As they sat discussing the situation, Helen came back from entering the horses. As she hooked the numbers on a hanger on the side of the pick-up truck, she said, " Lonny... I just had the oddest experience over at the entry tent. Mrs. Kroger— you know, Johnny’ s sister-in-law?” Lonny nodded that he knew who she meant. " Well, she was entering the horses and when I walked up to the desk she was all smiles and was glad to see me. She even asked about your leg. Well, when I entered the horses and put down Martin Luther as the rider of your two-year-old, she looked at me real funny and said, ' Mrs. Barnes, I don’ t believe you want your colored groom to show here, do you?’” Helen told them how she went ahead and entered the horses and how there was a lot of talk when she left.
IPV QUEST
or
, V BUUE by Charles Barry Sanderson
" Hey, Barnes... we want to talk to you!” The sound of an ominous and threatening voice came out of the shadow at the end of a truck as Lonny Barnes and his crew were unloading two horses from a trailer. Lonny reached for his crutches and hobbled toward the figures gathered in the shadows. As he neared the group he could see that there were three men who were obviously not regulars on the horse show circuit. He eased over to sit down on the ramp of the truck
and said, " Now... what can I do for you fellows?” After a few minutes’ conversation Lonny could see that he was in for some trouble. One of the men, a big burty fellow in his late twenties, punched a rough finger into Lonny’ s chest and said, " Well, man... I’ m tellin’ ya... you better not let that nigger set foot in a ring on this mountain ' cause iffen he does he won’ t never see the valley again.” The other two mumbled their own threats to add extra meaning to what their friend had said. One fellow, a thin gauntlooking man in overalls, spat tobacco juice at Lonny’ s
feet and said, " You just ' member what we said. We mean it!”
Lonny made his way back to the front of his truck and looked around for M. L., who was busy inside the trailer. He saw Don Hill, who had come along, as usual, to help, and called to him. " Don... come here a minute.” Don finished removing the leg wraps from their two-year-old stallion and came over to where Lonny was sitting in a folding chair. " Sit down here just a minute... we got some real problems and I really don’ t know what to do.” He paused to light a cigarette and, as he put the pack back into his coat,
said, " Have you ever heard about the reputation of this mountain concerning the Negro population?” Don
laughed and said, " You mean about the pride the local folks take in saying that ' The sun don’ t set on a nigger on Nero Mountain’?” Lonny nodded and said, " They ain’ t kidding!” He continued to tell Don about his confrontation with the three mountain boys and the threat they had given him.
Lonny and Don had gotten together with M. L. and explained the situation to him. Lonny had pointed out that it. really wasn’ t important that they show and that nobody would get mad at him if they withdrew their horses and just enjoyed the show. When they had finished talking, the slight Negro looked Lonny right in the eye and said, " Mister Barnes, we came to show, and if you’ ll let me I’ ll sure do it. I’ m not afraid of a bunch of hillbillies.” As far as Lonny was concerned, that settled it. They would show.
The word was out on the showgrounds that there was going to be some real trouble if the black boy
showed. To Lonny’ s surprise, the large part of the Walking Horse regulars rallied to his side. Several trainers came over and said to let them know if he needed any help and, needless to say, a good group
of colored grooms had already gotten together to discuss what they would do if anything happened.
Darkness had settled on the mountainside and Lonny sat at ringside with his foot in a chair. The management of the show had provided him with a box seat and let him know that they were glad to see him there. The show was well under way and the Lonny Barnes Stable had just won their first blue of the
season. Little Carol Jones took the juvenile class in convincing manner and Lonny had to admit that
M. L. had made some improvements in her horse since he had taken over. After announcing the remaining winners, the announcer said, " Ladies and gentlemen, we are real pleased to have one of the nation’ s foremost Walking Horse trainers with us on
the sidelines tonight. He is a man we all know and respect and he is the current World Champion trainer after winning the Grand Championship last year on BEAU GENTRY. Mr. Lonny Barnes and his wife Helen... let’ s all give this fellow a big hand!” He added, " We hope you’ re back in the saddle soon, Lonny!”
Lonny and Helen had gone back to the pick-up truck to check on M. L. before he showed his first
20 Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse