Honorable alike in what we give and what we preserve, it's Monday Mail.

Abe

Today's opening is from Abraham Lincoln.

Civil War

Did you know the Civil War is over? Me neither.

But that's what it says in this message from Westville, Lumpkin's living history destination:

Dear Tim,

You don't want to miss your chance to take part in the "Surrender of Secession: After the Civil War." For this 1865 event, 200 re-enactors will be in Westville, living in the homes, conducting business, visiting, working, surviving.

Federal troops occupy the town to make certain that the local Southern government and people obey the laws put in place at the end of the Civil War.

Freed slaves and white citizens both have to learn to overcome difficulties to continue on with their lives in a new world.

This is a total "immersion" event, meaning that when you walk through Westville's gates, you become part of the community! The re-enactors portraying citizens of Westville have researched and documented the lives and activities of the people in the area. This event will let you live in the moment of the 1865 end of the "War Between the States"!

Vignettes throughout the weekend will allow you to feel as if you are part of the recovering community and see what life was like at such a pivotal time of our history! Friday and Saturday, Oct. 26 and 27, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Dear Westville:

Then we shall rally a resistant rabble of rebel renegades to retake the town.

Price of freedom

Speaking of resistance, here's correspondent Steve Gordon's reaction to hitting the new paywall on ledger-enquirer.com:

Timmy:

Well, after so many years of reading your column online, I got this today: As I went to read the latest comments on your column for Monday Mail, I got a pop-up over YOUR COLUMN only: "Welcome Members! We hope you continue to enjoy the quality journalism produced by the Ledger-Enquirer..." all in a green-framed box. "Membership options start as low as $0.99."

WHAAAAAAAAAAAT?

After over ten years of being able to access your column for FREE, online, over 1,000 miles away. WHAAAAAAAAT? Now I have to GASP! PAY?

NOOOOOO! NOOOOO! NOOOOOOOO! SAY IT AIN'T SO TIMMY!

I will have to (sob, WAAAAHHHH!) discontinue my online ramblings, and I can't even read my letters to you! ... NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!

Steve from San Antonio

Dear Steve:

Ninety-nine cents does seem like a lot for Monday Mail, doesn't it?

Tell you what: I'll email it to you for a quarter.

--Tim Chitwood, tchitwood@ledger-enquirer.com, 706-571-8508.