Free Lazy Days by Verna Clay

behind other prairie
schooners traveling to the Cave Spring campsite Captain Jones had designated, Hallie
marveled at the numbers headed west though Cooper said the numbers had
significantly dwindled from its heyday in the 1840s and 50s. Alongside the road
emigrants set up camp in every imaginable apparatus. Some slept in the open,
some in tents, some in magnificent schooners like her own, some in
rehabilitated farm wagons. And everywhere there were animals: oxen, cows,
mules, horses, chickens, dogs, and an occasional cat.
    But, oh, the smells: soggy earth from a recent
rain, animal dung, flowering trees, spring grasses, even the odor of pioneers
needing a bath. When a cool morning breeze lifted the odors, mingled them, and
pushed them across the road, Hallie pressed her handkerchief to her nose just as
Cooper turned around. He laughed at her squeamishness, cracked his whip, and
yelled, "Haw," to correct the animals to the left. Then he called
"Gee" because he'd overcorrected them. Finally he got them moving
straight ahead.
    Hallie wished she hadn't shown her distaste for the
blended fragrance, for surely it was to become part and parcel of their
journey. Removing her handkerchief, she hoped to redeem herself by appearing
indifferent.
    Cave Spring was located two miles outside of Westport
and many of the pioneers, including the Hankersons, had already arrived. Cooper
followed the hand signals of one of their fellow travelers and pulled their
schooner to the backside of the one ahead of it forming the wagons into a
circle.
    Tim asked, "Why are we making a circle? Why
can't we just camp where we want?"
    Hallie listened to Cooper's reply. "Because
forming a circle encloses the animals when necessary and keeps them from escaping.
Also, it's protection from wild animals. It's also great for gatherings and
holding meetings, which I suspect Captain Jones will do after everyone's
arrived."
    It was late afternoon before the last wagon
completed the campsite, making a total of fifteen in an inner circle and
twenty-seven in an outer one, with somewhere around two hundred and fifty
people. Just as Cooper had predicted, Captain Jones, looking as fearsome as
ever, walked around the wagons and boomed, "Listen up, pioneers! Finish
whatever you're doing and meet me in the center of the circle in one
hour!"
    Hallie and Lydia, who had fried bacon and warmed
beans in a pot hung on a tripod over the fire at Hallie's wagon, hastened to
pack a loaf of bread away and clean dishes while the men continued readying for
the following morning’s departure.
    In exactly one hour, all the pioneers gathered
to hear what Captain Jones had to say. Hallie noticed that Stubby and Harley's
dismal looking wagon and pathetic animals were almost directly across from where
she was standing, and when she glanced at Stubby, he quickly averted his gaze.
Unexpected rage suffused her heart and she wanted to stomp over and slap him.
How dare he treat a woman the way he had treated her!
    "Listen up, pioneers!" the captain
called.
    Muffled sounds of talk and laughter suddenly
ceased and everyone directed their attention toward Captain Jones. So
intimidating was his presence that even children halted their antics and
quieted.
    "I've called ya'll together to appoint some
leaders. I've been checkin' ya'll out, talkin' amongst ya, and here are my
decisions." He lifted a paper and began calling off names. "Theodore
Tackman, Frank Jensen, Hardy MacIntosh, and Cooper Jerome, please step to the
center."
    The men stepped forward and Hallie smiled
inwardly. She just knew Cooper would be one of the men chosen.
    Captain Jones pointedly scanned the crowd,
causing some folks to shrink backward when he stared directly at them. Loudly,
he announced, "These men are my right-handers and I'll be choosing several
more in the next few days. When I give my leaders instructions to give to
you," he paused for effect, "you will obey. Have I made myself
clear?"
    As they had become accustomed to