They Were People Too 2

His Name was Arnold Claxton of Ginger Land Nevis, but the people called him Ball-O-Corn.
I knew his name was Arnold, because he was my mother's uncle. Everyone else knew him as Ball-O- Corn. My mother told me that he enjoyed a good dish of cornmeal, and was always stirring cornmeal in his pot. I thought he was given that name because he was a burly man. He owned several houses,approximately five or six of them as far as I can remember, and they were all located in several areas around Mc. Knight, all within close proximity to his very well kept wooden home, complete with  a spacious, wooden veranda into which we crowded to watch everything that passed there- from the dancing  clowns, masquerades, steel bands and the bull during the carnival, to the annual Labor Day March. Ball-O-Corn's home was located on Central Street, bordered by Mrs. Herbert, a well known shopkeeper on his  south, and the Herbert family of local political renown on his west. His yard was of concrete, and I recall there were many ornaments inside his "drawing room" which, as a child, I found rather fascinating. His home was sold by his only child, Ermine, who lived in England. It became the political campaign office of one of the candidates in the 2010 political elections.
Ball-O- Corn was a hard working man. He worked as a porter at the Kawaja's Supermarket which was located in the building presently occupied by COURTS Furniture Store. He also worked at the port as a stevedore.
Ball-O-Corn  surely felt that persons in his community were jealous of him. I remember once visiting his home when a group of young man sat in front of Mrs. Herbert's shop teasing him. He was seated in one of his rocking chairs, rocking back and forth, leaving the rocking chair time and time again to go into his house bringing out  ornament after ornament to display his symbols of success before the fellows and to represent exactly the cause of their neighborhood jealousy. Each time he emerged with his ornaments the boys rocked with laughter, mocking him about the time when there was thunder and lightning, and Ball-O-Corn striking several poses,  called Miss Liza (an elderly lady who shared a room in his back yard) ordering her to bring him his jacket because God was taking pictures. The boys flattened themselves on the sidewalk with laughter entertaining themselves at Ball-O-Corn's expense. They mocked of the time Ball-O-Corn was at the port in Basseterre doing his business with the lovely new boat MV Rossal, a delightfully beautiful vessel and a definite improvement on the sailboats that transported passengers to and from the sister island of Nevis. A lady, they said, tossed a banana peel into the sea.This was  of extreme annoyance to Ball-O- Corn who ordered the woman not to throw any more banana peels into the sea as it would slide the young steamer. He brought out an ornament for that one too.
Ball-O- Corn was a member of the Heart and Hand Society and a fierce supporter of West Indian cricket.