Chapter 9

It was nearing six when Robby came into the yard and went into the mission. “Hi Mom, Dad is coming. I rode ahead. Hank, Tom, Pete, and Captain Shaw are with him too.”

“Is that all?”

“No, Jim, Uncle Harry, and Sylvio are with them too.”

“Did the construction outfit reach there yet?”

“It has. They have some huge horses, bigger than I have ever seen before. They have looked at the place where they are going to work. Sylvio and the Indians have been working on cleaning out where the water is going to flow. They aren’t done, but I heard the head of the construction crew tell Dad that this won’t be too long of a job. When he is finished he is going to do some dredging for Captain Shaw so he can get his boat in close to shore.

“Dad asked one of the men how that was going to be done. I guess they have something called a steam tugboat that pulls a bunch of barges out to sea and dumps them after they are loaded.”

“How are they going to load the barges?”

“I don’t know. Dad didn’t ask while I was there. He must know, though.”

Charley answered that she knew, “They have a steam shovel on a barge that drops a claw down into the bottom of the bay and it closes on a bunch of dirt or whatever and pulls it up high enough so it can be swung around and drops the stuff on a barge. The tugboat then pulls the barges out beyond the bay and dumps them in the open ocean.”

“I wish I could see them do this.”

Berta said, “Maybe Dad will let you go with Pete and Charley for a few days. We’ll see. I will ask him.”

“That would be great Mom, I do want to see the blasting going on here first though.”

“The timing will be right for it is all the same company that does both types of construction.”

“Oh boy! Can I go with you, Charley?”

“It’s up to your father. If he says okay, yes you can.”

The men rode in and Berta had food ready for them. Right after eating, Charley and Pete were headed for the Hacienda for the night along with Elena and Hank.

Charley spoke before mounting up, “Tomorrow morning, come up for breakfast. We need to meet and make some decisions on how we are going to proceed. We only have so much money and we have to decide what is done first and what will have to be put off until later. Sylvio and Marta, you have to be there too. You are as much a part of this as anyone. Brady needs you to get the growing of farm produce off the ground and you are the most experienced.”

Brady agreed, “Charley is right, I don’t know much about planting vegetables. Then there are the Indians who do the actual work. Sylvio knows them all by name. It seems like every time I see them together there are more of them. I know there must be more here now than there were a couple of weeks ago.”

Sylvio laughed. “There are many more. They have all lived here in the past. They consider themselves as much a part of the grant as I am. You putting things back the way they were a few years ago is like a dream come true for them. In essence you are giving them their lives back.”

“Sylvio and Marta, you two can write your own ticket if we are successful in getting the land producing again.” Charley mounted and Berta handed Danielle up to her.

As they clattered out of the yard, Brady said, “We need a spring wagon around here to carry people in. The heavy buckboards are so hard to get comfortable, sitting on for any great distance.” When reaching the Hacienda, Berta took Brady’s hand, and with the two girls, trooped inside.

Berta knew from Delores that breakfast would be served in the courtyard at 8:00. Everyone was there to on time although there was one seating place set, but empty. The Indian servants brought food out and Delores said to begin eating. As everyone took their first mouthful, Charley spoke. “We have a guest who found our place late last night. He was guided here by one of the Indians from the church where the kids will be going to school. You’ll meet him later.”

Don Pedro sat at the head of the table with Henry on his right and Elena on his left. Delores on the end next to the entrance quietly managed the Indian servants going to and from the kitchen. Two plates of sweet rolls came out and placed on the table as one Indian servant went around the table and poured coffee.

Someone said, “Good morning everyone. I finally made it west and here are my friends all together enjoying breakfast.” Delores motioned for a servant to take George Cosgood’s plate to the kitchen to be filled. While this was happening, George made the rounds of the table shaking hands. Charley, Berta, and Sarah rose from their seats and hugged George.

Brady introduced George to Sylvio and Marta and then Charley introduced Captain Shaw, explaining at the time that Captain Shaw was going to be an integral necessary part of rejuvenating the Castillo Grant. Hank hadn’t known George well, but welcomed him warmly when presenting Elena.

“My dear Henry is now the new Don de Castillo of the Castillo Grant. My father has abdicated in his favor and Henry has taken the de Castillo name. We are young and we look to Henry’s sister and his long-time friends to help make the Grant what it was many years ago.”

George smiled at the beautiful young bride. He bowed slightly and said, “Madam, I very much would like to join you in this endeavor. I have given up my home in Wyoming and hope to make a new one here with my friends. I intend to be of assistance to them if they welcome me.”

“Sir, Henry and I welcome you. Our home is yours as long as you can stay with us.”

“Thank you, I feel welcome already.”

Questions were asked and George answered them speaking directly to Elena why he had decided to transfer to California. “I’m sure you all know this, but I love to run it through my mind how these people have affected me. As you know, my wife died some time ago. I’ve been the banker in Cheyenne for many years. I believe I met Brady and Berta the first or second day they were in town. I thought to myself that the night he won the freight line from Jack, he wouldn’t last long. I also felt sorry for Jack for putting his concern into the pot and he deserved to lose it for making such a foolish move.

“But, I was wrong on both counts. It was exciting for me to see Brady move forward and use the expertise that Jack was willing to show him about how the freight business should be run. Berta was right there beside him. And there was the killing of Tay Frechette. The town was wild, but not often did two men meet in the streets to exchange gunfire.

“And that was a good thing, too. He took care of Frechette’s widow Sarah, and found a way to help make her life happier than she had since her father, who was my good friend, died. Mainly Berta and Brady were honest. They saved their money so when opportunities came they were able to seize them and go forward. Always thinking of others, Brady saved a couple of youngsters who were no more than orphans. I’m speaking of Charlena and Henry Horshack here, whom Brady and Berta made sure had a home of their own.

“Each, though, were much different with goals far apart, even though they were brother and sister. These two used their hidden strengths. Hank, when only fourteen, became a Pony Express rider and made the most of the job. He carried Brady’s pistol. I understand, because of Brady he well knows how to use it. Coming back after eighteen months when the Pony Express closed, wanderlust seized him and he followed his bent to ride wherever his horse was pointed.

“Charley, feeling she might have a debt to pay for being saved by Brady, stuck with Brady and Berta to make their freight line into a being bigger and better business. When it was decided that some warehouse space was needed, Charley said she would see it built and manage the stock coming in on the freight line and going out on the same line. For more than a hundred miles in every direction, if something moved by freight it was on wagons pulled by the Royal Flush Freight Line.

“There are so many stories I could tell about their successes, but I won’t today.”

Brady interrupted, “So, George, why are you really out here?”

“I’m out here after selling my share of the bank I managed for more than half my life. Cheyenne isn’t the same any more with all of you leaving town. That’s for me, anyway. I’ll give the business you sold to the syndicate until about this winter and then it will be no more. They have too many bosses and not enough middle management to be a success. You just can’t run a business by committee and that’s their downfall.

“I had a feeling that from what little you told me about this land Grant that you might need some assistance, financial and otherwise. So if you would tell me what you are trying to accomplish, I’ll listen because I’m certainly interested. Give me some background about the Grant; that would be a start so I can gauge where I can best be of that assistance. Hank, you started this, tell me all about it.”

“Is it okay to call you George?” George nodded. “I was at loose ends with no real direction when I rode by the Hacienda one day. I saw a beautiful little lady struggling to water her flowers. I gave assistance. I talked for hours telling her about my travels. Never really ever away from her father’s land grant, she was intrigued about a world of which she knew nothing. I soon became aware that the grant was in financial trouble. Elena and I sat and talked about how to rescue it. In the meantime we fell in love.

“George, my life is in cattle and horses. I have a good crew but we lack stock. There is grazing land for about six times more cattle than I have now. Elena, the men, and I have been chasing wild cattle out of the up lands. We need to build a home for ourselves and a set of ranch buildings for the men and some for the stock. The graze is the farthest from the Hacienda, which is as it should be. I guess that’s enough to keep us busy for a year or two. It will be longer than that before we have critters for sale.

“I’d also like to get a good stallion and breed some racing stock, but that will be only after we get a full herd of cattle on the land.”

“Why horse racing?”

“Because Don Pedro, at one time had a small race track out behind the barns here and people came from all over to see horses race. It could be a money maker even if I couldn’t afford to race my own; but we would have a good racecourse.”

“That’s good thinking. That’s how Berta and Brady were such a success by not putting all their eggs into one basket. Brady, what are you going to concentrate on?”

“I’m putting back into place what had been very profitable before there was an earthquake a few years ago. I have the Indians living here now who belong on the land. Their ancestors worked the same land. This is their home and they are happy here. Sylvio is a de Castillo and cousin of Don Pedro and is the person who is the farmer.

“He is back now, hoping to resume farming now that I have promised to provide the water he needs to make the grant blossom again with crops. That I have started already to put in place. It is being developed as we sit here discussing it.”

“Please explain?”

“An earthquake changed the direction of a large creek that kept a lake filled, which was used for irrigation. When it dried up, both he and the Indians drifted away because the Grant couldn’t feed them any longer.

“Jack and Tom found a construction company to blast a new riverbed and connect it to where the old one flowed into the lake. Granted there won’t be enough water to fill the lake this year, but there should be by next spring. In the meantime, Sylvio and the Indians are cleaning the irrigation ditches and working in the grape arbors getting these pruned and back into shape. These are close by but separate from the row crops.”

“You plan on making wine I take it?”

“No, theses grapes turn into raisins. They have to be dried, but they are in much demand for baking or just plain eating. Many Muscat grapes have the same origin going back to the beginning of time, but these grapes are fairly large, very sweet and have crunchy seeds in them. Sylvio says we can get enough cuttings to rejuvenate the vineyard and it won’t be long before they will produce a bounty. There is also a small hybrid Muscat that is seedless, but those raisins aren’t nearly as sweet. Those are cheaper to process because they can be dried in the open by the sun. We might try those eventually.

“So again it is going to take time to become profitable. In the mean time we have to feed our Indians and right now we have nearly a hundred who are rebuilding the village they had to leave when the lake dried up. They are industrious and they all work from the smallest to the aged. I just found out they brought some food with them. They grow pumpkins and squash and dry them. The soup they make is quite good. Of, course it is seasoned and they grow their seasonings as well. Those are the staples they are used to. It won’t be long before their diet will improve.

“The land must be run out. Will it produce anything?”

“Charley has the answer to that. She is working on it now. She just got back from the coast yesterday.”

“Is there anything else you will be growing?”

“Yes, there are tomatoes. I had my first taste of the fruit the day I came here. It is very prolific fruit and can be used in several ways even after drying. There are plums to be dried for prunes. Of course the seasons are pretty much turned around because the summers are hot and dry. The rains come in the fall and we get nowhere near as much rain here as we did in Wyoming or in where I came from in the northeast. Water here is a very precious commodity.”

George continued asking questions, “Captain Shaw, I take it you are involved with my friends. How so?”

“Well, I haven’t figured that out yet. A week ago I owned two ships, but I was about to lose them. My brig is in the shipyard for major repairs which have been completed. I don’t have enough money to pay the bill. The yard took it to court and my ship was impounded until the bill is paid. I have about two weeks to find the money to free it. The court also took my sailing papers on my schooner in forfeit for the same shipyard bill on the brig. The schooner isn’t fit to go to sea because it needs a new suit of sails.

“I was about ready to abandon both. That was a week ago. Then this lady, Charley Downs, showed up and I made a deal with her and I am waiting to see if it can be finalized. She is here to see if there are enough funds to pay the repair cost on the Brig and put sails on the Schooner. When completed both ships will be in good repair and both will be ready for sea.

“I do have enough men to crew both ships, but they will need provisions to fill the larders. She tells me the Grant has need of both ships. The plan is to import goods at first and eventually they will be exporting things produced here on the de Castillo Grant.”

“So what is the deal you made with her?”

“Mrs. Downs, in the Grants name will become the majority owner of my two ships. I will be the minority partner holding a 25% ownership.”

“That seems excessive. Why would you go for that?”

“Well, I’m on the very edge of losing the ships because the court is going to soon take the ships and award them to the shipyard for the bill on repairs to the brig. There is another reason I’m interested that has tipped the scales in her favor. She has talked about having the berths dredged near the pier so my ships can tie up and load and unload without using lighters and tenders to move goods from further out in the bay. If that can be accomplished, my time at sea will increase by 20% which will be as good as money in the bank.”

“This sounds really costly.”

“It is. The village won’t come up with the money, but they have had it estimated. I was able to talk to the construction company about it yesterday because it is the same company who is doing the blasting for Brady’s project in turning the creek water here on the Grant.”

George grinned, “I might have known that Charley would be involved with something such as this. Charley, tell me your plans.”

“George, I may have bit off more than I should have. But if it all comes together, the Grant will benefit and the coast town where this is located will thrive again. Pete and I will probably move there more or less permanently. There are warehouses that can be bought for little or nothing. Businesses and inhabitants will return and again fill the houses and shops. That should keep Captain Shaw’s ships busy although the Grant will have first priority. After all Hank is my brother and he is now the Don here.”

“That’s interesting. How come things are so bad? It sounds as everything has gone wrong there?”

Charley answered, “George, I’m sorry I haven’t explained why. There was a hurricane that came ashore and wrecked about everything on the waterfront. It also washed fill in and around the dock and pier. The pier has lost most of the planking and planks will be one of the first shipments of goods that Captain Shaw will bring in. The warehouses I’m dickering for have been abandoned but they can be repaired. I anticipate they will be as profitable here as the ones I built and stocked in Wyoming.”

“Wow, you are ambitious, but then you always were.”

“You might want to get in on the cheap property that has been abandoned. The town is cutting deals to get people to return. They almost have to. There hasn’t been much tax money coming into the town coffers, but they are looking to the future.”

“I’ll have to look into it. What about you Jack, what’s your part in all of this? Are you sticking with everyone you’ve been associated with for the last ten years?”

“Sarah and I have been tossing around in our minds what we can see for prospects. It looks like the Grant is going to need a lot of produce moved from here to the coast and goods back within a few years. Captain Shaw is going to be bringing in guano on a ship as soon as Charley gets sheds repaired to store it under. It isn’t just the Grant that will buy and there are a lot of other farms that will want it. We figure we can start a small freight line to handle most everything within a fifty mile area. It is what we know best.”

George laughed, “I might have known without asking you. You know you might pick up some of the freighters you had back in Wyoming. The concern that bought you out is making a mess of everything and have lost a considerable amount of the contracts through plain stupidity. Some of the men are refusing to go up into Indian country because it isn’t safe without the army escorting the wagons. I figure by spring, the company will fold. In addition, the railroad has taken much of what the Royal Flush handled when you owned it. You people sold just at the right time.

“Maybe I’ll write Tex a letter if I get something going here.”

“You had better make it soon before the men drift away.” George stopped speaking and all were waiting for him to continue. “You know I came out here planning on lying in the sun and letting the world go by. Charley, is there a bank in this town where you are locating?”

“There is, but I understand they don’t have much money to lend. Isn’t that right Captain?”

“Yeah. The bank never was that big. They hold paper on some of the real estate. But they never were into that much. Mostly they lend on stock orders coming into the warehouse. They’d be ripe for a takeover.”

“I wouldn’t want to take them over, but I might go for a partnership. Charley, when will you be returning there?”

“I was planning on going tomorrow. I think Pete and I have enough funds to free up Captain Shaw’s ships. I want to talk to the town fathers about getting the bay dredged and the pier repaired. I was intending to talk to the bank about the cost of loans. At first I was going to ask Brady and Jack about helping out, but if you help by talking to the bank for me, I would use them. With your reputation in banking circles they might. At least the bank might help with the lumber orders for the pier and cover other costs to get started.”

“I’ll help in any way I can. As you say, you need to get the ships out from under the court ordered impound. I’ll be ready to ride with you tomorrow. Is there a decent place to stay when we reach there?”

“There is. The landlady is a sweetheart, isn’t she Captain?”

“She is.” George had been talking and hadn’t finished his breakfast so we left him to that. Delores, Elena, and Berta stayed with him for company.

Hank, Charley, Pete, Jack, and Sarah walked outside with Brady. Sylvio, Marta, and the Captain drew away to talk. Those with him were far enough from them so we could talk quietly. “Charley, what do you think? Should we back George in trying to become a partner in the bank?”

“Brady, of course because we do need financing. I would guess together we have enough money for the short term, but it will take Hank three or more years before he has many cattle to sell. It is going to take almost that long for the lake to fill so we have enough water to grow crops.

“It will take me a long time to get the warehouses repaired. I’d say it will be at least a couple years before I have stock coming in and going out on a regular basis. I’m planning on managing the same way as I did back in Wyoming. For the first year or more, the ships will be used for our own needs in getting everything organized. Does that sound reasonable?”

“Charley, I’d say that was about right. We definitely will need the bank for backup. We’ve used about half of what we sold the freight line business for to rescue the grant. That is what remains but we still have our personal wealth. I’m willing to use a big portion of Berta’s and mine to keep going forward. It is the time before returns are big enough to make a dent in what we have laid out that I worry about. I do know that we want to keep the grant free of a mortgage.”

“Brady, I’ll be using a big portion of my personal wealth for Hank. You and Jack shouldn’t have to do that.”

“Charley, I don’t feel that way. I look at the Grant as a business venture in total the same way we ran the operation in Wyoming. Hank grew up with us and he is the one who gave us this chance to start something new when we sold the old business. Berta and I want to be a part of it and I know Jack and Sarah do too. This is so big and we may be miles apart, but still we want to stay closely involved together.

“Hank and I were so lucky when you rescued us. No one has ever had better friends than you and Berta. Just think, I’m an experienced business woman and only twenty-five years old. What other woman would be in the same position as I am.”

“You’ve earned every bit of it. Look at Berta and me, we’re still in our middle thirties and I guess we can say we’ve earned it too.” Brady laughed and continued, “Maybe Hank has traveled the longest distance. He is Don of a huge land grant and only twenty-two.”

“Yes and you could say he has done most of it from the back of a horse.”

Hank joined in the laughter, “Yes, and I collected a beautiful bride along the way. I’m the luckiest.” Brady didn’t dispute this, but he felt Berta had Elena all beat to hell ... for him anyway.

George and Sylvio joined them. George said, “Sylvio has been telling me about changing the creek bed so when it rains water will fill up the dry lakebed. I’d like to see it. Can we go over there and still get back in time to go with Charley and the captain tomorrow?”

“It will mean a lot of riding. I tell you what. We have a gig that you and Charley could ride from here to town. That way she could take her baby with her if you drove. There is one place on the way where you can stay the night. It is too far to make it in one hitch.”

“I shouldn’t think that would work for Charley. She will be moving continually and with a baby it will be difficult.”

“You’re right, George. Although I want to have Daniele with me, she’ll have to stay here again for a few days.”

George continued, “I’ll like to go see this operation of yours.”

“George, we can leave shortly. You might want to talk to the construction Foreman and ask him about dredging the bay for Charley. That’s his next project and has already signed a contract that Pete talked him into having done.”

“Brady, you people still amaze me. You see an opportunity and before you know it, you are having it worked on. It has always been that way.”

“Yes, well I guess we all think alike.” Brady had a word with Charley and Captain Shaw before they left.

“Captain, you’ve known Jim Bellows for a while. I’m impressed with him and he has been a big help to us, and to Charley especially. I’m asking, is Jim, in your opinion, officer material? I’d like to see him move up in life. I suspect we will have use for him in some way. He might even become a ship’s captain someday.”

“I’ll start him in training as third mate when I get a ship under my command again. He does know the working of ships already. I’ll see about teaching him navigation, although I suspect he knows how already. I’ll need a purser too. That might be the best training if he is working that closely with you people.”

“Well, either; use your own judgment.”

Brady, Pete, George and Sylvio got ready to leave. Robby came out and asked his father if he could go as well. Brady nodded that he could. Sylvio had a few words with Marta telling her to stay at the mission. The five of them cantered right along. It was hot and very dry as there had been but one slight shower a couple days ago.

The group heard a loud blast when there were about ten minutes from the Indian encampment. They were actually nearer the construction site than where the Indians had their village. Robby speeded up and Brady shouted to him not to go near unless there were other people there. It must have been a large charge because they could see rocks falling from where they were.

The construction Foreman was telling his crew to be cautious in case one of the charges misfired when they came up to him. Near the blast site it was a jumble of rocks. Already there were a bunch of stone boats headed there and men waiting with pry bars to wrestle the stones onto the stone sleds, They would be taken out of the creek bed and dumped far enough away not to interfere with a place for the what the next blast produced.

Occasionally you would see a man hammering a metal wedge into a crack of a large chunk of stone, trying to split it to a size that could more easily man-handled. If not, it would have a hole drilled into it and a small charge set off to do the job. All this required teamwork and apparently, everyone knew their job. The blast site was fast being cleaned up. Already men were at working drilling holes for the next charge.

A man driving a small wagon came up. There were casks of black powder on this. Also there was a spool of fuse cord in the same wagon. Another man, walking, was carrying a leather suitcase that had, “Danger-caps” printed on it.

Near the lake bed there was a tent set up and a man sitting at a desk in the shade of it. “George, that person is the one in charge of this operation. He possibly could be the one who is in charge of the dredging operation as well. He’ll know about it anyway. I’ll listen in if you have any questions to ask him.”

We were greeted, “I guess you were close enough to hear the blast. That’s the first one. We’ll get it cleaned up by noon tomorrow and set another one off late afternoon. So far we are right on track to complete this on time.”

George got his attention when he asked if he was managing the dredging operation in the town over on the coast. “No, but the engineer who is, is very good at it. Some of this crew will be working on that project as well. How are you involved?”

“I may be providing some of the financing. The people who are contracting the work are friends of mine.”

“You must know Captain Shaw, then?”

“I do. I met him morning. He was telling me he is in kind of a bind with his ships being impounded.”

“Yeah and that’s too bad. That little hurricane set him back some. The town is his home port. If these new people can get the pier repaired about the same time as we get the dredging completed, he will be back in business again and his ships free to sail, I’m sure he can drum up enough contracts and be profitable. Most ships are being driven by steam now but the coal eats up a good share of the pie when everything is settled at the end of the voyage. His ships will still be at the mercy of the wind or lack off. Still it is cheaper and if there is decent wind, there’s a good profit.”

“He said your company was going to place a steam driven tug there in the bay.”

“Yeah, we’ll be using it to tug the barges out to sea. We are hoping to have the business pick up with all the new changes we are hearing about. We could station the tug there. Do you know anything about that?”

“I know a lot and probably will be a part of it—, financially, that is.”

“That’s good to know. I’m pleased to meet you. We may be meeting again in a couple of weeks.” Brady signaled to Robby that we were leaving.

“Can’t I stay? Sylvio will let me stay in his hut.”