by Rita Hestand
A smokehouse was built, and the men also hunted in their leisure time. Wild hog, deer, an occasional Longhorn would wander about the place and be butchered.
Bread was needed in large quantities and a bakehouse was made just for baking. The women took turns running it too and encouraged the men to worry about other things.
The doctor asked several of the women to help him when raids or injuries occurred. The women were eager to help as it kept them busy.
The New Mexico enlistment hadn't worked as well as planned and the Confederates didn't seem happy, especially the officers. Many supply wagons had been raided by the Mescalero's Apaches both in Texas and in New Mexico territory.
It was a brisk early morning in June when Jennifer heard a strange sound coming from the Limpia Creek. Wandering toward the sound, she felt like investigating it. When she spied the animal, she shrieked. She'd never seen anything like it in her life. It was huge, with long legs and a big hump on his back. It made another gosh-awful sound and spit white foam from its mouth.
Jennifer was petrified. She clung to a nearby cottonwood and watched as the animal drank it's fill of water. From the distance, the animal looked huge, and out of place.
Others came out to see what was causing the stir, but none of the women knew what it was. They all gaped at the animal in horror.
"I've never seen anything like it," Victoria gasped.
"Neither have I." Jennifer caught her hand to her chest.
"Is he ferocious?" One lady asked.
Finally, Hans came out and when he saw the women shrieking and their mouths hanging open, he laughed.
"I see you met my friend."
"Friend?" Victoria gasped.
"Why sure, that's just "Snoz."
"Snoz?" everyone repeated. "But…what is it?"
Hans went toward the animal and pet him. "It's a camel." He turned to look at the women who looked petrified. "Not to worry. It was brought over as an experiment by order of Jefferson Davis himself from the middle east, used to scout out the territory between Texas and Mexico to see how well it would do on our deserts and prairies. It was an experiment. Way before its time, it would seem. They were quite successful. It can go miles and miles without water, and it can carry so much too."
"How come we've never seen anything like that before?" Katherine wanted to know.
"Well, we've only had them out here about five years and most of them have been auctioned off to private citizens." Hans explained. "But some of us, seeing as how they are very useful at times, decided to purchase them and keep them here. I encouraged General Seawell to purchase one and use it on our Trans Pecos area. He agreed. He was quite taken with the animal when he realized they could go so long without water. He left it here, as it would do little good where he was going. So, Ft Davis inherited Snoz."
"Are they dangerous?"
"Not at tall, unless of course they blow snot on you." Hans laughed. "They have some peculiar habits, but they are quite loveable and like being around people.
"Oh my God!" another woman shrieked.
"They aren't the most pleasant animals, but they sure get the job done." Hans laughed, catching the reins on the animal. "Come on now boy, I've got to put you up."
"Where does he stay?" Jennifer asked.
"In the far corner of the back acreage. Can't keep him around horses, scares them to death."
"I've no wonder." Victoria nodded.
"Why, he wouldn't hurt a fly."
"He stinks to high heaven." Another lady shouted.
"Well," Hans turned to the ladies and smiled, "That's why he's kept away from people most of the time. But they are a good animal for packing across the desert. Yes, another unfortunate thing about him." Hans laughed, "Come on boy, let's get back to your barn. And despite how he looks and smells, he likes people. I often find him here at the creek."
"How many of them do you have?"
"Only this one. Colonel Seawell bought it, but it's sort of become my obligation to take care of him. He likes me."
"You and the Colonel bought it?" Victoria screamed.
"Of course, he's one in a million. And he's a dandy ride too." Hans assured her. "Once you learn how. Only animal I know that will bow down to let you get on him."
"Where's he from?" Jennifer asked.
"Most of them are from Egypt, Turkey, the middle eastern countries where there are a lot of deserts across the sea." Hans smiled. Just then Snoz made a sound and all the ladies backed up.
"Would you ride him for us?" Victoria asked.
"Sure, why not." Hans laughed. He went straight up to Snoz and Snoz bowed down on his belly, so Hans could get on. He got up on his hump and rode around the parade grounds. Some of the settlers came out to watch, the kids were fascinated with him, and Hans gave a couple of them a ride on him.
"They should have kept them all here, they are a hardy animal." Hans defended.
The Captain came out and smiled, "Hans I see you are exercising Snoz."
"Yes sir." Hans nodded. "He doesn't get out much." The Captain informed them.
"Why didn't the army keep them?" Jennifer wanted to know.
"I don't know, but that was why it was so important to have one, it might be the last we see of them." Hans explained.
"We didn't keep them because the war broke out and we have other things to worry about." The Captain explained.
"It sure would scare the enemy away." Katherine chuckled.
"Yeah, the Indians think of them as sacred animals. Catholic priests claim the wise men rode them to meet Jesus." Quirt told them.
"Then they've been around a long time?" Jennifer felt breathless.
"Yeah, a very long time. They are good animals. We should have kept them all. It's one thing Jeff Davis was right about." Quirt murmured and walked off.
The Captain overheard him, "In my quarters, scout."
Quirt winked at Jennifer and followed the Captain inside.
"Something wrong?"
"Yes scout, there is. I'm giving you a choice. You can sit in jail or sign up for the Confederacy."
"What?" Quirt's frown mirrored his distaste for the man.
"I heard that remark. You are aware that Jeff Davis is our President, aren't you?"
"He's the President of the Confederacy yes."
"And is he your President?" The Captain asked.
"What are you really asking me, sir?" Quirt faced him now.
"You've repeatedly made remarks about the south with disdain. So that the women could hear you."
"So…."
"Are you aware I could hang you?" The Captain asked.
Quirt flopped down in the chair now, "I've done nothing for you to accuse me."
"Then you will either sign up as a Confederate, or I'll throw you in jail for treason and hang you."
"You're serious?"
"Yes, very serious. I should have done it from the start."
Quirt sat facing him now, his face a turmoil of emotions. "I'm a southerner, a Texan, isn't that enough? I hire out as a scout. I wasn't a Union soldier either."
"I'm afraid it isn't enough. The south needs you. Now, which will it be?"
"Do I really have a choice?" He looked at him sarcastically.
"Not much, no. If you are truly a southerner and a Texan, you won't mind signing up." The Captain assured him.
"Can I think this over?"
The Captain eyed his impertinence. "Sure, two weeks in jail should help you decide."
Quirt sighed aloud, then shrugged. "Thanks."
The Captain called two soldiers into his office.
"Put this man in a cell. He's to remain there for two weeks while he decides just which side he's on." The Captain told them.
The men looked a bit startled, but they obeyed the command.
As they locked him up, they looked apologetic at him, "Sorry, sir."
"Not your fault."
Quirt leaned on the bars gripping them, as his anger festered. He knew it would come to this
, but he stubbornly refused to choose a side. Now, he had little choice.
As the days passed and none of the women saw him, Jennifer asked Sylvia to inquire where Quirt had gone.
That same afternoon Sylvia came back to her in a huff.
"He's in jail!"
"Jail. Why, what did he do?"
"They expect him to join the Confederacy or hang." Sylvia told her.
"Are you serious, after all this time?"
"That's what they said."
"Let's go, we're going to talk to the Captain." Jennifer insisted. She got Victoria, Essie, and Katherine to go with them. They stormed into the office and demanded to know what right they had locking Quirt Noble up.
The Captain eyed the women with a scowl. "Ladies, he's either a Confederate or a Yankee, and we're about to find out which."
"But why, why now?" Jennifer asked. "As I understand it, he hired on as a scout and that is still permissible, even in times of war. He's done everything you ask him."
"He's been making lewd remarks about the Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, that is reason enough. I'm afraid I have every right to lock him up, not only that, if he doesn't sign, I plan on hanging him, as a traitor."
"You can't be serious!" Victoria objected vehemently.
"But I am madam. I realize you are ladies and don't understand the meaning of a war, but you are either one or the other."
"When you sent him out to make a truce with the Indians, he did so. But you turned around and broke the truce two days later. He did as you asked. He accomplished that goal. You didn't even tell him you were going to raid that village, did you?"
"Madam," He stared at Jennifer. "I would not push me. I know where you are from, I could easily arrest you as a Yankee sympathizer."
Victoria and Katherine both objected.
"We did not come here, to cause problems for the war. We were sent here, before the war started. The President of the United States sent us here. If you arrest her, you'll have to arrest the lot of us."
"Don't tempt me."
"You've had nothing but contempt for us since you got here. Why?" Sylvia asked, her brows meeting at her nose now.
"It was an asinine thing for the government to do at the time, knowing full well how close the war was. We've been forced to put up with you, until we can figure out what to do with you." He shouted. "It should never have been our responsibility."
"But you haven't figured out what to do with us, have you sir?"
"No, I haven't. Short of sending you home in the middle of the war, what else can I do?" He argued.
"We've not caused any problems for your war, Captain, in fact, it was we who sewed your very pants for you, cooked your meals, did your laundry without pay I might add. I think we've more than done our duty sir." Victoria stood magnificently in front of the man her head back, her shoulder back, and her mouth set in a grim line.
"So, you have, dismissed!" he ordered them.
"We are not your soldier's sir, we are ladies." Katherine reminded him.
"Then perhaps you should leave before I forget that."
"We're not leaving until you apologize to Jennifer, she's done nothing but help around here and it's time you men appreciated it." Victoria instructed him.
Rolling his eyes and fisting his fist, he cringed, "Very well!" he shouted. "I'm sorry, now get out, all of you before I make good on my promise."
The women left, chattering among themselves.
"Dear God, I'm not sure Quirt will sign up." Jennifer cried.
"They'll hang him if he doesn't." Sylvia told her. "The Corporal told me."
Everyone gasped.
The war had come to them now.
Chapter Twenty-One
Quirt was in jail a week when Jennifer asked permission to visit him. The Captain was away from the fort that day and the Lt. Aims allowed it. She had purposely waited to find a day that she might get permission as the Captain was not in the best of moods.
She saw him pull out from the fort one morning with a troop of men. She had no idea where he was going, but she was glad he wasn't there, as he hadn't given her permission to see Quirt.
She wore one of her best dresses, a blue gingham, and fixed her hair, so she could look nice for him. She wanted to brighten his day.
When Quirt saw her, he stuck his arms out from the bars to bring her close, and without thinking he kissed her, long and sweetly. She went into his arms willingly, delighting in his greeting.
When she pulled away, she asked the guard, "Can I go inside?"
"No ma'am."
Jennifer sighed. "Please? It's not like he's going to shoot me." Her voice was a little shaky, but she tried to sound comical.
"I can't let you in. Captain's orders. No one is allowed in the cell with a prisoner." The soldier barely gave her a glance.
"He's not dangerous, Corporal." Jennifer blurted, scarcely keeping the sarcasm from her voice.
"No one can go inside but an officer." The soldier was unrelenting.
"Very well. Then would you go inside with me?" She coaxed.
"I can't ma'am." Now he looked at her, as though to apologize for his rudeness.
"I won't tell anyone." She pleaded.
"No ma'am, I just can't. The Captain is very strict about it."
She sighed heavily. She turned to Quirt now who was smiling at her. "What are you smiling about?"
"You!" His voice was silky smooth, his glance admiring.
"Can they do anything to you?" She asked Quirt as she stared at him.
"I don't know. I guess if they really wanted to, they could. But I doubt they would as I have scouted successfully for them in the past and might have to in the future."
"Then sign the darn thing, It's just a piece of paper."
"I can't. If I do, I'll have to leave with them when they leave. I won't do that. The way I see it, you and the other ladies are my responsibility. That's my priority, always has been. Until they officially close this place, I'm not leaving. And I'm damned sure not leaving you women. No one has bothered trying to help you at all, and I'm going to see that the ladies get back home."
"Are the Confederates leaving?" She asked surprised by his answer.
"If this campaign in New Mexico falls through, like I expect it will, they'll leave. They'll close this fort and there will be no protection here. I won't leave you ladies to fend on your own. I am doing my duty as I see it. By the way was it the Captain that let you come here?"
"No, the Lieutenant."
"Where is the Captain?' Quirt's frowned.
"I don't know."
"Are some of the men gone too?"
"Yes, they are, they rode out yesterday, something about a raid."
"They don't know what they are doing, they will start a war they can't finish here." Quirt told her. "The Captain has no idea what he's getting into. He'll stir them up and then leave the settlers and the rest of us to fend for ourselves."
"I don't want them to hang you!" she declared with tears in her eyes.
"They won't hang me, honey. I'm not an enlisted man, and I've done nothing to warrant treason. They'll threaten to, but they won't. Please, don't worry yourself with this."
"I care, how can I help it?" She cried. "Can you be so sure?" She asked.
"Honey," he reached for her again. "I'm sure of only two things. One, God won't let them hang me. And two, I'm not going to let anything happen to you and the other ladies." Then pulling the back of her head close, he kissed her lips once more. His kisses spoke louder than words. "And Three, most importantly, I care about you most of all."
She stared with tears in her eyes.
"I don't think in jail you can make any promises." she cried and came closer as his lips touched hers through the holes in the bars. He held her as close as permitted and smiled into her face.
He touched her face gently. "I've come to love that face, and I'm not going to lose it."
"Please sign the paper so you can get out of here." She begged hi
m. "We need you! We all went to the Captain, but it did little good. He threatened to throw us in here too."
"I'll be out soon." He declared. "Don't rile him."
"I don't know how you can be so sure," she cried.
"I or Hans will find a way. Now, don't fret, tell the ladies it's only a matter of time. And don't worry so much." He said kissing her once more, his hand going to caress her cheek gently.
"You don't belong in here!" she cried.
"Thanks for coming." He smiled at her as she backed slowly away.
"Take care of yourself."
"I will. Now go." He told her. "I'll be out soon, I promise."
~~***~~
But the troops that went out to purposely chase the Mescalero's, didn't fare well. The Captain was mortally wounded. Most of the troops were shot up with arrow wounds. The hospital was abuzz. The undertaker was busy with building caskets.
Temporarily Major Hatfield took over as commanding officer. With a heavy loss of men, he sent word to Colonel Baylor that the troops suffered many casualties and that the fort remained in danger.
Baylor sent reinforcements three weeks later and commanded the Major to let Quirt out of prison and to put him to work scouting about the Indians. He told him above all the supplies were important and to keep them safe.
Hatfield released Quirt and all charges were dropped with his cooperation to scout the Indian camps and help keep them at bay.
As soon as he was released, he went to find Jennifer to tell her.
She was hanging laundry out and he sneaked up behind her. She looked so beautiful to him. His heart skipped a beat as he stared at her. What a woman she was. He loved her boldness, her sassy tongue and her sweet disposition. He took her in his arms, whirled her around and kissed her solidly on the lips. It was a kiss of coming home, of passion, of promises. His lips went all over her face, her cheeks her ear, and her neck. He wanted her in every way, and he couldn't get enough of her sweet lips.