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Genre Comprehension
Scott Foresman Reading Street 5.2.2
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978-0-328-52141-8 0-328-52141-8
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By Sunita Apte Illustrated by Seitu Hayden
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Illustrations Seitu Hayden.
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ISBN 13: 978-0-328-52141-8 ISBN 10: 0-328-52141-8
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The following entries are from the journal of Caleb Jones. Jones was born into slavery in North Carolina. Unlike most enslaved people, Jones was taught to read and write. Jones began his journal in 1862 when he was sixteen-years-old. Soon after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, Jones escaped to the North. There, he joined the first African American regiment in the Union Army. These journal entries describe some of his experiences as an enslaved person and, later, as a soldier.
December 16, 1862 I was at the stables this afternoon when Master
Burke came up. “Caleb,” he said, “saddle up the new stallion for me. There’s trouble brewing. More bad times are coming—mark my words.”
Master is a wise man, so I suspect he’s right. Not that there hasn’t been plenty of trouble already since this war started. Master says he regrets the day that North Carolina joined the Confederacy. Of course, he keeps this belief to himself, but I think I can tell what he is thinking. I can read his face pretty well.
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Master’s friends already think he’s a little strange. They have thought that ever since they discovered he was teaching Johnny and me to read and write, alongside his sons.
“I’m looking toward the future,” Master told his friends. “An educated slave will be much more useful than an uneducated one.”
Yesterday, George, Master’s son, gave me an old notebook of his. I decided to keep a journal. Since the war started, things changed a lot around here. I want to write it all down so I can remember what happens.
Aunt Susie can keep everything in her head, but I’m not like that. I forget stuff. Aunt Susie says my mama always forgot stuff too. I like the idea that I am like my mama, even though I do wish that I could keep things in my head.
I don’t remember my mama. She was sold to a plantation in South Carolina eleven years ago, when I was only five. I miss her, even all these years later. I wonder what life is like for my mama right now. Is she short of food like we are?
Yesterday, Master told me that he doesn’t know how he’s going to feed everyone for the rest of the winter. Even before he told me, I could tell from the look on his face that he was worried.
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January 3, 1863 I thought I would write more in here, but I’m
so busy that I haven’t had much time. But today something amazing happened. I just had to write about it.
I was cleaning out the stables when Johnny came running in. He had been up at the big house helping the cook.
“Caleb, Caleb! Guess what?” he shouted. I gave him an impatient sigh. Johnny always
gets excited over nothing. He reminds me of a young child in that way.
“What?” I said, but I didn’t turn around. I just kept mucking out the stables.
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“Some friends of Master’s came and talked with him for a long time. Cook overheard them. Cook says the men told Master that we would soon be freed! They said that President Lincoln had signed a proclamation. It says all the slaves in the Confederacy are free!”
Now I turned around. “Really? Are we really free?” I wanted to believe Johnny, but his words were just too unbelievable.
Johnny ran over and hugged me. “Well, we will be! Cook says she heard that the Union army is marching this way. Once the army arrives, all of us will be free!”
I put down my pitchfork. I decided to take a little break from work. After all, I would soon be free.
Together, Johnny and I wandered down to the cabins. Cook had already been by and spread the news. Aunt Susie had tears in her eyes. She hugged me.
“If your mother knows, she must be so happy,” she whispered in my ear.
I nodded. I didn’t trust myself to speak. It was all so overwhelming. I was so afraid that I would start to cry.
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Even as I write this, I still can’t believe it. Of course, I want to believe it, but it seems too amazing to be true.
Our people have been slaves for many years. Now the President says that we are free!
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February 1, 1863 It’s been almost a month now since President
Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. The Union army hasn’t made it here yet. Still, things have changed around the plantation. We consider ourselves free, and it makes us different.
Cook says many of the plantation owners are worried about a slave rebellion. They come to talk to Master about their fears. Some slaves in the area have even run away. Master and the other owners haven’t gone after them.
“They’ll be free soon enough,” Master says. Then he looks at me closely.
He knows I might leave, too, even though I’ve never said anything. He can just tell because he’s known me my whole life, and unlike many masters, he cares about me.
“Caleb,” he asks. “What are you thinking about?” I shrug. “Nothing,” I say. I can’t look him in
the eyes. But the truth is, I am planning to leave. I wouldn’t go on my own, but Johnny has been begging me to. He wants to go north and join the Union army. He wants to fight for the President that said all the slaves were free.
Johnny is like my brother. We’ve grown up together. I can’t say no to him even though I know that it’s still dangerous to run away. I don’t think Master will follow us. But there are plenty of people out there looking for runaway slaves. They catch the runaways and sell them to new owners farther south.
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Sometimes I think I should stay right here. Master is a good man, and not many of us can say that. We can wait it out until the war ends, and then Master will let us leave on our own. But in my heart, I know that Johnny is right. We must leave. We must join the army so we can do everything possible to free our people.
We’ll leave the plantation at night and let the moonlight guide us. I am so frightened. What will happen to us?
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March 4, 1863 Well, we did it! Johnny and I ran away four days ago. Since then,
we’ve been walking at night and resting during the day. That’s why I have a chance to write in here. I write during the day when we can’t travel. We stay well hidden during the day.
I guess we didn’t truly run away, since Master caught us just as we were about to leave. At first, I was scared. I wasn’t quite sure what Master would do. Would he force us to stay? Would he punish us?
For a moment, Master looked upset. But then he took our hands and solemnly shook them. “Go ahead,” he said. “There isn’t enough food to feed all of us until spring, and so this will be for the best for everyone. Go in peace. Goodbye.”
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As we walked across the meadow, I glanced back. His face was lit up in the moonlight. He looked sad. This war has not been kind to my master. He looks like he has aged twenty years. Sometimes he seems like an old man. I feel badly for him.
I wonder what will happen to him when the war ends. I wonder if he will be able to feed his own family and the farmhands that are left. Will the plantation last? It’s strange to think that I may never find out.
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Johnny and I are heading to a farm in Virginia. Johnny heard about it from an ex-slave who visited the plantation. The family that lives on the farm is sympathetic to runaways. They will arrange for us to be taken north.
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I can’t wait to see the north: a place where a black person can walk around as free as any other person! I can’t imagine it. Soon, I will see it for myself.
May 20, 1863
Well, we made it! I haven’t written in so long because I filled up the old notebook and couldn’t get a new one. Yesterday, my captain found me one. I think he was surprised to learn that I could read and write. I could see the look on his face when I told him. It made me feel proud for learning. It was worth all the hard work.
Johnny and I have joined the Union army! We’re with the 54th Regiment in a place called Massachusetts. The 54th Regiment is a black regiment. There are a few other ex-slaves like us, but most of the soldiers are free black men from the north.
I could fill this whole notebook describing the adventures we had, but I won’t. I’m saving these pages for the adventures I have ahead of me in the army.
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We’re supposed to be paid $10 dollars a month for serving in the army. I wonder what Aunt Susie would say. I also wonder if we will ever see that money.
It’s strange to be free but in a good way. My old life on the plantation seems so far away. I don’t miss it. I like being in the army. I like meeting the other soldiers at the canteen, and I enjoy my training exercises.
It seems we will head down south to fight in the next couple of months. I wonder where we’re going. Wouldn’t it be strange if we ended up in North Carolina?
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Some of the men grumble about life in the army, but I don’t. It’s certainly no harder than life on the plantation. I worked so hard there too, and, of course, they never even offered to pay me.
Johnny and I bunk together. We are more like brothers now than we were before. I can’t believe how much we have been through together. My loyalty to him is stronger than ever.
I can’t imagine how I would have made the journey north without Johnny. I’m grateful to him too. If I hadn’t wanted to help him, I never would have taken the risk and come. I’d still be a slave, not a free man!
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July 17, 1863 We are now in South Carolina. We’ve set up camp
on the beach, across the channel from Fort Wagner. Tomorrow, we will try to take the fort.
This afternoon, the camp has been a beehive of activity. Everyone wants to get things ready before nightfall.
This is our first big battle, but most of the men are not afraid. Rather, they are not letting their fear control them. We want everyone to see the bravery of the 54th Regiment. We want to be the bravest regiment in the whole Union army.
Being in South Carolina makes me think of my mama. I wonder if her plantation is anywhere near here. I wonder if she is free yet or still a slave.
Even if I had the time to look for her, I wouldn’t know where to start. In fact, I don’t even know the plantation owner’s name.
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Names are a funny thing. I had never thought about it before. Your name says a lot about your people and your past and where you came from.
When I signed up with the 54th, the enlisting sergeant asked me my last name. I told him the truth. I said I didn’t have one.
“What was your owner’s last name?” he asked. “Burke,” I answered. “Do you want to use that name?” He looked at
me. I thought about it for a moment. “No,” I decided. “I want my own name. From
now on, I will be Caleb Jones.” So that is who I am now, Caleb Jones.
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July 20, 1863 The battle is over. We fought hard, but we didn’t
win. We didn’t take the fort, and we lost a lot of men. We even lost our commander, Colonel Shaw.
Johnny and I both survived, though a bullet grazed Johnny’s leg and wounded him. It happened while he was trying to help me. I had fallen down during the charge. He rushed back to get me. A Confederate soldier shot at him.
I told Johnny to lay low until the fighting stopped. He didn’t quarrel with me. But then he dragged himself back to camp anyway. When I looked in his eyes, I could tell he was really scared. He was worried about being taken prisoner. He had heard that the Confederates aren’t kind to ex-slave soldiers.
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Now Johnny is in our tent, resting up. The doctor came to see him and said he was lucky. The bullet didn’t do any real damage. He should be ready to fight again soon. When I look at Johnny’s face, I can tell how relieved he is.
I still can’t believe Johnny and I are soldiers in the Union army. Being a soldier is not like I thought it would be. It’s not all winning and glory. It’s hard and scary. But it’s important. This war has been bad for everyone, southerners and northerners alike. If the Union can win it, the country will be whole again. All people, black or white, will be free. We must keep fighting!
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Wood engraving of the First Louisiana Native Guards at Fort Macombe, Louisiana.
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The 54th Massachusetts Infantry was formed in the spring of 1863. It was created soon after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. The 54th was one of the first African American regiments in the Union army. After the July battle at Fort Wagner, the 54th became famous for its bravery. The regiment went on to fight with courage in several other battles.
There were many other African American regiments besides the 54th. Most were made up of formerly enslaved men who joined the Union army after being freed. These regiments played a big role in the Union’s Civil War victory.
Reader Response 1. Using a diagram like the one below, make a chart
that shows the order things happened in the story. Draw as many boxes as you need in order to complete your answer.
Caleb and Johnny run away
2. What can you infer, or guess, about the attitude of most slaves in the South? How does this guess help you better understand the story?
3. The word quarrel can be used in different ways. Write the word in a sentence as a noun. Write the word in a sentence as a verb.
4. Why do you think Caleb wanted to choose his own last name?
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