by Rita Hestand
Quirt immediately stepped toward him. "Sir, we have women here, sent from Washington, what of them?"
"Women? For what purpose?" He frowned. "Are they not married to settlers?"
"No, they came here on a mission. They were to collect the bodies of their dead and take them home for burial."
"Who authorized such a thing?"
"I'm afraid Washington did, sir. This was arranged months before the war broke out."
"That's unfortunate. Well, naturally, they must stay until further arrangements can be made. I can't spare the men to tend to such a thing. I'm afraid their plans will have to wait."
"Yes sir."
The Colonel looked perplexed.
It was also clear he had no intention of staying, he had bigger obligations and a plan to make New Mexico Territory a part of the Confederacy. Newly recruited Captain McAllister was headed for Fort Davis, he informed Quirt.
Shocked to find so many women at the fort, the officers had no idea why they were here. Quirt had to tell them about the special arrangement from Washington. There were a lot of things Quirt had to apprise them of as news out here was late in arriving.
"Certainly, was bad timing." One officer remarked about the women.
"Yes sir, but we've managed well, so far. In fact, since a lot of our troops have departed, we were left shorthanded in the middle of Indian raids. The women…."
"So, you are having trouble with the Indians?"
Quirt shot him a quick frown but tried to compose his own feelings about that question. Like most of the north they didn't realize the seriousness of the Indian attacks and if they did, they ignored them.
"Yes sir." Quirt's expression tightened with restraint. Had they not witnessed for themselves some of the burned-out homesteads on the way out here? Had they not seen the smoke signals in every direction? "We have been for some time. Many of the Indians don't want to stay on the reservations, so because there is little forage, they raid the wagon trains, the stagecoaches even the Butterfield Overland Mail. And those are the reasons for Fort Davis being here, sir. Not to mention keeping the road to El Paso open at all times."
"But they don't raid the fort, do they?"
"No sir, but they do raid the settler's homes. And we are here to protect all of those and the stagecoaches, freighters, and the Mail routes."
"You were here to protect all of those. Being in such a remote area, I doubt seriously if we'll even man this fort. Many of the forts will be shut down. We must concentrate our efforts to the cause of the south, sir, not Indians. My mission is to enlist the New Mexico Territory for the south, and on to the west in California." The Colonel reinforced his priorities.
Quirt was speechless. This man had no idea what Fort Davis had been established for. And yet, the civil war had changed everything, he began to realize. It dawned on him that a big change was coming, and they weren't ready for that change, not just physically, but mentally. The war the south wanted was like a dream. It seemed to Quirt that the glorious war the south sought was far from being organized yet. And the change in command could be detrimental to this fort.
"Nonetheless sir, I'm sure the Indians have noticed some difference since the fort was abandoned even before the outbreak of the civil war. They'll take an advantage sir."
"You were a scout, were you not?"
"Yes sir, but the commanding officer left me in charge since I had seniority and more experience than the raw recruits."
"Yes, I can understand that, but now you'll go back to being a scout for the fort since we are here. Were you a paid scout or enlisted?"
"Paid sir. I'm an Indian scout to be exact."
"I see. Well, I suppose if we have any trouble with them, you will come in handy. We are in the midst of building our army, and Texas stands with the south since seceding from the Union. The war between the states has taken precedence over the fight with the Indians."
"I understand, but…"
"Will you be enlisting with us?"
"I hadn't planned on it, sir."
"Then," He paused. "That's all, Mr. Noble." Quirt could tell the officer was not pleased with his answer, but it was an honest answer.
He wanted to tell him about how the women had been drilling to make the fort look occupied. At their tremendous effort to help keep the fort afloat during this transition but he suspicioned the officer had no interest.
He stood on the boardwalk outside, thinking about all the Colonel had said. Another young officer was appraising the fort. Still the officer went on and on about the civil war as though the thought of fighting Indians here was absurd.
"It will take time before seeing the war here, or the lack of men, but it will happen and I'm afraid the army has little time to worry over the Indians. We must solicit for recruits, man ourselves. This is a new and different war, Mr. Noble."
"Yes sir." Quirt felt helpless in discussing the Indian problems with an army that was concentrating on a war that had barely arrived here yet.
Quirt feared for the settlers, the stagecoaches, the wagon trains that would still move on. Freight had to be hauled and who would protect those people if the Confederates ignored their responsibility. The Butterfield Overland Mail would be in more danger, there was even talk that Butterfield himself was going broke. Communications would be difficult without them. But the problem was the Confederate officers were not concerned with that, they were concentrating on the 'big war'.
But from the moment of the Confederate troops arrival they were dismayed by the lack of supplies. Food was scarce and clothing even more so. The men were running out of pants and even though it seemed a minor problem, it wasn't. So, the women went to work gathering what supplies they could from settlers to make pants for the men. Again, they were useful to the fort.
Enlistments were being sought, and settlers in the area were told to report, as able-bodied men were to sign up for the Confederacy. The women were an obstacle that the Confederate had no time for.
It was chaos.
Quirt had gone back to scouting for the fort and he was glad. He didn't want to command. But he quickly surmised that the leader, Col. Baylor would stop at nothing to rid the Texas plain of the Indians if they showed any sign of rebellion. Quirt had tried many times to make a peace with them. He knew it was futile. Every time he had convinced the old chiefs to follow peace, the promises made to them were broken. It was an impossible task.
The Confederate Army was still young and had many problems to work out. If supplies were already limited and the war had just heated up, what would it be in a year or so when the war was won? Daniel Murphy a local rancher heard about the shortage of food and offered a few rather rangy looking cows. Mrs. Murphy was at the fort as much as her husband helping the women sew.
Quirt was sent to Ft. Stockton for food supply. The fort helped him by sending him with flour and beans.
Some of the men's clothes were made from wagon sheets that a sailor and tailor made ready for the women, using a dye to look like men's pants.
Victoria was chosen from the women to go and talk to Captain McAllister about their mission. It seemed the Confederate had all but forgotten why they were here. "Captain, I'd like to talk to you about the reason we are here."
The Captain was taken by her beauty and had her sit down. Victoria wanted to put her point across, but the Captain seemed to have other things on his mind.
"I've been informed of why you are here. And I'm sorry, but until we get this fort supplied and manned, we will have to insist you women do whatever women do, as we carry out our duty's day to day. I can't imagine why Washington would send you out here. And I'm afraid your mission here, will be stymied by our war. We have to focus on that and now, as the south builds its army."
"We are perfectly glad to help in any way, sir." Victoria stared at the man.
"If we need your help, we'll call upon you. Although, I must say we appreciate you ladies sewing our pants for us and I'm sure there are many ways you can help the running o
f the fort, such as cooking and cleaning."
Victoria shot him a grumpy glance and left in a huff.
Quirt saw her disgruntled look and smiled, "Something wrong Victoria?"
"The man is impossible. So arrogant. He thinks we are all simple-minded women. He has no idea what we can do."
"Yeah, I saw that too. They aren't concerned about the Indians either, although I figure they will be if they stay here long."
"You mean they might leave?" Victoria's face seemed aghast.
"Right now, I'm not sure what they will do. I don't think they know either. I cannot understand how they can perceive this as one nation and suddenly become less than that."
Jennifer joined them, her face mirroring her concern for all the goings on. "What's going to happen? They've turned our dining hall into an enlistment center."
"Don't know. But I'm back to scouting now and that suits me. It isn't up to me now. Oddly enough, they are taking enlistments of the settlers and moving toward New Mexico Territory, trying to make it a Confederate area too. Problems with that is, if they take most of the settlers into their army, the women will have no place to defend themselves and we will still be a fort with more women than men. That doesn't speak for our fort too well, though. They may abandon it. If they do, it falls back on me, again."
"Will we drill any longer?
"Uh…no ma'am, at least not as long as they are here."
"But even if the war has started, it will take some time to reach here, I would think." Jennifer reasoned.
Quirt smiled and nodded. "The problem here is that they aren't taking the fact that Fort Davis is here to defend the settlers, stagecoaches, wagon trains and the mail. The mail will be more important now that this war has started as folks will need to know what is going on back east, as that's where the war is starting. Out here the telegraph would entail hundreds of miles, and with the Indians hostile, we can't string the wires. Not here. The men that enlist won't know of their families for long periods, maybe not ever."
"But they must know that this fort has an important agenda." Jennifer looked annoyed.
"That agenda has been scraped I'm afraid. You see, their mindset is on the south now as a whole. Not Texas. Not Indians." Quirt informed her. "Strangely they think they can forget or overlook those things and worry about the bigger picture. The war between the states. It's all happened so suddenly, and no one is prepared for the bigger picture. They'll have Texans signing up for a war that is taking place back east. It will be a while before they move this far south. And to go into New Mexico territory and try to ramrod those people into the Confederacy, it's lunacy. They aren't even part of the nation. When the north comes to Texas, it will be to control the coastline, and shipping. Naturally they'll want our crops too, if they can get them."
"And what of us?" Jennifer asked.
He glanced at the two of them, "I don't know for sure. They are Confederates and they think only of how to win the war with the north. Which, I suppose from their point of view that is important, but Texas has a lot more to worry over, and if they stay, they will see this. The Indians will take advantage of this moment, you can be sure."
"If they stay? I thought that is why they are here, to protect Texas."
"They are so busy building their troops, I'm not sure what will happen to this fort either." Quirt put his hat on and walked off. "And that does concern me."
Jennifer stared after him as he walked off, tipped his hat and half smiled, "Ladies."
Chapter Ten
A couple of days later, Jennifer wandered toward the cemetery. She tuned out the sounds of the drills, and the marches. The chaos around here made her unsure of her life. She liked it here, but now that the war had broken out, what was she to do? What were any of the ladies to do? On a mission of mercy, their fate was unsure now. The fort was busier than ever, with the daily routines of stagecoaches and wagon trains stopping off for supplies, and mail coming in twice a week. Yet, the mail might stop during the war.
All the Confederates talked about was enlisting more men and need to get to New Mexico. She wondered how many young men, like her brother had fallen prey to this war. And if they even had a choice.
The fort had also become a supply for the troops moving into the New Mexico territory. She didn't understand why they were concentrating their efforts on New Mexico territory when Texas had seceded and was part of the Confederacy.
She reasoned that going home was no longer an option, but how long would this war last? She needed to write her folks and let them know what was going on here. They'd be upset, but not hearing from her they might draw some wrong conclusions.
Not that she wanted to go home. Every day seemed to head her in the direction of staying here, but still her family was a long way away. She mailed a letter and sent it by Overland Mail, but it would probably take weeks to get to New York now.
Unlike the soldiers that were here when they came, these men, the men in gray wanted little to do with them. They treated them as though they were a bother. Even though the women cooked for them, sewed for them and cleaned the barracks and did their laundry, the men were so preoccupied they didn't bother to thank them.
At least that is until one day, Sylvia found one of the Confederates staring at her and she flirted endlessly with him. They walked about the property together, hand in hand.
Jennifer saw them, walking every day, and talking. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd ever have a relationship with a man. A man she could respect. In her heart she knew there was one man she could fall in love with, if she let herself. Still, it didn’t seem the right time for love either. She wondered how he felt about her. Perhaps she exaggerated his concern for her well-being. Perhaps he merely wanted to see her and the others safe. No matter, Quirt Noble was a man she trusted, and respected, and in such little time. But affairs of the heart would have to be put on hold, it would seem.
Quirt was only there at night and sometimes not even then. He led stagecoaches through treacherous country and help map out a way for the wagon trains to avoid the army patrols and disease-ridden trails. The Overland Mail brought news and worries of the big war. And he had little contact with anyone most of the time. It was like he worked as a free agent. He hoped they wouldn't quibble about it. But then he hadn't signed up with the Confederacy and he wondered how long it would be before someone mentioned it.
Jennifer watched all the women now, as though they had suddenly become her family. What was happening way off in Virginia was so far removed from Texas, and yet the threat of the fight hung over them. It would come. She knew that. Things were already changing, and it bothered her. Why did men seek to war with each other? Their excitement of it scared her.
What would her family do? She hoped they would be fine, in far up New York, perhaps they would.
She stared down at Johnny's grave. A slight breeze blew dust up and made little whirlwinds.
"I didn't want to move you from here. I know this is where you wanted to be all along. When I agreed to come, I wondered if I agreed so I could come just to see what you saw. Now I know I did. But taking you home, it would be a mistake. Perhaps you'll be safer here than there. Especially now…"
She stared at Johnny's grave and suddenly realized that her life was totally changing. Sure, she'd wanted to come west, see it, envision it like her brother had. But now that the talk of war had turned into a real war what would become of everyone here? What she feared most was getting lost in this war.
The peacefulness of this land, would that be disturbed? Would blood run thick now?
"Are you cold?" Quirt asked as he came upon her there.
"No, just a little disconcerted," her voice softened.
"I hope you aren't worried?" He said softly.
She half turned to see him, he looked so freshly scrubbed and clean, yet there was a slight wrinkle in his forehead that told her he was of the same mind.
"Oh…just thinking about all you said…"
"Your trembling�
�" he said, coming up from behind her.
"Who ordered this fort to be evacuated?"
"General Twiggs officially. The soldiers were to report to either the northern headquarters or the south. Twenty-one officers stayed with the Union. Twiggs himself got a commission by the state of Georgia for the south. He was replaced for his actions."
"Why didn't you leave?"
"I wasn't given much choice. Besides, being the scout, I knew how badly the homesteaders, wagon trains and stagecoaches would need us. The Overland Mail is the only way mail gets through the territory. As Butterfield no longer operates in this area. The Overland stage takes mail out too, though. The Indians constantly try to kill them or steal the mail and burn it. They think the mail is an evil spirit."
"Really, evil?" She smiled.
"When asked if I was for the north or south, I couldn't rightly answer. Which I realize is rather tragic. I'm for Texas, that's all I know. My father used to tell me that Texas was a special land. People died for it, without thinking twice. I should be able to say I'm for the south and mean it, but I just can't. I don't believe in slavery. To fight for it, is wrong, when you don't believe in it."
"I've realized in the short time I've been here that a real Texan always defends this land. I've never seen that kind of loyalty. I admire it, respect it."
"I guess you wonder where that comes from. Well, the best way to tell you is, one hundred and eighty some odd men died at the Alamo, so that this land here could be independent from Mexico, making it a free land. They could have run, they could have abandoned it, but they didn't. It's because they didn't, that a true Texan feels so rooted to this state. So protective of it. We kind of believe that if that many could stand up for Texas, and die for it, we could do no less. Texas is big, open and free, and we want to keep it that way. When we joined the union though, it put Texas in a spot. Now most of Texas will be southern, but there will be some that favor the north. Sam Houston didn't want to secede. Neither did I. I thought it wrong, and I still think the south will lose. But saying that to anyone is treasonous."