Strange Wind from the Roanoke
by
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Sam pushed the chair back behind Davie's desk and put the newspaper aside. He reached for his coat and black cocked hat, and then opened the door to the small storage room. After gathering his surveying gear and shovel, he left the office.
He spent the next two hours at the backside of the cemetery and used his shovel to trench around the three new plots that were large enough for four graves each. As he walked back among the stones, he could see there had been much erosion from the heavy rains that had come in the fall of 1789. Now, wanting to check on Josie's grave, he walked to that special mound. There was a small gully at the base of her grave, so Sam put down his pack and scooped several shovel loads of fresh earth and filled in the part that had been washed away. He then turned to Sadie Jackson's grave and spent some time there. The same trench that had eroded Josie's grave continued across Sadie's grave.
It was after noon when Sam finished his work. He picked up his pack and shovel and walked again to the base of Josie's grave. He stood there for a moment with his back toward King Street. He put his gear down and took Josie's letter from his coat. He read it reverently and silently to himself. Sam felt almost as if he were communicating with Josie as he read. Although he had read the letter many times, there was a feeling that the words now held greater significance than ever. It was almost as if she were speaking to him from the grave. This strange sensation caused him to fold the letter quickly and insert it once more into the worn envelope. He held it tightly in his right hand
"Thank you, Sam," came a soft voice from behind him
Sam turned quickly and was surprised to see Jessica looking at the work he had done at Sadie Jackson's grave.
"Jessica! Jessica! You scared the life outa me! What are you doing here?"
"Mrs. Eelbeck sent me to find you."
Sam looked at Jessica standing before him. She was wearing a deep green walking dress. Her jacket had a tight-fitting bodice. A brisk wind was blowing her skirt and the long pale green kerchief that hung loosely about her shoulders.
The wind caught and tugged at her green wide-brimmed hat, but a long black ribbon tied securely beneath her chin kept it from blowing away. Her blonde curls danced to the tempo of the blowing gust of wind.
Suddenly a strange and chilling wind swept from the Roanoke and was swirling about them as if it were intended for them alone. Sam looked at Jessica. The wind was cyclonic and settled at the very spot where they stood.
There was a tug at the envelope, which contained Josie's last letter. The letter flew from Sam's right hand up into the twisting wind. Sam tried desperately to grasp it but it was hopeless.
"Sam what is it?"
"The letter, it just seemed to be taken from me by the wind," said Sam. There was a tremble in his voice.
"What kind of letter?"
"I had Josie's last letter in my hand and it's gone."
They both looked at the swirling cloud of dust as the mass moved upward and away from them.
Sam turned to Jessica. "What just happened was not a natural act of the elements."
"Why do you say that, Sam?"
"It just doesn't seem possible," he said, shaking his head. "I was holding the letter too tight."
"Do you suppose it just may mean something, Sam? You know, you had to let go, don't you?"
"But it wasn't of my own doing."
"Perhaps it wasn't. Strange things do sometimes happen to us that are not of our own doing."
"I sensed a presence---even before you came."
"There will always be a presence in this spot for you and me, Sam."
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About the Book
Strange Wind from the Roanoke, a skillfully designed novel, written by Maxville B. Williams, is an analogy of post-Revolutionary War years in North Carolina and Sam Pickett, a fictional citizen of Halifax, North Carolina. The novel, beginning at the end of the War in 1781, and ending with the Tarheel State’s ratifying the United States Constitution in November 1789, parallels the experiences and moods of the people of a state without a national connection and with those of the man, Sam Pickett, who has lost his wife.
The marriage of Sam Pickett to Josephine Hamilton almost immediately after the Revolutionary War is quickly interrupted by the illness and, supposedly, the death of “Josie.” Coincidently, when North Carolina ratifies the national Constitution in Fayetteville in November 1789, Josie reappears in Halifax, having been surreptitiously stolen from the small pox house of contagion by her father, an obstinate Patriot. The observant reader becomes aware of the technique used by Mr. Williams that makes this a really meaningful novel. Sam Pickett is the epitome of the people in the state of North Carolina; whereas, Josie represents those whose lives are complicated by many opposing factors. Mr. William R. Davie represents the nation and its advantages for all who will accept it.
About the Author
Maxville Burt Williams was born in Sharpsburg, North Carolina and now resides in Enfield, North Carolina. He graduated from Enfield High School and attended East Carolina University. While at the university, he became interested in writing and had one play produced by the East Carolina Playhouse and another published by the University. After graduating from East Carolina University with a degree in History and a minor in English, he became a social studies teacher at Scotland Neck, NC. He later completed his Masters degree and became the principal of an elementary school in Hobgood.
Mr. Williams’ first novel, First for Freedom was originally written as a three-act play. The play was sponsored by the Halifax Historical Association and is presented each summer as an outdoor drama in Halifax, N.C. He also wrote the words and music for the drama.