"An agent now, that's ambitious alright. I 'spose a man'd have ta know his numbers alright. He'd have ta get along with Inuns fer shore!" Pythias said, surprised that the young man had the idea of being an Indian Agent. "I ain't much worried about Injuns wantin' a couple cows, no sir, it's the ones watin' are scalps, thems the one's whot concern me. An' they're out there, just not sure where."
"We're deep in ta Colorado Territory now, an' I figger we'll stop in Junction City fer supplies afore pushin' on.'" He grinned, "It ain't no city neither, but it wants ta be. Injuns, Utes, Piutes, Shoshone, but it'd be the Cheyennes we'd need to worry about."
Bongo
"Ya'd think they'd all be th' same, them Indians, act th' same, do th' same things, even speak th' same language." He'd never really thought about it much, but it seemed to him to make more sense if they were all essentially the same, like the English or French.
"I'm just as happy ta steer clear'a them, keep my pretty hair!" Justus chuckled, then asked, "Do some'a th' men get ta go into town? I reckon they got rules 'bout that?" He grinned. "I seen what can happen to a town when a drive comes in, but I don't see as Mr. Teal'd tolerated that."
Pythias laughed, "Might be they was all alike, life fer us'd be easier, 'cept they ain't the same. $Each of 'um got their own ways 'bout most things. There's them that's peaceable an' jest wants ta git along, others, well, They like ta fight, seems." He paused. "Mostly what they respect is what a man does. How he treats 'em, bravery. They really cotton ta a man who's brave."
"Town is it? Well, I been up the crick an' round the bend with Teal a time 'er two. He don't tolerate no nonsense if he allows anyone ta go ta town. He shorely won't put up with no drunkenness, ner fightin' or the like. Get's men killed. And them hangovers is bad when it comes ta a man doin' his job. But we'll see. He generally brings back a couple jugs'a who hit John." Then he laughed, "The boys is anxious ta see them some wimmen folk, and don't that start the trouble!"
"I can see how that'd be a problem," Justus chuckled, shaking his head. "Seen it a few times when we rode inta town after a time on th' trail."
He regretted the words as soon as they came out, and started to think of who he'd explain that 'we' were, should Pythias ask. "I'm not much of a mind ta go inta town, anyway, don't need nothin' an' got nothin' ta buy it with!" Best way to stay out of trouble was to stay out of town, and he reckoned someone had to stay behind and mind the cows.
I've Got Two Guns, One For Each Of You!
Pythias had to agree with the lad's way of thinking, though the men were riding for wages, and there was the unspoken agreement that an advance payment would be made should there be a town along the way. "Well, there's the ad-vance them boy's'll be lookin' fer, and I seen afore, it'll be jest enough ts git 'em in trouble, whether they mean to 'er not."
It was not a situation Frank Teal was willing to put up with. The trip to town would be for supplies, maybe a drink or two in the saloon. He would make sure of that because he would ride in with them, he would stand for the supplies and the drinks, eliminating the need to make the advance. Pythias knew that but chose to keep that part of it to himself. There would be just enough men left behind to guard the herd, and just enough men with him in town to load the supplies.
"We'll be comin' up on a river, the Arkansas right soon now, so our job is ta scout 'er the best crossin', within reason I expect."
Justus had no desire to go into town, not that he was worried about being recognized this far north, but even if he was careful and kept to himself, it was just too easy to get caught up in any trouble that came along, so it was best to just not get close. Besides, he'd be so nervous, he wouldn't enjoy himself anyway.
"Never really did think on findin' a good place ta cross a river," Justus observed, "always just plunged in, but didn't have ta consider a herd." He thought for a moment, then offered, "Reckon there might be some tracks going down to th' places th' locals use." 'Locals' including Indians and wild animals, that should know where the best places were to cross. Of course, conditions were dynamic, and changed in an instant.
"We gotta chuck wagon and she's heavy, 'course th' herd, an' th' horses, both the remuda and the Missus' animals. An us a'course. Th' place we hope we'll find'll make it easy on alla us, but we got no way'a tellin' til we get ta lookin'." Pythias explained, then added, "But you got a point, Injun an' animal crossin's, they'll be about, an' they'll be jest whot th' doctor ordered." He grinned.
Finding the best available spot for river crossings might prove different from season to season. A nasty rain, and the river could be running fast and turbulent which would mean holding the herd till it ran its course, which it would, but they would be losing time waiting for Mother nature.
"Didn't really think on th' chuck wagon," Justus mused. The few creeks they'd already crossed hadn't been relatively narrow and shallow in comparison to the Arkansas, so it only now occurred to Justus that the chuck wagon might actually have to be floated across a river this impressive.
"Does it just float on its own? How does everything stay dry?" Seemed like that at least the things sitting on the bed of the wagon would get wet. "Th' horses still pull while they're swimmin'?" Now, that would be something to see!
"Depends. Now if she's deep, well them horses still pull, but there'll be riders alongside lendin' a hand. They'll do thet by ropes on the wagon and likely a couple on either side of the lead horses pullin' on the halters. She'll be first ta cross, then the herd an' horses, which all know how ta swim." Pythisa responded. "Be somethin' 'couse was it shallow enough she'll jest roll on across, lest the bottom's sandy, then it'll be help from the boys. So once't we get ta scoutin' it out. we'll know whot we're up against."
The Arkansas River was close, and the two riders would soon be searching for the best crossing they could find, which might take time but they were well ahead of the slow-moving herd.
"It'll be somethin' ta see," Justus commented, "an' all them cows swimmin' at once." Of course, this was just old routine to the others, something they'd dealt with time and again, and something they'd likely prefer to avoid. But there seemed to be a lot to learn about it, and Justus was happy to find out all he could about the business.
"So, th' cows just hop in an' start swimmin'?" Sure, they plodded through wide, shallow creeks without any objection, but he wasn't sure that they'd just keep going once the ground fell away from under their feet. "They ever try an' turn back?" He couldn't imagine what it would be like to have hundreds of cows panicking in the middle of a river.