Lieutenant John Holbrook, Sergeant John Wheeler

by Laszlo Endrody

  “We have a cow and a calf,” he replied.

  “How old is the calf?” I asked.

  “Six months,” he answered.

  “What’s the sex?”

  “It’s a bull calf,” he stated.

  “Would you sell the calf?” I asked him.

  “Sure I would,” he answered.

  I took 20 dollars gold out of my pocket and handed it to him and he handed it to his wife.

  “How much in taxes do you owe?” I asked him.

  “Five years worth,” he said. “The banker wants this farm real bad and has been out here twice already. I have a wagon, but somebody stole my horses.”

  “We can probably find your horses,” I assured him.

  “So, would you like to work with us?”

  “Sure I would, but I only have one arm. I don’t know how much use I’d be to you,” he stated.

  “You can drive your team,” I told him.

  “But I couldn’t plow,” he said.

  “That’s all right, you could disc and plant and work for us. We have machines now that make things easier,” I assured him.

  His wife spoke up and said, “I can help him work too. We really don’t want to leave our home. We have nowhere to go.”

  “How are you on food, Mrs. Turber?”

  “We need everything,” she answered. “Bob shot a deer and skinned it and that’s all we’ve been eating.”

  “Do you need flour?” I asked.

  “We don’t have any, so yes, we could sure use some flour,” she stated.

  I then said, “Burney, you and Sergeant Bexter bring in that sack of flour off the wagon so Mrs. Turber can bake for these little girls.”

  “We have eggs,” Mrs. Turber stated.

  When they brought in the flour Mr. Turber said, “We will work for you.”

  “How big is your wagon?” I asked Mr. Turber.

  “It’s two and a half tons,” he replied.

  “You could drive it at harvest time,” I told him. “Do you know Dexter?”

  “Yes,” he answered.

  “He stole horses for the banker and I know where they might be,” I told him.

  “I guess the banker was worried that I might sell them and pay off my taxes,” Bob replied.

  “What if we pay your taxes and then pay you 100 dollars? You can work for me with your team and give me the title to the farm with the understanding that the home is yours for as long as you live. If you agree, I will pay your taxes tomorrow. Give me an idea of what you need in the kitchen, and tomorrow morning my partner and I can bring you the supplies you are in need of,” I told him.

  “We need everything,” Mrs. Turber stated. “Thank you for the flour.”

  “I guess you need, potatoes, carrots, beans, bacon, and a ham. Is that okay for a start?” I asked.

  “Yes, sir,” she replied.

  “Do you have a buckboard?” I asked.

  “Yes, but it needs wheels and a team to pull it,” he answered.

  “I have a good idea of where your team is. Your girls will need to get to school. We can get your buckboard fixed and your wife can take them and pick them up. You might want to work something out with Burney; his kids need schooling too. All I need then is a bill of sale for your section of land and I will pay the taxes so it won’t go up for auction. That banker won’t be able to steal this place from you,” I said.

  We went to town the next morning and went to the county building and paid Mr. Turber’s taxes.

  The clerk laughed and said, “The banker was going to get that place for sure.”

  “Are there any other places that he has his eye on?” I asked.

  “The section next to the Catholic priest’s place. He wants to drive that priest out of here so he can get more land,” the clerk said.

  “Nobody is going to drive that priest out of here. He is doing a fine job with the homeless women and the orphans,” I told him.

  We then went to the grocer and got a sack of potatoes, a sack of beans, a big bundle of carrots, two sides of bacon, and a nice ham. Then we took it all out to our new friends and gave him back his horses.

  “How did you do this?” he asked.

  “We got them back from the thieves,” I told him.

  We took in the groceries and the Turbers were happy. I gave Turber 100 dollars in gold and told him not to do business with the banker anymore. I told him that we would disc his fields and put in some grass for a pasture, just like Burney’s section.

  That evening, I told everybody that I had bought another section next to Burney and that we would disc it and make it into a pasture with grass for the cattle. Then I told them that the banker was going to bid on it, but I had paid the taxes and bought it before he had the chance.

  “There is another section next to the priest that is for sale,” I stated.

  “What side of the priest?” Pete asked.

  “East side,” I told him.

  “That would be right across from my 40 acres. There is a home on it too,” Pete said. “Are you going to bid on it?”

  “I’m not interested.”

  “Could I bid on it and stay on the workforce with you?” He asked.

  “Of course you can stay on the workforce with us,” I assured him.

  When the tax sale came up, Pete bid on the place. The banker was still in jail. Pete got the section and we all saw that it had a big house on it. He told the priest that he could put some girls in there. The owners were gone because they had gone west. There was an old plow on the property that Pete took to the smith for an overhaul, and the smith rebuilt it for him. The place didn’t have a harrow, so we had to buy one. Pete told David that he could use the plow and David took it over to the big ranch. David said that he would plow with 10 plows this next year.

  Pete had two teams and both of his mares were pregnant. The horse colt at Sergeant Bexter’s place bred them. The vet had checked them after a few nights and confirmed that they were indeed pregnant.

  Pete told me that he could not put crops in his section, but if I wanted to plow it I could put in winter wheat and then the following year he would disc it and use my grain drill and put in oats. He would cut part of it to fill the barn that he had and then get a couple of milk cows and have the girls milk them. Pete also said that his wife was pregnant.

  Pete said, “Those girls could milk those cows so my wife wouldn’t have to do it. She’s never said anything, but I think she hates to do it, so I will give the job to a homeless girl. The priest is putting more girls in that house on my new property, and I need to get six beds for them. They can work for you if you need them. I am going to have to rake some for me too. We could split the rest of the oats too. I will buy the seed and as soon as the oats are off the field, I can go in with the grain drill and put in the alfalfa and grass for hay and pasture.”

  The builder was almost finished with his addition to the house and Lydia told Pete that Cindy would like to stay with them permanently. Pete said that he thought that was wonderful.

  “We need a daughter to help with the baby when it comes,” Pete said. “As soon as we can, everything will come out of Cindy’s room and we will paint it and go buy furniture for it. What will you need, Cindy?”

  “Just a bed and a chest of drawers and a lamp as well,” Cindy said.

  When the builder finished, Pete owed him 320 dollars and he paid him. We all helped move the sacks out of Cindy’s room and painted it a light pink. She sure liked it. Then Pete got her a bed and chest of drawers that she could put all of her things in. Lydia wanted to help as well. She went and shopped for things like curtains for the window. She put them up and they looked really nice. They put the big table and chairs out in the dining room.

  The pump man installed the pump that Pete had wanted and he bought a copper bathtub and a stove. He was able to buy a used stove and saved a little money. He bought a used cook stove as well from the same man. He to
ok the cook stove to the girl’s house and those girls were so happy that they could now cook. All they needed was some pots and pans. I went myself and bought some new pots and pans and gave them to Lydia so she could deliver them to the girls. They had 10 girls living in the little house, so Pete got more beds and mattresses. Those girls were all in love with Pete but he was happily married.

  The equipment dealer took a mover machine out to him. It had a seat, which was nice. It needed two horses to pull it, but it would cut the hay, and the girls would have to rake it if they were to get paid.

  Pete told Lydia that she would have to give the money to the girls or else they would try to kiss him.

  “But if I pay them they will want to kiss me too,” Lydia said.

  “We’ll have to make a sign that says, ‘It’s payday, no kissing!’” Pete joked.

  When they cut the hay, all the girls came to work. They needed wagons so Burney and Bob came with the wagon. They filled the barn at the priest’s place and they filled the barn at Pete’s. Then they took hay home to Burney’s and Bob’s.

  “You both have pastures to cut, where are you going to put the hay?” Pete asked them.

  “We will fill up David’s barn, then Sergeant Bexter’s barn, and then the bosses,” they said. I was the boss.

  I told them, “All you have to do is cut your hay and pay your girls, and then cut wherever I need you to cut. I will pay my girls.”

  “Could someone take us shopping?” the girls asked.

  Bob brought his team and they hitched up to Lydia’s buckboard and went shopping. Five girls went early the next morning and then five more girls went later that afternoon. Lydia and Cindy went as well. All the girls came back with new dresses and new shoes. It was like Christmas.

  David told Pete to come over for breakfast to my house with his team, and Bob was told the same. They each hitched up a wagon with eight girls; four to each wagon, along with two boys. David and Burney had Henry’s and went with them after firewood, posts, and poles. They were interested in cedar posts for fencing. They came back with a bunch of firewood. They went by the bakers and got some rolls. One girl had a coffee pot and made some coffee. They loaded up and had lunch and headed back onto our property.

  They unloaded the posts over at my house, along with some firewood. The other wagon unloaded the posts on the east of Burney’s section. Burney got the firewood. I told them to go again in the morning. Pete took Lydia and Cindy as well. The girls all went on the wagons with the boys and they went for more wood. They did that until the wheat was ready to harvest. Then everybody worked on harvesting.

  Pete had the same wagon and so did Bob, and therefore they loaded the wagons. Bob could not load, so he just drove the wagon. He made sure that the coffee was strong. He helped David and I operate the whole thing. David then rode with Pete and they went to the trash machine.

  I sacked with Father Williams and another girl. Burney loaded with a boy on Bob’s wagon. Pete took one wagon to the mill and they planned to pick up the flour after the harvest. They took some wheat to my barn for seed, and then they went into the field and loaded again. Then Sergeant Bexter came with Pete’s other team pulling a big wagon. He had two big boys helping. They had a three-wagon operation until they finished.

  When they started on the oats, Pete cut with the mower and the girl’s raked. All of the girls worked, some even loaded. The mill told me that they could make meal for breakfast meal, so we took a load of oats to them and got some oatmeal. We gave the priest got most of that. Everybody got a couple sacks of flour and some oatmeal oats for the horses.

  All the girls were told after harvest that there would be a lot of fence building in the fall and winter. Therefore, the girls would have to have winter boots or winter shoes and jeans with warm underwear and warm jackets. They were going to work, work, work. All the girls got jeans and warm things. I figured that they could do all the wiring and the men could work the postholes. We put two wagons to work steadily cutting the posts and firewood. They also did a lot of hunting as well.

  Chapter Six

  Teresa had our baby, a little boy. We named him Johnny, after me. Teresa was so happy because she had a real family. I told her that all she needed now was a little girl, and then we could all retire. Betty had a little girl a month later and they named her Betty.

  One day at breakfast time, David said, “Eva is getting close to having a baby and so is Lydia. We’re going to have the next generation running around this farm.”

  “I hope that I’m still around when Johnny marries my little Betty,” Sergeant Bexter said. “My old room will be Johnny’s.”

  All of the kids would be going to school together.

  “We will need a small wagon to take all of the kids, including Burney’s kids and Mrs. Pilsner’s kids to school. They all need school,” Bob said. “The girls could take turns taking them and picking them up.”

  I told Bob to talk to Pete and see if we could accomplish getting a small wagon to take all the kids to school from their farms. We wanted them to leave and come back together the same way.

  For Christmas that year, we butchered a steer and two hogs. We had the butcher out to do all the cutting. Teresa had a table on the porch and she kept the meat covered up so it could freeze.

  We had a big roast for Christmas dinner. Everybody from our farms was invited. Mrs. Pilsner came over and stayed to help out the whole day. She and Teresa were good friends now. We had a nice Christmas tree and presents for all the kids. Everybody came. All the girls and the boys that plowed got 20 dollars gold in an envelope, and all the workingmen got a 100 dollar gold certificate.

  When Tex opened up his envelop he said, “I am not going to Michigan, I’m staying right here.”

  “All you need is a good wife and a farm of your own,” Pete told Tex. “You have the horses.”

  “You’re right, Pete,” Tex agreed. “I’ve been thinking about Tilda, but where would we live?”

  Pete said, “I have a nice room in my barn. We can put in a big bed, a couch, a table, chairs, and a stove to keep you warm in the winter. That could be your home. Just like David at his place.”

  That night, Tilda was waiting on Tex.

  “Do you need anything else?” she asked as she poured his coffee. Nobody was talking; it was quiet in the room.

  “Tilda?” Tex said.

  “Yes, Tex?” Tilda answered.

  “How would you like to get married again?” “How would you like to be a Texas cowboy’s wife?” he asked her.

  She dropped her cup but it didn’t break. He picked it up and then brought her into his arms. She said, “I would love to be your wife!”

  “I guess we better go and talk to your priest next Sunday. Father Williams can marry us and we could move over to the room in Pete’s barn. We can paint it and buy some furniture. It can be our first home. I will try to get a farm at the tax sales with a home just like Pete did,” Tex told her.

  Father Williams married them that Sunday and Tex took everyone out for dinner. He was happy and so was Tilda. He gave Tilda his grandmother’s ring which fit her perfectly. She felt that this man was a no-nonsense tough man. Everybody said that he was a hard worker. Pete and I were their witnesses.

  While we were at the restaurant celebrating, I asked Tex, “What outfit were you in?”

  “I was in the Fourth Texas Calvary,” he answered.

  “I’m sure I shot at you at times,” Pete assured Tex.

  “Luckily the war is over and we are all citizens of the same country,” Tex stated.

  “You are right. We are all Americans and we should not fight each other ever again,” I agreed.

  They painted the room in Pete’s barn and Tex got a nice couch, a big bed, a table with some chairs, and a stove that could heat two pots. Tilda would be able to have coffee and make breakfast in a big skillet. Tex built a shelf for dishes, bowls, and cups. He bought 10 hens for the chicken house and a pregna
nt sow from the butcher. A week later, the sow had nine pigs. They broke out and were all over the farm, but we all caught them just fine. When they grew up we planned to have some pigs in each farm.

  Tex worked with Burney fencing. They went after posts at least one day a week. David often came along with a Henry for meat. He shot wolves that got in too close. When Tilda got some meat, she would make stew. She had everything she needed. They had a lot of firewood and he bought an ax and chopped it for her. He bought a fork for the hay and she was able to feed the horses in the corral. She had a cow to milk, so she always saved the cream from the milk to make butter. She had to get her water at the corrals. They had a pump there and she could make sure that the animals had water. She had a washstand in their room with a bowl and a pitcher where she could wipe herself clean.

  The priest came by daily and checked on Pete’s house and to make sure everything was well. He walked from the church everyday. It was a long walk but didn’t have a horse. He ate all his meals at the orphanage. He was very kind and always cared for the homeless. It got so that the other churches sent the homeless over to his church because he had houses for them to live in. He also operated a soup kitchen for the homeless so they could get a nice warm bowl of soup for lunch.

  There were a lot of homeless young women and cripples. Farms were always in need of help, but there were no horses for the farms so they weren’t able to farm. Only those who had horses were able to farm. The ones that had seed and horses did very well, as seed was hard to get.

  On the Holbrook farm, my farm, we had everything. We planned to fence over six miles. We used both men and girls, and kept them busy all winter. The ground was frozen but we had picks and sharp bars so that they could dig the holes for the posts. We also had posthole diggers, but you needed two arms to dig with those. A man with a peg leg could use a posthole digger and get as much work done as any other man. My partner Sergeant Bexter had a peg leg and he was everywhere. He could do almost everything.

  I married a homeless girl and so did Sergeant Bexter, and so did three of my men. All five if the women had lost their first husbands in the war.