George Saunders: Lincoln in the Bardo

As I was locking back up Tom had feeling of being watched and looked up and saw that our “mystery girl” from across the street sat her faithful post at her window and lifting said window from her sitting position with considerable effort called across to me was that Pres who just rode off and I called back yes indeed and it was sad Tom as I have known her or seen her at least since she was a little girl who could still walk and run with all the others and now she must be nearly 30 and feeling kindly inclined toward her now I called up that she best shut the window for the cold for I had heard she was not well and she thanked me for my concern and said it was a sad thing wasn’t it about Pres’s son and I said oh very sad indeed and she said she thought the child must surely be in a better place and I said I hoped so and prayed so and our voices hung there as if we were last living souls on earth and goodnight said I and goodnight said she and brought her window down and soon enough her light went out.

Manders, op. cit.

A mass exodus from the chapel ensued, our cohort fleeing out through all four walls at once.

hans vollman

Many succumbing even while in motion.

roger bevins iii

Mr. Bevins and I rushed out together, as the inky night around the chapel lit up with multiple instances of the matterlightblooming phenomenon.

hans vollman

All was chaos.

roger bevins iii

The pale smock of the beautiful raped mulatto floated down, still stained with bloody handprints at the hips.

hans vollman

Followed by the large unoccupied dress of Mrs. Hodge.

roger bevins iii

The air was filled with curses, shouts, the hissing velocity-sounds of our dear friends desperately rushing away through bushes and low-hanging trees.

hans vollman

Several had been so severely infected with doubt that locomotion now became impossible.

roger bevins iii

These slumped wearily against stones, crawled weakly along pathways, lay draped and broken-seeming across benches, as if dropped from the sky.

hans vollman

Many succumbing from these undignified positions.

roger bevins iii

Now across the chapel lawn charged Lieutenant Stone.

hans vollman

Heading directly for Mr. Farwell.

roger bevins iii

Clear thee away, cease Contaminating this Holy place, SHARD.

As I am the Man among all here who has been in this Place the longest (the number of my Nights here being beyond TWENTY THOUSAND, and the Number of Souls who, coming to this place, have, through Cowardice and Flinching, since departed anon, by my latest count, nearing NINE HUNDRED), who shall Manage things here if not me, and I will be DAMNED and DAMNED GOOD if the current chaos shall be exploited by a SHARD-MAN as an excuse to loaf!

lieutenant cecil stone

Even the Lieutenant’s extreme self-confidence seemed affected by the recent confusion, for he did not grow any taller during this diatribe and seemed, even, to shrink a little.

roger bevins iii

The Lieutenant ordered Mr. Farwell back to work, back to whatever work had been assigned him, by whichever white person had assigned it, at which time Mr. Farwell seized the Lieutenant by the collar and threw him roughly down upon his back.

hans vollman

The Lieutenant demanded to know how Mr. Farwell dare touch a white man in anger, and commanded Farwell to let him up; Mr. Farwell refusing, the Lieutenant kicked Farwell in the chest, and Farwell flew back, and the Lieutenant leapt to his feet and, straddling Farwell, began beating him about the head with his fists. In desperation Farwell groped about for a nearby path stone and swung it into the Lieutenant’s head, causing the Lieutenant to fall to the ground and his tricorne to fly off. Farwell then positioned one knee upon the Lieutentant’s chest and used the stone to smash the Lieutenant’s skull into a flat pulpy mass, after which he stumbled away and sat on the ground disconsolately, head in hands, weeping.

roger bevins iii

The Lieutenant’s head quickly re-forming, he revived and, catching sight of the weeping Mr. Farwell, barked out that he was not aware a SHARD could weep, since to weep one must possess human emotions, and again ordered Mr. Farwell back to work, back to whatever work had been assigned him, by whichever white person had assigned it, and again Mr. Farwell seized the Lieutenant by the collar, and threw him down upon his back, and again the Lieutenant demanded to know how Mr. Farwell dare touch a white man in anger and commanded Farwell to let him up, and, Mr. Farwell again refusing, the Lieutenant again kicked Farwell in the chest—

hans vollman

And so on.

roger bevins iii

It was still going on as we fled the scene.

hans vollman

Showed no sign of abating.

roger bevins iii

Was proceeding with a fury that suggested the two might well fight on into eternity.

hans vollman

Unless some fundamental and unimaginable alteration of reality should occur.

roger bevins iii

Mr. Vollman and I ran-skimmed desperately toward our home-places.

roger bevins iii

Shaken.

hans vollman

Even we were shaken.

roger bevins iii

Even Mr. Bevins and I were shaken.

hans vollman

Brother, what are we to do? I called over.

Here we are, Mr. Vollman called back. Look at me. Here I am. Who is it — who is it that speaks? Who is it hears my speaking?

But we were shaken.

roger bevins iii

We came now upon the disreputable Barons, collapsed in a heap atop the Constantine sick-mound (an unremarkable limestone slab, cracked at one corner, marred by bird droppings over many decades—

hans vollman

For someone, long ago, had planted a small tree overhead, to shade Constantine from the sun).

roger bevins iii

Get up, get up.

No f — ing stopping. No f — ing thinking.

eddie baron

I ain’t. I ain’t f — ing thinking.

I just don’t feel good.

betsy baron

Look at me, look at me.

Remember that time we lived in that f — ing beautiful field? With the kids? That, uh, spacious meadow?

In that tent? Remember that? After f — ing Donovan evicted us from that s — hole by the river? Those were the days, hah?

eddie baron

That was no f — ing spacious meadow! You piece of s—! That was where all the f — ing scum of the earth came to s— and drop their G — ed garbage!

betsy baron

But what a view, eh? Not many kids get that view. We could look out our tent-flap, and right there: the f — ing White House.

eddie baron

But first you had to walk around the G — n trash heap. While watching out for those big f — ing rats. And that gang of Hessian gropers that f — ing lived in there.

betsy baron

They never groped you though.

eddie baron

Bulls—! I had to burn one f — er’s leg with a shovelful of hot coals! To get him off me! Came right in the f — ing tent! In front of the f — ing kids! No wonder they never come see us! We been here — how long we been here? A pretty f — ing long time. And they never come once.

betsy baron

F— them! Right? Those f — ing ingrate snakes have no G — ed right to blame us for a f — ing thing until they walk a f — ing mile in our G — ed shoes and neither f — ing one of the little s — heads ever walked even—

eddie baron

Eddie? No.

They was our kids.

We f — ed it up.

betsy baron

No f — ing sad s—.

And no f — ing stopping. No f — ing thinking.

You know why?

We want to f — ing stay! Got plenty of celebrating left to f — ing do, right?

eddie baron

Eddie.

We’re f — ing dead, Eddie.