Ham's father liked to brag about how, when he was young, he would sneak into a neighbor's smokehouse, bore a hole in one of the hams, get naked, take his pleasure with the ham, and then plug the hole with suet. One time after a particularly hard beating of his daughter he told her "You know... that's what you are to me. Jus like a ham in them days. Matter of fact, that's what I'm gonna call you from now on. Ham!"

For one reason or another Ham grew up to be a masculine girl with no neck or figure. She had a red complexion and had come to think of herself as ham so she accepted the designation and offered it up as her nickname at school. It quite naturally stuck. Nobody now even remembers what her birth name was.

One day when Ham was about sixteen her father was found in the woods with his head bashed in. Nobody knew who did it. Practically everybody in town would have volunteered for the job if it had been available without legal redress, so nobody really cared who had done it and the matter was quickly forgotten, even by the police. Ham went to live with her aunt for the next few months.

June 24, 1838

Now we follow more closely. School is over. Ham takes a train to New York City and gets a job moping up in a slaughterhouse. She dresses simply and cuts her plain brown hair short like a newly recruited sailor. Men pay no attention to her, but she begins to notice that young feminine girls sometimes gave her a flirty look. One day at lunch a pretty young girl invites her to a party. This is where Ham finds her people and the sexual hierarchy that always exists within any culture or subculture.

"Let's make believe I'm the prisoner and you're the matron. It's time for my bath and you order me to undress" is what Ham's first pretty young friend suggests when they drink a few glasses of wine alone together. Ham finds that there are many pretty young daughters of wealthy men who will actually pay money to spend a little time with Ham in role playing of this type. Ham's specialty becomes spankings using a large paddle, the girl standing upright with wrists tied above her head, or using a wide belt, the girl tied lying bottom up on the bed.

Going to parties leads Ham to all kinds of relationships with other women including prostitutes and even whore masters. Often she has men referred to her by more attractive women. Each of the men in these situations is told that Ham is the pretty woman's assistant and that he is commanded to report back at intervals to make naked obeisance to the pretty woman and to demonstrate the increasing depth of his worshipful obedience.

This is how many of the older men end up being handled by the wicked women of this period, a natural pecking order generating a natural division of labor. Unfortunately, there is little doubt that we will hear a good deal more about Ham in future adventures as she seems to have been a key player during this period. 

February 15, 2023

"The poor kid. With a father like that it's a wonder she didn't end up far worse than she did."

Jeff never wondered much before, but at dinner after some formal pleasantries about progress at school, Jeff looks hard at the taller beauty and asks "Sharron, were you ever abused sexually as a little girl.. like before I met you?"

Sharron looks intense, like a hungry eagle. "You little cocksucker! Who the fuck do you think you are to ask me that?"

"Sorry..." says Jeff. "I guess I have my answer though, don't I? I'm sure you will agree intellectually, that people are not all the same and that it's unfair to blame collectively for what individuals do. The thing is, of course, to get your goddamned feelings and behavior on the same page with what you know."

Sharron just glares at this new cool cat sitting there finally looking at her with the contempt appropriate to this situation. She knows she can't seduce Jeff this time or joke him out of this serious thing he's saying so she doesn't even try.

The next day the girls have no class so Jeff takes the book of tales with him to school. He finds a quiet empty room and reads the next story before his 2:00 PM writing class.

"Top Sow"