Free After the Rain: My America 2 by Mary Pope Osborne Page B

a violin player now.
    November 12, 1864
    Today Pa went to the Washington Theater and the Oxford Hall of Music, looking for a job. But neither of them needs a violin player, either.
    Monday he will go to Seaton Hall where they have fancy balls.
    I can tell Pa is beginning to get very worried. I know he fears we will not have enough money to stay here in Washington City.
    November 14, 1864
    Pa came home sad again. He did not get a job at Seaton Hall.
    November 15, 1864
    Pa has given up hope of finding work as a violin player. He read in the paper today that they need a watchman at the navy yard. He will go there tomorrow.
    November 16, 1864
    Jed came home with big news about the war tonight. General Sherman has led 60,000 men against Atlanta! They burned the city and left it in ruins.
    November 17, 1864
    Pa did not get a job at the navy yard.
    Unless he gets a job, we will end up in the poorhouse, he said tonight.
    Jed told Pa not to worry. He said he will quit his work at the newspaper. He said he saw an ad for a woodcutter today. And he can make more money chopping wood than setting type, he told Pa.
    Pa got furious. He said Jed could not leave the newspaper -- he must stay there until he uses his talents to write!
    Jed said he would rather be a woodcutter.
    Pa said, "Hogwash! You will not be a woodcutter, and that is final."
    Pa went into his room and slammed his door.
    Then Jed went into his room and slammed his door.
    Jane Ellen and I just sat in the parlor and stared gloomily at the torn wallpaper.
    November 18, 1864
    Pa took the job as a woodcutter. He will chop firewood for the shops on Pennsylvania Avenue. Pa is not very hardy-looking. But his arms are quite strong from playing the violin.
    November 21, 1864
    Jed says that General Sherman's army is still in Georgia. The newspaper has sent most of its reporters to the South to cover the story.
    I know Jed aches to go with them. But for once I am glad that he only sets type. I dread his ever being captured again, as he was during the Battle of Gettysburg. He still has a bad limp from his wound. And he still carries dark memories that time does not seem to erase.
    This darkness causes Jed to worry a lot. Ever since the election, he has been worried about President Lincoln's safety. He has been brooding lately about the souvenir seekers who swarmed the White House after the President won. They stole tassels from window curtains. They snipped pieces from the wallpaper and chair covers.
    November 23, 1864

    At dinner, Jed said that President Lincoln has declared the last Thursday of every November as a national Day of Thanksgiving.
    On this day, every year, we Americans will stop work and thank God for our blessings.
    November 24, 1864
    Today Jed and Pa stayed home to celebrate the Day of Thanksgiving.
    Jed said that over 100,000 turkeys and chickens are to be served to General Grant's army today. We do not have enough money for a turkey. Lately, we are mostly eating beans for dinner, beans with a bit of bread.
    While we ate our beans today, Jed talked again about President Lincoln's safety. He says the President must have more bodyguards.
    While Jed worried about President Lincoln, I worried about Jane Ellen. During dinner, she became ill and had to lie down.
    While I worried about Jane Ellen, Pa worried about keeping his job as a woodcutter. He fears he is not strong enough.
    I hope God forgives us for not being very thankful this Thanksgiving.
    November 30, 1864
    Though none of us seems happy, we do have a daily routine now. Every morning Pa and Jed leave for work. Jane Ellen gives me two hours of lessons. Then she and I sew, clean, and cook. If she feels well, we shop in the market.
    In the afternoon, Jane Ellen lies down, while I study my lessons.
    The sky grows gray quite early, and our rooms become cold and damp. While Jane
    Ellen sleeps, I sometimes feel that something awful is about to happen. I try to shake off the feeling by singing.
    My spirits lift when Jane