the director gave mr eggwhistle permission to wander around the facility and talk to some of the inmates who had been friendly, or at least on speaking terms, with johnny.
mr eggwhistle was given four names - zeke, ike, luke, and ace.
zeke was a bent old man who worked in the flower garden.
mr eggwhistle appoached zeke and showed him a picture of johnny.
“recognize this fellow?” mr eggwhistle asked.
zeke did not ask mr eggwhistle who he was or what his business was, but immediately replied
“of course, that’s johnny! johnny the preacher!”
the preacher? mr eggwhistle thought. but he said, “you talk to johnny lately?”
“not too long ago. just before he went over the wall - he went over the wall, you know.” zeke kept turning the dirt in the garden over with a small spade. he continued to talk to mr eggwhistle without looking directly at him.
“yes, i did know. he didn’’t tell you where he was going, did he?”
“no. didn’t tell nobody far as i know.” zeke seemed to take something out of his pocket . a seed? it was too small for mr eggwhistle to see what it was, if anything. zeke dropped the little something - real or imaginary - into the upturned dirt.
“any idea where he went?” mr eggwhistle asked. “or why?”
“he didn’t say he was going nowhere. as to why, i suppose it was to preach his message.”
“his message. you know, this is the first time i heard of this fellow being a preacher. what was this message, exactly? could you give me some idea?”
for the first time zeke turned and looked mr eggwhistle in the face. he looked surprised and slightly pained at the question. “why, he was preaching peace and love, of course. what else would a preacher preach?”
mr eggwhistle did not answer zeke’s question directly. “dd he preach the gospel , you know, like matthew mark luke and john?”
“no, no, he had his own gospel. his own religion.”
“i see. but he didn’t - he didn’t have any particular place in mind? like, some city or town that was filled with sinners that needed to be saved?”
“oh, no, nothing like that. johnny didn’t believe in sin. he believed in love.”
mr eggwhistle decided to change the subject. “did he ever mention a person named packy? “
“packy? no, i can’t say that he did.”
“did he ever mention anybody else by name? some body who did him wrong, maybe? or somebody he particularly wanted to preach his message to?”
zeke considered these questons. as he did he reached into his pocket again.
mr eggwhistle thought he would take out another small or invisible or imaginary seed, but instead he took out a small pamphlet.
“read this,” zeke told mr eggwhistle. “it may answer some of your questions. now, if you will excuse me, i have work to do.”
mr eggwhistle looked at the front page of the pamphlet. it was inscribed -
the gospel of johnny dark, according to zeke.
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