Posted November 15, 2022
"I'd say you got yourself a good start at it. Makin' somethin' of onesself ain't no over night affair, no sir. But..." Pythias reigned in. "Unshod ponies. Off that-a-way. Maybe six of 'em. Best we keep our eyes peeled. Rather we didn't have no truck with 'em, though could be we'll have no choice in the matter."
The Indians were traveling away from them, but that might be a trick. They had cut the cowboys trail from the east, which was nothing more than a reference, there was no telling where the red men were heading, or why, but for the time being, they were sharing the same trail.
"Best shuck that Winchester, just in case." Pythias advised and he pulled out his own. Maybe there would be trouble, and maybe there would not.
Posted November 15, 2022
"Yes, sir." Justus slid his rifle from its scabbard, resting it across his lap as he looked down at the trail, then back to Pythias.
"What do ya see?" The ground was churned up some, but grass covered most of the dirt, and sure, he could see that the grass had been trampled, but how did Pythias know it was Indians, and not elk or buffalo, or some other hooved creature.
"I mean, if ya don't mind teachin' a greenhorn a thing or two!"
Posted November 16, 2022
"If you look you'll see that the tracks, such as they are, they appear muddy in the grass, not sharp and defined as shod horses would, even in the grass, But now, where the dirt was part of the track, no sharp edges. Elk, buffalo, and the like have smaller hooves than most ponies, ares 'er theirs. And these are farther apart. Lengthways, anyway. and they are spread out more'n buffalo, like mounted horses, which makes the tracks deeper." Pythias explained,
"Buff's weigh in near two thousand pounds, heavier than are horse what get between nine hun'derd and twelve hund'erd pounds. But the way they 'er spaced tells me it's ponies. So the way I figger they'er travelin' in the same direction we need to go. So, I cain't tell how long ago they passed, but the grass ain't stood back up yet, so not long ago. And that could be worrisome."
Posted November 17, 2022
Leaning down from the saddle, Justus studied the ground around them, looking for the things that Pythias had pointed out, then straightened and nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I see it. Thanks fer showin' me."
Slowly, he scanned the horizon, then asked, "Should we keep goin', or follow this fer a bit, make sure our paths won't cross again?"
It would be good to know how many Indians that were out there, and if the drive needed to change course a bit to avoid conflict, at least to Justus' thinking.
Posted November 18, 2022 · IP
"They're on the same route as us, there bein' no actual trail." That was true, they were just following the path of least resistance, which is exactly what the cattle would do. "Yes, we'll need to keep on following, but at a distance, don't want to run onto 'em by accident and have us a fight on our hands. Get us a head count, there could be more'n them tracks showed."
Pythias was continuing his visual search, both parties were walking their horses, so it was clear the Indians were either unaware of the two riders behind them or leading them into a trap. It was common practice among the tribes to do their best to disguise their number however they could.
Pythias stopped raising his hand, he stopped to listen, the still morning air might carry a sound, or voices to let them know what was going on ahead of them. It was not like there was an expectation of a conversation in progress ahead of them. As he listened he looked around them, as the ground was rising into the foothills off to right, he was looking for cover if they had to run for it.
Posted November 19, 2022
Justus knew about listening, about how sound could travel and give you away, or warn you of pursuit. He nodded, listening himself, and watching Mule's ears...the horse would hone in on distant noises, focusing with his ears, that were twitching back to focus on Justus, then forward, where they stayed as the horse raised his head higher. He was hearing something.
Glancing at Pythias, Justus shrugged, noticing that the man's horse was focused on the same direction as Mule, so there was something out there, although it didn't necessarily mean it was the Indians, it could be some sort of animals, or just strange rustling in the grass.
Justus was curious now, would Pythias want to check it out?
Posted November 21, 2022
"We'll just ease out way off ta the right slow and easy, but be ready, There's both friendly and warlike tribes in this part of the country an' we don't know what we got hold of." Pythias said and started walking his horse into the trees off to the right. If there was to be trouble it like would come fast because the sound of their movements could not be masked.
They moved off a good thirty yards, and there was no response from the Indians, and that was good. There seemed to be no reason to rush back to the herd. The Indians knew they were there, and knew that had moved off, so it seemed evident they continued on their way. Indians being notional it was never a safe bet what they might do, especially if you didn't know which tribe they were, or how many they were.
Pythias stepped down, Winchester in one hand, the reins in the other. "They've moved on, Justus. Guess we didn't interest 'em much. That's good. Take a minute an' we'll push on."
Posted November 26, 2022
"Might be inclined ta be insulted that they moved along," Justus commented with a grin, "or maybe they're just afraid of us?"
He was joking, of course, and was more than happy that they didn't have to confront Indians just yet, even 'friendly' ones, for they would likely want to barter for a beef or two to slaughter, or worse, come looking for horses. But hopefully, they'd just move on.
And they still had a long way to go, so the chances of an actual encounter was pretty high.
"Do they really do what they said 'bout th' cavalry on th' Little Horn River...cuttin' 'em up an' all?" He'd heard stories before here and there about the savages mutilating corpses, but never on this scale.
Posted November 27, 2022
"That's their way. Course, now what happened there and what could happen, well that's up fer debate. No tellin' what they will do." Pythias said as they started up again, giving a wide berth to the way they were headed, just in case.
"They can be contrary, that's for positive sure. If they decide they want a fight, well, they'll come after us, if not then they'll keep headin' where they was goin'. That'd be my choice in the matter, so we keep are eyes peeled and are Winchesters handy."
Posted November 29, 2022
"I suppose men are men," Justus observed, "same goals, ta protect an' provide fer family, just got different ways goin' about it."
Of course, philosophies clashed, and it was hard to blame someone when someone else came along and pushed them away from the lands and ways that they knew. But then, that was the history of mankind -- advancing, conquering, changing, adapting. He was just glad that he was on this end of it, and not the Indians'!
"Reckon we just take it as it comes, try'n be respectful, if they're not tryin' ta kill us?"