No Drums, No Bugles

At the outbreak of the Civil War in Doddridge County, in western Virginia, farmer Ashby Gatrell refuses to take part in the conflict, choosing instead to hide out in a riverside cave near his hometown. There he survives alone, fishing and hunting at dusk, keeping well away from the sporadic fighting. One day, hearing distant cannons and gunfire, Ashby follows the sounds and comes upon the final moments of a skirmish. After the clash, Ashby walks among the dead of both the North and the South, and is deeply distressed for the victims of each side. When Union soldiers return to evaluate their losses, Ashby throws himself down next to a body and overhears an officer chastising a soldier for attempting to strip the dead of their valuables. Ashby waits until the soldiers depart, then carries the body of a dead Confederate away to the forest where he digs a grave and prays over the man before burying him. The next afternoon, shots ring out near Ashby as he wanders by the cave, sending him rolling down a hill to hide in the brush. He then listens as a local father and son out hunting discuss the senselessness of the war. Although the father initially claims no allegiances, he soon admits that he would support the South and is annoyed when his son states his preference for the North. The son then mentions Ashby, whose disappearance has been the talk of the town, and expresses amazement that he could have abandoned his wife and young daughter. When the son concludes that Ashby is a traitor and coward, his father cautions him about making harsh judgments and points out that political loyalties have split many local families. When the son admits he does not know if he has the nerve to kill, the father comments that it might take courage to refuse to fight at all. Over the next several weeks as winter approaches, Ashby gathers an increasing amount of fruit, nuts and vegetables to store in the cave. Although armed, Ashby uses his shotgun and pistol sparingly to save ammunition and refrain from attracting attention. One evening as Ashby staggers back to the cave with an armload of kindling, he is greeted by the rumblings of a bear who has settled inside. Angry, Ashby chastises the beast, declaring they had come to an "agreement" the previous winter about who had a right to the cave. Lighting a torch, Ashby proceeds into the cave waving it warningly and, although the bear initially gives several threatening roars, it eventually scurries away. As winter settles in, Ashby's sources for food grow increasingly scarce and he is forced to track and kill a deer. The animal supplies Ashby with weeks of food and its skin helps warm the thread-bare Ashby. Through the long, frigid nights, Ashby seeks comfort from his sole book, the Bible, and a worn picture of his wife, Callie. To release his tedium and frustration, Ashby continually works at chiseling his name and the year into the cave walls. Once spring arrives, a galvanized Ashby bathes and shaves carefully and one night walks back to his home. Ashby's hound dog, Blue, tied to the front porch, greets him happily while inside Callie and Ashby's young daughter Sarah lie sleeping. Ashby creeps inside to look at his family longingly, but hurries outside when Callie abruptly awakens. While Ashby hides in the darkness, Callie wanders outside to confide out loud to Blue that despite missing Ashby, she hopes he never returns as she fears he will be killed. Despondent, Ashby returns to the cave and over the next several days falls into despair over his outcast existence. Despite temporary relief provided from eating and smoking "loco weed," Ashby remains dejected. One night, however, in the cold dankness of the cave, a rattlesnake bites him. Terrified, Ashby realizes his strong desire to live and desperately treats the bite while praying fervently. After recovering, Ashby resumes his solitary life, struggling to find food and protect himself against the elements over several more months. One evening, Ashby, drawn to the sound of voices and the smell of food, comes upon several men around a campfire discussing the war. One of the men, a wounded veteran on his way home, describes the horrors of killing and speculates that war cannot last much longer. Ashby returns to his isolation in the cave and as 1865 arrives, he repeatedly assures himself he has made the right choice not to take up arms. One spring afternoon, Ashby eavesdrops on a young couple flirting in the woods and, to his shock, learns from their conversation that the war has ended. When the couple calls out to returning soldiers on the road below, Ashby hears them mention one of his brothers' names and enthusiastically hastens to join them. Pausing on a ridge overlooking the road, Ashby sees only one of his two brothers and, stunned, wonders if the other has died. Confused and frightened about confronting the returning men, Ashby returns to his cave. Later that night, however, ecstatic about the war's end, he destroys his makeshift home and bids farewell to his self-imposed exile. The next morning, Ashby sets off on the road toward town singing a hymn, but upon hearing horses, reverts to his old habit of hiding. In the bushes, Ashby listens as returning Union soldiers discuss the sacrifices made, lives lost and the conviction that they must extend their hands to their defeated enemy as decreed by President Lincoln. The men depart, and, impressed, Ashby comes out of hiding and proceeds home, praising himself for not having killed. Upon reaching his home, however, he finds it empty as well as that of the neighbor's. Hearing distant singing coming from the church, Ashby hurries there, but stricken by doubt and confusion, cannot go inside. Torn by his great desire to reunite with his family and community, but uncertain if they will accept him, Ashby collapses in the dirt and weeps.