Midnight and noonday

Front matter

K-ins as

ENTITLED

G. D. FR LEW AN CALDWELL, KAN,

CHAPTER 1. Trip to Caldwell—Geographical Description of the Country

Attempted Horse Race on the Nennescah—Our Fellow Travelers—A Race with a Horse Thief—Arrival at Caldwell.

In the early part of the spring of 1871, I conceived the idea of profiting by the advice of a wise statesman, “Go West young man and grow up with the Country.” Having lived in a civilized portion of Kansas for a num¬ ber of years, I considered myself able and competent to battle with the roughs and privations of an early pio¬ neer settler. But little did I dream of the insurmoutable hardships of a frontier settlement. Neither did I in my most wandering imagination, conceive to what extent ruffianism, theft, murder and crimes of various sorts are carried when beyond the pale of civil law.

In this book, I shall attempt to narrate truthfully, incidents as they occured under my own observation or near at hand, without being ornamented by fiction or embellished by romance. And as I necessarily shall be compelled to refer to my personal experiences I hope the reader will not criticize me as an egotist.

In the late winter and early spring of the year above referred to, it was currently reported, that Sumner County was the one offering the greatest inducements of any frontier county to the immigrant seeking a home. This county is located on the South line of Kansas, bor¬ dering on the Indian Territory, and about the center of the state, East and West. Many towns were rapidly springing up in the county, each striving for a supre¬ macy. Some were vying with each other as to which of them should be the county seat; while others were con¬ tent to rely on local and transient trade for support, and look to natural advantages, fine climate and future greatness, etc. Among the latter class and the most noted of them was Caldwell, located on the south¬ ern border of the county, and about two and one-half miles from the Indian Territory and at a point where the great thoroughfare, known as the Chisholm Cattle Trail, enters the state. This trail was laid out and cat¬ tle driven over it first in 1868, by a Texas cattle man by the name of Chisholm, and hence the name. The State of Texas in its early history was a vast unfenced scope of pasture land. In time, cattle men, owners of ranches and large herds of cattle began to seek a mar¬ ket for their herds. Markets were far distant. The nearest shipping point by railroad for Western Texas cattle was Abaline, a town on the Kansas Pacific, about 100 miles north of the south line of Kansas. As the Texas cattle were originally from the old Spanish stock, introduced into Old Mexico and Southern Texas by the

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Spaniards, in a very early day. They are of lean and lank build and well able to travel thousands of miles to a shipping point or to a market if necessary. During the summer of 1868 the trail reaching from Central Texas to Abaline, Kansas, was started and quite a number of herds were driven over the trail to the shipping point that season. During the summer season of 1869, the number of cattle driven over the trail was increased by many thousands, and for several succeeding years, the drive showed a still greater increase.

I have thus given the reader a partial geographical description of the country and the location of Caldwell, that he may more fully understand the thrilling events which I am about to record in these pages, after receiv¬ ing many flattering reports of the country around Cald¬ well, and of the probability of that town being the great metropolis of the Southwest, I reasoned after this this fashion : I, at that time, had a wife and three chil¬ dren ; we all stood greatly in need of a home to call our own ; Uncle Sam, at that time, had plenty of land around Caldwell, out of which to make homes for the homeless; I thought that the transient trade, afforded by the travel over the trail by Texas men with herds from Texas, could not fail to make a red hot town. Yes indeed a red hot town it did become; for many a time did the wild and wooly cow-boy “paint the town red.”

On a bright, balmy and breezy morning on the twenty-second of May 1871, I concluded to go and visit Caldwell and vicinity, that I might see for myself if newspaper reports were fully verified by actual facts. So, I hitched my team to the wagon and in company with W. B. King, afterwards known as Buffalo King, to use western slang we “lit out” for the famous border town. After leaving Augusta, we traveled all day without incident worthy of mention, and at night arrived at Wichita and camped there for the night. The next morning, leaving Wichita at our backs, and looking to the right and to the left, in front as far as the eye could reach, there was presented to view a grand panorama of nothingness. Save an occasional herd of cattle, there was nothing to be seen that bore the slight¬ est impress of civilization. Whether or not the grand march of American Civilization would ever reach, and beautify this immense expanse of apparently waste land, once known as “The Great American Desert,” time alone could tell. For hundreds of years, the Indian and the Buffalo had held full dominion and had truthfully been “ monarchs of all they surveyed.” But now, the signs of the times, point to a change. The great struggle for the Union has long since passed away. The smoke of battle, where first it raised its curling head is now settled in slumber. Peace and good will now reigns

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supreme in Kansas, where was the first battle ground of the great struggle. The Star of Empire points Westward. Millions of American people are without homes of their own and it only remained to be seen whether or not this immense tract of prairie land could be so utilized, as to make profitable homes for the pov¬ erty stricken homeless.

After traveling till nearly night, we reached Cowskin Creek. This creek after winding itself like a serpent through the prairie for about fifty miles, enters the Arkansas River. On the bank of this stream, where the trail crossed and as we were traveling on the trail, where we also crossed the creek, there was a trader’s ranch. Now, for the benefit of the eastern reader, I will say that this word Rcvnch, is borrowed from the Mexican word Ranchero, and has a double meaning, as used in the southwest. A trader’s ranch is a house of some description in which is kept for sale, such articles as the traveler or drover usually needs. These ranches in those days were never considered as having a com¬ plete stock, unless they kept a barrel or two of the poorest kind of whiskey. The cattle drover himself is usually a man of temperate habits. But his employees or cow r -boys as they are called, are many times addicted to the use of strong drink. The second use of the word Ranch , as used in the southwest, is in connection with the raising and keeping of live stock. The stock ranch is the general headquarters for the men who are in charge of the stock. Here they meet to take their meals and at night to take their rest. The herders are sometimes supplied by the owner of the herd, with a cheaply provised cabin, but more frequently they have to be content with a tent or a common dugout, as a place to call their home. As I digress so frequently from my description of my trip to Caldwell, I hope the reader will bear with me, if I should fail at any time to gracefully “ketch on ” where I left off.

We passed the ranch that night, about a mile and went into camp. After supper was over, as the shades of night began to chase the shadows away, I began to feel the loneliness of the situation. My partner, sit¬ ting by the embers of the smouldering camp-fire, was soon fast asleep. And, by the way, my partner was a most noted sleeper. If the thunder roared and the lightning flashed, he was sure to be asleep. If he was set to making a fire and getting dinner, he would go to sleep before it was done. If he were placed on guard, to keep theives from stealing our horses, he was sure to go to sleep. Or if his meal was cooked, and coffee boiled and his tin cup filled for him, he was liable to go to sleep, and spill his coffee while the tin was being carried to his mouth. Yes, indeed he was a number

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one on the sleep. I sometimes used to think he would take a nap while riding a fast horse on a race course. Well, I guess I had not better go back on my partner in this way; I will just say the cause of his being so sleepy was said to be a disease called Somnia.

As I said, I began to feel lonesome. My partner asleep, I felt as much alone as if I had been a thousand miles from anybody. On different sides around me, I could hear the night herders lullaby to his cattle. £his however, only added to my fgr away off and lone¬ some feeling. For, every man we had seen that day, seemed to me as if he bore marked resemblance to the noted Claude Duval, or some other fictitious out¬ law. I presume that most of the men we had seen that day were cattle drovers and cow-boys, and that they were not near as bad looking as they seemed to me. In that day it seemed to be a part of the cow-boys busi¬ ness to carry two heavy revolvers and sometimes a large knife, in his belt. I was what, in the West has been styled a “tenderfoot,” and such moving arsenals did not exactly meet my notions of propriety. But I soon learned by future experience that a tenderfoot, in the West, was quite sure to have his feet hardened so that he would soon pass as an old frontiersman.

The night was spent with very little sleep for me.

I was the owner of the team we were driving, and a

MIDNIGHT AND NOONDA V very good one it was, too, and I thought if anybody’s team would be worth stealing it would certainly be mine. These reflections, together with the appearance of the men seen the day before, led me to conclude that I had better keep an eye on my horses, lest they should be stolen. I slept at short intervals during the night and in the morning found my horses all right and my partner, as usual, asleep. After we had got up and had our breakfast we again started on our way to the city (town it was then) on -the border. The cattle herds were, growing thicker as we go southward. They got so thick on the trail that there was but little room for us to use as a highway. But as we met the herds we drove around and by them the best we could, but made very slow progress on our journey. In the forenoon we passed a stream called the Nennescah. This stream after running about a hundred miles in a southeasterly course empties its waters into the Arkansas.

On the north bank of the Nennescah was a trader’s ranch with a few little shanties around it, giving a slight evidence of a town in embryo. It was plainly evident that the ranchman here did not fail to keep the one thing needful to the cow-boys’ happiness—a little of the ardent. A couple of them undertook to run a horse-race, but neither of them could ride as business had been most too good for the ranchman on that day in that special line of goods.

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After leaving the Nennescah we again began trav¬ ersing a gently rolling prairie quite similar to the one we had recently passed over, but a little more rolling. After going a short distance we stopped to rest and graze our horses and get some dinner. The great num¬ ber of cattle that had been grazed along the trail for the past month made picking rather short for our horses, so we remained in camp until 2:30 o’clock when I hitched up my team, awoke my partner and we rolled on. At about 4 o’clock in the afternoon we arrived at a small stream called Slate Creek. This stream, like the others we had crossed, was ornamented by a trader’s ranch. As the day was only partly gone we concluded to make a short drive on our road before camping for the night. After we had crossed the creek and while we were looking for wood to camp with, two men on horseback came riding across the creek. In conversa¬ tion with them I learned that, they, also, were on their way to Caldwell. They proposed to ride along with us till camping time and to camp with us, if we did not object. My partner by this time being engaged in tak¬ ing a nap, I was expected to make the reply. First looking at one, then the other, and as one of them wore a palm-leaf hat, and neither of them either by clothes or appearance, showed any signs that they were either ruffians or thieves, after hesitating a moment, I said, “all right.”

The names of these two men were A. M. Colson and J. A. Ryland. Some of the readers of these pages, I have no doubt, know them, as they both became old settlers near Caldwell. During this trip my great¬ est fears were that some one would steal my horses, and thus I would be left a long ways from home with a wagon to ride in but no team to pull it. And another and stronger reason for not wanting my team taken was, that not being sumptuously supplied with this world’s goods I was not able to lose my horses.

We soon secured wood enough for the night’s camp¬ ing, and then with our new found fellow travelers we rolled out. After traveling five or six miles we reached the head-waters of Prairie Creek and camped for the night. It was one of those calm, still nights that make one think of an earthly heaven. The air seemed to come to the nostrils of the weary traveler heavy laden with purity ; after supper, the moon in all her resplend¬ ent loveliness raised her head above the Eastern hori¬ zon ; as she sailed forth in the heavens, she shed her radiant light over hill and dale, making it almost as light as day. Although the night was uncommonly bright, I thought it might be safer to bring my team up to the wagon under which I slept. The country furnished such a grand chance for stealing horses, X feared my team might tempt some thief more than he was able to

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bear. The prairies at that time furnished plenty of grass for stock, so that a thief with a stolen horse and a handful of ‘ ‘ grub ” could travel to the southwest for hundreds of miles without being seen by anyone. That horse-thieves were abroad in the land no one could doubt, judging by the numerous horses that had “strayed off” from their owners and could never be found.

That night we slept well, but before retiring, I cau¬ tioned our new friends not to go near any of our horses during the night, as I should sleep with my Winchester by my side, and, if I should see any one near the horses I might think it a thief and treat them as such. This caution however, was entirely unnecessary, as they, second only to my partner, were excellent sleepers, for the next morning when they awoke the sun was shining in their faces. Soon as we had cooked and eaten our morning meal we again hitched up and pursued our journey. After we had gone perhaps a mile or so there passed us on the trail a man riding a very fine horse. From his general appearance, the quality and speed of the horse he rode, we concluded that he probably was a horse thief and that the horse was stolen property. We noticed that as we drove faster he would also increase his speed, and to put the matter to still further test we selected two of the fastest horses in our outfit and Colson and I pursued him, leaving the remaining two boys to bring the wagon. We had not pursued the chase a very great distance before we were quite well satisfied that he had the fastest horse. He gained on us so rap¬ idly that before we had followed him more than five or six miles he had left us entirely out of sight. Who he was or where he went we never knew, but probably he was a member of a gang of thieves and cut-throats that at that time infested the southwest. The horse was quite likely a race horse stolen from some border settle¬ ment.

At about 10 o’clock we crossed the Chikaskia River. On the north bank of this stream there was a ranch kept by Frank Barrington and Dr. Hahn. These were the first ranchmen whom we had seen on our trip that looked as if they had ever lived “back east.” After a drive of about eight miles over as fine appearing country as nature ever brought into existence, we arrived at Caldwell about 1:30 o’clock on the 25th of May 1871.

Chapter II

View of Caldwell—Talk with Thomas—Claim Takers—Claim Jumpers—Meeting with Reed—A Bit of Reed’s Bitter Experience—Trading For His Claim—Arrival Home.

As it was afternoon and we had not yet had our dinner, we concluded to drive a short distance south¬ east of town, and camp on the banks of a creek known by the name of Fall Creek. This creek flows to the southeast and surrounds the town on two sides, its course being from the northwest to southeast. The town is located where the creek makes a bend in its course.

Here we found a good supply of wood to use as fuel. After we had eaten our dinner, we turned our horses loose to graze, and leaving my partner as watch¬ man, also to keep the horses from straying far from camp, we started for the town.

We had not proceeded far, when I turned and look¬ ing in the direction of camp, saw my partner leaning against the wagon wheel enjoying a good sleep. We did not intend to be gone but a short time and thought the horses would not go very far from camp, so we decided to go on.

Upon arriving at the town, we found two log cabins used as store-rooms. The first building was erected by C. H. Stone, on March 15th, 1871, and used as a grocery store, with liquid groceries predominating.

Time passed on, when Cox & Epperson, inspired by the greed for gold, settled down-by him and also sold wet and dry groceries. J. M. Thomas was under their employ as clerk in the establishment.

There was also a building about fourteen by sixteen feet in dimensions, with a roof in shape like a car roof. This building was used as a saloon, and in it was kept some of the cheapest grades of whiskey. The proprie¬ tor was a man by the name of John Dickie.

After looking around awhile, we fell in conversation with J. M. Thomas. He gave us considerable informa¬ tion in regard to the country, and in conclusion told us where in all probability, we might secure two good claims near the town.

We returned to camp, waked up our partner who put in a couple of hours sleeping, hunted our horses, which we experienced no difficulty in finding, and started to look over the country, and to try and secure the claims spoken of by our new found friend.

To say we were pleased with the country would be putting it too mild. We were perfectly delighted with the beautiful and ever changing panorama, which ex-

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cited our highest admiration. Looking to the North, South and East, we were enabled to scan the country as far as the eye could reach, presenting to us a picture of living verdure.

As we journeyed to the West, after leaving our home in Augusta, we began penetrating the Indian Country, leaving civilization behind us, we no longer en¬ joyed the sights of forests, for the only trees to be seen were scattered along the banks of the streams.

Upon examining the soil, we found it to be a deep black loam, resting on a lighter colored sub-soil, con¬ sisting of a loam, gravel and clay, both soil and sub¬ soil being so porous that surface water rapidly passes through them.

We came back to town and to our noon camp along near sundown. We had traveled quite a distance up Fall Creek and over to another stream about a mile away called Bluff Creek. It was not difficult to find plenty of excellent claims, but it seemed that all of them that were very desirable had been taken sometime previous to our arrival there. I learned afterwards that many times a half-dozen or more claims were taken by one individual under different names. The taking of a claim simply consisted of placing on said claim in the form of a log house foundation, four logs, and in sticking in the ground a board, upon which was the taker’s name. It will readily be seen that the one who sailed under the most aliases, could take the most claims.

The few parties at that time up and down the creeks were single men, and generally lived in a dug-out and “batched it.” By taking several claims each, they would be prepared to sell a claim to anyone who came into the country and wanted to secure a home for him¬ self and family. I had come to the country in search of a home, and expected to get one at “Uncle Sam’s” price under the exemption laws. Here I found, that for the sake of gain, roving plainsmen had taken and marked all of the choicest claims. Of course a person desiring a claim could have “jumped” one of those already taken, but the character of the ones holding them, would lead one to conclude that it might be a little dangerous. To shoot a man in those days was not considered a very grave offense unless the person doing it should be caught, and the chance to get away was so good, a “claim jumper” might be left dead to hold the claim, while the murderer had gone to (for him) a more healthful clime.

As I said, we arrived at camp where we had stopped for dinner, a little before sundown. Soon after our arrival, and after we had unhitched our team, we began to consider what we had best do. After thinking and

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talking over the claim matter for a short time, we noticed at about a hundred yards distant on the banks of the creek, was what seemed to be a clay bank or knoll. Soon we saw a man coming up the bank near where the knoll was and start in the direction of our camp; when he arrived, he said that that was his claim, and what we had thought to be a clay bank, was his dug out.

From him we learned that his name was Reed, and 'hat he was the oldest settler in this vicinity, having /ocated his claim in 1871. The many privations, he and his family, had endured, words will ever fail to express. A few things however in reference to his life, here may be of interest to the reader.

. Reed was a Scotchman by birth, and came to America when in his minority. His father rented and farmed land in Illinois for a good many years. Finally young Reed became of age and married a young lady in Illinois. He also engaged in his father's avocation, that of the farmer. After living in Illinois for several years he moved to Missouri; he remained there two years, when the tide of immigration began to flow into Kansas, he with his family—a wife and five children— fell in line in the Westward march.

He, like most immigrants into a new country, would like to be exactly suited with a claim before taking it.

He kept going until lie reached the place where we found him. When leaving Missouri, he had a team to haul his effects, and also enough money, with what he could earn teaming, to keep him, until he could get a start on his farm. But how often it is, the brightest hopes are not realized, and grief and sorrow take their places. In this case it was fully verified. He arrived at his destination in the fall of 1871; soon after his arrival his horses took sick and died, thus leaving him without any means of support except his two hands and what little money he had. Labor was quite scarce, except freighting, and as he had no team he could not freight. He had not lived in his new home very long before his family were all sick with chills and fever; as cold weather came on they gradually recovered, all except his wife, who lingered for sometime and finally died. Now he drinks his griefs to the dregs. With five children, some of them small, his wife dead, and provisions fifty miles away, while he had but little money to buy with and no team to go after them ! let us draw a curtain over the scene until we tell you that dire necessity drove him to the extremity of carrying his provisions fifty miles on his back to keep his family alive.

Well, Mr. Reed had become dissatisfied with the country, and wanted to sell his claim and leave. After

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some bartering, I bought his claim, agreeing to give him the horse I was driving and fifty dollars upon my return from a trip after my family. This piece of land afterward became very valuable, it being a part of the town, and the Rock Island and Santa Fe Depots were built upon it.

The next morning, my partner and I awoke early, got our breakfast, hitched up our team and started to Butler County after our families, leaving our friends Colson and Ryland, at Caldwell. We arrived safely at our homes and found all anxiously awaiting our return.

Chapter III

The Return to Caldwell—Reed Backs Out of His Bargain— Takes a Claim—A Fright Caused by Indians—The Shooting of Fred Crats—Building the “ Dug-Out”—A Shot at Gray Wolves.

On the 6th day of June we arrived in Caldwell and immediately drove to our claim. We were suprised to find that Reed had regretted his trade with me and had concluded to back out. He did not think he was receiving enough for it, therefore would not trade that way. He finally told me, however, that if I would give him another horse, one that I was driving, he would call it a trade. I told him I would not trade that way, as I, like himself, was getting sick of my bargain, for the place was not a desirable one on which to take my family, as the cattle trail run through the place upon which thousands of cattle were driven. Besides this objection I had another reason for not wanting it. Mjrwife had been living in a good neigh¬ borhood with many friends with which to associate, and I realized this fact, that if I lived here she would, more or less, see a rougher class of people than she was accustomed to seeing, and it would naturally have a tendency to make her discontented with her surround-

MIDNIGHT AND NOONDAY.

ings. She was a very timid woman and of a nervous temperament and it would have been far wiser to have never brought her on the western frontier.

And now here I was with my family and with no place to call my home. I left my family at Reed’s while King and myself went to see if we could find us a claim.

We had no trouble in getting each of us a good one. Mine was located one and a half miles West of town, King’s claim joining mine on the North. King was not satisfied there, but continued to live there until fall, when he took another claim about six miles farther west. This time he got a choice piece of land on the Bluff Creek bottoms. He continued to live on his farm until a couple of years ago, when he sold it and went to Washington Territory, where he is still living.

When we had found our claims we returned to Reed’s after our families, and moved to our new home. We camped under a large cottonwood tree, whose shade made it very pleasant during the day. Near by was a spring which afforded good drinking water; also plenty for cooking purposes.