[Vfw-times] Adventures in Chattahoochee Hollar - Mystery Bag (4/?)

[Heartsh0t at aol.com]

“Gee, what’s wrong with him?” Travis asked in a half squeak to Mr. Max.  
“And
how did he know my name?”

“I don’t know son.  I’ll be...if that doesn’t beat all.   That’s just the 
strangest
thing!”

The store clerk and his daughter walked from behind the counter and stood on
the front porch to see if they could see Mr. Ringtail.   The children 
followed 
Mr. Max outside.

“Why did he run from Travis?” Shelley asked.  “He acted like he was scared to
death.”  

Her father shrugged his shoulders.  “I don’t know.”  He looked down at 
Travis.  “I
just don’t know.  Travis, do you know that man?”

“No!  I’ve never seen him before in my whole life!  Who is he?”

“Well, his name is Simon Ringtail, and from what I gather, he’s a newcomer to
these parts.  He moved here two years ago.  He has no family here that I know
of, and he appears to live alone.  That is, I never see him around with 
anyone.”

“B-but how does he know me?” Travis asked.  “A-a-nd why did he take off
runnin’ like that?”

The store clerk shook his head.  “I wish I knew Travis.  I’ll ask him when 
he stops
by next time.”  Mr. Max sighed.  “In the meantime, you’re welcome to use the
phone.  It’s in the back of the store.”

“Dad, do you want me to go back there with them?” Shelley asked, looking at 
the
children.

“No, I guess it’ll be allright.  Besides, I know their pa’s and I’ll see 
them in church
tomorrow mornin’.”  “Be sure you kids don’t touch anything back there.”

“We won’t,” the children answered.  

The group went around a few displays to the back of the store.  Mr. Max had 
one
of the few telephones in the Hollar.  When most folks wanted to make a call, 
they
would simply come to Mr. Max’s Grocery.   Mr. Max was also one of the few who
could afford electricity.  Wadell and Strogie’s family were one of the 
fortunate
families to have both as well. 

“Do you know your telephone number?” Travis asked.

“Of course I do!” Wadell answered, picking up the receiver.

“Gee, your lucky to have a phone,” Travis squeaked.

Wadell listened for the voice of the operator at the switchboard and gave her 
his
telephone number.   Anna watched Wadell.   She faintly remembered the time
when you would have to wind up the phone to generate enough electricity to
make a call.  She was awfully small then.   She remembered seeing her mother
here at the store placing calls on a few occasions.  Times had given way to
where all you had to do now was to just pick up the receiver and wait for the
operator to come on.   When the operator asked how she could help you, you
would give her the number you wanted, and she would connect you.  

After a quick call to his parents, Wadell slammed the telephone down with an
enormous grin on his face.

"Let's go!"

"What do you mean, can ya'll can stay the night?" Travis asked.

"Uh-huh," Wadell said excitedly.

"YEEEEE-HAAAAAA!" Strogie and Travis said.

"Well, let's go!" Travis said, leading his friends and his sister out from 
the back
of the store.

"Wait!" Anna said, fumbling through the pockets of her overalls.  "I think
I may have enough."   She pulled some change out of her pocket and looked at
each of the children, making some quick calculations.  

"Ok...good, I have enough for everyone!"

"Enough for what?" Strogie asked.

"I'm going to buy everyone some candy and a drink" Anna said, smiling.

“Allright!  Thank you Anna!” the children said.

The children rushed into the store front and looked at the candy aisle, and 
then
to the drink cooler.   When each child picked out what they wanted, they 
brought
the candy and drinks to the counter.   Mr. Max smiled at them as Shelley rang 
up
the merchandise.   After Anna paid for the candy, they bid Mr. Max and his
daughter farewell.

“Okay children!   See you in church tomorrow,” Mr. Max said, waving.    

“Bye!” they echoed as they were walking out of the front door.

The children walked back towards the Foxley home, talking, sharing, and eating
their candy.


When Johnny and Mr. Foxley got back home, they took the chest inside the
toolshed and placed it on a workbench.   Mr. Foxley grabbed a hacksaw and
began sawing the lock while Johnny held the box.  At last, the lock was cut in
half, and they were finally able to open the mysterious box.   Inside, the two
found the chest full of money sacks with a revolver laying on top.   The two
surprised men looked at each other for a moment in silence.    Each of the 
bags
were labeled 'Little Rock First National Bank, Arkansas'.   Mr. Foxley opened
one of the bags and took out a handful of coins.   He inspected the dates on 
the
coins.

"What are you doing?" Johnny asked his father.

"Hmm....1928, 1925, 1926, 1929."

He poured the money out on the table and looked through the coins. After a few
moments, he spoke.   "It seems to me that a robbery had taken place in ‘29.   
A
robbery in Arkansas.   And it looks like the criminal had taken up residence 
in
our town."

“How do you figure?”

He held up a coin to his son.  "You see...looking through these coins, the
most recent date of these coins is 1929.   That means the crime was committed 
two years ago, when the Depression started.  The robber had managed to elude
the authorities, and had came here to hide out and blend in with the locals 
here."

Johnny picked up a coin, examining it.  "But what would make this person want
to come here?"

"Don't know.    Maybe he got tired of running and he figured that he would
never get caught in a small town like ours."  “Maybe he has family here.   In 
any
case, let’s put the money and the sacks back inside the box.”

The two foxes put the money back inside the bag and tied it shut before 
placing
it inside the box.  

"What are we gonna do?" Johnny asked, looking at his father.
Mr. Foxley turned away from his son.  To think that this criminal, the one who
was responsible for his boy's accident was living here in the hollar!   Anger
began to build inside the fox.

"I'm going to find him.   If he's still here, I'll find him." Mr. Foxley said 
with a
hardened expression.    He knew his son was watching him.  Youthful eyes ever
watching, he did his best to keep his composure.  A careless word spoken in
anger would certainly put a snare inside the soul of his son.  With a sigh, he
walked to the door of the toolshed, put a hand on the doorframe,  and looked
out.  It  wouldn't be too long before the sun started it's downward descent.  
  He
stood there for a moment and seemed to make up his mind about something.

"Let's get everything together, and move this box into the house.   We've got 
to
get back out into the field and get some more work done before it gets any 
later."

"Okay Dad."

Father and son took the chest inside the house.   Mrs. Foxley and Stephanie
were outside in the flower garden.   The men took it upstairs to Mr. Foxley’s
bedroom.   

“There, it’s out of reach of the children now,” Mr. Foxley said.  “Come on, 
we’ve
got to get back to work.   I’ll tell your mother about it on the way to the 
field.”

Both men went back out to work in the fields.  Mr. Foxley climbed back onto 
his
tractor, and Johnny had started his team again.  Thoughts of how he was going
to deal with this S. J. R. went through his head.   After he finds out where 
this
person lived, should he go and get the police and take them to this criminal’s
house, or should he handle the matter himself?  Thoughts of how he would love
to strangle this person came to his mind.   Furious anger burned inside the 
man,
thinking about how his boy almost died.  How dare someone to be so careless
as to toss a sack out into the river like that, knowing that children swam and
fished there?  How dare someone hold up and rob a bank, threatening innocent
people?   He would certainly search this man out and get some answers!   

The day was drawing near a close when he saw Travis and his friends
approaching him again in the distance.   “Coming for me to take them fishing,”
he mused.   He thought about Travis’s incident at the river a month ago.   
Travis
did play hooky that day when he was supposed to have been in school.   If
Travis had went to school like he was supposed to, then he wouldn’t have had
that accident.   How was that crook supposed to have known that Travis would
have gotten caught up in that cord?  Mr. Foxley remembered his anger towards
Travis upon learning of his disobedience.  He looked at the boys coming 
closer.  
He could only imagine in his mind’s eye his son drowning, desperately trying 
to
keep his head above the water.  Then the gracious and loving Saviour brought a
verse to his mind from Ephesians 4:32...

“And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as
God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

Mr. Foxley remembered as a young man, the forgiveness he experienced when
he called on Jesus’ name in his moment of repentance.    The saving hand of
Jesus reached down into the sea of iniquity to the outstretched hand of this 
man
to save him from drowning in his sins.   He remembered how he had trespassed
since then, and even on a daily basis.   He remembered how his Heavenly
Father had forgiven him time and time again and showed His gracious love
towards an unworthy sinner.   Love that is not deserved, as it was and is the 
sins
of the world that had put the Saviour on the tree.  But the Saviour’s love 
abounds
in grace.   And it is God’s grace that sets the captive free.  The saving 
grace of
Jesus...free to all to whom calls upon His name.

How could his anger be kindled against this man, when the Saviour had forgiven
the fox of his sins?    Was this man any more undeserving?  Didn’t Jesus bleed
and die for this criminal too? 

Mr. Foxley stopped his tractor.    He remembered the verse he recounted to his
son a week ago from Romans 3:23...

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” 

Mr. Foxley looked up at the sky.   The sky was a fiery orange with stormy,
turbulent clouds.   Never in his life had he seen a more spectacular sunset!  
 
It was as if the whole sky was on fire.    He felt the presence of the Lord 
in his
heart, and whispered a prayer of forgiveness to his Saviour.   Love, gracious
love.   If God could save a sinner like himself, He could save anyone, 
including
this criminal.   Love filled his heart for this runaway vegabond.   How could 
he
not forgive this misguided brother when he, himself was once lost and without
hope?