I wasn’t real worried about the trip from Telluride to Durango. It would take a few days, but with three wagons of ore and each wagon having two guards plus a teamster it was well taken care of. Wilson, Dawson, and I rode up and down and around the wagons. If we were attacked it would have to be by a large group as they just couldn’t come and haul the ore away, and that was another advantage, it wasn’t milled or smelted yet. Yet, I didn’t relax, there was always that chance.
The guards on the wagon worked for the mines, therefore, I didn’t know them. I figured the mine owners knew their men well enough to supply qualified men for the job.
We were about a day and a half out of Durango when one of the wagons broke down; a broken wheel. There wasn’t a spare, so there would have to be help coming from Durango. Something about the location and the timing kinda bothered me. Being in charge I decided to send Wilson and Dawson along with the two other wagons and would stay with the one until it could be repaired or another wagon sent to replace it. I also changed the guards. I wouldn’t let the two on the one broke down stay with it.
They argued some about that. They said they worked for the Deep Hole Mine and that this was their ore. It made me sorta laugh and guess it showed for it irritated them further.
“Ore has been sorted back in Telluride and marked. It is all mixed together from five or so mines.”
“We don’t think we should leave it,” said a gruffy red-haired man.
“That’s right, you don’t think!” I said. “You follow my orders!”
So the guards switched up, but I kept the teamster. I figured he might be involved if there was foul play and I wanted to keep an eye on him. We had enough food for a week so we were not hard up that way. Water was a little problem. There was a stream to the south of us about a mile and another back up the road about the same distance. There was a small keg about half full so we should be alright for a day, but then would need some water.
Early the next morning we were having our coffee and I spoke to the men. “If they’re comin’ it’ll be this mornin’. They wouldn’t wait longer as they would be easier to follow. So stay close to the wagon and keep your guns handy.”
Sure enough, about an hour later here came a small group of men; I counted five, but there may be a couple more around. They rode in slowly.
As I walked out to meet them, I noticed the teamster moving around to get behind me. “Unt uh, you stay right up here with me and to my left.”
“What?” he cried. “You’ve no reason to talk like that!”
“Then there should be no problem, now get up here.”
The leader stopped in front of me. “Looks like you’ve got some troubles,” he said.
“Not really, the coffee was good this mornin’, and help should be here by this time tomorrow.”
“Well, the boys and I would surely like to help you out.”
“Figured,” and then I lifted the Greener. When I did that I heard the other two guards cock their rifles. “This will handle our troubles I reckon.”
He looked sorta troubled, but most people get that expression with a shotgun pointed at them from a few yards away. “Mister,” I said. “Ifn that fellow up on the hillside raises his rifle, I’m cuttin’ loose with this here shotgun. I guarantee it will empty your saddle.”
“Your name Forrest?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Heard there was a bounty on you. Might be I collect.”
“Might be you’ll try to collect. Now, I would advise you boys either go back from where you came or continue on up to Telluride. Right now the air is startin’ to get an unhealthy feelin’.”
“Perhaps we’ll meet again,” he said.
“I’ll look forward to it; as long as it’s face-to-face.”
I could see the anger rise in his face, but he motioned for his gang to follow him on up the trail. “Hey!” I hollered. “Don’t forget the man on the hillside. Sure don’t want him to do something he might regret.”
Month: September 2016
Echoes from the Campfire
“Just make sure you use a gun for the right reasons, and not the wrong ones.” –Tell Cotton (Confessions of a Gunfighter)
“Godly people find life, evil people find death.” –Proverbs 11:19 (NLT)
The Daily Paine
“Hope in Christ deepens and strengthens your faith. It increases your love and makes your truly compassionate. It broadens your horizons and makes your actions dynamic. It brings sense and meaning to every moment of your life.” –unknown
Yesterday we took communion at church and the pastor made reference to the idea that there are thousands of Christians throughout the world sharing communion. That started me to thinking. For the past two millennium the Church has been sharing the Lord’s Supper. It is done in obedience to Him and He said to do it until He returned. That is quite a legacy; think of all of those millions who have broken bread together. That is quite an honor; think of individuals who have shared it.
I think of the last phrase of Ira Stanphill’s song, “Supper Time”, in which he wrote, “The banquet table’s ready up in heaven, It’s supper time upon the golden strand.” One day all of us will share in that Marriage Supper and break bread together and with the Lord. Now that will be something.
But one more thing. The sharing of the communion should build up hope in us. Jesus said that He would not share it again until the kingdom of God has come. That should stir up hope within us. Hmmm, is that the smell of bread baking up in heaven?
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Annie said that I should write a devotion on those preachers of the West that I mentioned last week. That would be fine, except for the time involved; something called research. I do have some work by a cowboy-preacher that went by the name of Buckskin Brady – or Brother Brady, who did most of his work in Montana. Here is an excerpt from one of his sermons.
“The devil never brands a man at a baseball game, or at an opera, or ball-room, or at a whiskey bar, or gambling-table, but he always brands him before he gets him there by putting temptation in his way, the thought in his mind and the desire in his heart. He just starts a little fire, just a tiny one, but it is always hot enough to heat his irons.
The first willful step that you take in the wrong direction the devil puts his brand on you. It must be that he took advantage of you, dogged your steps night and day with temptations, till at last he caught you off your guard, or sleeping when you should have been watching. You allowed him to fan the evil desire into a little flame that heated his iron for the work. Then he made the tiniest little mark, so small at first that no one could see it. He just touched you lightly, softly, gently, found the place on your soul where he could make the easiest impressions, and then applied the hot iron so easily, so gently, that it almost had been a caress. But the step had been taken, the fire kindled, the hot mark made before you were aware of it.
So the fire grew hotter and hotter, and the mark burned deeper and deeper, till at last you felt the hellish fire blazing within you, awakening you up to the fact that the devil had put his brand on you–but it was too late.
You tried to get rid of the hideous mark by endeavoring to overcome the fire, but it was of no use. Then you tried to cover it up, to smother it with your conscience but, like so many others, you forgot to ask God to do the work for you; and so it proved to be a miserable failure….
What will you do, then, with the devil’s brand? You can’t cover it up, your conscience can’t smother it, ink won’t blot it out, talk won’t rub it off, water won’t wash it away, nor is there any vent recorded with it, any mark making it of none effect; but there is one thing left for you to do, and only one–that is, to have the blood of Jesus Christ our Savior applied, which will remove the old sin brand inside and out, and will do it at once and forever if you ask Him in true repentance and faith….”
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Now, I’m not much good at this here advertising, I guess they refer to it as marketing. But here goes, take a notion and round up the book, “The True and Unbiased Life of Elias Butler.” If you read the story of Miles Forrest that I write you should like this book, in fact, this is where Miles and Elias first meet. You might remember Elias if you have kept up with the Saga of Miles Forrest.
It is the story of Elias when he left Tennessee after the Civil War and headed for Texas. It tells of his acquaintance with a rancher and of his work on a cattle drive from Waco to Abilene. It may be purchased from Amazon. Look up the title, or D. C. Adkisson.
Coffee Percs
“He wanted to sit down to a quiet meal and a cup of coffee, and most of all he wanted to see her.” –Louis L’Amour
Gather ’round the table pard. I’ve made some coffee from the High Chaparral. Yep roasted out there in Tucson. Strong and black, ahhhh, that hits the spot. Nice to sit back before the doin’s of the day; will need to get goin’, cause I just miss my saddle pard. So if there’s a downcast look in my countenance that’s why. She’s out in the eastern country visitin’ the grandson. His birthday is tomorrow.
My daughter told me they went to the Amish Market. Yur familiar with those folk; a little on the strange side, but good people. Simple folk, but know how to make a good product. Now you know I’m not real surprised at things much, but she told me, and lands-a-mercy she said they are making “cino” there in the Market. Goodness, that one almost floored me. The Amish makin’ “cino” coffee. That’s why I made this extra strong this mornin’. Guess they have to stay up with the young folk and offer that flavored stuff. Even the Amish have a hankerin’ for money.
Speaking of coffee, my this is good this mornin’. Wife, yur sure missin’ it, but I’ll make it up to you when you get back. Sure hope it ain’t too long. By the way pard, did you read last week about the EU? The director, or whatever he’s called, said that there should be a European army under his direction. He made a few other comments in the same direction. It won’t be long pard, He’s gettin’ ready to come back. When the general populace begin to turn the moral into the immoral and make things totally unnatural moral, then there the cup of iniquity is nearly full.
“Bout time to get a-movin’. Say, you are keepin’ that gun oiled and your Bible read, ain’t you? Sure don’t want to become careless so I’m just checkin’. By the way, did you pick up a couple of my books? It’s on Amazon, “The True and Unbiased Life of Elias Butler.” There’s my ad for the day. You take care now pard, and make sure you check your cinch.