Six Feet of Country

)
Six Feet of the Counr ry_Y WIFE ANI) I irrc n()t
lirrlt
rcnl farmers-not evcn
lr.rvrnq
Lerice, really. We botrght
,tttr nlltcc, lcn mtles ' rtrt ,'l
Johanncsl.urg i.n one of the
ttltiu r,,rttls, ttt change something i1 otrrsclvcs,
I strpposc; yor.l st:em tcl rattle about so much
rlithin ;r rnarriage likc ours. You long to hear
notl'ring lrut a deep, satisfying silcnce rvhcn
The farm hasn't m:rnlgcd tl'r:rt for us, of corlrse, but it has done
othcr things, unexpected, illogical. Lerice, who
I thotrght rv<>uld retire there' in Cl-rekhovian
sx(lncss ftrr a month or two and then lezrve the
l-lncc ro the scrvants wl-rile she tried yet again
t() ge t a pirrt s[e wanted and become the
irctrcss she woulcl like to be, has sunk into the
trrrsirress of nrnning the farm with all the seri()us intensity with which she once imbuedr the
shadows in a plal"vrright's mind. I should have
given it up long ago if it had not been for her.
IIcr har-rds, once small and plain and well
kc1.t--she was not the sort of actress who
u,curs red paint and diamond rings-are hard
)'()u s()unrl a marriirge.
as
a.log's patls.
I, ,ri cor:rse, am there
only in the evenings
:llr(l at weekends. I am ir partner in a travel
u'hich is flourishing-needs to be, as I
rcll l-crice, in ortlcr t(r carry the farm. Still,
rlr,rush I kn,xv rve cen't nfford it, and though
thc s*'cctish smell oi the fowls Lerice breeds
sie kcns {ne, srr thirt I avoitl going past their
runs, the farm is beautiful in a way I had
rrlnr,,st ftrrgotten-especially on a Sunday
rrroming when I get up and go out into the
I'ltltlock :rnd see not the palm trees ancl fishl.,rn,l and inritation-stone birclbath of the subrrrl.' l.rrt rvhite ,hcks on the dzrm, the luceme2
f icl,l l.rillirrnt as rvrntlow-r-lresser's grass, nnd the
rrgcrrcy,
r)
ll
I ilcr.rture
of lnsight
, str rt
ky, mr'an-cyeJ hull, lrrrrltrl l.rrr ht,rcl,
lri. I'rce tcn.l.rly lickc,l by ouc uf hrs
la.lies. I-crice comes out rvith hcr hair
unc()rnbccl, ir-r her hand a stick clripping wit[
cattlc .lip. She will stand irn,l ltnk drearnily ftrr
the way sl're woultl prerend ro iook
ililohent,
sometimcs in those plays. "Thcy'll mate
tomorrow," she will say. "This is their sec6ptl
day. Look how she loves hirn, my little
Nlpt,lcon." So that when people c()me to see
rrs t,n Sunday aftemoon, I am tikely to hear
nrysclf saying as I pour out the drinks, "When
I
drive back home from the ciry every .iay past
tlxrse rows of suburban houses, I wonder horv
the clevil rve ever did stand it . . . Would you
care to look aroundl" And there I arn, tnkinq
s()rne pretty girl and her husband stumbline
clorvn to or-rr riverbank, the gir[ crrrching her
stockings on the mealie-stooks an.l stepping
over cow turcls humming with jewcl-green flics
while she says, ". . .the teruioru of the damned
city. And you're near enough to get into torvn
to a show, too! I rhink itt wonderful. Why,
you've got it both ways!"
And for a moment I accept the triumph r5
if I hal managed it-the impossibiliry rhat I've
been trying for all my life: just as if the tmth
was that you.could get it "both wirys," insrerJ
,)f iin(ling yourself with nt-rt evclt ()ne wily {,r
the other but a third, one you harl not provitletl {irr at all.
But even in our saner moments, when I flnLl
Lerice\ canhy enthusiasms just is irrit;rting .ri
I once found her histrionical] ones and she
lin.ls whut rh. calls-my
tealo*y" .rf he r c,r[.,rc-
1. imbued (im byd6d'):
2.
3.
fillecl completely; saturatp(|.
lucerne iloo surn'): a chiefly Urrtish ternr tcr,rlt.i,;.'
histrionical (his'trC an' i kul): rlrr..rtrical; rlr,rlr.rlir
lry fttr enthusi;rstn lts hig il prrrrt .f lny inlrJcfor ltcr as ,r lll;llc ,ls cver it rv:rs, we J()
nelit've th;tt rve h;tvc irt lcrst h(,n('jtly cst:r|eJ
those tr:nsions peculier to the city ahout which
L)ur visitors speak. Mrcn Joharrrrersburg people
snerrk ,rf "tcnsirrtt," th.y J,rn't nrcln hurryingf
pcoplt' in crowJ.'J strccls, thc struggle forl
irxrney, or the general colrpctitive character of
c6y life. They mean the gtrns uncler the white
6en's pillows and the burclar burs on the
Lluacy
white men's windows. They rnean those
strangc moments on city pnvements when a
black nran won't stand aside frrr a white mzrn.
Out in the counrry even ten miles out, life
is better than that. ln the country there is a
lingering reffrnant of the prctrnnsitional stage;
our relationship with the blacks is ahnost feudal. Wong, I suppose, obsolete, but more comfortable all around. We have no burglar bars,
no guns. Lericet farm boys have their wives
and their piccaninsa living with them on the
land. They brew their sour beer'"vithout the
fear of police raids, In facr, we've always rather
prided ourselves that the poor tlevils have
nothing rhuch to fear, being with us; Lerice
even keeps an eye on dreir chrldren, with all
the cornpetence of a woman who has never
had a child of her own, :rnd she certainly doc-
rors them
all-children and adults-like
babies whenever they happen to be sick.
It was because of this that we were not par-
"\(/h;tt tLrcs
inqly [,r:icrrl.
it
tttillrcra" Ltricc is llrcirlcn-
I g()t up :tii,klr irr,lly
tnc-lrt,rv
is
it lrlu,lys
,rs shc wiltche
fcel a
1i;,,1
rl
rvhcn I l-urve
.lesertccl hcr l.e,ll z\ficr all, I know frorn tlic
way she ncvcr lot,ks rrt rrrc rvhen she tulks to
mc at brclkfirst ncxr tluy that shc is hurt irn.l
humiliatctl rrt rny rl()t rv:tnting hcr-anJ
I
wen[ ()ut, clrrmsy rvith slctp.
'
"Mricli of'rl.re lro1,s is itl" I rrskcJ All.crt ns
rvc firll,rrvc.l thc rlrrncc of r-ny t,,rch.
"Ilels t,ro sick. Vcry sick," hc siritl.
"But who? FranlJ" I rerrcnrhcrcd Frirnz hr.l
I'rad a ba.l cough firr the p:rsr rvcck.
Albert Ji.''l nor irnswcr; hc [ra.l giver-r rnc tlrc
p2rth ilnrl rvtrs rvulking irlong besitlc rrte in the
tall, clcad
gnrss.
When rhc light of the torch
caught his firce, I saw th:rt he kxrke.cl acurely
eml.arrassed. "Mrat's this all ahoutl" I saicl.
He lo',vcrcri his lread undcr the glancc of thc
light. "ltls n()r rne, baas.; I tltrn'r knorv. Perrtrs
he sen.l mc."
Irritatcd, I lrurricd hirn alonq tti rhc hurs.
Petnrs'.s iron l.etlsrcacl, ivith irs
brick srilts, rvas a y()tulg man, .lca.l. On his
forehead there was still a light, ctrld sweat; his
And thcre, on
body was warrn. The boys strnd around as they
do in the kitchen wheyr it is discovered th:rt
someone has broken a dish-uncoopcrative,
silent. Somebotly's wife hung abour in rhe
shadows., her hirnds wrung togerher under her
ticularly startlcJ ,,ne night last winrer when
Jnr(rn.
the boy Albert came knockir,rg ar our window
long after we.had gone to bc.l. I wasn't in our
bed but sleeping in the lirtle dressing roomcum-lir,en room next door because Lerice had
annoyed me and I didn't wanr ro find myself
I [-r:rd not seen a clead mnn since the rvar.
This ',vas vcry diffcrenr. I felt like the
softening toward her simply because of the
sweet smell of the talcum powder on her flesh
after her bath. She came ancl woke me up.
"Albert says one of the boys is very sick," she
said.
"l think you'd bctter
go down and see. He
wouldn't get us up at this hour for nothing."
"What tinre is it/"
ofhers-extraneous, useless. "What was the
matterl" I askcd.
' The lu,rma.r patted at hcr chest and shtxrk
her hcird to indicate the painful impossibility
of breatl"ring.
4. piccanins (pik'a ninz):
a derogatory tenn ior
native African children.
5. baas (biis): a term of acldress usetl in South Afric.t
for a white nran
Six.Feet of the Country
6l
i
)
I
/
l,
nrrr*t lr:rvc.licJ or pncrrmrrnir.
I trnnctl t() Pctrus. "Who wus this h()yl
\\'lrirr
hc doing lrcrel" The light ol'n can,llc ,rrr tlrc floctr showecl that Petn.rs was !\'ccp\\'irs
inq. I [e fi'llorve.l me out thc cloor.
\\,'hcn we u,erc outsicle, in the dark, I waitccl
{i'r hiln to spcak. Rrrt he didn't. "Now, comc
r)n. I)ctnrs, you must tcll me rvho this hoy rvas.
W:rs lrc r fiicncl of yottrsl"
" l Ic's rry brcrthcr, baas. F{e cnme fr.rm
Rlr,rlt'si;r to krok f.rr uork."
i
( ''tr'{'' r'r Inrrtltrrrorinn
Thc st()ry st:rril('d
L L"ricc anLl me ,r littlc.
n.rr,rr- I Tha y,r,,ng [r,.y haJ
tlrirrL .rl.xr,rt tlrc
t(\r (,rllilil(le l')s,rrd
I'r'lrrr< rnrl lho olhcr
t.r,,,,i, r,',1. n, f,r,, *,,4
rrn r oncirlor how hi<
.rrrrrrrrle
i
,'
down from
rvalked
|
Rho,lesia t,r lottk {or
| work in J,rhanneshrrrg,
feel I had cnught r chill from
harac- I ;
I slecPing out nl()ns tllc
vou
.makcc
.rlnrrt
' hinr ,ts a t
;;' """'
- ----
I way, and had lain ill in
his hrr.thcr Petnrs'.s hut since his arrival thrce
rl,rvs [.cf<rrc. Our lpy5 had bcen frightcned to
rr.k rrs frrr help for him hecarrse we had never
l.c,:n intcncled evet to know of his presence.
l{lro,Jcsian natives irre barred from entering
thc Union unless they have a permit; the
y(nrng man was an illegal immigrant. No doubt
rrrrr l.oys had managed the whole thing sucr
css{irlly several times hefore; a number of rela-
tivcs must have rvalked the seven or eight
lrrrnclrcrl milcs from fove(y to the paradise of
:oot suits,r' policc raids, and black slum townships that is thcir Egoli,T City of Gold-the
Afrlicrn namc f<tr Jr.hannesburg. It was merely
,l nl:lttcr of getting sttch a man to lie low on
t,rrr f;rnn trntil :r joh could be fttund with somet,nc rvho ',vrrul.l hc glad to take the risk of p()sr'' nti()n L,r crnll,rying en illcgal immierant in/
,'xch,rnuc frtr thc scrvices of somcrrne xs yc11
r lltl xilrtcr] hy rlte cirY.
Wcll, this was ()ne r.vhct would never get up
,rq,rit t.
"\i.tr rvould tlrink they would have felt they
c,,rrl,l tcll tr," saitl l-ericc next moming' "Once
G!idt
f[e rnln ,,v:rs ill. Y6tr ,,vprrltl lrrvc tl-rt ught 'rt
Iqa*t -" Whcn *h.' rs q('ll ittrl tnl('lrsc rrlor
6pn5iier the rliffernnt
;qrlonses of lhe narr'r,ji',16fl Lcrice to the
t'enus's broth,1g,1th of
er Ask Yourseli what
s()mcthinq, slrc has it rv:ry oi st;rnding in the
rnitltlle of n r(x)m us peoplc ,11. whcn thcy ;rrq
shortly to lcuvc ,,n ll jottnrcy, Lxtkirtg seatchingly ahorrt hcr rt tht' nl()st [:rlnilinr trhjccts as
il she had rlevcr scen thcrn bcfore' I had
noticctl thar in Pctrus's fresence in the
kirch,'n, cerlicr, she h:rJ lr,r.l tlre air t'f hcing
r'
I
.rlrnrrit ,rllcnrlt'.| with him, rtltnost httrt.
ln any case, I really havcn't thc tirne or
'nclin-ti()n ilny morc to go into everything in
our life that I know l-erice, fnrtn those alarmed
and pressing eyes of hers, wotrld like us to go
into. She is the kind of woman who doesn't
rnirrd if she l<xrks plain, or ocld; I don't suppos,:
she would even care if she knew how strangc
she lc,oks when her whole face is out of proprrrtion uith urqent rrnqcrtainty. I s,rid, "Norvi
i'rn tlrc,tne who'll have trr,l,r
llI
rhem.
knew.
"l'll
have to notifii the health authorities,"
I
said calmly. "They can't just cart him off and
hury him. After all, we don't really know what
he died of."
She simply stood there, as if she had givcn
rrp-simply ccased to see me at
\
I don't know when I've heen so irritated. "lt
all'
\
might have been something cont:rgiotrs," I \
I
said.
"Qod knows." There was no
allswcr'
I am not enamored of holding
conversa'
tions with myself. I went out to shout to one of
the boys to open the garage and get the car
ready for my moming drive tcl town.
As I had expected, it rumed out to he quite
a business. I had to notifi/ the police as well as
zoot suits: men's flashy suits of a once-popular
style, with broadly padded shoulders and baBgy
trousers.
7. Egoli (€ 96'l€).
6.
rhcrns,']. t'.."
tediorls tiuestions: Flort
1ry25 i1 | rvrs ignorant of
the boyls ptesencel If I
clid not supervise my
native quarters, how
clid I know that that
of thing didnt gcJ
on all the timel Ancl
when I flared up ancl
sc''rt
"rir'.i.
Ll'.a t.tg"t.tr'one of those looks that come
l.,nt fro* any thinking process going on in the
I
train brt from that faculty common to all who
are pos'sessed by the master'race theory-a
iooLnf i.tsattely inane certainry. He grinned at
me with a mixftrre of scom and delight at my
sturridiry.
'l-h"n I had to eiplain to Petrus why the
health authorities had to take away the body
for a post-mortem-and, in firct, what a postmr'rt;m was. When I telephoned the health
dcpartment some days iater to find out the
r.r,,lt, lrr,as told that the cause of death was, as
we had thought' pneumonia and that the body
hal been suitably disposed of. I..ilEfiTGifto
\ffihforthefowls
and told him that it was all right, there would
he no trouble; his brother had dled from that
na;n iri his chest. Petrus put down the paraffin
iin an.l said, "When cirn we go to fetch him,
baas?"
"To fetch him?"
' "\7ill the.baas please ask them when we
mrst come!"
I went back inside and called Lerice, all
over the house. She came down the stairs from
the spare bedrooms, and I said, "Nou what am
I gorng to do? When I told Petrus, he just
asl.ed c,rlrnly
l
1.,.,1y.
:lncl ansr.ver a lot of
.-l told them that so long
iq my natiucs did thcir work, I didn't thinl it
mv risht or concem to poke my nose into thcir
li""t, I got from the coane, dull'witted
the,lirt1 \
work' I sr tP1'r rse'"
Shc w;rs.till staring;tt tttc' trvittq nlc nttr
rvith those eyes-wasting l'rtr time. if she onlv
iheir re.ponses miRht
luegest about Ihe
.rrength of their relaiio,,ship and about the
iit{crences benryeen
[]r,
tlre hcalth authoritics
when they coulcl go and fetch the
rlrrnk rlr, r'tr.
sq,,i11,1
t,,
l.u
),,
"Wcll, q, ' l.'rcL rtr,l tcll lrinr," s:tirl I-L'rttt:.
"Yrtr rnLrst tcll hiur. Wlr-v ,li,lrr't yorr tcll lrirn
tl'rcn l"
Whrrr I lirrrnrl Pctrtrs lrqain, ht lo,,kcJ trp
politcly. "l-,','k, ['ctnrs," I srrirl. "Ytrtr ciltl't g() t()
fctch yotrr brothcr. Thcv'tc done it rlrcatly-'
thcy'vc hrrricd l'rim, yotr ttnclcrstltntl?'
"Whcrcl" hc saicl slorvly, tltrl[y, as
if
rvfon{1.
"\i,tr stc, he rvas a stranger. Thcy knc.v hc
rvirsn't frr.m hcrc, and tlrcy clidn't knt.w he hld
sorne of his peoplc herc, so they thought tlrey
must bury hirn." It was cliffictrlt to make a pauper'.s gravc sound like a privilege.
"Please, haas, the baas must ask them." Bttt
he did not nrean that lre wanted to know rhe
burial plrce. He simply ignored the incornprehensibie rnachinery I told him had set to r'vork
on his .lcad hrother; he
r,ventecl
the hrothcr
back.
"Rrrt, Petnrs," I said, "how can I I Yrrtrr brotlrer is l.rtrried already. I can't ask them now."
"Oh, haas!" he said. He stood with his bransmearc,l hands uncurled at his sides, one corner of his mouth twitching.
"Gmd God, Petrus, they won't listen to me!
They can't, anFvay. I'm sorry, but I can't do it.
Ycru undcrstandl"
Ilc jrrst kcpt on l,roking at me, otrt of his 1
krrowlcdge tlr:rt white men have everything, \
can J,r anything; if they Jon't, it is hecaute I
they rvon't.
Antl thcn, at dinner, Lerice started' "Yttu
coukl at least phone," she said.
"Christ, what d'you think I am1 Arn I supposed t<, bring the dead back to lifel"
Rut I c.r'.,l.i ,tot exaggcrate my way out of this
ridiculous responsibility that had been thntst on
me. "Phone il-tem up," she went on. "And at
least yotr'll he ahle to tell him yotr've clone it
ancl they've explained that it"s impossiblc'"
Six Feet of the CountrY
t'l I
I ilPril(rre of
lnsithl
hc
thousht tliat lcrhnps hc wrs gcrting this
r;
)
.h" niulrt ht'frrrc, ltirvinu lrll rlrt v:trnit[r
::j;,ro.:i lrorn tlrc Iivinq-r'rrrm tl"ttr' if y.tr
Slrc.lislrppcaredsclmewhereitrttltlre,,veres.l[tirs.lirtyrtrgs,othcrssntlrth"ilJ:llff
1se7-f1xn2'5 mttncy' I strPpc
r',.i.l",.I u,,tlrlJm lr* .,,tr"(}'n"i-ir" lrrter she
g'rrtlcner's'\
t'1tl l)rrrlt tlrc ctu'k''' en'l Jlrcoh thc
]i.."1,' .S,, I lr'r,l t,rkcn my N'r' I ir( 'rr rn(l g()nt'
r;u)e l\;r(k to tt'll rnc, "Tlrc t'lJ lethcr"s corrr-1
rrll
theI
ln rny
l;,i k,-,;t"lt,,c['"''hcsiJcs'!li"m
l,ii'i" pr".,ttc rrry rf pr()ach sh"rrlrcs'funerrrl'
,rg \l{)w. fr,,.r Rho,lcsir ,. i.,,, ,ir. f,,..r"1/ "",i
to'rk n I
l
rhttut
rtrunJ
tt""f
l
6t'ltlings
ah'rut
tirrgoit*n
heJ
"
I
lt'itJt^f
:]:.;;",''.,.-;,
f'l' *"' I
I l1"r gtrt ;r lrcrmit ,'nJ he's i"'tay'""
gct i" i"'i"iin" lnr)re tllan in r'tt'nishment' real- ::::i *^t rernintl.d,'niy *l'cn I taw tlre firoce\-I Inli,rtunrrtcly, il wtts nor imptrs:ilrlc tt'
ly]i"i'"i"n itt tltc wrstc' tlrt usclestness'of I ffi;;;til
up ,h.'p'trh along the trutsitle .f
rvas
rhc [*'.lv h,rck. Tlle attthtrritics t'il 1[;11 i1
x' pt.r.'r'-Just liUt-t -l ,h" {"naa t,-rw,trJ mci from whcre I was standtiris
''rcrifice llll-t:'o'i
^",r,,
\,,r.n(,\4.hirr irrt,gulirr r.",,r,r,'r,"."1ti"'i-tvri..n"
everYYl"t-".1-] Qt1:fo'Jtlt'lrctaw ll"
."" sce the graves qtrite clearly' anJ
.,,,u]i,i,,n, lr,,j l'""r, firlfrtltJ, thcy coul'1. nt't \[to'tr
|
t,ntt
sttn glinte(l ()rr l'irs "[ l'r"ken lt'tthollgnt'
the
otll
i"v
f(rtlll(l
I
,t't"' I Noti.erhewrylhenar- ,t?l
rcl,r.. permissirrn frrr exhumlrri(rn.
rlnJ jrln jars
Llecerrtnc
ttrcrns;\1;s,t||-|;::1
w"trl'l lthetnsetves
II ratorcontrastshisown
it wor'rlLl
*'9':"^lli:':l:::l
ch,,rgcs, ir
,.rv, t i 'f,.iJ"J hotncm"Jc tr()ss'
untlcrtrtker's charges'
ir'" un.lertaker's
i't,,..i, *i,lt the
lllrwcrs'
onlcr,to
thel
Je'tJ
I
'
'ir,it
'i',,,
lrft,t,il;il,ti',^t,"ttl".
.,,J'J;il;r*fr.
lcies of life in
I
I valueswiththoseof
the I f''rmhands'Asyoucon-
tr,"tt"tf'"iti"" rv"lt'l lt'tvc T'c.nsure rhe msclves
i,J;;'l::1111*lll-s'
-:inc.mprehenslnlc to I l:l#itil?lT:lif,
r*rn,y r.r,unrs-;'rd i.,:,;-y:li;y::f
I *hir h theirvaluesdi[.,,.i.r.'t'.1,, the dcatl ,rrfr-g'-'Tctil'iliilf I
i*tn-til pc''tle like Lerice rrncl | 1"'
offcT-rt t.ftiffittff
rt. ()rr livc p,,unJs
'fiiiil.l
-i
ri,rr
tr()rrn\ls-)r ,lnything
else
within
rcrrsr)n'
f('l
lnt"'who regard life
"
|
-
rh:rtlnltter-lwouldh,rvespenrwrrlroutr't"''"thit'g'obttpttttextravagantlyanJ'ifwe
the llnal
final
it as tne
regerJ rt
tl"'th at all' reglr'I
think rrbout dcath
"t
grrr.lgitrg
,,rrr.luirrs it on.loct,rrs o, 1njgil"' t[at rnightf
"""ti"'til"''tft"t '"*nt1 In+ 'to;"
i"''.:i.,i;il,"
t',,v
*tt""
he was
alivc
t)nccI
lrrrnkrrrntcY'
on
SaturJ:ry
ittl'r"i*t-t""ut-^':i,t-]".'*
Irc ,*,,rs.l.aJ, I fiad no inrcntirrn .,f "n.,'.,r,,g-l
stx'J '1ty fr'r tlte
;;,,;.I irlrcrn(]un an]^rvay' so it. wes irh;rJ
ir)u pcrnrs r. rhr.w ,*.r,'1,,1""'*l.r;,;;:
b'rrr.weJ otrr
father
his
and
iu"*'"t-l*'*t
tlr,r. ..' str\'.t tu .t",tt" n'l"Jutl'i: i;"'i;'';';\
tlt'"k;y cart to fetch the cc'ffin from the ciry'
return,
nt''torr"r,
whe re, perrus told Leric.' on their
I told him, in the kitchen that nighr,
was "nice"-the coffin waiting for
,,Twenry poundsl,,
he s:rid,
"u.*.hi.,n
tft"*'- tii"ay sealed up to save them from
I said, "Yes, that's right, rwenty pounds'"
the
For a moment, I had the feeling' fiom
n"'
t"iitiilti"g'
*"'
[,xrk on his face, that he
rvhcn he spoke again LhJ;;;;;i11';
,,We must puv'lri.ry'p.rr"arr" r,.
i.rirginetl it.
l"'*fiilh
.uiJ in thc frrrway
a
Petnrs .skcd to
see
io
person ",rhc hJy )
i;';;i
"ltl
.;."-,k;,,i.";"thr,",g ,., ;ilJll:ilf
ah'rur'
thirrking
l,cirr
n(,r
"':'nfi-ttgnr'
P.i-t"'I said and went back to
tn"iil:iiiiil.ming
have been a rather unpleasant sight
weeks' interment' (lt had taken all
for the authorities and the undenak'
moving
n.rrt the final anangements for
" All morning' the coffin lav in
th";;;t'
'"{i"t ;;"
tnoi'i*'
before I wenr ro
me' "il;t"'l;;;";it
torvn,
t"tJ'
i:j;;r_m:i:i:ilH.'lii":;:[il:il::il
that was a relic ,-rf the days
;;;f :;;i;;,
nuh".,
thi.,bas a real farming district rather
pure
,t'o',',', irrt'i""able rural estare' It was
thottt" th't I happened to be dcnvn there
norcs' \
hanJing tlr" ;;"ilt;f
'rwkn'rrJly,
,t.'girlnl';;h";;h;.
o^
seld,,m
,o
Tlrcv,rc
|
they dtin't rcal- 1
lrc ie cciving siJe, ptnr devils'''o
a w'irc rnan i
lv krr,'w how t. han,l ,non"f
t f-"*"
-l
lrer,. it wrrs, rhe ,*..,r, nll,,-,]., ,"'",*. ""i
,,tJ ttr.lt
rr,rr'es, s.mc creased ""!'ilil;i';;;,i",ir;;
t
near
pasti once
thc tence when the procession came
ro me
,x^in Lerice had forgotten her promise
on I
uninhabitrble
house
the
ttJ nta mrde
an'l
S';';J;v'';?;noon' I had come homefilthy
pair
a
in
her
finJ
to
i"d'.i"icJ
''[
a.rd rvith her hair unc.mberl
since
i'.,r*" *nh rninwater antl
'""t felr a little rwkward rrrtl JiJ not kntrw
()n hitting my g'-'lil'all ()r stop at
whether t() go
rhc wholc garher.ing was decently
least urrtil
-I-he
donkey crrt crcrks and screecnes
.asi.
t;i;i't
revoluti'rn of the wheels' and it
;"",y
.^t" ,f,t.g in a sluw, halting
fe'hion somehow
ltir.d to the rwo tlonkeys who drc'w
".."'f
it. their little pt,thcllies rubbcJ and rough'
an'l their
,lr"it'lt.'^.tt ,uni. l'.'*t"n the 'h'rlts'
srrbtrtissive anJ
air
an
with
l'ack
nti,.""a
.r"
i"riu
io".l"t,'
;;;;;;;i
pec,rlierly suitetJ, to"' to the group
wr)men who crme 'rlong slowlY
The prtient ass Wrtching' I thought'
,." nn* why the cteature became a
biUfi..i syml'ol. Then the proc-ession Jrew
to put
[""i *i,tt me and stopped' so I haddown
ott
taken
was
coffin
Tlrc
down my club.
a
shinY'
;as
Yellt-rw-varnished
il;;ili;
the donKeys
wood, like chcap fumiturc-and
i*tl".f.
J;u lrr,t
,*lr.h.d their
lrt"t,-nfU.tt'
again't the flies' Petrus'
and thc. ol'l father fro.m
ears
irn a."r" n.",eJ it on theii
sht
'ulJers'
and .the
lt was really a
il;rti""
I"*'^*[*"r.f momt'nt' I st'"tl there rather
i""iitnfv it e fence, quitt' still' anJ slowly
moved on, otr leiot'
",
tour men
thev file,l past' not lot'king 9P' lhc
and the
hox'
wooden
bent tteneath the shiny
were
them
of
All
moumers'
of
troop
,*eeiing
kncw
I
whom
;;il;;""t n.ighbo's'servants
our lands
as casual, easygoing gossipers about
breat]ring'
mun's
olcl
;;
-' [t,.h.;. t hJard ihe pick trp rny cltrb agtrin
iilJ just bent t.
lll''
rr ttt rltl'
ir'
itlt
I
rnrx"l;
Pr{)ccssl()llilI
or
at ()ncc, iikc ,r rtltvc tii lltitl lloltg thc ltir
,rn. it-t,"a stt,ltltt.t cttrrcnts oi colJ cirtcl'ritlg
"t l"g, in ;r plrrt-i.l strcam The oltl mitn's
,i yu,',
voicc n,lrs nrtrttcring st,tnethit-tg; thc pcople
hrl.irr,rpp"J, c,rufttsed, llntl they brulJtcd irrto
a^" ,""ir-,"r, s.tne pressit-tu tt) gt) ()n' othcrs
rvlt.tt tlt,
t,
\\'.r
' I -"tt "l
I
,.rl.]rn,.ti,v t,1 tlttir
1',i 'rill. I t'''ulJ s'c tlurt thty
ni.-,n,f
'tt.',t,,,
,u"r" ,i,,'l'.t,t.,rst.l, l'rrt lhey t "'rltl l){)t l'll\t'rc
thc roic"; it wlls tnrrch the 'viry that the tnttttti.li,l!]. ,,1 .t prr r11111 1, th'rtrrllt not clu'lr irl lir\l '
thc
,,rr.li, ,lr,' ,.,r,r'r,i. Tl'. \,,1)ur i)f the r,'ltitr
r:trrirJ rr:t' \;lll:lllg 'tt lrltnrlle l ltt'
t\) illl ()ut {r('nl un(l( r ll)c
t0
stcfierl hc frying-ltetrus
er!!-)-!tl riirtcdlr rv i th
tt N.,,*
,lf.i
,tt,,t.'
;;i;h;,,f
hirn.
Thc littlc t',ty wtro hatl been left to wetch
the re ins and ran to scc' I
,t"r.it,t,'tt
"yr.lnrpped
sarne
J.u'r;, t nu* why-unless it was for the
Ll,,*,,', o.], u,l" cft)w(l ,tr( illn(l \t )lllc( )llc rvh' ' h:t'
,, .incm,r-b'rr I p'rrtttl tltt' riires "l
i",n,li'i''
,l-r" f"rr..:- and rvent through, aftcr
Petrtrs lifted his eyes to
him
'
me-to
any-
trt'ttr
b.,ii *irh <iistrcss 'rnd htrrror' Thc ttl'l
entirtly'
gt'
c"tfrn
tt[
the
ir"il nltt ^ttti' hatl let
sttpport it on
nr-r.l ,h" three others, unable to
in the
ground'
the
on
,h.t;,r;;, had laid it
was a film of .dust
there
Alreadv
;;r[;";.
not
iiuhrlv *"u*ri.tg trp its shiny siJes' I tlr'l
saying;.1
was
man
old
the
what
,,i.l.irtnnJ
il;;;;;.j to interfere' But now the whole
Tllc
:;;;;;J an.l shaking, anJ spt-'ke Jircctlv.t'-r
;;;, :;i;* s{)nI( thing ihut I c.'t'lJ tell fr"m tlrc
,.*., *i,ln* undeistanding the words' rvas
sho.king rnJ extraordinery',...
"Whaf is it, Petrusl What's wrongl
l{}
I iter.tture
oi lnsight
l
appealed.
"'
'1.,n,. tlrrcw up his hrn'ls' ht'wctl his hc'r'l
reasoned
exposrulated (eks p;is'cha ldt' itl):
earnestly al)out inlproper conduct; Prolested'
8.
5ix Feet o[ the CountrY
a,
trl;1
*r,,"n rumcd on my silcnce'
hllllls
ntan hinrs.'lf cllne ()ver to me' wltn hlS
t.",n**
f)
]/
)
,)
tl \il ll( a\Y."
Silt'rrcc. I cotrld henr the olcl man breathing;
lrc kcpt his mouth a little open, as old people
were shocked, in a lirconice firshion, by their
own rnistake but that in thc confi-rsion of their
anonymous dea.l they werc hclplcss to put it
right. They said to me, "'We are trying to find
out" and "We are still making inquiries." It was
,t,'
as
in ;r scrics of hysterical shakes, then thnrst his
l;rr'r' u| at rne sudtlcnly. "He says, 'My son was
l lr
the sheets; look for him-your poultry boy\
brother. There are so many black faces-surely
r,ne will
pri:c the li.l off the coffin, and three of the
nr{n crmc forward to help him. Then he sat
(l()\\'n {,r1 the ground; very old, very weak, and
rrn;rl.lc tr', speak. he merely lifted a trembling
Ilrn,l tr,rvrrtl what was there. He abdicated, he
llrrr,lc,l it over to them; he was no gtnd anyll1(ll'C.
They crowded round to look (and so did I),
;rntl n<rw they forgot the nature of this surprise
and the occasion of grief to which it belonged
,rr-ll firr a few minrrtes were canied up in the
:rstonishment of the surprise itself. They
Jol"
-TF;aT*-dSotFTCpa tFe r eyes tumed
l.,n *" as I spoke, and, oddly, for rhose
| *o*".'tr they looked exactly alike, rhough it
| .ounds impossible: my wife. with her high,
f *hire forehead and her attenuatcd
I English*oman's body, and the potrltry hoy,
I with his homy bare feet below khnki trousers
I ried at the knee with srring and the peculiar
rankness of his nervous sweat coming fiom his
skin.
"What makes you so indignant,
so deter'
l mined about this nowl'said Lerice suddenly.
I I stared at her. "lt's a matter of principlg.
rlr()\vnuns cr,twdecl him out of his view.
Irr tlic c<.ffin was someone no one had ever
opened the kitchen door to leave, sensing that
the talk had gone beyond him, she turned
.ccn l.cf,rrc: a heavily built, rather lightskinrred native with a neatly stitched scar on
away, too.
I
rvrangled rvith the authorities for a week
ovcr that botly. I had the feeling that they
6
l8
t ilcralure of lnsight
back.
l
I tritrtl to gct thc rn()ncy; I-cricc triecl. Wc
b,rtlr tclcphorrctl ;rn.l wrote and argucd, l.rrt
norhit.re camc 9f it. It rppeared that tl-re rruin
cxfensc lratl bccn thc Lrnclertakcr, and nftcr lrll
lrc lr,r,l ,1,'n,' his j,rh. g1y thc u'h,tlc thing *.rs ,r'l
c,'tnllctc w,rstc! cvrn nrrrre rrf ,l waste firr rh,'
1'1 116'vils
f
"From the way he asks, you'd think he was
robbing his dead brother," I said to Lerice later.
But as I've said, Lerice had got so inrense
'
She said, "Oh." And as Petrus'slowly
I continued to
pass ctn assurances
to
Petnrs
every evening, but although what I said
the same and the voice in which I said it
was
(la
kln' ik):
sparing of words; terse
I hinhing Abtowt the Story
A PERSONAL'RESPONSE
sfuaring
.imPressions
1, How do you feel about the ending of this story?.lot down your impressions
in your journal.
conrtructing
2. What do you think of the narrator's comment at the end of thc story that
intffpretntions the old man "went back home rather better off . . . than he had come"?
3. Whose values appeal to you the most in this story? Support your response
With examples from the story.
4. Analyze the relationship between the narrator and Lerice.
lhink ahout
r'how the narrator describes their marriage
.
each person's values
o the effect of the incident on their relationship
5. How do your prereading predictions compare with the actual story? Use
examples to explain your response.
was
the same, every evening it sounded weaker' At
last, it became clear that we would never get
9. laconic
c
I
tlrrrr I lr,r,l thorrght it woulJ hc. /l
Thc old tnan from Rlrodesia was ahtrut
Lcnccls ;rtlrcr\ sizc, s'r she gave him one of Ir,'r
f.rthcr's ol,l srrits, .rn,l he u'ent heck h,rmc I .
rathcr bettcr off, lor the ri",*,",i-r..'l'.'f'^j-l I
1.1
r
| \X/hy should they get away with a swindlel lti
I time these officials had a jolt from someonc
I who'll bother to take the trouhle."
his L,n:head-perhaps from a blow in a brawl
tlr;rt hird also dealt him some other, slower'
rv,,rkinq injury that had killed him.
'
tlrit l.rrsint'ss thlrt shc corrltlrr't c,,,.'rr
:lp|r(\'i lt.c l Iitrlc irttnic smile.
lrl.orrf
around the back end oftown chasing after this
afihir," I added aside, to Lerice, onc-gigfrt.
garpctl antl flared noisily with excitement' I
cverr rroticed the little boy who had held the
tlonkcys jurnping up and down, almost weep-
ine u,ith ragc hccause the backs of the
'
And every evening when I got home, Petrus
was waiting in the kitchen. "Well, they're rying. They're still looking. The baas is seeing to
it,for you, Petnrs," I would tell him. "God, half
the time I should be in the office I'm driving
lr('rrn qrown in emulation of early Empire
l-rril,lcrs. It scemed to frame all his utterances
rvirh rr spccial validity. He shocked the asseml.ly: rlrcy thought he was mad, but they had to
lisrcn r() him. With his own hands he began to
l
whcre trn,ler a rrrrml'cr rlrat didn't hel,'ng 1,y
him, or in the medical schc'n[, perhaps, laboriously rerluced to laycrs of muscle and strings o[
nervel Goodness knows. H" had no ic{entiry in
this world anyway.
':1r was only tlren, and in a voice of shame,
that Petnrs asked me to try and get the money
if at any moment they might condtrct me
into their mortuary and say, "There! Lift up
"lr,ly son was young and thin," hc said at
l;r.t, irr llnslish.
,\quin silt'nce. Then babble hroke otrt. The
,,1,1 nrrn thrrrrclcrecl :rgainst everybody; his
!ceth tcrc ycilowed and few and he had one
,tinc, grizzlecl, srveeping mustaches one
, ,f t lr,
'sc
rL,csn't oficn sce nc,waclays, which must have
)
Petrus's hrother hack, hecause nokrdy rcally
ftner.v where he was. Sornewhere in a grave. yartl :rs unifrrrtn as housing sclteme, s,rrnc-
A CREATIVE RESPONSE
6. Could the narrator have done anything differently about the mix-up of the
corpses? Explain.
Six Feet of the Country 6)9
t"f