“Let’s seriously start this project,” I said.
“What about Wilson?” they asked.
“I just fired Wilson.” This news was met with smiles and approval all around.
Pierce showed me the drawing that he was working on using the concept we discussed and I told him, “Consider it approved, but it still might get some changes if not totally approved by the rest of the engineers and my assistant when he gets back. My decisions would be based on solid engineering answers, not personalities. I want all problems drawn out so we can find the solution based on engineering principles.”
I received a yes, sir from everyone; they of course believed in engineering answers as well.
When Mark returned he told me, “I went in to Belden’s office and told him there was a delay at the railhead and we needed immediate answers. I showed the drawing with your solution and Belden called in his chief engineer, and he endorsed your answer immediately. He wanted to know if his dog was with you and I told him the dog was out at the farm. He asked me if we would mind if he rode out there to pick the dog up, and that he might take his wife along. I told him he would be more than welcome. He wanted to know how long we would be staying. I told him that it was up to you. But knowing you, you won’t be coming back until you are satisfied about everything.”
Belden went home that afternoon and asked his wife if she wanted to go for a ride out to a farm. She said, “Sure, who lives there?”
“A fellow by the name of Tucker and his family. I hired Tucker as my super at the railhead. My dog is out there and I just want to pick him up. At the same time, we can look over this family to see how they would fit into our circle. Is there anything going on at the theatre so could invite the ladies for a show?”
“I don’t know dear, but I can find out.”
When they got out to the farm they found Martha milking, Liz was holding her baby, and Mary was making a stew. Vicky was making butter and Jeff was out working with the stock. It looked like a busy place. Liz invited them in and asked if they would like a glass of milk.
“Sure, I would like some,” Mr. Belden said.
Liz handed the baby to Mr. Belden and got them each a glass. Mary wanted someone to taste the stew, so Mrs. Belden volunteered and she told her it was perfect. Liz then asked the pair if they could stay for dinner, and Mr. Belden eagerly agreed to it. Liz asked how much U.P. stock was worth, he told her it was 11.50 a share.
“Are you interested in Union Pacific shares?” he asked.
“I told David we could invest in U.P. stock if we are going to work for the U.P.,” she replied.
“Do you need an advance on your husband’s wages, Liz?” Belden asked.
“Oh, no. We have a nice savings. We did not even think we were going to work until spring.”
The dog kept going in and out of the house, but when they went home he was not with them. Belden asked his wife what she thought about his super’s family. She said they were a nice, good stock.
“They are not afraid to work, that’s for sure,” she said. “That Liz sure loves her husband.”
“I am glad you like them, I like them too,” Belden stated.
Chapter Fifteen
I rode out to the survey crew and we looked everything over. I left Mark up there to learn all that he could. They had a large wagon to live in with two bunks inside. I told him we would probably go home tomorrow, and I rode back to the crew where they were laying track.
We rode out and looked where they were piling up equipment in the low ground. There was higher ground close to where the tracks could go in a straight line, so we told the surveyors to survey that area and they said Wilson wanted everything on the low ground. After lining everything up, we headed home on the work train.
The next morning, we reported to Belden. All of our decisions were approved. Belden said that he would go out with the work train himself, he wanted to see where Wilson wanted the line. It was payday and he would be bringing the money. It was nice to be home again; but the following morning we rode back to the work train. We loaded the horses and went to our car and had some coffee. Shortly after that, we started moving. Belden was up front; his car was right behind the tender and his patrol men were up with him. An hour later they were slowing down, ready to arrive.
All of a sudden a bunch of shouting started. Six men started shooting into Belden’s car. I ran for my horse; I had to go over two cars loaded with lumber to get to the horse car. After I got in the horse car, I opened the door. I got on my horse and jumped him off the train. Mark was firing from aft and he got one of the bandits. I fired with my Henry and got one too. I was racing up to Belden’s car, firing, and the bandits decided to get out of there. I got one more of them and two got away. Our scout riding on the engine got one too. I raced after the remaining two, but couldn’t catch them.
The scout tried to catch an outlaw horse to come after me. He was a good man. I had worked with him after I fired Wilson. He told me that Wilson killed an Indian that was bringing meat on a travois crossing the tracks, and then Wilson took the meat to the cooks. I was anxious to be on good terms with the Indians before I went back home.
When I came in from the survey party, we had buffalo in front of the work train. I was talking to the scout about Wilson killing the Indians; we still had their two horses. I told the scout that we should kill four or six buffalo and take them out to the Indians and take their horses back to them. We had a crane and six wagons, and I told him that we should bring six buffalo over close to the crane to shoot them and then we could load the wagons and take the buffalo out to the Indians.
The guide shot the buffalos and cut them to bleed. Then he opened their stomachs so they wouldn’t get gassy. We loaded the buffalo and drove out to their village. Once there, we pulled the buffalo off the wagons and a woman came out right away and started skinning. The guide talked to the chief and told him that the new boss wanted to be friends with the Indians. The chief came to shake hands. He was happy to get the meat and he was also happy to get his horses back too. As soon as all the buffalo were off the wagons, we started back.
On our way back, I spotted the two bandits that had gotten away and I gave chase. I was gaining on them, thinking I was in range, I shot with the Henry and got the horse one was riding. The horse fell and pinned the rider’s leg, he could not get up. He started shooting with his shot gun. The other bandit, riding a yellow horse, was shooting with his rifle. It sounded like a Spencer .56. I got up to the fallen man and put a bullet in him from my pistol. Then I got hit and almost fell of my horse, but somehow I stayed in the saddle. I must have touched the horse with my spur, because he turned and kept going. Finally he stopped at the creek to drink. When he put his head down I must have fallen off his back. The horse started grazing the tall grass.
A while later I came to, sort of, half conscious. Three girls found me; they talked to me, but I did not understand what they were saying. Then one of the girls went to my horse and rode off and the other two stayed. I figured she was going to get some help. Three men came back, one with feathers, and got me on my horse. They put one of the girls behind me, to help keep me in the saddle. They took me to their village and put me in a teepee. A woman looked at my head, then they all studied it. One girl started a fire and I sat down on some skins and passed out.
I woke up that night and had to urinate. I was able to hold on to a long pole and stand up. I made my way outside and relieved myself. When I turned around to go back in, I fell. A woman that was sitting out in the rain came over to help me up and back inside. I noticed that she was all wet. She put some wood on the fire and was going to go back out. I asked her why she was out in the cold rain. I felt the dress and it was wet, then I felt her forehead and it was hot. I told her to take her clothes of; it took a while, but she finally took her dress off. My saddle was near the fire and I put her dress on it to dry out. After that, I made her lay down and I lay do
wn next to her and covered us up with a buffalo skin. She wanted to get up, so I put my arm around her and we both fell asleep.
I woke up in the morning to a lot of shooting going on outside. The bandits had found me in the village. I saw my Henry in my saddle and went out to get it. An Indian came out from his teepee and shot one of the attackers and they shot back at him. That bandit’s rifle was hanging with the sling around the horn and my Henry was empty, so I grabbed his rifle and shot the man on the yellow horse. My woman friend ran over and got a blanket to put around me; I pointed towards the yellow horse and told her to get that horse. I handed her the reigns from the horse and she led him over to me.
The chief came over to me, along with several other Indians. The chief put his arm around me and talked away. I did not understand, but I could see that he was a friend. An Indian came over and said something to the woman and she went and sat down on a piece of skin. Another Indian that spoke some English joined us. I asked him why the woman was made to sit outside. He said that her man had kicked her out because he had two new squaws.
“She will die in the cold,” I said.
“You can buy her with that rifle that shoots all day,” he bartered.
I handed him the Spencer and told him I wanted her. That started some talking, and the chief got in on it too. Her man wanted that gun all right. He took the gun and said something. The chief called the girl and she went to him. They told her that she belonged to me now. I took her hand and we went inside. She picked up my other rifle and brought it in. I went back out and asked where her things were; it started some talking and the chief had his say. She came back out and told something to a boy, then he went with the two horses. They brought all her things and she organized everything. Some men brought guns, saddles, and clothes off the fallen men and thing started to pile up inside. Everything on those fallen men was mine. They brought three more horses and their saddles in as well.
I started handing things to my new wife to put in to piles. I started going through saddlebags and blanket rolls, and she just piled up all the blankets. I handed her some skillets and coffee pots. She was sure happy with everything. The boy that took the horses kept coming in and out.
All this time I was wondering who I was. I did not know anything. I had lost my memory again. Once again, I did not know what my name was or where I came from, nothing. The man that spoke with me in English called me Iron Hand. I figured that the bullet in my head had taken my memory.
I got a coffee pot and I wanted some water. I tried to talk to my squaw to tell her that we found some coffee in a saddlebag, but we needed water. She did not understand, but repeated the word water and I said, “Yes, water.” She left and came back with a bag of water. I gave her a nice kiss and filled the coffee pot and then put some coffee in and fixed a place at the fire so it would not spill. I also found some sugar in a saddlebag. We had four cups, so I fixed some coffee for her too. I drank mine straight. We found some jerky, beans and salt, so we put some beans on to soak.
A little girl came in crying. My new wife picked her up and they talked. The English speaking Indian came by and I asked him what was going on. He told me, “The little girl doesn’t have a mother and she lives with a woman that wants to cook her dog; that is why she cries.”
My wife was standing in front of me, waiting to see what I would do. I asked him what I could do to save the dog. He pointed to a dirty shirt and said to give her the shirt and bring the dog here. I asked him to go with me and he did. I got the puppy and took it home. That little girl was happy and so was my wife.
My head hurt so I lay down. The little girl came and lay down with me, and so did the dog. That little girl snuggled up to me and fell asleep after a bit. My wife took a blanket and covered us up. The chief later came by with our interpreter and told me that the woman wanted to get paid for the girl. I asked if she was her mother and he said no. He then said to give her something dirty; there was a dirty pair of jeans that I gave to the chief for her. He took the little girl and the jeans and left. Ten minutes later he was back with the skin that she slept on and some of her knick-knacks. She was now our daughter.
The young boy that was our horse handler brought us three rabbits, so my wife baked the rabbits and that’s what we had for lunch. The boy ate with us too.
I had a lot of money and decided to go shopping for my family. I asked the interpreter where the store was, and he pointed out to a small town not too far away. I told the boy we needed three horses. He brought me a nice Arab and my wife’s yellow and gray. We saddled the horses and my wife came and I pointed to the gray for the boy.
That little town had one store. We went inside and I started asking for things and they boxed them up. He had some ready-made dresses, so I bought a couple. I bought enough stuff to fill three sacks to put behind the saddles. I got some pots to cook in and a bunch of food items, as well as a nice knife in a holster for Buck, that’s what I started to call the boy. The grocer had some skinning knives, so I bought two. I paid my bill and then I saw a rag doll in the window, so I got that too. The boy and the girl were very helpful carrying out my things. I gave Buck a knife and I gave my daughter the rag doll. They were speechless. Nothing like this had ever happened to them. My daughter sat in front of me on a blanket holding her doll. Then she started talking to it, I just laughed.
They called my wife Dolly and I started to call her that as well. I asked our interpreter what tribe they were, he said Pawnee. I did some of the cooking with Dolly looking on. I bought some plates and bowls with spoons and forks so we could all eat together. Twice we got some meat from hunters.
I decided to go hunting with Buck. We saddled up my Arab and Buck got his gray. I put my Henry in the scabbard and got a Sharps .45 for Buck. He was a happy boy. He treated me like his father. We rode out and I thought I saw something in some trees not too far ahead of us. I headed over to the trees and there were three buffalo cows and I shot the youngest looking one. Buck pulled his rifle and I told him to get off his horse and showed him how to load the Sharps. He shot the two old cows and cut them all to bleed. I saw that Buck had some rope, so I tied the ropes to a hind foot on each and we were able to drag the buffalo home.
When Dolly saw us dragging a buffalo up to her, she was happy; she just about danced when we came up. I got off the horse and untied the rope. She ran and kissed me in front of the kids. The chief and the interpreter came up, and I told them that Buck had shot the two big cows and they were out there bleeding. Buck could guide them there; the interpreter ran for his horse. Buck took my horse to graze and put the saddle inside. Dolly was skinning away. I had a terrible headache and went inside to lay down with my little girl and her doll. After all the butchering, Dolly started smoking the meat; she was making jerky. Buck was helped her with anything she needed.
Everybody knew that Buck was the one that shot the three buffalo. Young girls stopped to talk to him. He now lived with us and slept next to my daughter and her doll, on the other side of the fire.
Chapter Sixteen
Belden and Mark speculated for a long while what could have happened to me. The scout asked our chief if they had heard anything about me, but he told them nothing. The Belden’s finally told my wife that I was their son and moved her and our son in to town with them. I was quite happy with my new family, I was Chief Iron Hand. I did not know anything about my past. The bullet in my head wiped out my memory.
The chief called us to go hunting with him, so we saddled up. I told Dolly to come too. She took our daughter over to the chief’s squaw and the three of us joined the chief. I gave a Henry to Dolly, fully loaded; my Henry was also fully loaded, and Buck had his Sharps. We rode out, about 14 of us, looking for game all morning. We did not see anything to shoot. We had some jerky for lunch. That afternoon we went over a hill and found an army ambulance with four-in-hand and six soldiers on horses. Three officers were looking at a horse and two ladies were walking
around. When they saw us they pulled their rifles but did not shoot.
“We are not at war,” said the major.
Dolly’s ex-husband wanted to attack, but the chief told him we were not at war. I said I would talk to them, so I rode down to them with four feathers in my hair.
“What is the matter with your horse?” I asked in perfect English. They sure were surprised that I spoke good English.
“What tribe?” asked the major.
“Pawnee.”
“Where did you learn English, Chief?”
“I was a sergeant with Sheridan in the war,” I answered.
“Well I’ll be damned, we are talking to a veteran soldier,” said the captain.
“What is your name, Chief?” asked the major.
“Chief Iron Hand. What is your problem?” I asked.
“We have a mare with a bad limp.”
I got off my horse and went over to look at their horse. It was a beautiful Morgan mare. I was carrying my Henry and I handed it to the doctor and picked up the horse’s hoof. The doc said that I had a nice rifle and I told him it was a Henry. I felt a thorn inside the upper part of the hoof. The mare jerked it away. I picked it up again and said, “This is not good. Are you going far?”
“We still have all day and into the night,” he answered.
“It will be very cold tonight. I better trade you horses.” I motioned to Buck to come down. He and Dolly both came down. “How can we trade?” I asked them, this was a good horse.
“That boy has a Sharps, and that woman has a Henry,” the sergeant noticed.
“We are out hunting, Sergeant. We need good guns,” I told him.
“We just passed five buffalo on the other side of that small hill,” he told me.
“Buffalo in Pawnee twice,” I remarked and showed five fingers on my good hand. They yip-yipped a couple of times and took off. The chief and my interpreter stayed. “What do you have to trade for this mare?” I asked again. “I don’t want one of those girls, one is too fat and the other is skinny,” I stated.
Sheriff Tucker Page 9