Miss Della's Radio

Miss Della's Radio
by
Austin Mitchell
In the 1960s for those of us who didn't own a television set, a radio was a godsend. So Miss Della's brother in America had brought a radio for her the last time he was coming to Jamaica. This was a year ago. It was company for the childless Miss Della as her husband had died five years ago. Miss Della is a middle aged woman and a maker of hats, bags and mats.
About a month after she got the radio, her younger brother, Benjie and his son, Huntley came to stay with her as they wanted to catch the early bus into Kingston. Benjie lived far from the main road and there were no taxis plying those roads at that time.
They had their own room as it was a two bedroom house and Miss Della hadn't rented out the other room. She knew that both her brother and his son were not honest people. Huntley had done time for robbery. She knew that over the years her brother had gotten into one scrape after another. So it was with a heavy heart that she decided to accommodate them that night. Before letting them into the room she did a careful inventory of everything in the room and made sure that nothing valuable was left lying around. She locked up her radio in a cupboard in her room and put the keys under her mattress.
When Miss Della woke up at five thirty that Saturday morning there was no sign of Benjie nor Huntley. Her room door was open and her radio was gone!
She started screaming.
"Benjie and Huntley, bring back me radio!"
A wood cutter named Big Phil was coming down the road, going to cut trees. He was a brawny chap as wood cutters go.
"What happen, Miss Della?"
"You see Benjie and Huntley?"
"I just passed them up the road."
"Help me, Mr. Phil, they just stole my radio."
"Your brother and your nephew robbed you!"
Big Phil decided to help Miss Della.
He carried his tools and left them in Miss Della’s yard before starting after her.
By the time he caught up with Miss Della, she was half way to the square. Big Phil was aware that the bus might have already gone. The only way they could get back the radio was to reach the Square before the bus left.
“Miss Della, since I can walk faster than you, I’m going ahead of you to see if I can catch up with them,“Big Phil told her and started off.
“Go on son, I can hardly manage the walking but you are a big strapping man.”
Big Phil was nearing the Square when he heard the bus blowing its horn. He broke into a sprint and just as he reached the Square the bus started to pull out. Thinking that it was an additional passenger the driver stopped the bus.
Big Phil jumped on the bus and ran up to where Huntley was sitting. He grabbed Huntley’s bag. He and Huntley began struggling for the bag. The conductor and the loader men managed to drag them off the bus.
“What’s going on, a must some mad people this,” the driver remarked and drove of the bus.
“You can wait on the nine o’clock bus,” the conductor shouted at them.
Angry that the bus was gone without them both Huntley and his father pulled their knives and came at Big Phil.
An exhausted Miss Della reached the village square as Huntley and his father began attacking Big Phil.
“Benjie and Huntley, leave him alone,” she shouted.
Bill Phil had grabbed up a big piece of stick which he was using to ward of the two knife wielding men. But both men were closing in on their victim.
Despite Miss Della’s call to onlookers to help Phil nobody moved to help him.
“We are going to cut you up so that you own mother won’t recognize when we finish with you,” the old knifeman, Benjie warned.
A young man named Dillon pulled his knife and went to help Phil and Benjie took him on. It soon became apparent that Dillon was no match for Benjie who slashed him all over his body, forcing him to jump over a wall. Several young men who had drawn knives quickly put them back when they saw the beating Dillon had received.
Meanwhile Huntley had slashed Phil on his hands at least twice and was circling him for an opportunity to stab him up. Benjie had now re-joined the fight. Miss Della knew that they were going to kill Phil.
She began screaming. A police jeep sped into the village square. Huntley and Benjie didn’t even have time to throw away their knives.
“What’s going on here?” the Corporal asked.
Benjie and Huntley started accusing Big Phil of attacking them. It was only after Dillon climbed back over the wall that the police realized what had happened. Miss Della was able to prove ownership of the radio despite Huntley’s insistence that it was his.
It appeared that they were going to sell the radio. Huntley would have gotten half of the money to go and gamble while his father would be able to buy his weekly supply of groceries with his half.
Both men we hit with a barrage of charge that morning. The End.