I really hope I do this half justice. The last time I tried this....I lost my posting...and the whole story. An hours worth of work. Bah. I write when I cannot sleep. If you look at the times on most of my posts...I guarantee they are all early morning hour postings.... Which could be good...and could be bad.....
.......so...we purchase tickets to a place Porky and I thought was really cool...Emporia, Virginia. We got on that Grey Hound, and several hours later we get off in Emporia. Emporia was not what we imagined. Remember, we came from Bayonne, NJ and ended up in a place that was the extreme opposite.
With the last of our money.....we went to the local hotel and got a room for the night. We then asked the clerk where we could find jobs. We needed to work...we needed to fulfill our fantasy. Work and Independence. 13 years of age...who doesn't have this dream at that age?
The clerk tells us there is a factory down the road. There may be work there. We leave and walk down the road he directed. Lucky for us....we were walking through apple orchards! Porky and I were both very hungry. The apples weren't ripe. Matter of fact....they were very un-ripe. Stiff and sour. But, they were a gourmet meal....we were so hungry. We ate our fill and continued to the factory. I barely remember what happened there. We were probably too young....or there were not any jobs to be given. I do remember us returning to our room with our shirts stuffed with un-ripe apples from the return trip. Night found us tired and unsure. Porky was becoming a little uneasy...and this did not help me much at all either. That night we both fell asleep uncertain what the next day would bring. My guess was more apples.
Bang-Bang-Bang.....early morning came with a loud knocks at the door. I jumped up...and was quite startled. Porky....definitely was no help....he was hiding.. So...courageously I walked over to the door and opened it.... There stood the biggest man I can remember, wearing a ten gallon hat, a badge and a holster holding the largest gun I have ever seen. The Sheriff.
Quickly I remembered the apples we had “taken”. Looking around the room there were apple cores everywhere. I figured we were done. Now the Sheriff, walked into the room, and surprisingly paid no attention to the apples. He asked us where we were from and in his slow Virginia accent asked,”What are you boys doing here?” We replied relating our story of coming ot Emporia for work and not being able to find any. The Sheriff asked if our parents knew where we were and we were too scared to lie. The Sheriff then told us he was alerted by the clerk that there were two potential runaways and that was the reason we were there.
He then collected us and took us to his office. A small office with a visible cell in the back. The Sheriff then called our Mother's. I remember.....Porky's Mother.....coming to Emporia as fast as she could. Picking up her son.....and glaring at me. Porky must have told her it was all my fault. He remained faithful to being the outsider that he probably would go through life being. I never saw Porky again. I never got to tell his Mother it was his idea...and she never offered to take me home. Which leads to my Mother. She told the Sheriff to keep me until she could send the money.... to bring me home. I was quite worried....I was not so sure she would ever send the money.
Nowhere else to keep me...and afraid I would take off...the Sheriff put me in his Cell. Today an 13 year old would never undergo this treatment. Not only being put in a jail cell...but I was sharing the cell with two men, one was a murderer. YOW!
They were both black.....I can't remember what one guy was in there for....but the other...came home and caught his wife cheating. He killed the man. I remember this guy very clearly. He was very proper and very nice. Clean and well dressed, definitely educated. Looking back...I wonder if he ever got a fair trial. This was Virginia and I did not know how the Virginian law worked....at 13 why would I care?
Well...for several days....Every meal consisted of Beans, Corn Bread and black coffee. Every meal. Morning, noon and night. Beans, Cornbread and Black Coffee. A treat was being able to put molasses in your coffee. There was nothing else to do but talk. One guy had a harmonica....no kidding...and he played it well.
Awhile later....money arrived for a ticket for me....and the Sheriff placed me on a Greyhound back to Jersey City. I can't remember what my Mother said when I came home....but I do remember....Emporia. The apples, Porky, factory, room, Sheriff, murderer, corn bread and coffee with molasses.
I never returned.