The Mandie Collection (29 page)

Celia held onto Mandie's hand as they walked down a dark hallway illuminated only by the oil lamp. The others followed. They went down, down, down the dark stairs to a short hallway below where there were more stairs and another door.

They kept on through doors and down stairways until Joe stopped at a door at the end of a hallway.

“Whew!” Celia gasped. “This is something!”

“My great-grandfather built this house about the time the Cherokees were being moved out of North Carolina. He didn't believe in the white people's cruelty toward the Indians, and he hid dozens of the Cherokees in this tunnel and fed and clothed them until about 1842, when it was safe for them to go out and set up living quarters elsewhere,” Mandie explained. “That was the way my grandfather met my grandmother. He was twenty-eight, and she was just eighteen. She was a beautiful young Indian girl, as you can tell from that portrait in the library.”

“What a love story!” Celia exclaimed.

“Sallie's grandfather, whom we all call Uncle Ned, knew all about this tunnel and never told me about it,” said Mandie. “One day I
accidentally stumbled into the wall upstairs with Polly, my friend next-door, when the wall opened up and we found the tunnel.”

“My grandfather can keep a secret,” remarked Sallie. “He never told me about the tunnel, either.”

“This is unbelievable,” Celia said, shaking her auburn curls. “Imagine having to live in this tunnel for such a long time. It must have been terrible!”

“Yes, for a Cherokee to have to be confined must have been almost like death,” Dimar said. “The Cherokee likes to be free as a bird with no cage.”

“And now when I open this door, Celia,” Joe teased, “you will be surprised to see what awaits you.” Reaching for the key on a nail, he inserted it in the lock, turned it, and pulled the door open, deliberately slow.

There, outside the door, stood Hilda, just as surprised as the rest of the young people.

“That's n-not what I had in mind,” Joe stammered. “I meant the outdoors.”

“Hilda! What are you doing out here?” Mandie asked, stepping out into the sunshine. She squinted her eyes to adjust to the brightness.

“We thought you were upstairs in bed,” Sallie said. “How did you get out here?”

“She has a mind of her own,” Dimar observed.

As the others stepped out of the tunnel, they shivered in the chilly morning air.

“Brrrr! I am cold!” Celia rubbed her arms lightly. “Hilda is smarter than we are. She is at least wearing a shawl.”

“Yes, my shawl,” Mandie laughed.

Joe shuffled through the newly fallen leaves near the tunnel entrance. “It's getting on toward wintertime,” he said.

“Come on, Hilda,” Mandie urged. “It's time to eat.”

Hilda smiled at Mandie. “Eat,” she repeated.

“She is learning,” Dimar said.

“We just have to keep teaching her,” Mandie replied.

“I think we should go around the outside of the house to take her inside,” Joe suggested. “That dark tunnel might scare her.”

The others agreed.

“I'll run back through the tunnel and lock it so I can leave the lamp upstairs. I'll catch up with you,” Joe said.

Joe disappeared inside and the others hurried through the back door.

Liza stood near the sideboard, ready to pour coffee. She grinned when they entered the breakfast room with Hilda. “What fun!” She laughed.

“Yeah, fun, before breakfast,” grumbled Joe as he picked up a plate. “Umm! Everything smells so good!”

Mandie removed the shawl from Hilda's shoulders and placed it on a chair at the table.

“Now, Hilda, come and get yourself a plate and fill it up with food,” Mandie told the girl. Leading her to the stack of china, she handed Hilda a plate.

Hilda looked at the empty plate and started to hand it back.

“No!” Mandie commanded, taking a plate for herself. “You fill it up like this.” Mandie began putting food on her own plate, then reached to put some on Hilda's.

The girl seemed to understand. She immediately started piling food on her plate.

“Not too much of one thing,” Mandie told her. “The plate won't hold so much. You see, you take a little of whatever you want now, and then you can come back and get more if you want it.”

“Little.” Hilda repeated the word, then began taking a very small amount of grits.

“That's the way.” Mandie guided her down the length of the sideboard as they both took a small portion of various foods.

Joe watched the two of them for a few minutes, then whispered to Mandie, “You plan to take her along with us to the mine? Can you imagine how much trouble she'll be?”

“That's the only way to teach her anything. We have to let her participate in whatever we do,” Mandie replied.

“Just remember that it was your idea,” Joe remarked.

Suddenly Hilda grabbed Dimar's hand. “Come!” she said, pulling him toward the table. She balanced her plate precariously with her other hand.

Dimar looked confused, but since he had already filled his plate, he let her lead him.

Everyone looked at each other.

“She seems to like you, Dimar,” Joe teased.

“She can't say much, but she knows how to let you know when she likes something,” Mandie said.

“Maybe I can teach her to speak Cherokee,” Dimar said, sitting down at the table with Hilda.

The others stood still for a moment, then everyone burst out laughing. This was going to be interesting.

CHAPTER FOUR

ANOTHER SECRET TUNNEL

“I'm not going with y'all, this afternoon,” Uncle John told the young people at the noontime meal later that day. “We grown folks are all going over to visit the Hadleys, and we won't be back until time for supper. I trust you all to behave and not to do anything you shouldn't. The men should be already gone from the mine, and you may go inside to look, but you'll have to wait to search for rubies until I can show you how.”

Mandie looked down the long dining table at her old Indian friend. “Uncle Ned, aren't you going with us?” she asked.

“No, Papoose. John Shaw want me see Hadleys,” the Indian replied.

“You may take Liza if you think you need help in looking after Hilda,” Elizabeth said.

“I will look after Hilda,” Dimar offered. “I am teaching her Cherokee.”

Mandie, Celia, and Sallie looked at each other and smiled. Joe nudged Dimar and grinned.

“Please don't let her get away from you, Dimar,” Elizabeth cautioned. “She likes to run away at times.”

“We know,” the girls said in unison, giggling.

“She will not run away from me,” Dimar replied.

As everyone rose from the table, the old Indian stopped the young people.

“Papooses be good,” Uncle Ned told the girls. “Boys, behave.”

“We will,” they all promised.

“I'm sure these nice young people will be fine,” said Grandmother Taft. “I'd say there's not a bad one in the lot. But just in case you need us, Amanda, you know where the Hadleys live on the other side of town.”

“No, Grandmother, I don't know the Hadleys,” Mandie replied. “I'm at school in Asheville so much that I don't know many people in Franklin.”

“I know where they live,” Joe said. “I go over there with my father sometimes when they need doctoring. They're older people.”

“Well, that's where we will be,” Mrs. Taft said.

“All right. Let's go.” Joe urged.

“Goodbye, Mother,” Mandie called as the young people left the room.

Jason Bond had brought ponies to the gate for them and was waiting with lanterns and matches. “Here. You'll be needin' these.” He handed the lanterns to the boys and gave the matches to the girls. “Y'all be careful now. Just leave the ponies here when you come back, and I'll put them away.”

“Thank you, Mr. Jason.” Mandie put Snowball on her shoulder.

“Don't you want to come with us?” she asked the caretaker.

“Nope. I'm not interested in that hole in the ground,” he said. “But there may be rubies in it,” Joe told him.

“There may be and there may not be. It's not worth all that hard work to find out for sure,” the caretaker replied. “I'll be here when you get back.”

The young people waved goodbye and rushed to the mine. Dimar rode close to Hilda, who seemed to be enjoying the journey.

Mandie looked at Joe. “Let's go by the old house first and show everybody that dress,” she suggested, turning her pony in that direction.

The others followed. At the front steps of the old farmhouse, they all dismounted except Hilda. Since she refused to get down from her pony, Dimar stayed outside with her.

“Whose house is this?” Celia asked, following the others inside.

“It belongs to Uncle John, but no one has lived in it for a long, long time,” Mandie told her friend. She rushed into the next room to look for the dress.

“It's gone!” cried Mandie and Sallie together, staring at the nail where the dress had hung.

“I told you whoever it belonged to would come back and get it,” Joe reminded them.

“Was it a pretty dress? What color was it?” Celia asked.

“It was pretty–” Mandie answered, shifting Snowball from one shoulder to the other, “–a blue gingham, store-bought dress with a sash.”

“Well, don't worry about that dress,” Joe said. “Let's get on over to the mine.” He led the way out of the house and back to their ponies.

As they approached the mine, Celia pointed to the planks covering the ground. “What are all those boards doing there?” she asked.

“They make a roof for the mine,” Mandie said. “Come on.” She jumped down from her pony and tied him to a branch. “The steps are over here.” Taking the lead, she gave Joe and Dimar the matches. “You'd better light the lanterns. It's probably dark down there.”

“I'm sure it is. There aren't any windows, you know,” Joe replied, lighting the lantern. “Let me go first with the light.”

“Then I'll light mine and follow behind,” said Dimar.

The others followed Joe down the steep steps into the underground cavern. Hilda clung to Dimar's hand, not understanding what was going on.

Joe flashed the lantern around as they inspected the place. There was a water trough descending through one side. The ground was uneven, mostly gravel and rocks. A number of shovels, hoes, and picks stood in one corner.

“Everything is neat and in order,” Sallie remarked.

“Yes, the men did a good job of cleaning up the place,” Mandie agreed, setting Snowball down. “Now don't run away, Snowball. I don't think there's anywhere to go down here except back up the steps.”

The kitten played around with the bristles of a home-made broom leaning against a nearby post in the corner.

“Well, where are the rubies?” Celia asked.

“You have to dig for them,” Joe told her.

“Dig?” she questioned.

“Of course. They aren't just laying around loose in plain sight,” Mandie replied.

The young people looked around for several minutes; then suddenly Sallie spoke up. “Where is Snowball?” she asked. “I do not see him anywhere.”

Immediately everyone scrambled around, looking for the white kitten.

“He must have gone up the steps,” Mandie said, starting toward the steps where Dimar and Hilda were standing.

“He did not go up there. I would have seen him,” Dimar said.

“But that's the only way out of here, and I sure don't see him anywhere else,” Joe said, flashing the lantern around.

Dimar carefully searched around the posts.

“Snowball was playing with that broom, remember?” Celia said, walking toward the corner. Mandie and Sallie followed her.

Sallie stopped short, pointing. “Look! There is a passageway going out of here,” she said.

Joe and Dimar came quickly with the lanterns and lit up the area. Sallie was right. There was a corridor leading into the darkness beyond. A pile of timbers lay nearby.

“Then Snowball must have gone that way,” Mandie said. “Come on with the lanterns. I'm going to look for him.”

Joe led the way into the tunnel, lighting it with the lantern. It seemed to be a narrow dirt tunnel with posts here and there holding it up.

“Snowball! Here kitty, kitty!” Mandie called as she went along.

The others followed, and Hilda clung to Dimar in fright as he led her into the tunnel.

“Oh, what places y'all can get involved in.” Celia gasped.

“Where do you suppose this tunnel goes?” Dimar asked, holding his lantern a little higher.

“I don't know. Uncle John didn't mention this tunnel,” Mandie replied. “Snowball! Here, kitty!” She strained her eyes to look for the kitten in the dim light.

As they turned a bend in the tunnel, Joe called back to the others. “I see daylight ahead!” he exclaimed, hurrying forward.

The others rushed to keep up with him. As they approached the opening at the end of the tunnel, Joe blew out his lantern and Dimar did likewise. Rose Creek, a branch of the Little Tennessee River, ran a short distance from the tunnel, and there, playing near the water, was Snowball.

Mandie ran and snatched up the kitten. “Snowball, you've been bad.” she scolded. “You know you aren't supposed to run away!” She held him up to look into his face.

Snowball meowed in reply and reached for her shoulder with his tiny paws.

“Ah, Snowball, you're full of stickers,” she cried. Then gently and carefully she began removing the briars, stroking his fur as she worked. As she did that, Mandie caught sight of something blue laying on the ground nearby. She quickly picked it up.

“Look!” she cried, holding up what she had found.

“A sash.” Sallie exclaimed.

“It's the sash to that dress we found in the farmhouse,” Mandie explained to the others.