Mr. LaFond,
I can't wait to get my hands on Rebel Knell, now that I've read the preview articles. Those NBA troops are going to wreak havoc and sow terror and fear in the hearts of friend and foe alike.
That you have the troops deploy from Cuba made me think of a popular German folk song from the 20’s, that my grandma sung to me as a lullaby:
Negro Uprising in Cuba
(Negeraufstand ist in Kuba)
Negro uprising is in Cuba
Shots lash through the night
In the streets of Havana
whites are killed
Hea humbassa
hea humbassa
hea hea ho
In the nights there are screams
Heads roll back and forth
Black Negro hands grasp
after the gold tooth and more
Hea humbassa
hea humbassa
hea hea ho
How many corpses there were
the newspaper can't say yet
but tourists are welcome
not to step on the heads
Hea humbassa
hea humbassa
hea hea ho
There's a puddle in the street
it looks like red jelly
but it's just the brain
from the mayor's pear
Hea humbassa
hea humbassa
hea hea ho...
And so on... I thought you might get a kick out of that one. See
for the full German text. It's a boyscouts song originally, that was widely popular at the time, so German troops would be familiar with it. Also, "Heißer Negerschweiß" (hot negro sweat) was german army slang for coffee. The serbs would probably enjoy that with some shots oft their delicious native plum brandy (Slibowitz).
Fear oft the "black man" was wide spread. Sort oft bogeyman like. I live in a former garrison town that featured American barracks. On the way from the barracks to town, where the drinking establishments reside, gardens were usually walled up with broken glass bottles on top. These still prevented me from climbing the walls when I was a lad.
This one is going to be fucking hilarious. Please don't get stabbed 'til you finish this! Just kidding. Take care though!
-Beowulf
Beowulf, this is going in the novel. Thank you so much. I promise to make a German officer attached to Patton's HQ lead the singing of this song in honor of Jesse Owens. I will try my best to avoid being involved in a stabbing. It is my intention to complete Rebel Knell while billeted with actual NBA troopers in Baltimore.
