Cross-cut saw used by Cash Bundren in the construction
of the coffin of his mother, Addie Bundren. Family history
suggests that this was the last job that Cash was able to
undertake with this saw, for in the course of their attempt
to transport the dearly beloved deceased to her grave as
quickly as humanly possible it proved necessary to ford
a flooded river: most unfortunately, the rush of the currents
and the pressure of the water on the poor mules pulling the
wagon caused it to tip, and a collision between the wagon and
a stray log also caused considerable damage. When all was
said and done, the mules were dead, the wagon smashed,
and Cash had suffered a broken leg. He had brought his
tools along on the journey so that he could begin work on the
return trip, and they fell into the water when the wagon tipped:
although a diligent effort enabled Cash to recover nearly all of
them, he was never able to find his saw. Unbeknownst to him,
however, a member of the Snopes clan eventually found the saw
on the river bank, and being impeccably honest, made the most
strenuous attempts to find its rightful owner. After questioning
most of the inhabitants of Yoknapatawphna County, Mississippi,
Snopes concluded that the saw must be Bundren's, but was never
able to return it to him. The saw remains to us as a treasured
emblem both of a man's affection for his mother and of his dedication
to his trade. Provenance: Collection of Mr. Adam Godet.
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