The Mustangs

The stallion circled his herd once, rearing and biting savagely if a mare balked his rule. His piercing whinny, a declaration of ownership, reverberated against the canyon walls. The stallion spun after a wayward colt, still too young to challenge the masterful mustang, but old enough to be considered a threat.

The milling horses paced, forced from one side of the canyon by the stallion, on the other side by the pursuing cowboys. Thundering hooves sent shock waves of sound outward causing pebbles and rocks to cascade to the canyon floor below. The pungent odor of sweaty horses, dust, hot leather and men intermingled, confusing the mustang herd.

"That's it! Close in on them! Now! Now! Now!" Levi Tanner whistled shrilly to one of his ranch hands, gaining the attention he needed. "Close it up, we got them all!" Levi stood up in his stirrups and whipped his hat off his sweaty brow and let forth a loud "Whoop!"

The mustang herd numbered at least seventy strong, and more than half of them were under five years in age Levi figured. His deep green eyes observed strong, muscular bodies, supple from good plains grasses, straight, sturdy legs with an inherited stamina, wide backs to carry or pull heavy loads and deep shoulders indicating they were built for speed on nearly every single horse. Levi had found the mother load and well he knew it.

He rode up to a group of wranglers setting up a camp of sorts and dismounted. Old weathered faces, long tanned and experienced, looked up with respect from their positions around the blowing horses, soft snorts and whinneys accompanying the Boss Man's assured voice.

"All right, guys, Charlie, you and Birdie get the water set up for them horses."

"Yea, Boss."

"Cy, grab Deano, Sugar, Pitt, and Shorty and check that fencing, but good!"

"You got it, Boss."

"Cookie! I want something more than hash and beans for this crew tonight, get it started!"

"What's wrong with my hash? Levi, you been eating my hash since you was a young pup..." Cookie turned and continued to grumble to himself as he started his fire pit.

Levi, grinning from ear to ear, yelled back teasingly, "It stunted my growth, Cookie! That's what's wrong with it!" The cowboys around the camp broke out in good natured laughter for Levi stood six-two if he stood an inch! An empty bean tin sailed through the air in response to the light-hearted jesting.

"Wally! You and the rest of the guys, set up a lookout at the canyon head, and gather some plains grass for the herd, break out the rations and set up the picket for the mounts."

"You got it, Boss!"

Levi raised his voice and called out to no one in particular, "Anyone doesn't have something to do better not be getting paid to do nothing!"

"Yeah, Boss!" Rang out in a chorus of voices from throughout the camp. Men walked around with a purpose, scurrying to get their assigned jobs completed.

Levi Tanner worked hard and so did any man who hooked up with the Tanner outfit. But they also got paid fairly, fed well and treated better. The respect Levi received from his men was well earned in sweat and hard work.

Levi sent an outrider back to the ranch to let them know of his successful round-up. This herd of horses was worth their weight in gold to both the ranch and the Army.

The country was pushing the boundaries of the nation ever farther westward and casualties from the Indians were heavy. The Army was offering top dollar for quality horseflesh and Levi's ranch was their number one provider.

"Heya, Boss, pickets are set, mounts is tethered and watered. You mind if some of the boys pulls out a harmony and strings?"

"Yeah, sure, Hank. Let them get settled in until supper's called, there'll be plenty to do after and it's going be a long night." Levi rubbed his neck, he always took the first watch when on a round-up, no matter what.

From his vantage point half-way up the canyon wall, Levi surveyed the camp with approval. The supply wagon, Cookie's wagon and the picket created a wall of sorts at the canyon's mouth. A few hundred feet beyond the bedrolls was the mustang herd, penned securely on three sides by sheer cliff walls, and on the front side by the sturdy wooden fencing which had been methodically erected over the past week.

The stallion, a huge black and white devil of a horse, constantly kept moving, testing the fencing for any sign of weakness. Most of the herd had settled down and stood meekly in groups of ten or twelve. The youngest horses were gathered into the center-most portion of the groups, their dams by their sides, ready to fight any intruder who dared breach the herd.

In the morning, the men would begin sorting the herd into the smaller pens further up the canyon, but for tonight the horses would feel secure in their hierarchy. Levi finished his climb to the canyon's rim, checked the barrel of his rifle then settled in for the next six hours. He lit a cheroot and hummed along as the guitar and harmonica music floated up to him from below.

Three hours into his watch, Rusty brought him up a tin of food and a full canteen. Levi took a swallow of the warm water, then dug into his fried potatoes and cornbread. He made a sandwich of the salt pork and biscuit, then ate the last of the beans and onions. Levi sat back, letting supper settle and looked the boy over.

"How're you liking ranch work, Rusty? Think it suits you?"

Rusty, the youngest man on the round-up at thirteen, blushed to his ears. "Y yyess, ss." The boy took a deep breath and tried once again. "YYes, sir, I'm helping Cookie just like you said."

"Good, did you get you're plate yet, boy?"

"Yes, sir. Cookie's saving a extra biscuit for me for after clean-up. He says I can have a taste a honey on it too!" Rusty quickly ducked his head, worried he might have said too much to the boss man. "He said to give you this after you finished your plate."

Rusty pulled out a large red apple and Levi smiled.

"That's good. I can remember when it was me trailing after Cookie for his biscuits and honey. Why, before you know it, son, you'll be helping with the herding and breaking." Levi ruffled the boy's shocking red hair teasingly. He rubbed the trail dust from the apple onto his sleeve, then handed the tin back to the boy. "You tell Cookie from me this was a fine supper, and he'll probably throw in a piece of cornbread for you!"

"Yes sir! I will." Rusty jumped up and headed down the canyon wall excitedly.

Levi thought back on when he'd first caught site of the kid a month ago. He had been drug up to the front door of the ranch house by a small spitfire of a woman. She had pounded loudly on the front door until he'd finally answered it. Levi had stood in the doorway, wrapped in a towel and sopping wet for he'd been taking a bath. He was ready to clobber whoever had been beating down the door until he saw it was a woman and a stranger at that.

The woman, eyes wide at the broad chest in front of her, diverted her gaze to the floor, but her grip on the poor devil at her side neither loosened nor wavered.

"You Mr. Tanner?" She had asked straight out.

"Yes Ma'am, I'm Levi Tanner."

"You got a acre of vegetables growing out yonder past the barn?" She'd pressed.

"I've got a couple of acres, yes. What can I do for you Ma'am?" Levi had shifted from one wet foot to the other, rivulets of soapy water running from his hair to his toes. The sooner he figured out what the lady needed, the sooner he could resume his monthly bath.

Instead of answering, the woman had yanked on the poor boy's ear until the kid was staring him wide eyed, nose to chest. "Tell him, boy."

Large brown eyes traveled up the muscled chest, over the broad shoulders, up past the thick neck to Levi's rock-hard stare.

"I sssss. Sssstt. I sssss." The boy could only stammer.

"It's alright, boy, just spit it out. Whatever it is you done can't be no worse than getting drug here by your ear now can it?" Levi swiped the soap from his eyes with the back of his hand and patiently waited for an explanation.

"I sstole sssome taters from you." The woman gave a swift rap on the boy's head with a bony hand and he jumped quickly. "I tttook some corn and some carrots, too. And a squash."

"I see. Some potatoes, corn, carrots and a squash. And what did you do with your bounty, boy?"

"I shared it with my two sisters an my baby brother." The boy's face looked anything but sorry, in fact, looked downright mutinous until the woman shoved him forward the last step between Levi and the threshold.

"You can beat him for the price of the food because he ain't got nothing to pay for it with." The woman said matter-of-factly. She no longer stared at the boarding of the front porch, but at the child's back.

Levi almost thought the woman found pleasure in the proposed beating. "Are you his Momma?"

"I aint no kin of his," she declared hotly. "He's a orphan, foundlings, the whole lot of them." The woman pointed to herself proudly, "I run the Parish Charity Home in town. This boy saw fit to keep his ill-gotten gains for himself. He's no longer welcome at the Home. Do with him what you will."

"So, you're saying if he'd shared his food with you, he'd be welcome?"

"I didn't say that!"

"What if he didn't steal the food, what then? Would he still be welcome?"

"But he did steal the food! How dare you! No, he wouldn't be welcome!"

"So, the boy is not welcome whether or no the food was stolen? Is that the gist of it?"

"Yes! I mean, no! What?" The woman's confused gaze at last met his steely eyes.

"Tell, me, what is so wrong with this child that he is not welcome to share bread at a Charity house?"

"Well, he's Irish!" She looked from the boy to Levi and back again as if it were painfully obvious. "You heard him! He admitted to stealing from you! Irish are nothing but thieves!"

"What I heard, Madam, was a boy who was forced to tell a lie to save his own skin, or the skin of his siblings." Levi stared at the woman who began backing down the porch steps. "What I heard was, a boy, who has by the way been working at pulling weeds with my cook for the last week. EARNING his pay-which he requested in vegetables, so he could feed his little family. What I heard, Madam, is a woman who is neither fit nor qualified to run a charity house!"

Levi was yelling by now and several ranch hands had wandered around to gawk at the scene before them. The woman, terrified of the nearly naked Levi, turned and ran screaming down the long lane back toward town. Hoots and laughter were heard from around the corrals from the nearby hands as she kept running.

"Come here, boy." Levi perused the freckled face, showing tell-tale bruising on his fair cheeks. "Did she drag you all the way from town?"

"Yes, sir. She did. The whole way by my ear." The boy rubbed said ear tenderly as Levi let loose a long, low whistle.

"Do you want to go back there?"

"No. Excepting." The boy fidgeted a moment. "If I don't go back, the little ones'll not get their fair share of food and blankets is all. I have to take care of them now, I'm the man of the family. I promised Ma and Pa I'd look after them, is all."

"Fair enough. Do you have any place to go?"

The boy hung his head in defeat. "No."

"Well, then. It's all settled. We'll head into town and pick them up and you all can live here. It won't be easy though. Every one works around here, no free rides. Even the little one, understand?"

"Oh yea! I mean, yes sir! I'll work extra just to make sure we pull our weight, I will!"

"Good. What's your name, boy and how old are you?"

"Laughlin MacCollum Jr., sir. I'm thirteen. But I can work hard as anyone, just watch me try."

"Well, Laughlin MacCollum Jr., run around to Cookie's house by the garden and get his wife to feed you some lunch, then help one of the boys hitch the team up to the buckboard and we'll head into town after your family."

Levi blew out a long drag from his cheroot and watched the smoke lazily drift upward toward the stars. The boy had filled out some over the last month with good food in his belly and hard work for his muscles. The kids stayed with Cookie and Walking Bird most of the time, helping out with small chores. One day a week, the teacher came out to the ranch to give them lessons on reading and writing and as far as he could tell, they were all healthy and happy.

Cookie had never seemed as content, either. He and his wife weren't blessed with children of their own, but Walking Bird took them all under her nurturing wing. She taught the two girls Alice and Hannah, how to sew and cook, keep a proper house and helped them with their schoolwork.

Rusty, as he'd come to be called, spent most of his days trailing after the ranch hands, helping with odd jobs and chores. Even the younger boy, a sturdy five year old by the name of Thomas, helped feed and water the stock.

Levi heard boots scuffling up the path, glanced at his pocket watch, then gave a quick nod as Birdie sat beside him.

"All quiet, Boss?"

"Nothing but an old cliff owl, Birdie. See you in the morning." Levi picked up his rifle, tossed Birdie the ripe apple then made his way down the cliff's edge back to the camp.

Dawn brought the smell of strong coffee and hash wafting across the camp. Men began stirring, bedrolls put away, and morning ablutions taken care of. The sun had only begun to rise and the clear sky looked promising for the busy day ahead.

The mustangs, now rested from the quiet night, began to stir nervously. The stallion called out his challenge to the sun's rising and waited for an answering call. When only his own echoing vocalization met his ears, the proud horse spun on his heels and gathered up his mares into the farthest corner of the pen.

Men began collecting ropes, lassos, whips, and prod poles. About a dozen sets of hobbles were draped evenly along the top rails as the process of separating the herd began.

The horses raced to the rear of the canyon and the men attached rails to the upright poles already in place. They created a narrow flow-through gate in the middle and began to methodically send one horse after the other through the tight chute. Once in a while, one of the horses would be backed out of the chute and sent back into the fray with chalk dusting it's backside to mark it as questionable.

At this stage, the men were dividing or culling the horses by approximate age, size, and apparent health. Any horse not meeting the discriminating stares of the men was marked and pushed back into the remaining herd.

Deano had the unpleasant task of keeping the stallion from charging the men working the corral with their prod poles and whips. It was a delicate job, for if pressed too hard, the mustang could cause much damage to beast and man, if not pressed hard enough, chaos.

Levi watched from the culling pen rails as his crew worked efficiently. Much as he would have liked to keep the stallion his mind knew better. An animal this wild, this fearsome, would die in captivity. His spirit would never bow to the will of man. The pregnant mares would be released afterwords and would need the stallion's protection as well.

He sighed with pleasure as he looked over the prime horseflesh before him. They looked even better up close than they did yesterday on the prairie. He observed the dwindling herd in the culling pen and counted out eight decidedly gravid mares, two questionable health issues, and the stallion.

The first culling had taken little more than an hour. Levi grabbed a set of hobbles and lassoed one of the horses with a limp. As a second set of ropes settled around the horse's hind legs, the rope was pulled taut and the horse sank to the ground. Sugar quickly sat on the downed horse's head while two others held his barrel and hind feet.

"What do you think, Boss?"

Levi ran his hands slowly down the horse's right foreleg, then left. He carefully scrutinized the hooves, then nodded to his men. "She'll do fine, just a stone bruise. Keep her." The men released the mare's head and feet simultaneously, then herded her through the chute into the next pen.

They singled out the remaining horse but before the lasso sailed through the air, Levi held up his hand. "Sugar, is it just me or does that look cleaved in half?"

"Can't rightly say until I can see it up close and personal like, Boss." Sugar wasn't one to jump to conclusions.

"All right, boys, you heard the man. Let's catch this pony and check her out!"

Again lassos went sailing, the horse toppled to the ground, and then subdued gently but firmly. Sugar and Levi both felt the distinctive crack in the horse's foreleg before either said a word. Sharp bone chips were felt just under the skin and the leg was hot to the touch. Levi was amazed the mare had kept up with the herd the day before.

"What do you want to do, Boss?"

"Is there any chance this can heal on its own? I know what I think, but I want your opinion, too."

Sugar simply dropped his eyes for a moment, then shook his head sadly. The kindest act would be to put the animal out of its misery. The men let the horse stand back up, then using the ropes, brought her as near to the fence as possible. One clean shot and the mare was dead. Two saddled horses drug the body away from the canyon corrals and left the carcass about three miles from the pens. Buzzards, coyotes and other animals would take much needed protein from her body, nothing would be wasted.

Every cowboy's worst nightmare was the destruction of a horse, but sometimes it was the necessary thing to do. The eight gravid mares and the stallion were left to themselves as the cowboys repositioned themselves for the next culling session. Once again, rails were brought in and attached to the upright poles placed in the ground earlier in the week.

This time they were culling the horses according to suitability. Mares with foals at their sides remained in the number two pen, while the yearlings, two year olds and mature mares were chuted through to pen number three. If a horse appeared up in years, it was chalked and remained in the pen until further examination could determine suitability once again.

All in all, at the end of the second cull, twenty-two horses would be released at the end of the round-up. The stallion, eight gravid mares, four mares with foals at their side, and five mares considered too old to break to saddle or simply unsuitable.

Levi was more interested in the sixty-seven which would make the trip back to the ranch. The next day they would start out for home. His outrider should be returning with about six more men for the return trip in the morning, and an inspector from the Army would meet them at the ranch within the month with a partial pay voucher. The balance would be paid when the horses were delivered to the fort, forty miles west.

As morning opened her arms and chased away the night, so too did Mother Nature make her presence known. Dark clouds overhead looked heavy and angry, roiling high into the sky. If the humidity was anything to go by, rain would be the least of the wrangler's worries.

Cookie, serving out portions of hardtack and hot coffee had Rusty working on securing the wagon in preparation for departure. "Mark my word, young'un. This is twister weather, I can feel it in my bones!"

Rusty nodded his head in agreement. "Yessir! When we was coming out west through the Oklahoma Territories, a twister come down and it was just like this here. My Pa says to lay low when the winds are calling for blood."

"Well, boy, your Pa was a smart one. Soon as we get these vittles passed around, we're heading out. The herd will be catching up to us by evening and I mean to put some space between me and that cloud overhead!"

"Cookie?"

"Um, humm?"

"Can I drive the team today, I been practicing for days now and I think I can do it." Rusty paused in the tying down of the wagon's canvas flaps and stared at the old cook.

"Come here and let me see your hands, boy." Rusty walked over then held up his palms. Cookie stared at the pink flesh for a moment, then rubbed his thumb along the boys slender fingers. "Feel my skin, here and here, Rusty. See how the callouses are formed just so?"

Rusty ran one finger over the roughened skin, nodding his head.

"If you drive the team today, you're going to get blistered, because you haven't toughened up your hands enough yet. You been rubbing salt on your fingertips like I said to?"

"Uh, huh. I mean, yes, Cookie."

"Good. We'll see. You can drive them for a spell, but you tell me when it feels like your arms are falling off, hear me?"

"I hear you, Cookie! You won't be disappointed, I promise. Besides, how can I get them toughened up if I'm not doing the work? You'll see, I'll get callouses, too." Rusty finished tying down the heavy canvases then went about cleaning the last of the breakfast dishes.

Once the cook's wagon headed out, the cowboys finished gathering their gear. Horses were saddled and bridled, spurs were screwed on, ropes were checked and double checked. Nothing was left to chance.

The mustang stallion knew something was up, he had been cornered in his small pen with the gravid mares for more than a day. He had drunk the water, but refused the prairie grass which was strewn about the ground. It smelled of the enemy! The mares ate, simply because they had to, their bodies cried out for the sustenance needed to maintain their growing foals.

He still smelled the blood of the injured one, it made him nervous that smell. It would eventually draw the scavengers in and that would threaten his herd.

Levi watched silently as the stallion paced and snorted. He pawed the ground in agitation, then spun about and circled his little band of mares. He nipped and squealed, turned and shook his head, chaffing at captivity. Not much longer, boy, and you'll be free again.

"Let's get moving, boys!" Levi let out a sharp whistle and the men jumped to work.

The remaining string of riding stock were set loose into the mustang herd, they would lead the confused group back to the ranch. Levi's most aggressive brood mare had been brought along for just this task.

Two cowboys removed the planking of the fence from the stallion's pen and the number two pen as well, then stood clear of the opening. Seeing freedom in his grasp, the stallion lunged through the opening, mares on his heels. At the opening of the box canyon, the stallion stopped and looked back. He knew there was more of his herd stuck behind, but his instincts told him to take care of the band he had freed.

"Come on, boy, follow those mares." Levi held his shotgun level. If the stallion tried to return for the remaining horses, many men could get hurt and he wouldn't let that happen.

Torn by indecision, the mustang watched the rapidly disappearing band of mares running across the plains, snorted once, then reared. He neighed in victory and then was gone.

"Wooo hooo!"

"All right!"

"Yeah!" Yells from around the camp finally rang out, every one of the men glad such a magnificent creature would not be put down today.

"Let's go home, boys!" The domestic horses were let out through the narrow gate and began at a slow trot to follow the cowboys. As the wild horses intermingled with them, the thought of flight did not penetrate for there was safety in the herd.

All through the long day, the horsemen whistled and clapped, clicked and jingled, and all day the horses followed. By nightfall the round pen was reached and the herd went willingly to the grain buckets, prairie grass, and water trough.

The heavy clouds overhead still circled, and while the men pitched their bedrolls Mother Nature let loose the rains. Wind whipped the horses into tight circles, hind ends facing the pummeling onslaught, heads low to the ground.

Several tents were pitched and the cowboys ate in silence as lightning and thunder rolled around the skies in a show of other-worldly power. The wagons were secured to the round pen, providing the herd some relief from the force of the winds.

Two long hours after sunset, the rains slowed and the winds stilled. Outside the tents, an ominous, eerie silence - as unnatural as a flying cow - awoke many of the sleeping men. Static electricity filled the air and the horses began nervously milling about the pen, stamping and snorting their fright.

At first, the low rumble sounded like one of the trains from back East, but soon the ground trembled and the winds picked up. Everyone quickly gathered their gear and waited, knowing there was no way to outrun the twister.

The heavy rains returned with a fierce determination to beat down everything taller than a sage bush. The cry of "Tornado!" rent the air and every man rushed from the tents carrying saddles and canteens. Crazed mounts were soothed and saddled in just minutes, ready to flee when the word was given.

"It's close, men! If it swings this way, loose the horses from the pen and head south! We'll meet up at Pilgrim's Creek come daylight if it comes to that!" Levi yelled above the growing wind, making certain everyone heard his orders.

Hail began pelting the ground. The tiny, white missiles stung as they hit man and horse alike, indiscriminate in their choice of victims. Several men mounted their horses, ready for the word to free the herd. But Mother Nature, quick to anger and serve retribution, stayed her winds and calmed the rains. The rumbling clouds overhead dissipated into the atmosphere as debris, scooped up from the prairie, fell back to Earth in a new mosaic.

The men, grateful of the reprieve and relieved their hard work of the last week had not been scattered to the four winds, briskly restored order to the small camp.

Levi resumed his watch as the men began to settle into their tents once again. He walked around the corral, trying to assess the horses for any injuries sustained in their frenzied milling. The darkness prevented any clear views and the low rumble of thunder overhead kept the restless herd circling nervously. He gave up and contented himself with the knowledge he still had the large herd in his possession.

The dawn brought clear skies once again and the camp woke early, anticipating the new day. Cookie served up slices of apple pie, biscuits and gravy and hot coffe. Then once again he and Rusty headed out in the chuck wagon on the last leg home.

The camp was quickly brought to order, campfires burried and doused, tents and bedrolls packed behind saddles and full canteens. The two drivers of the last remaining wagons would remain behind and knock down the holding pen. The wood would be stacked and brought back to the ranch at a more sedate pace than the herd would be travelling that day.

"That's it boys! Let's go home!" Levi trotted his horse away from the pen, following the tracks the earlier chuck wagon had made in the still-wet soil. As the gate swung wide, two more riders flanked the emerging herd, guiding them to follow Levi's lead. The horses soon settled into a comfortable pace and by evening, were arriving at the ranch which would be their home for the next six weeks.

Though the outriders saw the stallion once in the distance, he had not followed nor fought for his captured herd. Instead, he stood over his strongest mare as she pushed out his foal. It, too was black and white and built for speed. And when an hour had passed and the colt was ready for travel, it had struck out fearlessly next to his dam, following in his sire's hoof prints, ready to carry the name "Mustang" proudly.

~ The End ~

© Copyright 2004 catty WDC since 2003 Whew! (UN: cattytaurus at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
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