2-Gun Western, November 1955 — page 20: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

20 | 2-GUN WESTERN the Yankee said. But his voice didn’t have much assurance in it. Pappy shrugged and worked the oar. Long Sam had a device with which he manipulated the sweep and his oar and the mule all at the same time. The horseflies were terrible. The traveler’s teams stamped and lashed: with their tails. The hot dry air seemed to swirl in eddies above the water. The more humid it got-the more one could hardly breathe it. Far up at the headwaters there had been heavy rains but none had come this way, only the dirty swill in the river. Long Sam talked between move- ments of the broadhorn. “What’s your name?” “Betty.” “What's his name?” He pointed in the direction of her father. “Sol McMasters.” | “Where -you ones headed, any- wheres in particular?” “Oregon, California—wherever that is. Pa’s hard-hardheaded, can’t make up his mind. All the time fussing with people. He’s right good-hearted, but since the war he ain’t been himself.” ONG SAM nodded toward the slowly approaching fringe of wil- lows. “Good land thar as anywheres. I ain’t been to the other end of the world, but far’s I been it looks about © the same, You ones mout settle nigh about ?” “Maybe.” “How you look without that thar durn bonnet?” She took it off, shook her brown curls out, and gave him a starry smile. “By gum,’ Long Sam said, “I'll holp talk your old man into settling. Besides, it'd be a pity for the Injuns to scalp you. Long’s folks travel in trains they don’t pester. Let one, two, three tackle the trace and a dozen or twenty pounce on ’em and that’s the last of that outfit.” “How come they don’t get you folks?” Long Sam indicated the shooting iron. “They seen Pappy use that tool.” The talk of the ex-warriors drifted to them. “I’ll tell you, that Chicka- maugy she shore were one ripsnorter for a little we’d of licked the britches off ye!l”...“By dam’s, for a little more and apt as not you wouldn’t be hyar!”...“Nor you!”... Long Sam shrugged, grinned. “It’s that way ever’time some the veterans of the wars drift through. Now it’s a cornfed, and they laugh and holler. Then hit’s a Yank and they paw up the earth like a couple bulls.” “Many folks a-passing through?” “They come from yan,’ pointing back, “and go yan,” pointing ahead. “Droves and droves and droves. You wouldn’t know they was that many folks in this world. All wanting to get someplace they ain’t.” “I wouldn’t mind staying,’ Betty Said. | Far up the river Long Sam’s keen eyes saw something dark lying against the fringe of willows, “Pappy,” he said. Pas “Whut?” “Looky yan.” His voice was low. He pointed. The old man looked. He rubbed his eyes. “T don’t see nothin’.” “Hit’s a canoe.” “Naw. Hit’s a drift log.” Long Sam kept looking. Betty looked. The stranger stared. The old woman didn’t want to look, she was too scared; but she looked anyhow, whispering hoarsely, “Injuns?” “Hit’s a bullboat, and they hid in the willers.” “Mout could be,” Pappy admitted. “My eyes ain’t as pert as they used to be when I could knock a Yank out of a tree a mile away.” “What kind of weepins you tote, stranger?” Long Sam asked the Yankee, | “The kind what I killed me a mess of rebs with—musket and pistols and a couple blades forged out .of scythes; I heard tell the buffalo grass was tough and made ’em ’specially to whack grass.” “Where’s they at?” “Down in the wagon body.” “Haul ’em out.” The old woman moaned.. “I don’t want to see no Injun fighting.” “We don’t neither,’ Pappy said grimly. “But that ain’t fixing to help _ none if hit comes on.” of a battle!”...“By Judas I tell you . They watched what they had seen hidden in the willows and it was only- oO FLA) Gomichbooksnco