Posted June 6, 2022
"Well, let's see what's in here!" Emeline and Lillian pulled several wrapped plates from the basket and set them out, then carefully unwrapped them, revealing the goodies for lunch, although it took both of them to figure out what all there was.
"So," Emeline announced, "we have quiche," she glanced at Lillian to be sure she was saying it right, "and ambrosia salad, that's fruits with sweetened cream, meat pies...Lillian says they look like the quail ones, and asparagus wrapped in bacon." Emeline grinned. "There's some lemonade, and dessert for later."
It all looked elegant and delicious, and Lillian was excited to try some of the things she'd only been able to see before.
As for Tom, it took him a moment to gather his questions, and finally settled with starting with the native peoples. "Are all the Indians savages, then? I find it hard to believe, in this day and age, that they all mean trouble, but then, after what happened there at the Big Horn...wasn't that partly tactical errors?"
He was fascinated by everything West, but particularly the Indians, a strange group of peoples struggling in the changing world.
Posted June 6, 2022
Barnabas smiled at the fare offered in the lunch. "Now, I've not had any of that fancy stuff since I was on the hill, and boy, do they have it up there, about like here, I suppose." Then Tom spoke up,
"Are all the Indians savages, then? I find it hard to believe, in this day and age, that they all mean trouble, but then, after what happened there at the Big Horn...wasn't that partly tactical errors?"
"Hardly Tom." Fact is, we have a couple of tribes in our neck of the woods that are plenty peaceful. Those that were on the little Big Horn, were warlike, but yes, not an error, a tactical blunder. From what I've heard Custer thought to attack a camp that was much smaller that it actually was. The Sioux, Arikara, Apsaalooke, Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Oyate, simply responded in kind, but with overwhelming numbers." He smiled, "There are many tribes that when you look at it, are simply defending their homeland from the encroaching whites."
Posted June 7, 2022
Tom nodded as they sat on the blanket by the ladies. "I guess I never thought of it that way," he observed. "I mean, sure, when we first got here, it seemed all right..." The young man paused for a moment, pondering the thoughts in his head, and finding no good answer at the moment. "Have you been around them a lot? Living with them? I think it would be fascinating, learning about their beliefs and rituals." He chuckled, "So long as they didn't decide to scalp me or anything!"
His sister rolled her eyes as she and Emeline made up plates. "He fancies himself a Indian Agent," Lillian rolled her eyes. "I suppose it's better than working in a factory or something."
"Well, we certainly could use agents who care about the Indians." Emeline shook her head. "There are good ones, yes, but so many don't care beyond it being a job, and they don't take the time to learn about them. And then there are the ones who are downright corrupt. It's sad."
Posted June 8, 2022
"Not lived with them, but lived around them in Texas. Some are plain mean, others, well, not as much, but for the most part, if you push 'em, they'll come with teeth bared and meanin' to cause harm. The Comanche was likely the worst about it. Followed close up by the Apache and the Pima. Brutal peoples from a brutal land. They just didn't like folks trying to claim it." Barnabas explained.
Hearing the ladies talk of Tom's desire to be an Indian Agent, he smiled. "That's a noble cause Tom, and there's tribes that are in need of an Agent, a good, fair agent, if that's what you'd like to do. You'd be around them a lot, that's for sure. No idea how one'd go about gettin' a job like that. But I know they're out there to get."
Posted June 9, 2022
"I'm sure it should be easy enough to find out," Emeline suggested, "maybe a Federal office in town?" Certainly, a city as big as San Francisco would have Federal offices, and after that, it was just a matter of finding the right agency. "It is a good cause, and they can use men who are concerned about the Indians."
Of course, the job had its hazards, not all the native tribes took kindly to any of the nonsense being forced on them, especially after being betrayed.
"It's probably not something you should just jump into, though," she commented, "go see if you like the lifestyle, the people, the land..." she grinned, "the twelve feet of snow!" She didn't want to be discouraging, but the reality of life in the territories was far different than in the books!
"And, no ocean or paved streets!" Lillian reminded her brother. His head had always been in the clouds, and his nose stuck in dime store novels, although she understood that he wanted more than a factory job.
"Here, now, you gentlemen sit and eat!" Emeline offered plates of food while Lillian poured cups of the lemonade.
Posted June 11, 2022
"This looks real good." Barnabas said taking his plate and re-situating himself to facilitate the lunch. He smiled as he took the cup of lemonade, which he drank half of in one swallow. It was nice here, sitting on the blanket, the sun, salt air, seals and sea lions barking, and the gulls squawking as the circled overhead. I wasn't home, but it was a pleasant break from the hustle and bustle of San Francisco.
He looked to the young man, "May not be the safest job a man can have, Indian Agent. But I'd suppose there's rewards to being of help to folks who need it, and the Indians need it. Now them that's 'out?' Well, they want no help, so it's not likely you'd be confronted by hostiles." He smiled,.
The food was excellent, as Barnabas continued, "But the freedom that was there's, a hard thing to give up when that's all you've known, and the young ones, they probably take it the hardest and, are the most likely to strike out at the white man."
Posted June 15, 2022
Tom nodded thoughtfully as he munched his quiche, belatedly appreciating the sort of food that he'd not normally be treated to. "Man, this is good!" He smiled, then added, "Well, I'm going to look into it. I guess any of us would be upset if strangers came in and just decided they lived in our house."
"That was almost two hundred years ago," Lillian observed, "we didn't do that."
"No, not initially," Emeline added her opinion, "but we haven't hesitated to continue it, or shown any integrity." Of course, the 'invading' population was becoming too widely settled to go back, and 'easy' solutions were not going to be easy.
"But, this quiche is amazing! And I think it's something I can use back home, if I can coerce the recipe out of the chef!"
"That shouldn't be too hard," Lillian chuckled, "Chef Wilson is easily flattered!"
"Well, I've insisted more than once to Barnabas that we will have the best fed ranch hands in the territory! And that means we'll have the best hands." It was true that she loved cooking, and once they were living at the house, she was going to enjoy making the occasional special meal, in addition to standard working fare.
"Now to see how Chef Wilson's fruit tarts compare to mine!"
Posted June 15, 2022
"True, us white folks just sortta barged in and just took what it was we wanted from the start. Not sure where we thought we had the right, but no matter, alla that's behind us, what's left is the continual taking of the land. The Red man simply retaliates, but his ways are not ours." Barnabas said.
"When they wiped pout Custer, to them, the war was over and they went on home like they had for all the time they've here. But not us, no, now we press the fight. What happens nexts gonna get ugly. But, not much we can do out here about what happens in Washington where they got no idea of life in the west." He shook his head, "'scuse me, didn't mean to get all riled up about it. So, gimme one a them tarts."
Posted June 18, 2022
"That's understandable, sir," Tom commented, taking one of the turnovers that Lillian was handing around, "and all the more important to have someone who is sympathetic to the Indian cause." He was surely getting ideas, and was anxious to start looking into it.
"I'm sure you'd do well at that," Emeline assured him, handing Barnabas a peach turnover.
Of course, none of this made Lillian too happy, but Tom was going to take his own path, and there were many careers just as hazardous here, and with less meaning. "Well, hopefully, he can do some of his training here," she murmured, "so he's not running off to the territories too soon."
"We can worry about that later!" Tom laughed. "You're just afraid I'm going to run off to some place wild, like Dakota, and you'll be obligated to follow, so you can keep track of me!"
"Dakota isn't so bad," Emeline declared, "dry, cold, tornadoes, but not so bad!"
"I bet they don't have sea lions, though," Lillian mumbled, although she was grinning. "You might just be getting into more adventure than you bargained for, and I'll have to rescue you!"
"Isn't that the way with men?" Emeline smiled sweetly and took a bite of her pastry.
Posted June 18, 2022
Barnabas looked up from the pastry at Em's statement. "And you're saying I got me more adventure than I bargained for? Was that as Guyer's Deputy, 'er your husband?" He asked almost straight faced.
Not that he didn't understand what she meant, because he did. Their life in Kalispell could turn deadly in a heartbeat. His job seemed peaceable enough, but it was not. Not all the time. But then again, life on the frontier had many dangers for anyone living there. More he thought, than life in the city.
"Now, was you to check at the local college, they might have a course or two for being an agent. I 'spose that you've a federal Office of some sort here, they could point you in the right direction. But, it is a job that you might think on some. But it don't hurt to think about t, check into it, see what it'll take to get started. There's lots'a possibilities out there for a young man."