Fiction: Jaudon – An American Family (a novel) [4]

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Chapter 4. San Antonio

1866. On March 13, the United States Congress overwhelmingly passes the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the first federal legislation to protect the rights of African-Americans.
    On March 27, U.S. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the bill.
    On April 9, Congress overrides the veto.
    That year, the first big cattle drive takes place over the Chisholm Trail. Charles Goodnight and Oliver Loving round up wild longhorn cattle and, with other ranchers, drive them to Kansas.

The Jaudon party rode into San Antonio with high expectations. James and Rafael led the wagon this time and were prepared for trouble. This was their last stop before heading into the backcountry.
    Coming into town they ran into hundreds of wagons and campsites. James, who was trying to learn to speak Mexican, shouted, “¿Rafael, que eso?”
    “No lo sé.”
    James held up his hand, stopping their wagon, and rode to a group of men. “Howdy, why are there so many people camped here?”
    A short man with bib-overalls looked up at him. “You don’t know about the Indian uprising?”
    James’ heart sank. “No, we’ve been on the trail for a while now and haven’t heard anything about Indians.”
    One of the other men spoke up: “There are 200 to 300 wild Comanches running across the frontier raping, killing, and cattle rustling. They have been as close as fifty miles of San Antonio. We packed what we could and came here. Most of us are trying to trade our acreage for something closer to a city or fort.”
    “What about the free land – is it still there for the taking?”
    A man in the back laughed. “It’s for the taking alright, but the owner right now is the Comanches. Good luck getting any of that land and keeping your scalp.” He nodded his head toward James’ wagon. “And they’ll have a good time with your women also.”
    James tipped his hat and turned the horse. He could hear the laughter behind him. He rode past Rafael and said, “Comanches.”
    At the wagon, he told Sara what he had just learned. “We’ll be camping here. Let’s find a clear area and set up. After we find a campsite, I’ll ride into town and see how bad the Indian trouble is.”
    On the far side of many other wagons they began to make camp, and James asked Raphael to keep an eye on things until he got back.

    San Antonio was more of a cow town than Houston had been. It was full of farmers and cattlemen. James found the registrar’s office and walked in intending to claim land, Indians or not.
    A bespectacled man at a desk to one side was handing out numbered cards. When James walked up to him, the man didn’t even look up, but just asked, “Where is the land you want to give up located at?”

    “I don’t want to give anything up. I want to claim land.”
    The man looked up now and stared over his glasses for a moment. “You do know about the Indians, right?”
    “I don’t give a shit about the Indians. Is there land available, or not?”
    “Yes, yes, there are lots of lands available right now.”
    James held his hands out in front of him. “Could I see the best you have to offer?”
    He settled for a hundred acres on the Guadalupe River. It was a day’s ride northwest from San Antonio and bordering the foothills to the north and the river to the east. James was told the acres were flat grassland, ideal for cattle.
    He rode back to their camp and found the women cooking deer stew. The babies were playing with each other’s feet and giggling. After unsaddling and hobbling his horse, he let him loose to graze and then joined the others at the fire.
    “I know there’s some worry about the Indians, but we came for land and now we have land.” He held up the paper from the registrar’s office. “It’s a day’s ride from here.” He turned to Rafael, “You could have a home with us if you want it.”
    Rafael spoke to Maria, who was nodding her head, “Si, amigo. We want it.”
    James was smiling as he shook Rafael’s hand. “I was told there’s a ranch house and a barn on the land – if the Indians haven’t burned them down. But if they have, we’ll rebuild. There are plenty of trees in the hill county north of the ranch. We can build anything we want.”

At sunrise the next morning, they headed out of town past the Alamo. Work was underway to restore the mission. The work had stopped during the war, but now the U.S. Government wanted the mission rebuilt as a landmark.
    At the edge of town, a number of people shouted things like, “Good luck! Give them Comanches hell.” Most of them were laughing as they said it.
    James warned the rest of his party to keep their guns at the ready. James and Rafael’s Henrys lay across their saddles, and each had a finger on the trigger.

San Antonio before there was a riverwalk

    It was a hot, dusty ride and as the sun began to set, they saw the Guadalupe River for the first time. They camped near it and washed the dust from their bodies, ate the leftover stew, and then got a good night’s sleep.
    The next morning the babies woke everybody up crying and hungry. James took Rafael’s Henry and gave him the flintlock. He handed the Henry to Sara, saying, “You may need this more than us. We could be gone all day or a few hours – I don’t know where the house is, but once we find it we’ll return for you and pack up.”

    The two men rode northwest, away from the river. In the distance, they could see the tall trees of the hill country. James’ planned to ride parallel to the high land and hope to spot the house on the flat grassland below.
    They were two hours into the ride when they heard shots from the left. James turned his horse and shouted, “Let’s ride!”
    In a few minutes they found themselves in an open field. Up ahead were five or six Indians shooting at a house. James and Rafael never slowed the horses. They charged across the grass meadow with their reins in their mouths and their guns blazing, Rafael with his six-shooter and James with his Henry. Two of the Indians fell from their horses. The others fired a few shots at the advancing men but quickly rode off as fast as their horses would run.
    As James and Rafael reached the house three Mexican men with one flintlock stepped out of the house. One of the fallen Indians was still alive, and the man with the flintlock shot him. Then four women came out with five children looking to range in age from about 3 years to 15.
    James asked loudly, “Does anyone speak English?”
    “I speak English, señor,” said the man with the flintlock.
    James looked at the house and the barn, which weren’t much to look at. In a neutral tone, he asked the man, “What are you doing here?”
    “We work for the owner, Señor McDay. He went to town and told us to guard the house. He should be back any day.”
    James got off his horse, but Rafael stayed in the saddle reloading his pistol. James put his hand out and said, “I’m James Jaudon, the new owner. McDay isn’t coming back.”
    The man’s eyes tightened with apprehension. He turned and in Spanish told the others that McDay would not be returning.
    James extended his hand to touch the man’s side. “I can use more help, if you want to stay on.”
    A relieved grin came across the man’s face. “I am Juan Garcia.”
    Juan shook James’ hand and then turned and pointed at the people behind him. “That is mi brothers, Miguel y Roberto. We are family.”
    James turned and pointed. “This is Rafael Rodrigo. He is my foreman and your boss, or jefe.”
    Having Rafael’s attention, he said, “Rafael, will you grab those two horses grazing there and bring them here? These Comanches have no more use for them.”
    He turned to Juan. “I want you and one of your brothers to ride with Rafael and bring our family back here.”
    Rafael rode up with the Indians’ horses in tow, and Roberto and Juan mounted up. Aside, Rafael asked James in low tones, “Are you sure about this, James? We don’t know these people.”
    “It will be okay. We need the help.” He spread his arms to embrace the two buildings. “Look at them – the barn and the house are both about to fall down.”
    “Bueno, I bring our familia.”
    Rafael and the two brothers rode off, and life on the Guadalupe began.

Copyright © 2019 by Ed Rogers