And even if you reached Jonesboro safely, there’d be a five-mile ride over a rough road before you ever reached Tara. It’s no trip for a woman in a delicate condition.
Besides, there’s not a doctor in the County since old Dr. Fontaine joined the army.”
“But there are midwives—”
“I said a doctor,” he answered brusquely and his eyes unconsciously went over her tiny frame.
“I won’t have you moved.
It might be dangerous.
You don’t want to have the baby on the train or in a buggy, do you?”
This medical frankness reduced the ladies to embarrassed blushes and silence.
“You’ve got to stay right here where I can watch you, and you must stay in bed.
No running up and down stairs to cellars.
No, not even if shells come right in the window.
After all, there’s not so much danger here.
We’ll have the Yankees beaten back in no time... Now, Miss Pitty, you go right on to Macon and leave the young ladies here.”
“Unchaperoned?” she cried, aghast.
“They are matrons,” said the doctor testily.
“And Mrs. Meade is just two houses away.
They won’t be receiving any male company anyway with Miss Melly in her condition.
Good Heavens, Miss Pitty!
This is war time.
We can’t think of the proprieties now.
We must think of Miss Melly.”
He stamped out of the room and waited on the front porch until Scarlett joined him.
“I shall talk frankly to you, Miss Scarlett,” he began, jerking at his gray beard.
“You seem to be a young woman of common sense, so spare me your blushes.
I do not want to hear any further talk about Miss Melly being moved.
I doubt if she could stand the trip.
She is going to have a difficult time, even in the best of circumstances—very narrow in the hips, as you know, and probably will need forceps for her delivery, so I don’t want any ignorant darky midwife meddling with her.
Women like her should never have children, but-Anyway, you pack Miss Pitty’s trunk and send her to Macon.
She’s so scared she’ll upset Miss Melly and that won’t do any good.
And now, Miss,” he fixed her with a piercing glance,
“I don’t want to hear about you going home, either.
You stay with Miss Melly till the baby comes.
Not afraid, are you?”
“Oh, no!” lied Scarlett, stoutly.
“That’s a brave girl.
Mrs. Meade will give you whatever chaperonage you need and I’ll send over old Betsy to cook for you, if Miss Pitty wants to take her servants with her.
It won’t be for long.
The baby ought to be here in another five weeks, but you never can tell with first babies and all this shelling going on.
It may come any day.”
So Aunt Pittypat went to Macon, in floods of tears, taking Uncle Peter and Cookie with her.
The carriage and horse she donated to the hospital in a burst of patriotism which she immediately regretted and that brought on more tears.
And Scarlett and Melanie were left alone with Wade and Prissy in a house that was much quieter, even though the cannonading continued.
CHAPTER XIX
In those first days of the siege, when the Yankees crashed here and there against the defenses of the city, Scarlett was so frightened by the bursting shells she could only cower helplessly, her hands over her ears, expecting every moment to be blown into eternity.
When she heard the whistling screams that heralded their approach, she rushed to Melanie’s room and flung herself on the bed beside her, and the two clutched each other, screaming
“Oh!
Oh!” as they buried their heads in the pillows.
Prissy and Wade scurried for the cellar and crouched in the cobwebbed darkness, Prissy squalling at the top of her voice and Wade sobbing and hiccoughing.
Suffocating under feather pillows while death screamed overhead, Scarlett silently cursed Melanie for keeping her from the safer regions below stairs.
But the doctor had forbidden Melanie to walk and Scarlett had to stay with her.