The Grapes of Wrath(187)

“Fella oughta know,” said Huston. “Married fella got to know.”

Pa said, “We’re a-gittin’ out in the mornin’.”

“Yeah? Which way you goin’?”

“Thought we’d go up north a little. Try to get in the first cotton. We ain’t had work. We’re outa food.”

“Know if they’s any work?” Huston asked.

“No, but we’re sure they ain’t none here.”

“They will be, a little later,” Huston said. “We’ll hold on.”

“We hate to go,” said Pa. “Folks been so nice here—an’ the toilets an’ all. But we got to eat. Got a tank of gas. That’ll get us a little piece up the road. We had a bath ever’ day here. Never was so clean in my life. Funny thing—use ta be I on’y got a bath ever’ week an’ I never seemed to stink. But now if I don’t get one ever’ day I stink. Wonder if takin’ a bath so often makes that?”

“Maybe you couldn’t smell yourself before,” the manager said.

“Maybe. I wisht we could stay.”

The little manager held his temples between his palms. “I think there’s going to be another baby tonight,” he said.

“We gonna have one in our fambly ’fore long,” said Pa. “I wisht we could have it here. I sure wisht we could.”


Tom and Willie and Jule the half-breed sat on the edge of the dance floor and swung their feet.

“I got a sack of Durham,” Jule said. “Like a smoke?”

“I sure would,” said Tom. “Ain’t had a smoke for a hell of a time.” He rolled the brown cigarette carefully, to keep down the loss of tobacco.

“Well, sir, we’ll be sorry to see you go,” said Willy. “You folks is good folks.”

Tom lighted his cigarette. “I been thinkin’ about it a lot. Jesus Christ, I wisht we could settle down.”

Jule took back his Durham. “It ain’t nice,” he said. “I got a little girl. Thought when I come out here she’d get some schoolin’. But hell, we ain’t in one place hardly long enough. Jes’ gits goin’ an’ we got to drag on.”

“I hope we don’t get in no more Hoovervilles,” said Tom. “I was really scairt, there.”

“Deputies push you aroun’?”

“I was scairt I’d kill somebody,” said Tom. “Was on’y there a little while, but I was a-stewin’ aroun’ the whole time. Depity come in an’ picked up a frien’, jus’ because he talked outa turn. I was jus’ stewin’ all the time.”

“Ever been in a strike?” Willie asked.

“No.”

“Well, I been a-thinkin’ a lot. Why don’ them depities get in here an’ raise hell like ever’ place else? Think that little guy in the office is a-stoppin’ ’em? No, sir.”

“Well, what is?” Jule asked.

“I’ll tell ya. It’s ’cause we’re all a-workin’ together. Depity can’t pick on one fella in this camp. He’s pickin’ on the whole darn camp. An’ he don’t dare. All we got to do is give a yell an’ they’s two hunderd men out. Fella organizin’ for the union   was a-talkin’ out on the road. He says we could do that any place. Jus’ stick together. They ain’t raisin’ hell with no two hunderd men. They’re pickin’ on one man.”

“Yeah,” said Jule, “an’ suppose you got a union  ? You got to have leaders. They’ll jus’ pick up your leaders, an’ where’s your union  ?”

“Well,” said Willie, “we got to figure her out some time. I been out here a year, an’ wages is goin’ right on down. Fella can’t feed his fam’ly on his work now, an’ it’s gettin’ worse all the time. It ain’t gonna do no good to set aroun’ an’ starve. I don’ know what to do. If a fella owns a team a horses, he don’t raise no hell if he got to feed ’em when they ain’t workin’. But if a fella got men workin’ for him, he jus’ don’t give a damn. Horses is a hell of a lot more worth than men. I don’ understan’ it.”

“Gets so I don’ wanta think about it,” said Jule. “An’ I got to think about it. I got this here little girl. You know how purty she is. One week they give her a prize in this camp ’cause she’s so purty. Well, what’s gonna happen to her? She’s gettin’ spindly. I ain’t gonna stan’ it. She’s so purty. I’m gonna bust out.”