“Reckon he does, ’cuz them’s the words exactly as the Reverend Dewey Jenkins spoke ’em. Done shamed me in front of the whole congregation, and after meetin’, I asked him how come he done that. And he said he meant to shame me. Told me a true Christian puts hisself into the hands of Providence when it comes to knowin’ the future. It’s a sin to try to know the mind of God Almighty about what’s to pass, and I was sinnin’ twice over by chargin’ money. If I persisted, I was gone to be chastised and good, he said to me, but Beelzabub had me in his clutches and I went on right with my divinatin’. Here’s what stopped it.

“Some folks over to Beaufort heard about me and the eagle. Reckon they was put on to me by the reverend. These folks belonged to what’s called the Human Sociation, and they sent out a whole delegation and said I got to let my eagle go. I said, ‘Y’all see a cage? This here eagle is a free man and stays here of his own free will.’ They wouldn’t hear none of it, threw a sack over my eagle, and took him away. Stole him, but legal like. So that was the end of my divinatin’, but the beginnin’ of my troubles. My hair started to go white, and me not yet forty. Then my eyesight commenced to git worse and worse, till I was goin’ to Beaufort once every three months or so to git new spectacles. Then, one day when I was out oysterin’, more seagulls than I ever seed in one place at one time come along and snatched my whole ketch, shells and all. A oyster in the shell is a mighty big load for a seagull, but them gulls was heavensent and had the strength for it. That happened to me every time I went out. Purty soon, I didn’t have no oysters to sell, and me and the missus started to go hungry, which is how I come to be the bag of bones I am today. Reverend told me the chastisements had begun. Didn’t cut no ice with the Lord that I’d quit divinatin’, ’cuz I hadn’t quit of my own accord, only ’cuz the Human Sociation folks stole my eagle. I had not repented, y’see.

“It was terrible! Me and the missus goin’ so hungry, folks took to bringin’ us food. Oh, I repented then! Begged the Lord to show me a way to get back on His good side. Then He sent me Clara, and ever since then, He’s done eased off considerable. But from time to time, He sends me a chastisement, like that gull you seen this afternoon with your own eyes, just to remind me that I ain’t yet shed of my sins.”