Buchanan's Seige

by Jonas Ward

  BUCHANAN'S SIEGE

  By Jonas Ward

  1

  Tom Buchanan rode outside on the stage mainly because they had not built a Conestoga suitable to his six-foot-four, two-hundred-and-forty-pound frame, but also because he had not been in big-sky country for some years and wanted to enjoy the view. They were coming onto the plain toward Buffalo with green graze all around in early summer, trees luxurious along the road, cattle waxing fat, produce now growing where it had not grown before.

  The driver, Jackson, handled the ribbons Yankee style, fancy, each horse under separate guidance. He was good at it, so good that he could answer questions. A slight wind was fresh against Buchanan's scarred but comely face. Old wounds ached a bit from the jouncing, but he was accustomed to that. ;

  He said, "Down New Mexico the plain's higher by a couple thousand feet. But this here is greener."

  "Water," said Jackson. "Irrigation, some. Whoa there a bit. Nellie. Gee, Napoleon."

  Buchanan thought of the Southwest, where he had meant to stay awhile, visiting friends. He seemed always to be going away from home. Right now, it was some kind of a job offer from Colonel Bradbury, an old acquaintance. It was coming on evening, and he was to meet the man in Buffalo, which would be the night stop of the stage.

  Hr thought of Coco Bean, the black prizefighter, who was somewhere in Montana for a bout. He did not particularly care to catch up to Coco for more than a howdy because of a matter of unsettled business between them. For some time, the battler had been earnestly seeking to engage Buchanan in fisticuffs, not out of anger but to decide who was the better man with his fists. And Buchanan was a peaceable man.

  It was not that he feared Coco, who was shorter but weighed in about the same. It was merely that fighting for no reason seemed to him to be the most senseless endeavor in the world. Also, he was very fond of Coco, and to hurt him would be an indecent project indeed. He would, he thought, prepare an alibi, some sort of injury to postpone the battle.

  That should be easy. Buchanan bore the scars of many an outraged fortune. On the frontier, the very fact of being peaceable by nature seemed to invite trouble. People were always shooting at him or punching at him or cutting holes in him. It was something he faced with resignation if not with pleasure.

  "Sure is fine cow country," he said aloud.

  "Fine country for killin' people, too," said Jackson.

  "That's hard to believe." The evening sky was dark blue and covered them like a monster bowl. Stars began to blink behind fantastic, light cloud-banks.

  "Nesters," said Jackson. "Little old ranchers scrabblin' to put a herd together. Bradbury and them call 'em rustlers. Whoa there, Dan, easy now, the stable's right nearby."

  "Uh, is that Colonel Bradbury?"

  Jackson turned his weatherbeaten countenance a quarter way toward Buchanan. "Yep."

  "I see." It was a time to keep silence. Buchanan looked ahead to where, atop a slight grade, a grove of tall trees shook gently in the breeze. Rustler was a dirty word here, there, and every place else on the plains of the West. A man of peace was wise to avoid the subject altogether. He never knew to whom he might be speaking. The stage company would be against strife—strife slowed down movement of people and merchandise. But an employee could be related to either faction in this kind of controversy. Jackson's side glance might also indicate that he was suspicious of Buchanan.

  That was the way of range wars, neighbor against neighbor, everyone mistrusting the other. Buchanan was from West Texas, where his father had been sheriff; he knew about cattleman against homesteader, big fish against minnows.

  Bradbury was big business, owner of the Bar-B. He had been one of the first to recognize the advantage of fattening trail herds on this Wyoming graze, wintering them, then driving them to railhead for sale. He had prospered from the start, a bluff and hearty man, loud-voiced, generous but contentious.

  There were others who stood with the colonel from the start, Dealer Fox of Z-D, a canny veteran; Morgan Crane of M-C, a violent man. All were middle-aged and set in their ways, all were vastly wealthy and determined to hold onto every dollar they did not lavishly spend on themselves and their families.

  Buchanan knew these men. He was acquainted with most of the older frontiersmen, having been up and down the land for several years, always involved with one cause or another. They all knew he did not wear a sixgun except when absolutely necessary. They knew he was a man of strong convictions, which he kept to himself until occasion arose. They knew his code, that of the Old West, which held each man accountable to his conscience first and to the law second, which allowed freedom within these boundaries.

  He had thought well of Colonel Bradbury. Now he wondered. That word rustler rankled in his mind. Too many men had been falsely accused of stealing cattle. Branding of any maverick over a year old and still unmarked was range law. Poor men began by owning a few head, then putting the iron to mavericks. Poor men were most often victims of richer men, Buchanan had noted in his travels. Not that he had anything against the wealthy; most of them had earned their way by hard work arid astute management and were to be admired.

  Jackson was slowing down the stage as they mounted the gentle rise. Now Buchanan saw his first barbed wire. It ran from the road east to the extent of a section of land, then stretched northward past the grove of trees.

  Jackson explained. "Adam Day's farm. That's his wife you seen, the lady passenger."

  She was a medium-sized lady in a bonnet and traveling dress. Buchanan had noted her slim ankles. She seemed demure, rather pretty, composed when she had come aboard. The other passengers had been a drummer and two nondescript men of no particular vintage. Buchanan had noted them mechanically, out of habit, without much interest.

  Jackson said, "Farmin's good hereabouts. Hard winters make good growin' come spring and summer."

  "Vegetables taste better from land like this," Buchanan said. "But what about the bobwire?"

  Jackson shook his head. "Cuts across Bar-B graze. Adam and some others took up sections. 'Twarn't Bradbury land, you know. Gov'ment turned it a-loose. But Bradbury was here first. Same old story."

  "Man runs a herd long enough, he figures he owns the grass," Buchanan said. "Government's far away, back there in Washington."

  "Caused more trouble'n Injun wars," Jackson said. "It'll cause more soon enough."

  "You believe that?"

  Jackson said, "First off, thought you was one of 'em. Now, seems like you ain't."

  "One of what?"

  Those rannies we're carryin'. Hired by the association. Gunners. Bradbury and them are bringin' in an army, like."

  "I see." He was uncomfortable. Jackson had guessed right the first time. Bradbury had sent for him. Not for his guns, the colonel knew better than that. For some other reason yet to be divulged—but meaning no good to nesters or small cattlemen, Buchanan knew now.

  Jackson said, "Day's house is just beyond the trees, I’ll be droppin' Miz Day off. Nice people, the Days."

  ""Most people are, if you get to know 'em."

  "Yeah. Well, Adam works hard. Strong-minded man, but honest and all. Crazy about Amanda. That's his wife."

  They topped the rise. The view was splendid, the snowcapped, tall mountain ridges plainly visible in the waning light, the sloping land running toward them, birds circling. Big birds, Buchanan noted, black, wide-winged. They were circling.

  Jackson said, "Oh, my God and Jesus."

  There was a long tree limb outstretched toward the edge of the road. Its burden dangled in awful silence, twisting, turning in the breeze. The man's feet and hands were tied. His head lolled, tongue protruding. It was a bungled job, they had failed to break his neck, he had strangled to death. Buchanan choked on his bile.
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br />   Jackson fought the alarmed horses. Buchanan swung down from the high seat and stared upward. There was a sign on the man's chest, crudely lettered.

  Rustlers Be Ware.

  Jackson was calling, "That's Adam! By damn, it's Adams."

  The stage braked to a stop at the side of the road. The passengers piled out. The woman was first, running, screaming, her arms outstretched. The bonnet fell from her head; her hair tumbled down, chestnut color. She was white as a ghost, and now Buchanan saw that she was beautiful in her emotion, star-eyed, weeping. After the first outburst, she was silent. When he caught her, she leaned against him, her face upturned as if she could never stop staring at the body of her husband.

  Buchanan said, "Steady. Steady does it."

  She was silent, but he felt acquiescence in her. She must be frontier bred, he thought. Now she turned her face away by force of will and looked up at Buchanan. Her lips moved, whispering. He bent to hear her.

  "Before God, I'll make them pay. One way or another. They'll pay, damn their souls."

  "Yes, ma'am," Buchanan said. "They've got to pay. One way or another."

  "Not the law. The law can't touch them."

  "There's all kinds of law," he told her. "Some we got to make ourselves."

  The two men stood by. The drummer was being sick at the rear wheel of the stage. Jackson held the ribbons in his skillful hands, speechless, agonized.

  One of the men said, "Another rustler. Let's git the fool outa here, driver. No business of ours."

  Amanda Day pulled loose from Buchanan. She faced the two men. "Rustler? You fools, he was a farmer."

  "Prob'ly shot a steer for beef." The man shrugged.

  Buchanan said, "Best you get back in the stage. All three of you."

  The drummer hastened to obey. The two men faced Buchanan and the lady.

  "You tellin' us what to do?"

  "Suggestin'," said Buchanan. He spoke to Jackson. "I'll stay with Miz Day. If you run into Coco Bean up in Montana, send him out here. And anybody else might be helpful."

  The spokesman said, "One of them, huh?"

  "One of them preacher people. Doin' good. Sidin' with rustlers."

  The woman sprang toward them. "You can't say that about us! You dirty rats ..."

  One of the men reached out to slap her away. The other delved into his pocket for a weapon.

  Buchanan left the first man to the woman. He saw her duck and return a blow. The man with the gun was more dangerous. He had cleared it, a small revolver. Buchanan grabbed his wrist and executed a swift turn. The man spun over, head first the gun dropped to earth. Buchanan kicked it away, and then hurled the man into the high wheel of the stage, where he hung, motionless.

  Now, the second man was trying to escape Mrs. Day and to yank out a hunting knife, which stuck in its sheath between his shoulder blades. Buchanan took one step and got hold of the man by the nape of the neck. Spinning him, he slammed him alongside the first man. They hung like dotting for sale, side by side over the rim of the Mrs. Day was going after them when Buchanan stopped her.

  "They didn't hang your husband," he said sharply.

  She froze, shoulders slumping. Buchanan went to the pair and one by one he hoisted them into the stagecoach. He took his gear from the boot—rifle, bedroll, carpetbag. He removed his six guns from its wrappings. He stepped back and fired one shot.

  The hanging rope parted. The body of Adam Day stamped to the ground. Mrs. Day let out a little shriek, and then stood like a stone, her face a mask.

  Buchanan said to Jackson, "Better go ahead. I'll stay and do what's proper."

  Jackson looked down at him. "I dunno what your game. But you better be good at it. Adam was well thought of. This here means trouble in big bunches."

  Buchanan sighed. "My game? My game's tryin' to stay out of trouble in big bunches. It just plain never seems to work out. Remember, if you see Coco Bean, the fighter, lead him here quick."

  "I’ll remember." Jackson lowered his voice. "Miz Day, I’m plumb sorrowful. So will they be, your friends."

  She nodded. Her glance went to the stiffening body of her husband, then to the horizon, back finally to Buchanan. The stage creaked as the six horses leaned into harness, then rolled toward the town.

  Buchanan said, "I can tote him."

  "Better we leave him."

  Buchanan looked up at the black birds hovering ever nearer. "Buzzards. If you'll go ahead, I'll manage."

  She had a small piece of luggage. She hesitated, then said, "It's right kind of you."

  It was a strange sight, the woman walking with long strides, Buchanan following with the body over his shoulder. They went past the trees, down the road a hundred yards. They turned off, and the house was another hundred paces from the road. They walked slowly, now. There was a truck garden and fields beyond, where crops were beginning to grow in serrated rows of different hues. There was a barn and a shed. Buchanan went to the shed and found a tarpaulin. He lay the man down and covered him well, tucking in the canvas against rodents. The woman watched him without words.

  He said, "Name of Tom Buchanan, ma'am. I'll be fetch-in' my soogans. Until somebody comes, I could stick around."

  "I'd be grateful, Mr. Buchanan. She spoke as though educated beyond the scope of frontier wives. "I'll be glad of company."

  He went to where he had left his gear and brought it to the house. The woman was somewhat chameleon-like, he thought. She had seemed mousy when he first saw her coming aboard the stage. Then, when her emotions were aroused, she had been beautiful as a mama puma in rage. Yet she had quickly regained control of herself.

  He entered the house and found it undistinguished, which also was puzzlement, considering the woman and how she seemed. It needed paint inside and out. It was not as stout-built as needed for Wyoming winters. There was a pump at the sink in the kitchen, which contained a large stove, a table, half-dozen straight chairs, rude cabinets, and a cupboard. Amanda Day had removed her cloak and was coaxing a fire. He waved her away, taking over. She sat down, her face blank. She wore a blouse and a long traveling skirt. She was younger than he had thought. The lines of her body were long and finely made; her bosom high. Her eyes were hazel, guarded by curved, thick lashes. Her chin was firm but rounded.

  “There was water in the kettle. The fire leaped, and Buchanan fed it from the wood box. He pumped water and washed himself at the sink, rinsing away the dust of travel, wiping himself dry on his bandanna. The woman watched, and he realized she was coiled, and again he thought of the female puma.

  She said, "I must talk. Do you mind if I talk?"

  “It’s natural," he said. "Better to talk. I'm a good listener.”

  Her hands twisted in her lap, and he saw that she was not wearing a wedding ring. The fire crackled in the iron stove. She spoke in a low, level tone.

  “I left him, you see. That's the trouble. I left him."

  "But you were coming back?"

  "'Yes. I pawned the ring to pay the fare. I thought of him, caring, worrying. I was the schoolteacher. He was the farmer from Indiana. For three years I tried. Then I failed him. The winters, the loneliness. I am from San Francisco. Do you know what I mean?"

  "Reckon I do."

  ""The work. So hard. The chores. He hired when he needed help, the most of it he wanted to do himself. He was very strong. At night, he would be asleep over his supper. In the morning, he was a giant for the work. It was too much."

  "Gets that way, sometimes." He recognized what she was telling him. He knew how women suffered on the frontier when their men worked too hard, stayed away too long, were not easy and smiling and comfortable in the bed. It was one of the reasons he had shied away from marriage.