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.
2,332 responses to “An intrusion at the Battle of Sabine Pass”
Private chauffeur for Normandy Tours
Private chauffeur for Normandy Tours
156721 209378Hello there! I could have sworn I?ve been to this weblog before but following reading by means of some of the post I realized it?s new to me. Anyhow, I?m undoubtedly pleased I discovered it and I?ll be book-marking and checking back often! 751683
166352 824505Spot on with this write-up, I really suppose this web website needs rather far more consideration. most likely be once much more to learn considerably more, thanks for that info. 976527
Hi there! I just want to give a huge thumbs up for the nice info you have got right here on this post. I might be coming back to your weblog for more soon.
Heya i?m for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It really useful & it helped me out a lot. I’m hoping to give something back and help others like you aided me.
Great post, thanks for sharing
Loved this from start to finish
I appreciate, cause I found just what I was looking for. You have ended my 4 day long hunt! God Bless you man. Have a great day. Bye
Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading correctly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same results.
Thanks for the good writeup. It in truth was a enjoyment account it. Look advanced to more introduced agreeable from you! However, how can we keep up a correspondence?
benvip.mobi c?p nh?t game th??ng xuyên không l?i th?i
??????????
ngonclub.asia h? tr? khách hàng t?n tâm
?????????????
Aw, this was a really nice post. In idea I would like to put in writing like this moreover ? taking time and precise effort to make an excellent article? but what can I say? I procrastinate alot and certainly not appear to get something done.
vip52.asia ??ng ký tài kho?n ch?a t?i 1 phút
fags
goodpoop
sanvip.store n?p rút ti?n c?c k? thu?n ti?n
Thanks for sharing superb informations. Your web site is very cool. I’m impressed by the details that you?ve on this blog. It reveals how nicely you perceive this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for more articles. You, my pal, ROCK! I found simply the info I already searched all over the place and simply couldn’t come across. What an ideal website.
Ph?n l?n các trò ch?i trên sv368.ke b? lag và l?i k?t n?i
Ng??i dùng g?p khó kh?n khi liên h? v?i b? ph?n h? tr? c?a carousel.uk.com
I will immediately seize your rss as I can not in finding your e-mail subscription hyperlink or newsletter service. Do you have any? Please let me understand in order that I may subscribe. Thanks.
Không có các tùy ch?n tùy ch?nh âm thanh ho?c hình ?nh trên dazzle.uk.com
candy ai free premium
Hey! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could get a captcha plugin for my comment form? I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m having difficulty finding one? Thanks a lot!
Nice read, I just passed this onto a friend who was doing a little research on that. And he actually bought me lunch as I found it for him smile Thus let me rephrase that: Thank you for lunch!
Giao d?ch t?i 789f.us.com ???c x? lý nhanh g?n và an toàn
Would you be serious about exchanging hyperlinks?
Hi there would you mind sharing which blog platform you’re using? I’m going to start my own blog soon but I’m having a hard time selecting between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design and style seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something completely unique. P.S Apologies for being off-topic but I had to ask!
Great beat ! I wish to apprentice while you amend your web site, how can i subscribe for a blog website? The account aided me a acceptable deal. I had been a little bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered bright clear idea
497823 157314Thank you for sharing with us, I conceive this site genuinely stands out : D. 946515
I haven?t checked in here for a while because I thought it was getting boring, but the last several posts are good quality so I guess I will add you back to my daily bloglist. You deserve it my friend 🙂
Valuable info. Lucky me I found your site by accident, and I’m shocked why this accident did not happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
Mon casino
I?ll immediately grab your rss as I can’t find your e-mail subscription link or newsletter service. Do you’ve any? Kindly let me know in order that I could subscribe. Thanks.
Thank you for the sensible critique. Me and my neighbor were just preparing to do some research about this. We got a grab a book from our area library but I think I learned more clear from this post. I’m very glad to see such magnificent information being shared freely out there.
Thanks for your posting. One other thing is individual American states have their very own laws of which affect homeowners, which makes it very, very hard for the Congress to come up with a whole new set of rules concerning property foreclosure on home owners. The problem is that a state features own laws and regulations which may have impact in an undesirable manner in terms of foreclosure procedures.
Hmm it appears like your website ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I too am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to everything. Do you have any tips and hints for novice blog writers? I’d genuinely appreciate it.
Hello my friend! I wish to say that this article is amazing, nice written and include almost all important infos. I?d like to see more posts like this.
Hi! I know this is kinda off topic however I’d figured I’d ask. Would you be interested in trading links or maybe guest authoring a blog article or vice-versa? My blog discusses a lot of the same topics as yours and I believe we could greatly benefit from each other. If you’re interested feel free to send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you! Awesome blog by the way!
I know of the fact that nowadays, more and more people are increasingly being attracted to video cameras and the field of images. However, to be a photographer, you must first invest so much time period deciding the exact model of video camera to buy and also moving from store to store just so you could buy the lowest priced camera of the trademark you have decided to select. But it does not end generally there. You also have to think about whether you can purchase a digital digicam extended warranty. Thanks a bunch for the good guidelines I received from your blog.
Fantastic web site. Plenty of useful information here. I am sending it to a few pals ans additionally sharing in delicious. And certainly, thanks on your effort!
My brother recommended I might like this website. He used to be totally right. This post actually made my day. You cann’t imagine simply how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!
Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you relied on the video to make your point. You obviously know what youre talking about, why throw away your intelligence on just posting videos to your weblog when you could be giving us something informative to read?
One other thing I would like to state is that as an alternative to trying to accommodate all your online degree classes on days of the week that you finish off work (as most people are fatigued when they get back), try to obtain most of your instructional classes on the week-ends and only a couple courses on weekdays, even if it means a little time away from your weekend break. This is beneficial because on the weekends, you will be more rested and also concentrated upon school work. Thanks a lot for the different recommendations I have realized from your blog site.
Thanks for giving your ideas with this blog. Additionally, a fantasy regarding the financial institutions intentions when talking about home foreclosure is that the standard bank will not getreceive my payments. There is a certain quantity of time that the bank requires payments occasionally. If you are too deep within the hole, they will commonly require that you pay the payment 100 . However, that doesn’t mean that they will have any sort of installments at all. Should you and the standard bank can find a way to work some thing out, the foreclosure process may end. However, in the event you continue to neglect payments beneath new system, the foreclosures process can just pick up exactly where it left off.
I have really learned result-oriented things from the blog post. One more thing to I have seen is that generally, FSBO sellers will certainly reject a person. Remember, they might prefer not to use your services. But if an individual maintain a comfortable, professional romance, offering guide and remaining in contact for around four to five weeks, you will usually be capable to win an interview. From there, a listing follows. Thanks a lot
Great blog you have got here.. It’s difficult to find high-quality writing like yours these days. I truly appreciate people like you! Take care!!