My buddy Jacob and I had just spent a week boating down the Sabine River, from Toledo Bend to the Gulf of Mexico, and we were tired and grimy and waiting for Jacob’s father Henry to come pick us up. We had arranged to meet him at the Sabine Pass Battleground State Historic Park in Sabine Pass, Texas. The memorial site was grassy and desolate, and we were the only people there. A cool breeze was blowing in from the ocean. Jacob went off to find a public restroom, and I was sitting at a picnic table, minding my own business, when a fellow in a convertible coupe began to circle through the parking lot.
The guy who hopped out of the car was fortyish and not wearing a shirt. In fact, he was not wearing much of anything — only shorts, sandals, and wrap-around sunglasses. A ponytail. A bronze tan. I was careful to avoid eye contact, but it didn’t deter him. He walked right over and started asking questions about the battle of Sabine Pass.
I answered, curtly, that a small band of Confederate soldiers had fought off a larger fleet of invading Union ships at this spot, which was now a state historic site.
“Those damn Yankees,” he said. “I say that in jest because I’m from the Northeast. So this was like a crucial port for the South during the war?”
“I have no idea,” I replied. “We just got here. But if you’ll walk around, there’s bound to be some reading material somewhere. At least a marker or something.”
He didn’t take the hint. “So where were you coming from?” he asked.
When I told him about our trip down the Sabine, he announced that he had once ridden a jet ski 180 miles along the Atlantic coast. Now his watercraft was in storage in his garage back home, needing repairs. “You know what they say,” he said. “You either have a new jet ski or you don’t have a jet ski.” He was from New Jersey, and he had taken off work for a few weeks to see the Gulf Coast between New Orleans and Brownsville. As for rivers, he added, “I’d love to explore the Hudson, because it’s so beautiful.”
“On a jet ski?” I asked.
“Oh yeah.”
Then he wanted to know what year the battle of Sabine Pass had been fought. I told him I really, truly had no idea.
“I’ll find out,” he said.
As he walked away, I thought about Jeff back up the river. Then I thought about the Tidwells and the rest of the people I had met along the Sabine. It hadn’t mattered that I was a stranger. They had invited me into their homes, fed me and treated me like one of their own. I realized that I wasn’t like these river people at all. I wasn’t as kind.
Jacob showed up with chips and sandwiches. We were eating at the picnic table when a voice shouted: “1863!”
I turned around. It was the shirtless guy. “What?” I asked him.
“1863,” he said. “That’s the year of the battle.”
“Oh, OK,” I replied.
He stood there beside our picnic table.
“Pringles, huh?” he said.
“Yep.”
“Nice.”
When we didn’t say anything more to the man he walked over to the piers, then circled back to his convertible coupe and sped off to his next destination. One hopes he found a place where the people were friendlier.
Ruthlessly cut from an early draft of Running the River: Secrets of the Sabine, by Wes Ferguson and Jacob Croft Botter.
1,298 responses to “An intrusion at the Battle of Sabine Pass”
Great work! This is the kind of info that should be shared around the net. Shame on Google for no longer positioning this submit upper! Come on over and visit my web site . Thank you =)
I think this is among the most vital information for me. And i’m glad reading your article. But should remark on few general things, The site style is great, the articles is really excellent : D. Good job, cheers
I like what you guys are up too. Such clever work and reporting! Keep up the excellent works guys I?ve incorporated you guys to my blogroll. I think it’ll improve the value of my site 🙂
Hiya, I am really glad I’ve found this information. Nowadays bloggers publish only about gossips and internet and this is actually irritating. A good blog with exciting content, this is what I need. Thank you for keeping this site, I’ll be visiting it. Do you do newsletters? Can’t find it.
Porn site
Porn
Buy Drugs
Scam
Sex
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your post seem to be running off the screen in Safari. I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with browser compatibility but I figured I’d post to let you know. The design look great though! Hope you get the problem fixed soon. Many thanks
Hi my loved one! I want to say that this post is awesome, nice written and include approximately all significant infos. I?d like to see more posts like this .
Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact used to be a amusement account it. Look complex to far brought agreeable from you! By the way, how could we be in contact?
naturally like your web-site but you need to check the spelling on quite a few of your posts. Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very troublesome to tell the truth nevertheless I will surely come back again.
Sex
Hey very nice blog!! Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your site and take the feeds also?I’m happy to find so many useful information here in the post, we need develop more strategies in this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .
It’s appropriate time to make some plans for the future and it is time to be happy. I’ve read this post and if I could I want to suggest you some interesting things or suggestions. Maybe you can write next articles referring to this article. I wish to read even more things about it!
Thanks for your post. One other thing is that if you are selling your property all on your own, one of the challenges you need to be cognizant of upfront is how to deal with home inspection reviews. As a FSBO home owner, the key to successfully shifting your property along with saving money on real estate agent commissions is know-how. The more you recognize, the simpler your sales effort are going to be. One area when this is particularly essential is reports.
I like the helpful info you provide in your articles. I?ll bookmark your weblog and check again here frequently. I am quite sure I?ll learn lots of new stuff right here! Best of luck for the next!
Porn site
I have come across that now, more and more people are now being attracted to video cameras and the industry of pictures. However, really being a photographer, you need to first spend so much time deciding the model of photographic camera to buy in addition to moving store to store just so you could possibly buy the most economical camera of the brand you have decided to settle on. But it doesn’t end there. You also have to take into consideration whether you should buy a digital dslr camera extended warranty. Thanks for the good suggestions I received from your weblog.
Hi! I’m at work browsing your blog from my new iphone 4! Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and look forward to all your posts! Keep up the great work!
These days of austerity and also relative anxiety about incurring debt, lots of people balk up against the idea of employing a credit card in order to make acquisition of merchandise as well as pay for a holiday, preferring, instead to rely on the particular tried plus trusted approach to making settlement – hard cash. However, in case you have the cash there to make the purchase fully, then, paradoxically, that is the best time just to be able to use the cards for several reasons.
Porn
Hi there, You’ve done a fantastic job. I will certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I am confident they’ll be benefited from this web site.
Viagra
Porn
Sex
Sex
Hello I am so grateful I found your webpage, I really found you by mistake, while I was searching on Digg for something else, Nonetheless I am here now and would just like to say many thanks for a remarkable post and a all round thrilling blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to go through it all at the minute but I have book-marked it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read more, Please do keep up the excellent job.
One more thing. In my opinion that there are many travel insurance web sites of respected companies that allow you enter holiday details and acquire you the estimates. You can also purchase the particular international travel insurance policy on-line by using your own credit card. All you need to do will be to enter all your travel information and you can be aware of the plans side-by-side. Simply find the package that suits your budget and needs after which it use your bank credit card to buy them. Travel insurance on the internet is a good way to do investigation for a reputable company with regard to international travel cover. Thanks for revealing your ideas.
Porn site
A few things i have always told individuals is that while searching for a good on the net electronics retail store, there are a few variables that you have to think about. First and foremost, you should really make sure to choose a reputable plus reliable retail store that has gotten great testimonials and classification from other shoppers and industry leaders. This will ensure you are dealing with a well-known store that provides good support and assistance to their patrons. Many thanks for sharing your notions on this blog.
Buy Drugs
??????
Good day! I know this is kinda off topic nevertheless I’d figured I’d ask. Would you be interested in trading links or maybe guest writing a blog article or vice-versa? My website goes over a lot of the same topics as yours and I believe we could greatly benefit from each other. If you are interested feel free to shoot me an email. I look forward to hearing from you! Great blog by the way!
Thank you for another informative web site. Where else could I get that type of info written in such an ideal way? I have a project that I am just now working on, and I’ve been on the look out for such info.
It’s perfect time to make some plans for the future and it is time to be happy. I have read this post and if I could I wish to suggest you some interesting things or advice. Maybe you could write next articles referring to this article. I want to read more things about it!
I am extremely impressed with your writing skills and also with the layout on your blog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it yourself? Anyway keep up the excellent quality writing, it?s rare to see a great blog like this one today..
This web page won’t render properly on my droid – you might wanna try and fix that
Thanks for your interesting article. Other thing is that mesothelioma cancer is generally attributable to the inhalation of fibers from asbestos fiber, which is a cancer causing material. It is commonly seen among personnel in the engineering industry who’ve long exposure to asbestos. It can be caused by living in asbestos insulated buildings for a long time of time, Genetics plays a huge role, and some people are more vulnerable for the risk as compared with others.
I’m in awe of the author’s ability to make complex concepts accessible to readers of all backgrounds. This article is a testament to his expertise and passion to providing useful insights. Thank you, author, for creating such an engaging and illuminating piece. It has been an absolute pleasure to read!
I just added this weblog to my feed reader, excellent stuff. Can’t get enough!
Pretty section of content. I just stumbled upon your weblog and in accession capital to assert that I get actually enjoyed account your blog posts. Anyway I?ll be subscribing to your augment and even I achievement you access consistently quickly.
With havin so much written content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright infringement? My blog has a lot of exclusive content I’ve either authored myself or outsourced but it appears a lot of it is popping it up all over the web without my authorization. Do you know any ways to help reduce content from being stolen? I’d certainly appreciate it.
This is very interesting, You are a very skilled blogger. I’ve joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your excellent post. Also, I have shared your website in my social networks!
Hello there! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be ok. I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
I don?t even know the way I stopped up here, but I believed this put up was once good. I don’t understand who you are but definitely you are going to a well-known blogger for those who are not already 😉 Cheers!
I have recently started a website, the information you offer on this site has helped me tremendously. Thanks for all of your time & work.
Hello! I’ve been reading your site for a long time now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from New Caney Tx! Just wanted to say keep up the good work!
You should participate in a contest for among the finest blogs on the web. I will recommend this site!