Chapter 27 Summary

Even at the end of May, the Mississippi is in flood, with water flowing through most of the levee breaks. Regions flooded earlier are struggling back to normalcy as the waters recede. Greenville commerce has started again, and many citizens have returned to their homes.

Then the Mississippi begins to rise again, and areas begin to flood again. The Greenville protection levee is still in shambles, and Will becomes determined to seal several thousand feet of gaps before the rising water again floods the city. A series of increasingly acrimonious public meetings result in the city council declaring that black workers will be conscripted by force if they fail to volunteer.

The black community refuses this ultimatum, instead offering to self-organize work parties. This proposal is accepted, and the levee is sealed without the need of white armed guards to enforce labor. The...