The Higgins were up the next morning before the rooster crowed, preparing dishes for Pete’s wake and doin regular chores. Pa went out to check the tobacco and corn crops to see if they was ready fur harvestin and to see if the mountain lion meat was finished smoking. Ma and the girls made a blackberry cobbler and using the lion meat, made a pasta dish with a white sauce. Breakfast and dishes were over with before you could say cornswaggle and everybody loaded in the wagon and headed off to Pete and Mildreds place.

It was a somber event for Pa and Ma and a couple of the older kids, because they realized it could be one of them instead of Pete. That caused some deep thinkin about here and now, but also eternity. Now, the younger kids respected this and tried to be calm, but they was all excited about seein all the other young-uns and getting to play with them while the older folks mostly did the wake. School was about to start, but they hadn’t seen much of their friends since the mine explosion earlier in the year.

Generally, in the summertime, the kids didn’t see each other except for at Sunday-go-to-meetings, hoe-downs, or wakes and funerals. They had a quiet drive over to Mildred’s and Pete’s. People were arriving from all over this holler and the women folk were working together to arrange all of the dishes, tables and chairs. There was all kinds of huggin and weepin goin on. They was too many people to eat in the house, so they ate outside like a big old picnic. The Reverend held the service first and then they ate. Then the women folk cleaned up while the men sat around and smoked. The young-uns played games like hide n seek and had a good old time. Then before you knowed it, it was time for everyone to say goodbye and head home.

On the way home, Pa and Ma talked and planned fur the fall activities, as they called them. It was mostly just seasonal chores. Pa had to get the tobacco reaped and hung up in the barn and get the corn reaped too before he went back to the still. He also had to go into town to get gas fur the car. They had made it home from the still, but just on fumes and they would need the car to go back to the still. Ma needed to spend a day or two huntin herbs and gatherin them and Karen would be helpin her. They would need to be tied up in small bundles and hung in the barn, as well to dry before they were usable.

The next day, pa got the three boys to work on the tobacco and corn and he hitched up the horses to go into a gas station/ general store nearby. That would take less time than going into the big town. He thought as he drove that he sure was glad he had hidden a mason jar of shine under the house. Ma thought she had taken the last one for her doctorin, but she just didn’t know! He took it with him along with the gas can. When folks went to that gas station, there were generally people playing checkers on an old pickle barrel and others standing around shootin the breeze and so havin a bottle to pass around sure was appreciated!

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Pa got his gas and put it into the wagon and then went back in to enjoy the company. The first sign of trouble was when he pulled out his bottle and took a swig and passed it and instead of taking some, all of the men just passed it. “Uh-oh,” Pa thought. “That ain’t good.” He looked around at the crowd and saw a man he didn’t know. “ I’m Earl,” he said by way of introduction. “Whose yore pa? I ain’t never seen you around these parts before.”

The young man said, “My name is Steve and you wouldn’t know my pa. He’s from Cordoba Holler. What kind of refreshment have you got there, so kindly handing around?”

Earl knew he had made a big mistake. Nobody else was drinkin and this was a stranger. He thought quick and said, “Yep, my wife is the doctorin woman in these here parts and I took some of her medication.”

Steve said, “Are you sick and are these here people you done offered it to sick? Is that moonshine?”

Pa was caught red-handed and just hoped this newcomer wasn’t a revenooer. He decided to just be honest. “Why yes, it is.” He kept his answer short.

Steve asked, “Where did your woman get moonshine? Do you know who made it and where I can find him?”

“Speakin,” Earl answered.

Now this young man was smart. He done gone to college and he wanted to break up a still and get some recognition. So he took Earl outside, out of earshot of the other men and said, “I am going to let you off with a warning this time Earl, but I tell you I will have my eye on you and you better not so much as think about makin any moonshine or you will be in prison, choppin rocks, doin hard time. You need to respect the law and if’n I so much as catch you with any part of a still or. any moonshine in your possession I will throw your ass in jail!” Steve took the bottle from Earl and poured it out on the ground.

He was so tickled to have found a moonshiner that he had to keep his excitement down so he could appear stern. He would go to Earl’s house and do a stakeout and follow Earl everywhere! This was his big break!

Earl was glad he just got a warnin. He was already thinkin ahead to how he would handle this situation. The young revenooer swaggered back into the store and Earl left for home. They would have to keep a close eye out for this one.