Chapter 38 thirty eight

Louis and Chad sat at a table with beers on the table.Louis thought, a little surprised, that this was the first time the two of us had a beer in my kitchen.Suddenly Ellie cried loudly in her sleep, and the two of them froze for a moment, like statues in a children's game, and then the crying stopped. Louis said, "Well, what are you doing at a quarter past twelve? My son is going to be buried today. Chad, you're my friend, but that's a little too much." Chad took a sip of his beer, wiped his mouth with the palm of his hand, then looked straight at Louis with understanding in his eyes and said, "You know why I'm here. Louis, you're thinking things you shouldn't be thinking. Bi What's worse, I'm afraid you're thinking about these things."

"I didn't think about anything but it was time to go to bed. I had to bury my son tomorrow," Lewis said. Chad said softly, "I am responsible for the pain in your heart. Because I know that I may have caused your son's death." Louis was taken aback, looked up and asked, "What... Chad, don't talk crazy!" Chad said, "You're thinking of burying him there. You don't have to deny that, Louis." Louis didn't answer. Chad said, "How much influence does that place have on people? Can you tell me? No, I can't even answer that question myself, and I've lived here all my life. I know the Mi'k Mike people. There Always considered their holy place—but not necessarily a good place. Stanislav told me, and my father told me, but later, after Spotter's second death ...and now the Meek Mikes, the state of Maine, and the U.S. government are arguing in court over who should own the land. Louis, no one knows who actually owns the land, and no one ever does. There have been many people in history All claim the land to them, but no one holds it forever. Land ownership is debated, and land ownership changes with time and geography."

Louis couldn't help but ask, "Don't people have documentation?" Chad lit another cigarette and said, "Oh, yes, but it's all too old. The ownership and size of the land like your house is like this. It was a long time ago from a big maple tree that stood on Ridge Hill. From there, all the way to the edge of the Orrington River belonged to the original landowner. But in 1882, the big maple tree fell down, and by 1900 the tree was rotten. The Orrington River also became smaller due to the accumulation of mud , turned into a swamp after ten years of change. And then the land ownership issue got messed up. But it didn't matter to Anson, because he was struck by lightning in 1921 and died at the cemetery."

Louis stared at Chad, and Chad took a sip of his beer. "It doesn't matter. Historically, land titles have always been the ones people wrestled with, and the fights only helped the lawyers make money. Dickens knew that well. I I think I'm right to think that eventually the Indians will take it back. But none of that matters, Louis, and I'm here tonight to tell you about Dim and his dad." "Who's Dim?" "Dim was a young man of about 20 from Ludwig. He left here in 1942 and went abroad to fight Hitler. He was sent back in 1943 in a coffin with a flag on it. He died in Italy. .His papa, Bill, lived in this town all his life. He almost went crazy when he got the telegram .

Louis felt cold again, and he stared at Chad for a long time, trying to see in his eyes whether Chad was lying, but Chad was serious and the story was true.Louis finally asked, "Why didn't you tell me that night? After we buried the kitten, I asked you if anyone had buried anyone there, and you said no." "Because you didn't have to know then, and now you need to know it," Chad said. Louis was silent for a long time, then said, "He was the only one who buried people there?" Chad said gravely, "He's the only one as far as I know. Is he the only one who's ever tried to bury people there? I don't know. I doubt it, Louis. People have tried things that might have been Tried many times."

Chad looked down at his hands covered with age spots. The clock in the living room struck softly a few times. It was half past twelve. "I thought, like you doctors who always diagnose disease by symptoms, I decided to talk to you directly because I heard from the undertaker that you ordered a sleeve grave instead of a sealed one." Louis looked at Chad for a while, but said nothing.Chad blushed, but didn't look away. Louis finally said, "Chad, it sounds like you're spying on me, and I'm sorry." "I didn't ask the undertaker which one you bought."

"Maybe I didn't ask right away." But Jud didn't answer, and although he blushed even more, his face was almost crimson, but his eyes didn't turn away from Louis.At last Louis sighed, feeling exhausted. "Oh, come on, I don't care. Maybe you're still right. Maybe I did. If that's the case, it's over. I didn't think about ordering a tomb, I just thought about Gage .” "I know you've been thinking about Gage. But you know there are different styles of graves, and your uncle was an undertaker." Yes, Louis knew the difference between the two tombs.The sealed tomb is cast with cement, reinforced with steel bars, and then covered with a cement cover after the ceremony, and then sealed with something like hot asphalt. This kind of tomb can last for a long, long time.To open this kind of tomb requires a crane to lift the solid cement cover, which is not something that one or two people can solve with picks and shovels.The sleeve type is much simpler, but it is like a big cement cabinet, and the top is not sealed.After the funeral service the coffin is lowered into the grave, and then the master of ceremonies takes the two canopies, binds them together with wire, and puts them over the tomb. Each canopy weighs about 60 pounds, maybe 70 pounds, up to 80 pounds .There is no need for a casting seal, and this kind of tomb is easy to pry open, which is what Chad means.This kind of tomb was easy to open, so that he could easily take out his son's body and bury it somewhere else.

Shhhhhh, we shouldn't talk about these things, these things are secret. Louis said, "Yes, I know the difference between the two types of tombs, but I didn't think about . . . what you thought I was thinking about." "Louis..." Louis said, "It's too late, it's too late, I'm drunk and my heart hurts. If you want to tell me a story, then tell me, let's get this over with." Louis thought to himself, Maybe I should drink a martini so I'm probably too drunk to sleep when he knocks on the door. "Okay, Louis. Thanks." "Go ahead."

Chad was silent for a moment, thought, and then began to speak.