A Good American Read Online Free PDF Page B

arm. He unfolded it as he approached, his eyes scanning an inside page. Finally he gave a grunt. His long finger rested on an advertisement.
     
    SAINT LOUIS AND NEW ORLEANS PACKET COMPANY
    LEAVES ON MONDAY, 6TH INST. AT 5 P.M.
    FOR ST. LOUIS, CAIRO, MEMPHIS AND ALL INTERMEDIATE POINTS
    THE FINE PASSENGER STEAMER GREAT REPUBLIC,
    W. B. DONALDSON, MASTER, WILL LEAVE AS ABOVE.
    FOR FREIGHT OR PASSAGE. APPLY ON BOARD,
    OR TO C. G. RUMBLE, AGENT, 87 NATCHEZ STREET
    F rederick scanned the page. “I’m sorry,” he said. “My English—”
    “This is for a journey upriver, all the way to St. Louis.”
    “Upriver? You’re talking about a
ship
?”
    The man nodded. “It leaves this afternoon.”
    Frederick’s shoulders slumped. “There’s no other way of getting to St. Louis?”
    “You could hire a carriage. But it would cost more and take longer.”
    There was a long pause.
    “What is your name?” said Frederick.
    “Everyone calls me Lomax.”
    “Well, Monsieur Lomax, come and meet my wife.”
    W ith no trains to deal with, Lomax took them to the booking agent on Natchez Street. There he spoke to the man behind the desk while Frederick and Jette stood nearby and watched the clerk’s face twitch with suspicion. Lomax kept pointing in their direction. Finally, he returned to where Frederick was standing and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “He wants to speak to you himself,” he said.
    “But why?” asked Frederick. “I won’t be able to—”
    “He won’t sell a white person’s ticket to a black man.” Lomax saw the astonishment on Frederick’s face. “You really have just arrived, haven’t you?” he said.
    A while later, tickets finally purchased, the three of them walked down to the wharf. The sickly sweet smell of rotting bananas mingled with the aroma of fresh bread from a nearby bakery. They stood on the edge of the quay, looking up at the ship. After the oceangoing bulk of the
Copernicus
, the
Great Republic
seemed like a toy. Its exterior gleamed with fresh paint, and the ironwork was embellished with delicate filigree. Two thin chimneys rose into the sky, each topped by a dark corona of iron oak leaves. At the stern sat a huge wheel, the lower portion of which was submerged in the water.
    “Fine vessel,” said Lomax.
    “Thank you for all your help,” said Frederick.
    Lomax shrugged. “I didn’t have anything better to do. Besides,” he added, “you liked Buddy Bolden.”
    The two men smiled at each other.
    “Good luck to you,” said Lomax.
    “Good luck to
you
,” said Frederick.
    Lomax shook Frederick’s hand and tipped his cap to Jette. “Thank you,” he replied, “but I think you’re going to need it more.” Then he stuck his hands deep in his pockets and strolled away down the quay, whistling as he went.

FIVE
    The
Great Republic
left New Orleans at exactly five o’clock, as advertised, and began its journey up the Mississippi. Black smoke billowed out of the ship’s chimneys as it edged past velvet swamps and headed for the famous waterway that would take them north. Downriver from the flood that had cut off the railroads, the Mississippi was a seething, roiling mass of fury. Dark water roared past the ship. The river is so vast that it follows no set course, especially in times of flood. There is no single current or velocity. Its waters move in layers and whorls, unpredictable in the chaotic rush to the sea. As the
Great Republic
crawled against the current, it stayed close to the western bank of the river, protected by the Louisiana shoreline.
    Compared to the grim austerity of the
Copernicus
, the new ship was a swoon of luxury. The upper level was dominated by a long saloon that ran almost the length of the vessel, flanked on each side by a series of staterooms. The ceiling was as high as a church’s and decorated with a lattice of elegantly carved mahogany. At one end of the saloon, the Ladies’ Cabin was a women-only domain where passengers read, performed