by Edson, J. T.
Despite the dearth of information, the sergeant and his superior had concluded the affair was going beyond a case of cattle stealing in which murder was done. As was only to be expected under the circumstances, because the guilt of the miscreants had not been established, accusation and counter charge were flying back and forth between the ranches. The normally no more than friendly rivalry of the crews, which had never previously become anything worse even though two of them were employed by Chicanos, was rapidly deteriorating into open hostility.
The situation had all the earmarks of a range war brewing!
According to Holmes’s letter, although the owners of Rancho Miraflores had suffered like everybody else at the hands of the cow thieves, they had given Tobin another cause for concern. They had announced that, as the law did not appear to be able to offer them the protection for which they paid taxes and were thereby entitled to, they would hire the kind of help necessary to defend themselves.
The Texas Rangers were in accord with Holmes over his assertion that such protection meant hired guns and the possibility of more trouble than the sheriff could hope to handle with his own resources under the conditions which prevailed. Regardless of his considerable experience elsewhere, he was a newcomer and every one of his deputies was born and had grown up around Bonham County. With the best of will in the world, they could not help themselves being swayed by bonds of kin or friendships of long standing with one spread or another.
While Smith had not previously been called to cope with such a state of affairs, his career so far having been spent dealing with other more conventional forms of law breaking, it had always been a prospect which he had disliked even contemplating!
Going by all the sergeant had learned from other Rangers who had been involved elsewhere, dealing with a range war differed greatly from hunting down outlaws. In the first place, for the most part, the majority of the people engaged in it were otherwise law abiding members of the community. What was more, with very few exceptions, the issues behind the conflict were almost certain to be complicated. Generally, there were elements of right and wrong on both sides and each had some cause for grievance against the other. To complicate matters further, even when the source of controversy appeared clear to an outsider relying upon scanty information—like himself—a close examination could prove this was not the case.
Regardless of his misgivings, it was not a fear of responsibility or what might lie ahead which had caused Smith’s preoccupation as he was riding along the trail leading to Flamingo!
The fact that he had already attained the rank of sergeant whilst barely into his mid-twenties was testimony to Smith’s capabilities in the special jurisdictional duties of a Texas Ranger. Until being sent out this time, he had handled every assignment with a high level of efficiency which had his superiors giving no small consideration to promoting him higher. There were even some who said he might attain the rank of captain at a far younger age than had previously been achieved. xiv
Because the assignment upon which he was engaged was of a most delicate nature, there was no external evidence to indicate the sergeant was a member of a long established law enforcement agency possessing jurisdictional authority all through the Lone Star State. xv Nor, if it came to a point, would there have been if he had merely been paying a casual visit to Flamingo. Despite the years they had been in existence, the Texas Rangers had never acquired an official uniform. What was more, unless a situation such as the need to provide proof of authority demanded it, the ‘star in a circle’ badge of office—made, as tradition now demanded, from a Mexican silver ten peso coin—was not displayed openly. It was, in fact, concealed with a document establishing his official capacity in secret pockets of his money belt.
Smith had adopted clothing and an appearance which would, he hoped, create the effect he sought to achieve. Prior to becoming a peace officer, he had worked as a cowhand for long enough to have acquired the skill needed to pass as one. However, he had decided he might learn things faster if he let it be believed he was visiting Flamingo for a more sinister reason than seeking a riding chore handling cattle. When a range war was brewing, it drew hired guns like flies to a rotting carcass and a man could get some idea of the situation by pretending to be one of them. Of course, doing so was not without risks. If either faction thought the other had already taken on the new arrival, its members might consider the most prudent thing would be to remove him before he could start earning his pay by taking hostile action against them.
However, such a contingency was not responsible for the perturbation which had rendered Smith less wary than would otherwise have been the case and led to his accident!
The sergeant was aware it had not been his latest assignment which was worrying him. However, while never one to be plagued by self-doubts about his competence, neither was he arrogant nor foolhardy enough to consider himself invincible. He carried scars on his body which would have removed any such delusion before it could take hold. Provided he avoided unnecessary risks and kept his wits about him at all times, he was satisfied that he could take care of himself. Although none had threatened to prove so complex as trying to prevent a range war, or ending it should hostilities already have broken out, he had handled difficult duties before and with enough success to have warranted his early promotion.
Nevertheless, the sergeant had known this occasion was very different!
Apart from the assignment, Smith’s problem was a very old one that had puzzled men down through the ages!
Woman!
In the sergeant’s case, the woman was Sally Palmer. Having known each other ever since they were children, until she had been sent East to acquire an education her mother had considered could only be attained there, their friendship had blossomed into something far more intimate when they met again on her return. Unfortunately, although her parents had not objected openly to them becoming engaged, the course of true love had not run smoothly.
While Hector Palmer had conceded that the Texas Rangers were a most estimable body of peace officers and a credit to the State, he had not concealed his belief that he would prefer his future son-in-law to follow a less precarious —and more lucrative—occupation. It was a sentiment which his daughter had quickly come to share. More and more when she and Smith were together, she had complained about him being in a line of work which, as well as frequently taking him away for days, sometimes weeks at a time, was not exceptionally well paid and could prove extremely dangerous.
To a certain extent, the sergeant could understand and even sympathize with Sally’s protests, but he believed what he was doing to be important and even essential. Furthermore, he considered it was work for which he was well suited by temperament and training. Certainly he could not see himself settling down, as had been hinted, in a managerial capacity at the hotel owned by her father. He had been a bellhop there as a boy. Although he had fond memories of special events, such as when he had carried up the property of the famous top hand of Ole Devil Hardin’s legendary floating outfit, Mark Counter—right bower xvi to its leader, Captain Dusty Fog, an exceptionally handsome Herculean thewed giant and one hell of a fighting man by all accounts xvii —they were too few and far between to enamor him to the prospect of returning to the hotel business in spite of the status he was promised being higher.
The matter had been brought to a head by Smith having received the early recall from his furlough. Even though doing so meant he would be unable to escort Sally to a ball at which the Governor of Texas was guest of honor, knowing only something of the gravest importance would have induced Captain Thornton to send for him, he had not hesitated before agreeing to go back to Headquarters.
Sally had not been slow to react when her fiancé informed her of his intentions!
Smith had been told he must decline whatever assignment was in the offing, or consider their engagement was at an end!
Nor would Sally listen when Smith had tried to explain his reasons for answering the summons!
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br /> On arriving at Headquarters, the sergeant had received apologies from his superior for bringing his furlough to an early end. However, Thornton had declared the matter was of great urgency. What was more, while not an adherent to the already often quoted ‘one war, one Ranger’ train of thought, xviii he was unable to send in more than a single member of his Company. Due to circumstances beyond his control, it had to be Smith. With one exception, everybody else was already committed to assignments from which none could be spared. The only other possible alternative, Ranger Talbot Ottoway, was also on furlough. However, he had taken the precaution of ensuring he could not be located and anyway, the Captain had asserted in confidence, it was likely some of his other activities would cause his dismissal in the not too distant future. xix On the other hand, Thornton had said, Smith was only in the nature of an advance party sent to reconnoiter the situation. Then, having evaluated his findings, whatever extra help was needed would be provided the moment it became available.
A lesser man might have explained how things stood between himself and his fiancé, but the sergeant had refused to take such a way out. He had sworn an oath on becoming a Ranger, by which he had in effect agreed to take any assignment he was given in the interests of preserving law and order throughout the Sovereign State of Texas. Therefore, having been raised to believe a man’s word was his bond, he neither could nor would refuse when given such a task regardless of how his private life would be affected.
Although Smith had tried to explain to Sally how strongly he felt on the matter of honor and duty, his words had fallen upon deaf ears. Bursting into a flood of tears, which alarmed him more than would a flow of vituperation, she had declared he could not love her and, therefore, she could see no point in continuing their relationship. Returning his ring, which had cost him a sizeable piece of his savings, she had stormed from the room and, even before he left her father’s home, had set off for the ball accompanied by a distant cousin highly regarded by her parents.
Regardless of his well developed sense of duty and responsibility, the sergeant had not found accepting the end of his engagement an easy matter. Sally was the first woman he had loved and, having set her on a pedestal because of this, it came hard to realize she could be so lacking in understanding of his position.
Such a frame of mind was hardly the best when a man was setting out to deal with a difficult and potentially dangerous situation!
In fact, regardless of five days having elapsed, Smith was still brooding upon the matter to such an extent he had failed to notice the change in the weather and was caught unawares by the bolt of lightning which struck the cottonwood and resulted in his present involvement with the people at Rancho Mariposa.
Chapter Six – These Are Troubled Times
‘Smith!’ Ransome Cordoba said, eyeing in a speculative fashion the man she had helped to rescue.
‘Smith,’ the Texan repeated, showing no resentment over the slight suggestion of skepticism which had tinged the girl’s voice as she spoke the single word. ‘Given first pick at the remuda, it’s not the name I’d have snaked out of the bunch. You should see the looks I get when I sign it on a hotel register.’
‘That’s because you belong to a very large family, Mr. Smith,’ Don Jose Fernando de Armijo y Cordoba put in quickly, darting a prohibitive glance at his daughter as she had once again come close to crossing the boundaries of range country etiquette. While she had not gone as far as inquiring, “Is that your summer name?”, she had made it plain she suspected it might be. xx He felt certain the response he had elicited when first mentioning the name had been genuine. However, like her, he was hoping to learn more; but in a way which lessened the chance of their visitor taking offense. ‘The desk clerk probably realizes he has had many of your kinsmen visit the hotel.’
‘Being a Mr. Smith does have its advantages,’ the girl admitted, guessing why her father had intervened. ‘For one thing, it’s better than having to write “Hazeltine”, or ‘‘ Higginsbottom”.’
‘Or “Ramsbottom”, comes to that,’ Sergeant Waxahachie Smith drawled.
‘Anything would be better than “Ramsbottom”, I’d imagine,’ Ransome remarked, realizing she still had a liking for the Texan in spite of her misgivings about how he might earn his living. ‘And, if you don’t mind me saying so, you don’t look like a “ Marmaduke”, “Wilberforce’’ or even an “Algernon”.’
‘Why thank you ‘most to death for that, ma’am,’ the sergeant replied, concluding the girl had made her latest comment as a form of apology for the breach of Western etiquette she had come close to committing. ‘Only, seeing as my folks saddled me with “Waldo”, I wouldn’t say what I’ve got is a whole heap better.’
‘Waldo?’ the girl queried.
‘Waldo,’ Smith confirmed, truthfully. ‘My momma had me called it to keep us in good with my rich Aunt Sarah-Rose, then I’ll be switched if she didn’t die and leave all her money to my high-toned Cousin Jervis.’
The reply given by the sergeant was proof that, despite his condition for the past few days, he had not lost the quick wits which brought him through many a dangerous predicament. In addition to having been reminded of his identity, he had remembered that he had been sent to Bonham County to carry out an assignment and still needed to ascertain more of the facts about the current situation. Therefore, he must not allow himself to be swayed by personal feelings. He had been rescued by Ransome and the segundo of the Rancho Mariposa, brought to the house and given care and attention. What was more, he had liked everything he had so far seen of her father. However, he was too experienced to fall into the error of allowing himself to be swayed by first impressions or considerations of personal gratitude.
Nor did the events of the day change anything!
The incident with the men from Rancho Miraflores suggested to the sergeant that there was trouble between the two spreads. Regardless of the dislike he had taken towards Javier Fuentes, his sense of duty and training as a peace officer would not permit him to ignore the possibility that Cordoba could have supplied provocation for the hostility. Nor did the kindness he had received rule out the chance that the rancher was involved in the cattle stealing. As far as outwards appearances and action went, one of the most pleasant and generous men who he had ever met had proved to be the head of a ruthless gang of counterfeiters operating from the Texas Panhandle country. Therefore, his personal feelings notwithstanding, he had quickly appreciated the need to avoid revealing anything which might expose his identity and suggest the reason he was in the vicinity.
Smith’s career as a Texas Ranger so far had been spent further north in the State and, wanting to retain anonymity as an aid to carrying out his assignments, he had done all he could to ensure his name had not been given prominence on reports of the incidents in which he had participated. Even on the few occasions when he was mentioned, it had never been by the name he was given at birth. His dislike for it had caused him to select and introduce himself as “ Waxahachie”, having been born and spent his childhood in that town, until he and everybody else of his acquaintance rarely thought of him in any other fashion. Nevertheless, wanting to avoid the chance of anybody around Bonham County having heard of him, it had been his intention to use an alias on his arrival at Flamingo.
Unfortunately, because of his memory returning so suddenly, the sergeant had been unable to prevent himself from declaring his surname was ‘Smith’. While it had been too late to avoid supplying that much information, he was hoping to avoid being identified correctly by giving his much disliked Christian name and that the Cordobas would overlook the connection if they should have heard of him in his official capacity.
For his part, despite being grateful for an intervention which had saved his daughter and himself from a fate he did not care to contemplate, the rancher was filled with a similar wariness. He had duplicated the summations of his daughter and segundo with regards to the injured man’s clothing and armament. Nor, had the conversation so far se
rved to give any definite proof of the way in which Smith made a living. As they were terms in common use throughout the Texas’ range country, saying, ‘Given first pick at the remuda and ‘snaked out of the bunch’ could mean nothing more than that Smith had heard them and hoped their employment would make him appear to be a cowhand. All the other indications suggested he was in some form of employment dependent upon his ability to handle a gun. However, Cordoba realized such skill had never been the sole prerogative pistoleros valiente hired to fight other men’s wars. Knowing the kind of opposition against which they were likely to find themselves in contention, many peace officers acquired a similar proficiency with weapons. That was particularly true of those who, instead of being men already domiciled in an area and elected to a local office for expediency, made a profession out of law enforcement.
‘My apologies for being so remiss, sir,’ the rancher said, knowing the former kind of professional gun fighters in particular could be very touchy and resentful of prying into their private affairs and activities. Although he hoped to learn more, particularly whether the Texan might have been on his way to take employment with one of the other ranchers, he was willing to adopt a more roundabout route than that of his daughter to produce the information. Reaching under the left side of his black bolero jacket, he brought out a leather case and opened it to display half a dozen brown cigars. ‘If you would care to smoke, I can assure you these are excellent.’
