fred, all I said was I can't take legal action against Velma. I didn't say we couldn't do anything. First of all, we can pet.i.tion the court to emanc.i.p.ate Tina. That won't be a problem. She's over sixteen and you can hire her as your housekeeper, so she'll have a job."

Maureen pursed her lips in thought and continued, "The real problem is Susan. She may be rich but she's too young for legal emanc.i.p.ation. If we don't want to leave her with her mother, we're going to have to think of something else. I'm going to have to ask Maurice for a legal opinion. Will you three be okay for day or two? Judge t.i.to is really busy right now."

"We'll manage, Maureen. Just try to get it cleared up soon. Velma may be drinking too much right now, but she's bound to notice that the girls haven't been around much. Sooner or later, I'll be getting an unpleasant visit." Glumly, Fred muttered, "I'm not looking forward to it at all. Velma's a holy terror when she's mad."

The holy terror was unleashed two days later.

Velma punctuated her screams of "You rotten b.a.s.t.a.r.d" and "Lousy, no-good, piece of s.h.i.t!" with thrown pots, pans and crockery. This fellow had gotten overconfident and asked about Susan and the money Velma hadn't known about. Velma's reaction was not what he expected.

She stood with her ample chest heaving and watched her latest lover high-tail it out of the yard. Still incensed, she threw one more pan at the fleeing figure. "Don't ever come back, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!" she screamed.

The sound of a laugh being choked off made Velma realize that she was standing in full view of a large number of neighbors. Worse, she was wearing a skimpy teddy and a sheer robe, which were giving her audience quite an eyeful.

Drawing herself to her full height, Velma stared directly at the crowd. "You just wish you looked this good, you old bats." She turned to go indoors.

After slamming the door, Velma headed for the shower. "They'll be at Fred's," she steamed. "They always run to Fred."

Forewarned by a timely phone call, Fred, Susan and Tina decided to wait on the front porch. Velma's tendency to make scenes in public would cause her to call them outside, anyway. This way, she might be confused for a moment.

"Time's run out, Grampa," Susan said. "Here comes Mom."

Following the direction of Susan's gaze, Fred immediately understood the concern in her voice. Velma was clearly "loaded for bear" today. Fred had to admit that Velma looked younger than her forty-four years, but he didn't really think the mini-skirt and tank top were appropriate wear for a Sunday. Then again, Velma hadn't set foot in church in years.

"Do you two want to go inside?" He asked. "I can handle this alone."

"No, Grampa," Tina answered. "We're the reason she's here. She may as well hear it from us."

"There's going to be a big scene, you know," Susan remarked. "This time the 'tragically deprived mother' show isn't going to work."

"What's all this 'show' you two talk about?" Fred asked. "I feel like I've walked into a soap opera."

"We feel like we live in a soap opera, Grampa." Susan explained. "We started naming Mom's scenes a year or so ago. It gave us something to laugh about when she embarra.s.sed us."

"That show just got cancelled, girls," Fred stated firmly as Velma finally reached the front walk.

Velma immediately began the confrontation. Standing with hands on hips, she barked: "You two might as well go get your stuff. You're coming home with me, right now!"

"Afternoon, Velma," Fred said, calmly. "Would you like to sit down and have a cup of coffee?"

"There won't be time for that, old man," Velma snapped. "We're going home, now. And when we get there, Susan, we're going to have a little talk about all this money you seem to have."

"Is that what you want, Velma?" Sounding calm was already becoming an effort, but Fred wasn't going to let his anger show. "Susan has money now, so you'll pay attention to her? Or do you plan to get your own hands on it?"

"She's my daughter. I've supported her all her life. She can just pay some of that back, can't she?"

"No, Velma," said another voice. "That isn't the way it works."

The trio on the porch started in surprise as Judge Maurice t.i.to walked up beside Velma and took her arm.

Maurice t.i.to hadn't been a judge before the Ring of Fire. The acrimonious divorce and custody case of Velma and Carney Logsden had been a nine-day wonder at the time, so he hadn't been able to not hear about it. Still, he believed in family and had been prepared to listen to Velma until a moment ago. Velma's willingness to rob her own daughter of her future, stated boldly and publicly while she stood on her father-in-law's front porch, had caused a rapid change in his evaluation.

"Come inside, Velma, before you embarra.s.s yourself in public again today." Judge t.i.to said. "Everyone, inside please. Fred, I'll take a cup of that coffee you offered."

Susan and Tina went inside with Fred, as Velma continued to struggle and try to pull away from the judge.

"Inside, Velma," he said firmly. "You're going to sit down and have a normal conversation. No dramatics, no fits and no screaming, period."

"You can't do this, d.a.m.n it!"

"Yes, I can. We can go inside and do this quietly, or we can do it in court tomorrow, Velma. It's up to you. I warn you, you won't like it if you force me to convene the court." Judge t.i.to looked sternly at Velma. "Your little business this morning caused about six phone calls to my house. No one in town appreciates the way you've been acting. Now, shut up and get inside."

Susan and Tina had poured coffee for everyone and were sitting with Fred at the kitchen table when Judge t.i.to and Velma walked in. Velma took a seat at one end, while the judge took the other end.

"This isn't actually a courtroom, but I'm the Chief Justice for Grantville now, so it will do. I'd like to do this and get home to spend some time with my family, so I don't want to hear any arguments." Judge t.i.to opened his briefcase. "Velma, in case you haven't noticed, times have changed. We aren't living in the safe world we had before the Ring of Fire. We just can't afford the sort of shenanigans you got away with back up-time. Not when kids are involved."

He cleared his throat, and spoke the next words in a more formal tone of voice. "Tina Logsden, I understand you're now working as the housekeeper for Fred Logsden. Is this correct?"

"Yes, sir," Tina stated.

"It is therefore the determination of this court that your pet.i.tion for emanc.i.p.ation be granted. Here's your paperwork. Don't lose it, okay?"

Judge t.i.to turned to the younger sister. "Susan Logsden, I'm told that you have a net worth that exceeds my own, is that correct?"

"I'm sorry, Judge, but I don't know your net worth, so I can't say. I have a lot of investments and I can show you the last quarterly balance sheet, if you like."

"No need, Susan. Maureen got a copy from Ms. Gundelfinger when she briefed me on the case and asked for my opinion. Considering what I heard on the porch just now, it's clear that leaving you in Velma's care isn't in your best interest."