The Project Gutenberg EBook of We Were There at the Oklahoma Land Run, by James Arthur Kjelgaard This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: We Were There at the Oklahoma Land Run Author: James Arthur Kjelgaard Illustrator: Chris A. Kenyon Release Date: December 22, 2010 [EBook #34720] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WE WERE THERE AT THE *** Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net WE WERE THERE AT THE OKLAHOMA LAND RUN BY JIM KJELGAARD Historical Consultant: SAVOIE LOTTINVILLE Illustrated by CHRIS A. KENYON, JR. [Transcriber Note: Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] GROSSET & DUNLAP Publishers, New York © JIM KJELGAARD 1957 For ROSALYN LOUISE ALBERS PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD NO. 57-5035 We Were There at the Oklahoma Land Run Thousands of land-hungry people edged the Oklahoma border that April day in 1889, awaiting the signal that would send them across! What was in store for them? Wild riding! Possibly danger. Certainly adventure. And young Alec Simpson with his twin sisters, Cindy and Mindy, was to be a part of it. It had been a long, hard journey for Jed Simpson and his family up the Cherokee Trail from Missouri. But the promised prize of a homestead in the rich, fertile land of Oklahoma was worth it. Then came the long-awaited starting shot! And men on horseback, on foot, in buckboards and covered wagons careened across the border to stake their claims. Jed Simpson, riding alongside his partner, Pete Brent, leapt out in front. And just as fast, tomboy Cindy raced after them to give her father his forgotten gun. So it was three, rather than two, who staked claim to the sweetest land in all of Oklahoma. Their joy was short-lived, however, with the sudden disappearance of gentle Mindy and the arrival of a short, swarthy man with cat's eyes. It took all of Alec and Cindy's own special brand of magic to spirit Mindy back. The Simpsons had indeed earned the proud name of homesteaders. And for Alec, Cindy and Mindy it was a new life just begun in a golden land. WE-WERE-THERE BOOKS are easy to read and provide exciting, entertaining stories, based upon true historic events. Each story is checked for factual accuracy by an outstanding authority on this particular phase of our history. Though written for young readers, they make interesting reading for boys and girls well into their teens. Contents CHAPTER ONE Witch Girl CHAPTER TWO Pete's Story CHAPTER THREE The Sooners CHAPTER FOUR Ready for the Run CHAPTER FIVE April 22, 1889 CHAPTER SIX Mindy CHAPTER SEVEN Wild Ride CHAPTER EIGHT Alec CHAPTER NINE The Claims CHAPTER TEN Hungry CHAPTER ELEVEN Alec Comes CHAPTER TWELVE Plains City CHAPTER THIRTEEN The Man with Cat's Eyes CHAPTER FOURTEEN Spirits Walk About the Author About the Artist About the Historical Consultant Illustrations Pete gave one of the flags to Jed Simpson Mindy vaulted to his back "Go back or I shoot!" he said "You dug that big a hole since noon?" asked the man on the horse "Nothin' like a little fight to clear the air, Jud boy!" Mr. Simpson added a big boulder to the cairn When everything was ready, she called her father and Pete "Need any law work done?" he asked Alec went into the oak grove He liked the rough and broken land "Unless they turn their claims over to us, they'll never see the girl again" WE WERE THERE AT THE OKLAHOMA LAND RUN CHAPTER ONE Witch Girl In a few minutes, Cindy thought excitedly, she would "kill" herself. Her eyes strayed from the tailboard of the wagon on which she stood, over the scene around her. By day, with wagons and tents stretching as far as one could see in either direction along the Oklahoma border, all was bustle and excitement. Now, with twilight just shading into darkness, it was delightfully different. She could see only the nearest camps, and though most of the wagon covers and tents too were stained with use, the night took away every sign of ugliness, and everything was again beautiful. Here and there, both near and far, the embers of cooking fires glowed like bright red eyes. The kerosene lantern hanging over the tailboard cast its glow for no great distance. She could see clearly only the nearest rows of people who had come to watch this amateur show, the talent for which had been recruited from the campers themselves. Everything else was in shadow. Cindy took a deep breath and announced: "And now, ladies and gentlemen, I, the Great Cindy Simpson, will thrill you with feats of magic and leaderdemain! I will prove to you that the hand is quicker than the eye! Watch closely!" She saw her brother grinning up at her and winked at him. Alec was two and a half years older than she. But, she thought proudly, even though he was only fourteen, still he was taller than some of the grown men present. Of course, in this crowd of people, all waiting to join the run into Oklahoma to claim land, there were short men as well as tall. Cindy tried and failed to find her mother in the crowd. Thinking of her mother, she also thought of Mindy and was suddenly and terribly lonesome. Mindy, Cindy's identical twin sister, had suffered a winter fever. It was thought that she could not stand the long wagon trip from Missouri into Kansas, and down through the Cherokee Outlet, or Strip, as it was often called, on the north to the border of the lands that were being opened for settlement. So Mindy had been left in Missouri with Grandpa and Grandma Simpson. But she was coming by train, and Cindy hoped it would be soon. This very afternoon her father had gone to the nearest railroad station, which was two miles away, to see if there was a message. Giving herself back to the spirit of her act, Cindy took one of her mother's silk handkerchiefs from the little table of articles beside her and waved it gracefully. She continued: "Now, ladies and gentlemen, keep your eyes on the handkerchief! You can see for yourselves that there is nothing unusual about it! It is just an ordinary handkerchief, until I fold it in my hand!" Cindy folded it carefully in her hand, clamped her small fist about it, and waved her arm aloft. When she opened her fist the handkerchief was gone. A small wire hook on the end of an elastic band attached to the armhole of her camisole had drawn the handkerchief only part way up her sleeve. Still, it was out of the crowd's sight. Cindy tossed the long black braids that hung over her shoulders and pretended shocked surprise. "Oh! It's gone!" she exclaimed. "One of my mother's best, too! Now what shall I do?" She waved her arm again, bending it as she did so, to let the stretched elastic go slack. At the same time she pulled a silk thread, one end of which had been tied to the handkerchief before she picked it up. The other end was looped, and she'd slipped the loop over her finger. As magically as it had disappeared, the handkerchief was there again. Cindy cried happily, "Ah! It's back! See what magic can do?" She returned the handkerchief to the table, picked up a short wand, and showed it to her audience. "The witches' wand!" she said darkly. "But it has no power over the Great Cindy! Listen!" She tapped the wand on the table, and the sound of the thumping reached the farthest edges of the crowd. "As you can see," she announced, "it's very solid! Now I'll roll it in this magic paper!" She rolled it in a piece of ordinary paper and held it up in full view of the crowd. Then she tore wand and paper into tiny bits, threw them into the air, and let them float down among her audience. Nobody except Cindy and Alec knew that the wand itself was paper, with a small chunk of lead, to make the thumping sound, in one end. Cindy did half a dozen more tricks and then picked up the only real magic prop she had. It was a wicked-looking knife given to her by a farmhand whom she had known on the Missouri farm where her father had worked before coming to seek his own land in Oklahoma. The same farmhand had also taught her the rest of her magic. "Before I perform this last and greatest feat," she said, "I wish to prove to all of you that this is a real knife. One of you must examine it. You!" Her eyes fell on a short, swarthy man who wore a red handkerchief around his neck and another bound over his hair. Cindy hesitated. Did the man have eyes like a cat? Or did she only think so? She was not sure, and she stepped forward to press the knife into his hand. "Take it!" she urged. He took it, but he seemed to do so unwillingly, and his eyes remained on Cindy. "Cut something, please," she requested. He slid the knife along the wagon's tailboard, and a long sliver of wood curled up. Cindy smiled sweetly. "Do you want to try it on something else?" she asked. The man merely stared at her. When Cindy stretched out her hand, he put the knife in it and backed hastily away. Cindy thanked him and went on with her show. "You have seen for yourselves, ladies and gentlemen, that this knife is razor-sharp! Watch closely!" Before the crowd could guess what was going to happen, they saw Cindy seemingly plunge the cruel blade into her heart. Blood spurted, and just before she fell Cindy heard a woman scream. A moment later Cindy got up, bowed, and to the mad applause of everyone except the man with cat's eyes, leaped lightly from the tailboard. Still grinning, Alec joined her. "Gee! You were great, sis!" he exclaimed. "Was I really?" "Best ever. And you sure bowled over one member of your audience." "The woman who screamed?" "No, the man who tested your knife, the one with a bandana over his hair and another around his neck. I was standing right next to him, and he said, 'Weetch girl! Weetch girl!' Did you know you're a witch girl?" "Oh, no!" Cindy groaned. "Oh, yes," Alec teased. "Wonder what he'd say if he knew that when you press the handle of that knife just right, the blade slides back into it and a squirt of catsup jumps out?" "Alec," Cindy was thoughtful, "did you notice anything strange about that man?" "He looked like an Indian." "Do you remember what old Mrs. Bevers said when we left Missouri?" "Sure. She said, 'Luck will follow you if you beware a man with cat's eyes.'" "Alec, that man had cat's eyes!" "Aw now, Cindy!" "He did," Cindy said firmly. "Now, sis, don't go believing your own magic!" "Have it your own way, but he still had cat's eyes." "Then I'll sic a dog onto him," Alec laughed. "Come on, sis. There's somebody I want you to meet." He led her away from the lighted tailboard back into the shadows. Cindy saw her father, mother, and Pete Brent, the man with whom her father would make the ride into Oklahoma as soon as the border was opened. But there was also someone else. Too surprised to move for a second, Cindy stopped in her tracks. Then she raced forward to fling herself into the arms of a slender, lovely girl whose soft, dark eyes reflected only delight and who, like Cindy, wore a gingham dress that covered her from her neck to the tops of her shoes. "Mindy!" They hugged each other, and still holding hands, stepped apart. "When did you come?" Cindy asked happily. "Daddy met the train to see if there was a message from me. He found me instead." "Oh! It's so nice to have you back!" "Sit down, children," Mrs. Simpson said quietly. "If you become too excited neither one of you will sleep tonight. Oh dear, Cindamine! Catsup all over your dress again!" "I'll wash it, Mother," Cindy said cheerfully. "I know, dear," her mother said, "but you're eleven now, going on twelve. Isn't it time you were becoming a lady, like Miranda?" "Sure, Mom," Cindy said agreeably. She sat in the trampled grass beside her sister, and their arms stole about each other. Pete Brent, a tall, lean, dark- haired man with friendly eyes and a ready smile, chuckled. "I declare! If 'twasn't for that catsup, I couldn't tell 'em apart!" "Neither can anyone else," their father said. "Not unless they watched them," Mrs. Simpson spoke up. "Miranda's always the lady, and Cindamine always the tomboy. She's forever in some scrape." "Cindy will be a lady some day," Mindy defended her twin. "Sure I will, Mom," Cindy agreed. "How did I do?" "Except that you said 'leaderdemain' rather than 'legerdemain,' you did very well," Mrs. Simpson said. "I'll remember next time," Cindy promised. Alec chuckled. "Cindy's a 'witch girl' now," he remarked. "Merciful heavens!" their mother gasped. "Oh, it isn't that bad. Her magic just scared the daylights out of some man. I stood right next to him, and he was shaking in his boots." "Who was it?" Pete Brent asked curiously. Alec searched the crowd, which was now watching a juggler who had taken Cindy's place on the tailboard. He saw the short, swarthy man and pointed him out. Pete Brent shook his head soberly. "No wonder he was scared." "Who is he?" Mr. Simpson asked. "Tom LaMott. He's part Indian, part Spanish, and part nobody knows what. He believes in devils, and it's easy to understand why Cindy's magic tricks seemed like deviltry to him." "Is he bad?" Mindy asked. "I myself know of nothing very bad he's ever done, but according to the stories going around, he isn't good," Pete replied. Mrs. Simpson said doubtfully, "Sometimes I wish we'd stayed in Missouri." "This is no better and no worse than Missouri, Mrs. Simpson," Pete said respectfully. "You said yourself that that man's a heathen." "You will," Pete pointed out, "find them in Missouri, New York, or any other place you go." "Say what you please, Pete, this is different from Missouri." "Only because of the crowd gathered here. But ninety-five per cent of them are honest, hard-working, God-fearing people. They don't want a thing except a chance at some of the last good free land left in the country under control of the United States." "How about the other five per cent?" Mrs. Simpson asked. "Well," Pete said reluctantly, "I wouldn't want to cross that border without a gun." "If you know you'll need a gun, then you must know of dangers," said Mrs. Simpson. "Now, Ann," big Jed Simpson said easily, "there isn't a thing to worry about." "I hope not." "We have good stock, good equipment, and, thank God, we're all healthy and together again. There is no reason why we don't have a good chance," Mr. Simpson told her. "Looks as though the show's over," he added. They drifted back toward their wagons, which were side by side. Pete's big draft horses and his four trim, fast ponies, tied to a picket line, shuffled about and munched fodder. A little distance away, the Simpsons' four wagon mules were in a rope corral. But Sunshine, the swift palomino mare with the white mane and tail, the horse Mr. Simpson would ride in the Land Run, was staked on her own picket rope away from the mules, and she was eating oats. Sunshine would have to travel very fast and far. "Coming, twins?" their mother called. "Can't we stay and talk with Mr. Brent for a little while?" Cindy asked. "Don't get in the way." "In the way!" Pete snorted. "My two sweet-hearts in the way! Why, Mrs. Simpson!" "I'd like to stay too," Alec said. "Good!" said Pete. CHAPTER TWO Pete's Story Cindy always loved to visit Pete Brent, partly because she liked him, partly because she liked his horses, and partly because she liked Gramps and Granny Brent, his father and mother. Besides, Gramps knew the most wonderful stories, and Granny baked the most marvelous ginger cookies which she passed out with a very free hand. Cindy had looked forward to bringing Mindy to their wagon for a visit. Even though Gramps and Granny were asleep in the wagon and Mindy would not meet them until tomorrow, it was a lot of fun to be with Pete and to look at his horses. "We'll have to be very quiet because Gramps and Granny Brent are sleeping now," Cindy whispered to her twin. "Let's go see the horses." Two of Pete's four ponies were roan-colored, the third was sorrel, and the fourth was black and white. The two roans and the sorrel were very friendly and gentle, but the pinto trusted nobody and even tried to buck Pete off whenever Pete rode him. Now the three gentle ponies and Pete's huge draft horses crowded as close together as they could and thrust their heads over the picket line, each horse trying to get as much attention as possible for himself. The pinto pulled as far back as his tie rope would let him go and snorted suspiciously. Though she had been on the point of warning her twin to be careful around the pinto, Cindy forgot to do so. Alec, who had never wanted to be anything except a farmer, liked the heavy-footed draft horses best. Cindy and Mindy turned naturally to the fleet ponies. Suddenly the pinto snorted again, softly and gently this time, and came up to thrust a friendly muzzle at Mindy. "Mindy!" exclaimed Cindy. "What's the matter?" asked Mindy, who was happily stroking the pony's soft nose. "That's Thunder, and he isn't supposed to like anyone!" "He likes me," Mindy said. "Oh! Don't they remind you of birds?" "Yes, they do! But Pete told me that, though they can start at a fast clip and keep it up long after a race horse would be winded, a race horse would beat any of them in a short sprint." "I don't believe it," Mindy said. "I don't believe any other horse could even keep up with them." "Except Daddy's Sunshine," Cindy said. "Yes," Mindy agreed loyally, "Sunshine might." Except for Thunder, who would let only Mindy touch him, they petted each pony in turn, stroked the draft horses, petted the ponies again, and Cindy asked Alec, "Wouldn't you just love to have one?" "Sure would," Alec agreed, "but I'd rather have this work team. They could pull a plow for ten hours, then do it again the next day and the day after, and still come back for more." "You have the team, and we'll take the ponies," Cindy said. "Let's go back and see Mr. Brent." They stole back, remembering to be very quiet in order not to awaken Gramps and Granny, and sat on the wagon tongue. Pete lighted his pipe, and when the match flared it illumined his strong face. For the first time Cindy found herself thinking of it as a young face, even though Pete must be almost thirty. Cindy said eagerly, "Tell us about Oklahoma." "There now, young lady," Pete's grin was felt rather than seen, "I've already told you at least six times." "Please!" begged Cindy, who had an almost passionate interest in this new land that was to be her home. "Mindy hasn't heard the story." "Do you want to hear it, honey?" Pete asked. "I'd love to," Mindy said. Pete sat down with his back against the wagon wheel, rested his head on his hands, puffed solemnly on his pipe, and after a moment said, "Shall we begin with the Indians?" "Yes." "Well, though there were some ancient peoples in Oklahoma, the first tribes which we ordinarily think of as Indians were the Kiowas, Comanches, Arapahoes, and such. They were all warlike and for the most part depended on hunting. There was very little of any kind of farming. But there were never so many of these tribes that Oklahoma was what you might call crowded. It was a vacant land." The youngsters remained silent, waiting for Pete to go on. After a moment, he did. "Oklahoma came to us with the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. But in those days, to anyone east of the Mississippi, Oklahoma seemed as far away as the moon seems now. Few people imagined that it would ever be any good, and almost nobody wanted to go there. In fact, very few people even knew it existed." "What's 'Oklahoma' mean, Mr. Brent?" Alec broke in. "It's a Choctaw Indian word meaning 'red people.' Now there weren't so many white men west of the Mississippi, but there were a lot of them east of it. There were also a lot of Indians there. What happened is what usually happened when red men crowded white; the white men wanted the land." "Wasn't that selfish?" Mindy asked. "Depends on how you look at it, Cindy—or Mindy." Pete grinned. "I don't know which is who, because I can't see the catsup any more. But if you mean, was it selfish for white people to grab Indian lands, it certainly was. On the other hand, it might have been selfish for a few Indians to think they could stand forever in the path of so many white men. Still depending on how you look at it, and whether you're white or red, it was either 'the march of civilization,' or 'conquest.' Anyhow, the five 'civilized' tribes, the Cherokees, Creeks, Chickasaws, Choctaws, and Seminoles, were told that if they'd give their eastern lands to white men, the territory later to be known as Oklahoma would be theirs forever. In the words of the treaty, they were to have it 'for as long as grass shall grow and waters run.' Moving these tribes took almost twenty years, from 1828 to 1846, and it wasn't a nice thing, because some of the uprooted Indians suffered terribly, but finally they were here." Alec interrupted again. "If the land was given to the Indians, how can we take it?" he asked. "I was coming to that, Alec. The 'civilized' tribes were different. They knew white men. They saw that white men had a better way of living, and so they copied it. They had their farms, their schools, their churches, their stores. They lived much as we do and even owned slaves. Then came the Civil War, and almost all of them lined up with the South. The government claimed that by this 'rebellion,' the tribes had violated their treaty rights. That began it. There were a lot of people west of the Mississippi by that time, and they wanted to know why they weren't allowed to have land that no longer belonged to the Indians anyway." "Be sure to tell about the cattlemen," Cindy murmured. "Sure thing. Great herds of cattle, gathered in Texas for delivery to Kansas railheads, were driven across the territory. At first the cattlemen asked only that their herds be allowed to graze while passing through. Then they wanted grazing land to fatten cattle, and one way or another they got a lot of it. So there was something else to fight about. If homesteaders could have no part of Oklahoma, why were wealthy cattlemen allowed to take so much of it? Then came the 'Boomers.'" Alec smiled. Cindy clasped her hands excitedly. "Somebody," Pete continued, "found out that part of Oklahoma, the section soon to be opened, had been given up by the Creeks and Seminoles at the end of the Civil War and had never been assigned to any other tribe. They became the 'unassigned lands,' and the boom was on. At first it was unimportant, because only a few people trickled in. Then, just about ten years ago, a very great man, Captain David L. Payne, saw the possibilities in Oklahoma and he organized the Boomers. Captain Payne personally led several expeditions of colonists into the unassigned lands. Each time the soldiers forced them to leave." "Is he here now?" Mindy asked. "No," said Pete. "He died about five years ago, but Captain William Couch, and I'm sure he's on the border, took over. He made another attempt to establish a colony in 1885. When that colony was disbanded by soldiers, the Boomers decided that no one can fly in the face of the law. So they tried to have the unassigned lands legally declared open to homesteaders. There was plenty of opposition. Most of it came from the cattlemen who did not want to lose their free range, but the Indian tribes worked against it too. However, the Boomers won, and here we are." "Were you a Boomer?" Mindy asked breathlessly. "I was a Boomer," Pete said. "I've been in there three times, and three times I've been marched out by soldiers. But though the soldiers did hold Captain Payne and a few others prisoners for a while, about all they ever did to the rest was escort us back over the border. Because I know the country, I know where your dad and I can get ourselves two of the prettiest claims in Oklahoma if someone doesn't already have them." "How can anyone already have them?" Alec questioned. "The border isn't supposed to be opened before high noon on the 22nd of April." Pete sounded a little grim. "That's right, Alec, and nobody who crosses before that time is supposed to have legal title to any land he may stake. But a lot of people have gone in anyhow. They're hiding in the thickets and along the creek bottoms. They'll stake land, and some of them will get away with it. There aren't enough soldiers to find all of them and bring them back." "What will you do if some of them are on the claims you and Dad want?" Cindy asked. "Then there could be an argument," Pete said. "If we lose to somebody who crosses when he should, well and good. But we won't lose to anyone who has sneaked across before he should." "Do you think there'll be trouble?" Alec sounded worried. "I doubt it, Alec, but we must be ready if it comes." Mindy knitted puzzled brows. "There is much I do not understand." "If you have any questions," Pete said, "I'll try to answer them." "Thank you, Mr. Brent. Please tell me how close we are to Oklahoma." "We could almost throw a stone into it from this wagon," Pete said. "Then why," Mindy asked, "can't the first people across simply stake the first claims they find?" "They can do just that, and some of them will," Pete said. "But a great many people here on the border know where the best claims are. They're old-time Boomers, or they've been in before, or in some cases, a group of people have banded together to send a scout on ahead to find them a place. The really hot race will be for the best land." "I see," said Mindy, "but you speak of claims. How are people to know where their claim ends and another begins?" "All the homesteads have been surveyed and marked," Pete said. "They are, of course, a hundred and sixty acres each. Many of the town sites—they're three hundred and twenty acres—have been decided in advance too. But they haven't been measured into lots, and there's going to be trouble. People will stake anything, I believe, then find out they've located in a street, or on school property, or something like that." "How will all these people get the things they need?" Mindy pursued. "The railroad you came in on, the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe, runs through the territory. Freight wagons can take supplies from their depots." "Will everyone get land?" Mindy questioned. Pete said, "They can't, because there isn't that much. With just under two million acres being opened up, most of which will be 160-acre homesteads, that makes something less than fifteen thousand claims. At a rough guess, even if you include all the town lots, there are three times as many people lined up on the border as there are claims. Who's going to get the land?" "The strong and fast," Cindy said. "And the smart and lucky," Pete added. "That's pretty much the way it always has been and always will be. In the advance of progress, and this is progress, somebody usually gets left behind. No doubt, many of the people who are able to stake no claim will feel cheated. No doubt the Indians will think they've been cheated, when cities and towns spring up. Especially the Seminoles. They used to own this area—didn't actually give it up till a few months ago. But with farmers who know the right farming methods, that land will go a long way toward helping feed a hungry world. The Indians couldn't develop it the way the white men are going to do—there aren't enough of them." Cindy gave herself over to dreams. Thousands of land-hungry people poised on the border awaiting the signal that would send them across! Wild riding! A mad scramble! Possibly danger. Certainly adventure. It was an entrancing picture that she conjured up for herself. "I'd love to go along!" she said impulsively. "Me too!" Alec seconded. "But Dad says I must stay here and look after mother and you twins until the claim is ready. I'll look after Gramps and Granny too, Mr. Brent." Pete said gently, "Thanks a lot, Alec." He turned to Mindy, "How about you?" "I'll wait," Mindy said quietly. "You're right," said Pete. "Alec, you and Cindy, and I know it's Cindy now because Mindy's been asking most of the questions, mustn't feel badly. You're better off here. Oklahoma will be no place for youngsters, or old people, until the claims are staked and everything is straightened out." "I'd still love to go!" Cindy said defiantly. "Now forget it!" Pete laughed. "You can't go." "Somebody else," Cindy was half in tears, "always has all the fun!" "Oh, Cindy!" Pete was hurt because he had hurt her, and he wanted to make up for it. "I was hoping you'd do a very important job for me here. Can you ride?" "Can she ride!" Alec answered for his sister. "The horse hasn't been born that can throw Cindy! Mindy's a good rider too." "Good!" Pete said. "Now, of my two roan ponies, one is about as fast as the other. I'm going to saddle both and leave one here for you. As soon as your dad and I have gone, you take the one I leave, ride to the telegraph station, and send this message to John Brent, care of Dasher and Brent, 816 Fourth Street, New York City. Say: 'The Run is on. Pete gone. All is well.' Will you do that?" "If you want me to." Cindy suspected that Pete just wanted to give her something to do, but she felt a little better anyhow. "I'd go," the conscientious Alec stared into the darkness, "but I'm not supposed to leave Mother. Why'd you ask Dad to ride with you, Mr. Brent?" "Because I'd hoped to be able to pick at least one of my neighbors, and I picked the Simpsons." "Children," their mother called softly. "Time for bed." "See you tomorrow," Pete said as they rose to go. "And you mark my words. April 22, 1889, the day of this Oklahoma Run, will be a great day for the nation. Why, you three will see history made!" CHAPTER THREE The Sooners In their own bed in the wagon, Cindy snuggled close against her twin sister. Cindy had never been on a train, but it sounded like a wonderful adventure, and she whispered, "Tell me about your train ride." Mindy told her. She described the locomotive, the engineer leaning out of its window, and the sweating fireman who shoveled coal into its hungry vitals. She described each of the cars, and the people who had been in each. Mindy told of her seat in the day coach, of the people who sat in front of her, the people who sat behind her, and the people who sat across from her. She spoke of the conductor, the conductor's blue uniform, and the big brass buttons on his uniform. She described the way the car's wheels clicked on the rails, and how they seemed to sing a song. Mindy told of the depots, the various areas through which she had passed, and ended with a complete description of the box lunch Grandma Simpson had given her to take along. Cindy sighed and pulled the covers up to her chin. Having Mindy tell of the ride was nearly as good as taking such a ride herself. There was a silence which Mindy broke: "You looked so grand when you were putting on your magic show. And even though I know how you did it, I was scared when you 'killed' yourself. Often I wish I dared do the things you do." "The things I do!" Cindy exclaimed. "Why, you're the only person in the world who's ever been able to pet Mr. Brent's Thunder pony!" She spoke more loudly than she had intended, and their mother overheard. "Children," Mrs. Simpson called, "go to sleep now." Mindy dropped into gentle slumber, but Cindy was far too excited to sleep. She thought of the train ride, and of how dearly she would love to take such a ride herself, but since there seemed to be no possibility of that, she began thinking of what lay about her and everything Pete Brent had said. It seemed to her that if she too could make the ride into Oklahoma, it would be even more wonderful than riding on a train. Maybe if she pleaded.... But the answer would be no. Her father and mother began to talk in low voices, and though Cindy did not try to listen, she couldn't help hearing. "I'm worried, Jed," her mother said. "I can't help thinking that something will go wrong." "Now, Ann," Jed Simpson soothed, "you know very well that I can take care of myself." "Yes, but—Oh, Jed! I always hated to see you wear a gun when you were marshal back in Lowville! But please wear it this time!" Cindy became more alert. So her quiet father had been a gun-carrying law officer! She'd never known. "Now don't you worry," she heard her father say, "I'll take the gun even though I don't expect to have any use for it." "I'll be terrified if you don't!" Ann Simpson said. "I couldn't bear to think of you out there with no way to defend yourself! All those people!" "They're good people, Ann. There's nothing to fear. You heard what Pete said." "I heard him say that ninety-five per cent of them are good and he wouldn't care to cross the border without his gun! Oh, I do wish we'd stayed in Missouri!" "In Missouri I was just a hired man," Mr. Simpson reminded her. "But we always had enough, and we were happy. To give it up and take these awful risks!" "Now, Ann," Cindy's father's voice became firm, "this is the Simpsons' chance, perhaps the only one we'll ever have, to rise in the world. There may be some small risk, but nobody ever gained anything without risking something. Think of the children, and of how much more we'll be able to give them if we have our own farm instead of depending on a hired man's wages." "But there aren't even any schools out there!" "There will be," Jed Simpson said. "Schools will follow on the heels of the settlers. So will roads, towns, and even cities! And do you know who one schoolteacher might be?" "Who?" "Mrs. Jed Simpson." "Jed!" "I mean it, Ann. You're a college graduate. And stop thinking of Oklahoma as an empty wilderness. It may be that now, but within a week it'll be settled. And it will need more than farmers. We'll need doctors, carpenters, storekeepers, and above all, schoolteachers. Working together, with each contributing to the best of his ability, we'll build a new and mighty state!" There was a short silence, and then Ann Simpson spoke again. "Forgive me, Jed," she said. "Knowing you, I should have known that you would have no small plan. Yes, I see it too, and I will be a schoolteacher if we have to hold our first school in the open air. I won't promise not to worry, and I won't be happy until I'm with you again, and please take your gun!" "I'll take it," Jed Simpson promised her. Cindy dropped off to sleep and almost immediately fell into a happy dream. She was mounted on one of Pete's ponies. Free as a bird and swift as the wind, she skimmed over the enticing grasslands just across the border to help her father and Pete stake claims. Cindy rolled over and cried out in her sleep. The man with cat's eyes had crept into her dream and made it a troubled one. She awakened shivering, and did not go back to sleep for nearly an hour. But when she did, there were no more dreams. The next time she awakened, she smelled wood smoke and heard people moving about. Breakfast fires were being kindled at every camp and wagon. Cindy sat up in bed, and Mindy stirred beside her. Very softly, Cindy patted her sister's cheek. "It's morning," she said. "Oh-h! So it is!" Mindy stretched and sat up drowsily. Mindy donned the dress she had worn last night, but Cindy reached into her own carpetbag for some underwear, blue jeans, and a shirt that Alec had worn when he was ten. The clothing just fitted her if she turned up the jeans' cuffs and rolled the shirt sleeves to her elbows. It was not quite a lady's garb, but it offered much more freedom than any clinging dress. Eyes wide with astonishment, Mindy stared at her sister. "Cindy!" she exclaimed. "I want to save my dresses," Cindy said. "What will Mother say?" "She doesn't care," said Cindy, who was not at all sure just what Mother would say. "I wore these all the way out here." They slipped out the back flaps of the wagon to find their mother building a breakfast fire. She greeted the twins, smiled, and in her heart Cindy gave thanks for an understanding mother who, while wishing her daughters to be ladylike, knew why girls sometimes thought boys had all the fun. Their father was grooming Sunshine, and Alec was giving the mules their hay. "Time you were up, sleepyheads!" Alec called cheerfully when he saw the twins. Mindy smiled, Cindy made a face at her brother, and both turned to help their mother. Mindy, who had had no camp experience but had always helped in the kitchen, mixed pancake batter. Cindy cut slices from a side of bacon and arranged the tableware. Their mother put the big coffee pot over the fire and got out her griddle. "I'll do the cooking if you want me to," Cindy offered. "No, thank you, dear," her mother declined. "I'll feel better if I keep busy." "Hello, neighbors." Granny Brent had come out of her wagon and was about to start a breakfast fire. White-haired and wrinkled, but not stooped or stiff, Granny had spent much time in wagons and knew exactly how to do everything. She smiled in her wonderfully gentle fashion. "Well, well! So the other twin has arrived! Do come here, child, and let me look at you!" Mindy went trustingly over to become acquainted with Granny Brent. Cindy and Alec and their father waved gaily to the old lady, and Mrs. Simpson's face became less troubled. Granny and Gramps were living proof that people could dare to cross a new frontier and live. They'd come to Kansas many years ago, and this was to be their third homestead. Mrs. Simpson pushed the sizzling bacon slices to one side, poured batter onto the hot griddle. As soon as they were cooked, she scooped the golden-brown pancakes into a covered dish that was near enough to the fire to stay warm. Finally she called: "Breakfast!" The family ate hungrily for, as the children's mother remarked, it did seem that life in the open air gave all of them the appetites of horses that had gone without hay for a week. As soon as everyone had finished, Mr. Simpson went over to plan with Pete Brent. Cindy got out the big dishpan and Mindy prepared to help her, but again Mrs. Simpson waved them aside. "Leave the dish washing up to me," she said. "I must have something to do. You children run along, and Cindamine, please stay out of trouble." "I will," Cindy promised. "Let's take a walk," Alec suggested. The three children walked south along the line of camps, marveling at the people who had gathered here. Next to Pete Brent's wagon was a lean and fiercely bearded man who had no camp except a bed roll thrown on the ground. He had no possessions except the bed roll, a few cooking utensils, and a beautiful race horse that he was forever either grooming or exercising. He was grooming it when the children passed, and they hurried because the bearded man was an unfriendly person who seldom spoke to anyone. Then came three camps, one behind the other. The first belonged to an old man with a sorry-looking mule and a small tent. A little to one side and about thirty feet away was a tent belonging to two young men who owned a smart buggy, or light wagon, drawn by two handsome horses. The young men seemed little interested in anything except having a good time. Directly behind them was another wagon occupied by a tired-looking man, an equally tired woman, and four lively children. Scrawled in black paint on the wagon's cover was: FROZE OUT IN MINNYSOTA. FLOODED OUT IN ILLYNOIS. BURNT OUT IN NEBRASKY. GRASSHOPPERED OUT IN KANSAS. MAKE OUT IN OKLYHOMY. For as far as the children could see in either direction were tents, wagons, bed rolls, and even a few caves dug into the earth. These camps were occupied by men, women, and children who, almost without exception, had two things in common. They were very poor people who had never been able to buy land of their own, and they had never given up the idea that to have some would be glorious. So these they shared: poverty and dreams. There were very few among them whose camps, rigs, teams, or dress indicated that they had any money to spare. Directly across were a dozen tents wherein lived a detachment of the soldiers who were guarding the border. Formerly their job had been to look after the Indians, and to see that no Boomers were allowed to stay in Oklahoma. Now they were patrolling the border to see that nobody crossed before they should, and to evict any who did. Even as Cindy, Mindy, and Alec watched, eight of these soldiers in the command of a jovial-looking sergeant came in sight. With them rode eight sullen-faced men. The sergeant called to the people who gathered to watch, "Make way there! These men crossed a little sooner than they should, and we caught them!" The soldiers took their captives between the lines of watching people, most of whom were angry. Women glared at the prisoners. Men clenched their fists. Near Cindy, Mindy, and Alec, a middle-aged man started talking to a younger one. "Sooner than they should, huh?" he growled. "Bet these 'Sooners' got most of the good claims already staked or are waitin' in there to stake 'em!" "Sooners, huh?" the young man said. "Good name for 'em, pop. I'd sooner draw a bead on one of 'em than on a rattlesnake. Got no use for anyone who won't wait for the openin' gun an' take his chances with the rest." The name spread among the assembled people, and there were more angry murmurings about the Sooners. "Sergeant!" a man called. "Leave these Sooners with us! We'd like to talk with 'em." "Now, now," the sergeant grinned. "I can't do that." A little way from the crowd he stopped his prisoners, waved a piece of paper, and addressed the Sooners. "Got your names here, boys, and I aim to spread 'em," he said. "Go back across if you think it's healthy. But I guess you know what people here think of Sooners." The soldiers wheeled and rode back across the border. As soon as they were far enough away, the muttering people closed in. Putting spurs to their horses, the Sooners galloped away as fast as they could. CHAPTER FOUR Ready for the Run A couple of days later, Alec sat near the Simpsons' wagon, watching his father exercise Sunshine. Controlling the beautiful mare entirely by the way he swayed his body and with a very light touch on the reins, Jed Simpson put Sunshine into a canter. Then he drew her back to a trot, and Alec sighed wistfully. Tomorrow was April 22, the day of the great Run, and it was impossible not to share the excitement that mounted all along the border. Alec tried hard to calm down. He was not going to make the ride into Oklahoma, and he knew it. His father had asked him to stay with the wagon and take care of his mother and sisters. Duty was plain, and there could be no shirking. All the Simpsons had to work together for the good of all. He must not, Alec told himself, even wish that he could make the ride. But because he couldn't help wishing, he felt a little guilty. His father brought Sunshine back, staked her on the picket rope, and began to rub her down. "She's in shape," he called to his son. "She'll make it." Alec said, "I'm sure she will." "Come a little closer, will you, Alec?" Alec went nearer, and his father lowered his voice. "I want to talk to you confidentially, son. You'll take good care of your mother and the twins?" "Yes, Dad." Mr. Simpson grinned nervously, and Alec sensed that he too had given way to the general excitement. His father spoke again, "I know I can depend on you." "Yes, you can." "Pete and I are going as light as possible, with only a little food," Mr. Simpson said. "The important thing is to get the claims staked. Nor do I want your mother out there until there is a good house ready for her. I want it to seem like home when she comes. But we'll need one wagon and some tools as soon as possible after the land is ours. If we take Pete's, his father and mother can move into ours until we send for that too. Now, after this crowd gets out of here, your mother and the twins will be all right, and I won't be afraid to leave them alone. Think you can bring Pete's wagon up when I send for you?" "Oh, yes. I can handle the team." "Good. Of course I'll send someone to show you the way. Now—What in tarnation is that sister of yours up to?" Hands clasped around and chin resting on her knees, Cindy was looking intently at a big and battle-scarred old cat that had strayed into the camp. With his tail curled around his paws, the cat stared back at the girl. Presently he rose, walked over to her, and began to rub himself against her legs. Cindy stroked him and continued to watch closely. Jed Simpson chuckled. "What does she find so interesting about that old cat?" he asked. Alec grinned. "I think she's looking at its eyes," he replied. "Why look at a cat's eyes?" Mr. Simpson demanded. "Remember what Granny Bevers said about good luck following us if we would beware a man with cat's eyes? Cindy thought she saw such a man in camp." Jed Simpson shook his head. "That girl gets the blamedest ideas!" Suddenly a big hound dog that had crept up behind a near-by wagon roared his challenge and rushed the cat. Without hesitation, the cat jumped on Cindy's shoulders and turned to face his enemy. The dog charged angrily in, bowling Cindy over in the process. The cat snarled. There was a short, sharp fight on top of the prostrate youngster until, leaving the cat in full possession of the field, the dog ran howling away. Alec and his father, who had started running forward the instant the cat leaped, arrived to find Cindy picking herself up and brushing herself off. Her eyes were shining, and an excited smile trembled on her lips. "Oh boy!" she exclaimed. "What a fight!" "Are you hurt?" her father asked anxiously. "Me?" Cindy looked astonished that anyone should ask such a question. "Oh, no!" "Doggone!" Alec burst out. "If you fell in a rain barrel you'd come out with your pockets full of cookies!" "Of course," Cindy said sweetly. The cat resumed rubbing against her legs, and Cindy looked fondly at it. Sure that she was not hurt, and far too excited to stay in one place for very long, Jed Simpson walked over to discuss with Pete Brent plans that they had already discussed a dozen times. Alec smirked at his sister. "There's something I will believe," he declared. "What?" Cindy asked. "The cat has cat's eyes." Cindy made a face. "Funny boy! That man's eyes were just like the cat's!" "You're sure?" Alec asked. "Very sure," Cindy said firmly. "I wish I could find him again." "Seems he's 'being ware' of us. Guess your magic must have scared him away. Let's take a walk," Alec suggested. "Let's get Mindy to go with us," Cindy said eagerly. "Mindy's sewing," Alec said, and added smugly, "a proper pastime for a girl." "I can sew too, smartypants," Cindy declared. "Then why don't you?" Cindy laughed. "I'd rather do almost anything else. Come on. Let's walk." They strolled among the camps and wagons, and it seemed that every day brought more people who were determined to claim the free land in Oklahoma. A creaking wagon drawn by six oxen and commanded by a bearded man carrying an ox goad came in and stopped. The man smoothed his beard with his fingers. "How far to Oklahoma?" he called to a man who was soaping a saddle. "Hundred yards," the man said without looking up. The ox driver stared across the border. He said, as though he had reason to doubt it, "So that's Oklahoma?" "Yup," the other man continued industriously to soap his saddle, "an' you better not cross afore noon tomorra. They're kickin' more Sooners out every day." Cindy shivered. "It's so exciting!" she exclaimed. "Sure is!" Alec glowed. It seemed that everyone had been bitten by an invisible bug which continued to bite and would permit no rest. Hands clasped behind his back, the man who owned the race horse paced restlessly back and forth, almost as though someone had measured off a space and ordered him to walk in it forever. His cheeks were red and his eyes bright, almost feverish. He looked at the two children as they passed without even seeing them. The family that hoped to "make out in Oklyhomy" were all busy, the man oiling harness, the woman and her oldest daughter piling boxes in the wagon, and the three smaller children getting in the way. The two lively young men were having a wrestling match. The old man was looking earnestly at his sorry-looking mule and saying over and over again, "Now, mule, we got to go. We got to go, mule." "Where you got to go?" somebody called. "Oklahoma," the old man said. "Now, mule, we got to go. We got to go, mule." A reckless rider on a plunging horse rode through the camp. His horse, jumping suddenly sidewise, knocked over one of two water pails that were standing beside a tent. The owner of the pails, a fat man dressed only in red underwear, ran out of the tent and shook his fist. "Come back and do that again!" he yelled. "All right! I will!" The reckless rider turned his horse, came back, knocked over the other water pail, then, laughing, rode off. The fat man raised his arms heavenwards and roared at the top of his voice. Then, shrugging, he picked up his pails and, still wearing only red underwear, went to get more water. A bevy of youngsters were playing tag near by. "Join the game!" a freckle-faced boy about Alec's age called. "Let's!" Cindy said eagerly. "Play tag, when the border's opening tomorrow?" Alec questioned. "Oh!" the freckle-face bristled. "So you're too good to play tag with us!" He swaggered up to A...