"Dear Mr. Inman,
"I began by counting the days,
"then the months.
"I don't count on anything anymore except the hope that you will return,
"and the silent fear that in the years since we saw each other,
this war, this awful war, will have changed us both beyond all reckoning. "
This poor boy's from Alabama,
- He's a long way from home, - Thank you,
Why don't them Yanks just attack?
(man #4) Got any shirts, son?
¢Ü Mm-hm-hm-hm
It's Mo Oakley's boy,
Can't be old enough to fight, can he?
- Good morning, - Morning, son,
Got some boots and jackets, You want one?
- Here, You want that? - Thanks,
I hope these boots can hold up for 400 miles,
'cause they're taking me back to Cold Mountain,
(woman) "I think now on the fleeting moments between us
"and wish I could repair them.
My awkward nature, the things left unsaid. "
All right, that's it,
Enough powder here to blow a hole in the sky,
(soldier #2) Yeah, a real Yankee good mornin',
¢Ü Mm-hm-hm-hm
That old book of yours is in shreds,
Same as us, Seen too much war,
Hey, Oakley, Don't worry, son, Them Yankee boys keep store hours,
They ain't open yet,
Close it up,
- (man) Hey, where'd you come from? - Hey, that's fresh breakfast,
- (man #2) He's mine, Butcher, - (Butcher) Hey! Hey! Get away!
- Hey, I saw him first, - (man) Come on!
- (Butcher) I saw it first! - That's my rabbit! That's my rabbit!
Get your paws off my rabbit! Get your paws off my rabbit!
(horses neighing)
(screaming)
(woman) "When I came with my father to the town of Cold Mountain,
"I was so shy of how I looked,
"so out of place.
"But did you know how happy I was to escape from Charleston,
from a world of slaves and corsets and cotton?"
(man) What do you fools think you'll be fightin' for?
- (man #2) The South? - I call this nail Northern Aggression,
- (man #3) Damn right, - I call this nail the Yankee Skulls,
(man) Last time I checked, the South was a direction,
(Butcher) Never figured you for a Lincoln lover, JT,
(man #3) I tell you, as soon as I finish this chapel,
I'm gonna go off and kill me some Yankees,
(man) Piss and vinegar,
(man #2) Fightin' for a rich man's slave, that's what,
(Oakley) Whoa, here comes the minister,
(minister) Ben, thank you, Will you assist my daughter?
(man #4) Lord have mercy, look at that bonnet,
(Butcher) Look what's in it,
(man #5) Oakley, hand me the hammer, boy,
(man #6) That's a true Southern belle,
- Mr, Swanger! Good morning to you, - (Swanger) Morning, Reverend,
Esco, you remember my daughter, Ada,
- Miss Monroe, - Good morning,
- Morning, - (all) Morning,
- Excellent progress, - Morning,
- Mrs, Swanger, Mrs, Castlereagh, - Morning, Reverend,
Now, if y'all will excuse me,
In Charleston, my congregation would still be disputing the size of the windows,
(Esco) It's a chapel,
(woman) Miss Monroe, I was just thinkin' about you,
Cold Mountain must feel like the end of the world,
Not at all,
- It's very beautiful, - Well, you put us all to shame,
Men up here had a bearing on what they thought a woman was,
- and then you showed up, - Oh,,,
- No, I doubt that,
If you was to say a word to one of these fools, I could get my top field cleared,
- Any one? - No, um,,,
Him in particular,
Up in the rafters,
Won't normally say boo to a goose,
He's been pressin' me since the day you arrived here,
- Your top field cleared? - That's right,
Good morning, I'm Ada Monroe,
Inman,
WP lnman,
Repeatin' a thing doesn't improve it,
People call me lnman,
How 'bout that? Inman speaks,
If you were to take a glass of cider, your friends might stop staring,
Inman,
(Oakley) You're just jealous, I'm gonna take her for a walk at Bishop's Creek,
- (man #3) Billy, is this frame flush? - Thank you,
(man #2) Yeah, yeah, yeah, Thank you, yeah, right,
(man #4) Richie, I seen your house, There ain't a square angle anywhere near it,
And what do you do?
I workwood,
Hunt,
Mostly work wood,
Clear fields?
I can clear a field,
Was there something in particular you wished to say to me?
Not that comes to me,
I'll say thank you,,, for the cider,
(¢Ü "You Will Be My Ain True Love" by Alison Krauss)
¢Ü You'll walk unscathed...
(chokes and splutters)
¢Ü No ploughman's blade will cut thee down
¢Ü No cutler's horn will mark thy face
¢Ü I've gone to find my ain true love
(horse neighs)
(whistling and drumming)
(yelling)
Move back! Go back! Move back!
Go back! Go back!
(Butcher) They're trapped in the wrong damn crater, Whole plan backfired on 'em,
(soldier) Send them Yanks straight to hell,
- (soldier #2) Hold it, hold it, - (soldier #3) Let's go, Turn it around,
(soldier #4) Damn fools dug their own grave,
(soldier #5) We've got 'em now, boys,
- (Butcher) It's a turkey shoot, - What?
It's a turkey shoot, They've run themselves into a hole,
Hell's busted,
(¢Ü "Idumea" by Sacred Harp Singers)
(war cry)
Oakley!
(screams)
Oakley!
(battle cry)
(yells)
- lnman! Inman! - (Inman) Oakley!
Oakley!
(groans)
(yells)
- lnman! - Come on,
Inman,
- I've got you, - (yells)
I got a few,
- You saw? - I saw,
Am I gonna die?
Your folks can be real proud of you,
(Inman) Son, this fellow says he'll play whatever you want,
What about "Bonaparte's Retreat"? That's one I play,
(¢Ü jig)
No, Play me somethin' sweet,
Like a girl's waiting for me,
- You heard him, - I only know a couple of tunes,
Like when you're at Bishop's Creek,,,
and you're thirsty,,,
and the water's so cool,
I don't knowwhat music that is,
(plays mournful tune)
I'm reachin' Cold Mountain before you,
(Ada) Good morning, Sally,
(clanging)
- Well, that's a fine-sounding thing, - Oh,,,
My piano,
Oh, I've been missing it,
Thank you, by the way, lnman's in my top field clearing his debt,
Oh, dear,
(sighs)
And then he had nothing to say,
He was happy,
Really?
Are men so different in Charleston?
Men?
I don't know,
If you're sayin' you might like him, why not go over and say good mornin'?
I should be gettin' along,
(Inman) Walk on, quickly,
Come on, Walk on, Slowly,
Walk on,
(¢Ü piano)
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa,
(Monroe) My dear daughter, Ada,
who's given up so much for so long to help me in my ministry, and upon whom I rely,
Friends, we are both very happy to have this opportunity tonight,,,
to thank you from our hearts,,,
for your kind welcome and, most of all, such a fine chapel,
(Monroe coughs)
So,,, (coughs)
,,,thank you, and God bless you,
Our house is always open to any of you at any time,
Welcome,
Esco?
That gentleman - he help build the chapel?
(Esco) Him? No, that's Teague,
At one time the Teague family owned the whole of Cold Mountain,
My farm, your farm, it all belonged to his grandpappy,
Teague wanted this place bad, and you got it,
And he's here sniffin' out an advantage,
(Monroe) There's no advantage here, except to celebrate a job well done,
And that is a good thing in these troubled times,
- (man) Miss Monroe, - Thank you,
- Were you never planning to come inside? - I'm wetter than a fish,
- There's a good fire going, - I'm all right,
(Ada sighs)
You're always carrying a tray,
I was going to take some root beer over to the Negroes,
Somebody said you were enlisting,
- Are you? - If there is a war, we'll all fight,
- Did you get a picture made? - Say again?
A tintype, with your musket and your courage on display,
You're laughin' at me,
I don't know you,
This doesn't come out right,
If it were enough just to stand, without the words,,,
It is,
You,,, Look,
Look, Look at the sky now, What color is it?
Or the way,,, a hawk flies?
Or you wake up,,,
and your ribs are bruised thinking so hard on somebody,
What do you call that?
I'll do that,
I can't get much wetter,
(Ada) "What if you are killed, and I'll never see you again?
"You said after a few years I would barely remember your name.
"Oh, Inman.
It is more than three years, and I remember your name. "
Soldiers, Don't get up,
You are mentioned tonight in my report,
You men from Cold Mountain have once again been heroes for the cause,
There are Yankees in that stand of trees between us, stuck there from the retreat,
If they stay there, tomorrow mornin' they can shoot us down for sport.
Go around,
- (yells) - (Yankee) It's a Reb!
(Yankee #2) How many of them are there?
(Yankee) I think there's five,
(Confederate) Under the trees,
- (Confederate) We got 'em, - (Inman) Let's go, let's go,
(Confederate) Butcher's down,
(Inman) Leave him, leave him, He's gone, Let's go,
(Inman) Go, go! Go! Run!
- Go! Go! Go! - (Confederate #2) Hold your fire!
(Confederate #3) What's over by them trees?
(Inman) It's us! It's us!
I said hold your fire! Hold your fire,
(wounded man screams and grunts)
(Confederate #2) Leave him, Leave him,
Agh!
(Butcher) Inman'll get it.
Supposed to bring good luck, a bird caught in a room,
(Monroe) I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting, She'll just be a few seconds,
(whistles)
- Mr, lnman, - Reverend,
- What can I do for you? - I have some sheet music,
It belonged to my father, No use to me,
Thank you,
- You must come in, - I should probably get along,
Mr, lnman is more comfortable outdoors,
Perhaps we might,,, perhaps we might take a walk,
A splendid idea,
Let me just get your hat,
I dragged my poor daughter 400 miles from Charleston to Cold Mountain
because my doctors, they've been sayin' my chest is weak,
So the air's supposed to do me good,
But it's the view I think heals,
(Inman) It's what people say we're fightin' for, To keep it that way,
I have no plans to preach war in my church, Mr, lnman,
I imagine God is weary of being called down on both sides of an argument,
I imagine God is,
Thank you,
Now, your father played the piano, did he?
That's right, He was a teacher,
And is your father living, Mr, lnman?
- He is not, - And your mother?
No, sir, She died when I was born,
(¢Ü choir singing "I'm Going Home")
¢Ü Farewell, vain world
¢Ü I'm going home
¢Ü My savior smiles and bids me come
¢Ü And I don't care to stay here long
¢Ü Sweet angels beckon me away
¢Ü To sing God's praise in endless day
¢Ü And I don't care to stay here long
¢Ü Right up yonder, Christians
- Secession, - North Carolina left the Union,
¢Ü O, yes, my Lord, for I don't care to stay here long
Whoo!
- We got our war! - Whoo-hoo!
¢Ü... that I am born to die
¢Ü From grief and woe my soul shall fly
¢Ü And I don't care to stay here long
¢Ü Bright angels shall convey me home
¢Ü Away to New Jerusalem
¢Ü And I don't care to stay here long
We got our war! We got it! We got it! It's about time,
Whoo!
- All right! - (man) lnman! Inman!
Ready to fight, son, ready to fight,
Whoo!
We got our war, man,
Well, you have your war,
Ada,
It's a great day for North Carolina,
Those who follow Lincoln or preach abolition,,,
you best keep one eye open when you're sleepin',
Ol' boogeyman might get you,
Are you the law all of a sudden, Mr, Teague?
That's right, son,
Home Guard for Haywood County, And I'm the law from today,
Y'all go fight now, We'll watch over your sweethearts,
(man) Hey, Teague, Why ain't you fightin'?
'Cause he's too old,
- Yeah! - (whooping)
Whoo!
You might be safer back in Charleston,
- But then who'll be waiting for you? - Three cheers for North Carolina!
- All right, - Three cheers for the South!
Hip hip hurrah!
Inman, It belongs to lnman,
I got it, He's here,
They found that book you been worryin' about, soldier,
Wait,
I found you this book to take with you,
William Bartram,
They tell me it's good,
I think he writes about these parts, the author, so,,,
Thank you,
And this,
I'm not smiling in it,
I don't know how to do that,
hold a smile,
(¢Ü brass band plays march)
(Ada sighs)
- Ada, - What?
(footsteps and men's voices)
- Whoa! - He'll be back in a month,
Kiss her for me,
Come on, let's go,
I'll be waiting for you,
(Teague) Lookin' good, Butcher,
(man) Bring home some Yankee scalps, Swimmer,
Yee-haw!
(man) Look out the window, ladies. See what these poor fools are dyin' for.
How many would still lose a leg for the rich man's slave?
Most of these soldiers'll be dead by morning, or if they're stubborn, by nightfall,
I've other men outside in the courtyard waitin' for beds,
so any kind word will be a blessin',
(coughs)
It's the heat, I'm sorry, They rot,
Pigeon River,,,
(doctor) How are you, son?
Cold,,, Mountain,,,
I-I'm sorry,
- You want water? - Cold,,, Mountain,
Cold Mountain?
Cold Mountain,
Do you worry when there's no word from him? From Mr, lnman?
Yes,
But then I've tried countin' the number of words
which have passed between Mr, lnman and me - not very many,
But I think about him, Daddy, all the time,
I lost your mother after 22 months of marriage,
It was enough to fill a life,
(Ada) That was the last of the ham,
- (Monroe) It was delicious, - I have to learn how to cook,
I was thinking of saying something in chapel,
Perhaps some of the womenfolk will volunteer,
I can't have people coming here and cooking for me,
I so,,,
I so regret,,,
I should have raised you less like a companion and more like a young woman,
I'm sorry, Ada, And for dragging you here,
I'm not sorry,
I would have followed you anywhere,
- To Mongolia, - Mongolia,
But with no one left to work this place, nothing to buy, nothing left to buy it with,,,
I just don't know how we're gonna get through another winter,
Will you play me somethin'? Somethin' peaceful while I look over my sermon,
It's too damp out here, You should come inside,
No,
I like it,
(¢Ü plays soothing music)
Daddy, bring the tablecloth in,
Come inside before you drown,
(stops playing)
(thunder)
(breathes heavily)
(woman) You have a letter,
North Carolina,
It's come a long way,
It's not too recent,
It's written this past winter,
I'm afraid I can't read who it's from,
"Dear Mr, lnman,,,"
(Ada) "Since you've left, time has been measured out in bitter chapters.
"Last fall, my poor father died.
"Our farm at Black Cove is abandoned.
"Every house in these mountains touched by tragedy.
"Each day the dread... of learning who has fallen...
who will not return from this terrible war.
"And no word from you.
"Are you alive?
"I pray to God you are.
"This war is lost on the battlefield
and is being lost twice over by those who stayed behind. "
He ain't comin' back, you know that,
You must know that in your heart,
Look at me,
- (sighs) - Look at me,
I'm not nothin',
(Ada) "I'm still waiting, as I promised I would.
"But I find myself alone and at the end of my wits...
too embarrassed to keep taking from those who can least afford to give. "
Ada! It's Sally!
Ada!
(Esco) Look at the state of this place,
- Well, set it on the porch, - (clears throat)
(Sally) She let them slaves go free, and now,,,
Poor soul, she's got nobody and nothin', and waitin' on a ghost,
- (rooster clucks) - (Ada gasps)
(clucks)
Shoo!
(crows)
Go away,
(Ada screams)
Devil!
"My last thread of courage now is to put my faith in you...
"and to believe I will see you again.
"So now I say to you, plain as I can...
"if you are fighting, stop fighting.
"If you are marching, stop marching.
"Come back to me,
Come back to me is my request,"
(Ada whispers) "Come back to me.
Come back to me is my request. "
(man) Wounded men, don't stray from the hospital grounds,
(man) Hey!
(man #2) If they send us back to fight,,,
(man) Hey, get your peanuts now, from the blind man,
- Hey, your hot goobers here, - (man #3) It's a sad day,
Gettin' better, soldier?
Seems that way,
I wouldn't hurry,
The war's almost done, Don't need your help to lose it,
(chuckles)
(man) You got ten minutes now, boys, Ten minutes to get your haircuts and shaves,
I've been meanin' to ask you, Where'd you take your wound?
(blind man) Oh, before I was born,
Never set eyes on a thing in this world,
Not a tree, a gun or a woman, Put my hand on all three, though,
(laughs)
- What would you give for that? - Hm?
- To have your eyeballs for ten minutes, - Ten minutes?
I wouldn't give an lndian head cent,
- Might turn me hateful, - That's sure what seein's done to me,
No, that's not the way I meant it,
You said ten minutes,
It's havin' a thing and then the loss of it I'm talking about,
Then we don't agree, There's not much l wouldn't give for ten minutes of someplace,
Yeah, someplace,,, or someone,
You watch yourself, now,
They're shootin' men who take themselves a walk,
(grunts)
(man) By order of Zebulon Vance,
governor of this great state of North Carolina,
any soldier turned deserter is guilty of treason,
and should be hunted down like a dog,
Any man who takes in a deserter is likewise guilty of treason,
The Home Guard is powered to enter any place it sees fit without notice or constraint,
Captain Teague needs more volunteers,
Any man whose age or infirmity prevents him from fightin' shall join us
to protect this county from Yankee raiders and traitors to the cause,
- Is there a letter for me? - Nothin',
We've been gettin' no post through at all, The sooner we lose this war the better,
They say not one boy in ten is comin' home to these mountains,
Teague and his rabble throwin' their weight around, They're worse than the Yankees,
Might I speak with you, please?
This was the Reverend Monroe's,
I don't knowwho would want a watch,
Who can bear to look at the time?
I've got a little salt pork you can have,
Keep your daddy's watch,
Thank you,
I was talkin' to some of the other womenfolk
about maybe lookin' in on you at Black Cove, It's hard right now, but,,,
Oh, no, I manage very well, whatever the talk is,
I'm very grateful for the pork,
Which I intend to pay for, of course,
Is everything all right?
Mm-hmm,
(Sally) Ada,
Ada,
Why, Ada, you are skinny as a whippet, girl,
- You are comin' indoors with me, - No, I can't,
I don't,,,
I can't keep countin' on your kindness,
Now, come on, I'm makin' a stew,
We'd be proud to have you, Esco's gonna be wantin' his dinner,
(Esco) I just wanna stop, I tell you, Yeah,
Sit on the porch with Sal, watch my boys in the fields,
holler "Good job" every hour or so,
That'll be a good day, when our boys get home,
What about your people in Charleston?
There are no people,
And there's no money,
My father had some bonds and investments,
They're worthless now, of course, The war,,,
They're not worth anything, I don't have anywhere else to go,
I don't wanna go,
- You're waiting on a feller, - (Sally) Oh!
- Look down our well,,, - Esco,,,
She should,
If you look down our well with a mirror, you'll see the future, It's what they say,
You do it, She does it,
What kind of mirror?
- We'll hold on to you, Esco, you hold on, - I got her,
- (Sally) We got you, - Mm,
See anything?
Uh,,,
- I don't know, - (Sally) I tried many a time,
Iookin' for a sign my boys were comin' home,
I never saw a dickey bird,
- Oh! - (Sally) Are you all right? Ada?
What? What happened?
What'd you see? What'd you see?
"Yesterday, I saw you walkin' back to me...
"or thought I did.
"I found myself crouching over Sally Swanger's well...
(crows)
"... Iike a madwoman staring into its secrets.
"Was it you I saw walking home to me, or was it your ghost?
"After so long, I know I must learn to survive on my own
"and accept you will not return.
And yet I cannot. I cannot. "
(sighs)
(cows mooing)
Them cows wants milkin',
If that letter ain't urgent, them cows is is what I'm sayin',
I don't know you,
Old lady Swanger says you need help,