Chapter 7

Rose and Mary purchased red boot stockings to have one for each of them, and all fifteen boarders at the boardinghouse. They bought candy canes and trinkets to fill each stocking, then hung them by the fireplace. They had hung one extra, in hopes that Clarissa would make it for Christmas.

The family and boarders feasted on three roasted wild turkeys with cornbread stuffing, homemade bread and jellies of all flavors, beans, candied sweet potatoes and corn, and buttered apple dumpling cobbler made in a huge pan.

They each had either made or bought a gift for each of the family. The family had then made or bought a gift for all the boarders.

After the feast, with all their bellies stuffed to bursting, they sat around the fire sipping hot cider from earthen mugs.

“We have a surprise for all of you. Jefferson has books with songs and a Christmas story to read to all of you. Mary, Jefferson, Clarissa, and I will begin the songs. Each of you join in as you remember the words. We will have a happy Christmas for years to come,” Rose said as she stood before them.

“This song is my favorite; we sang it at Christmas each year at the church and I wanted to sing it all the year long. Tin Yu, you sit on Eli’s lap, Juni, you sit on Duncan’s lap. When we have sung it, you both help us sing also. By next Christmas, we will have taught each of you to read from the books and the papers and we will have you reading stories as well,” Rose told them.

Tin Yu was happy just to be sitting on Eli’s knees. She loved Rose all the more for promising to teach her to read from the story books and the song books.

Juni Moon was as excited as Tin Yu. She was laughing as she sang along, trying to remember the words.

Silent Night:

Written by: Father Joseph Mohr Austria, 1816

Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child.
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight,
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing alleluia;
Christ the Savior, is born!
Christ the Savior, is born!

Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love’s pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

They all joined in, singing the song over and over. Tin Yu jumped up to stand with the others, singing in unison the words she had now memorized. Her voice was melodious and clear, like small bells ringing.

The last time they sang the song, Rose motioned for all of them to stop, except Tin Yu. She smiled through her words and her tears, as she sang the song so beautifully, each of them had tears in their eyes.

When she ended the song, she was covered in hugs and kisses. Tin Yu was happy.

Once again Rose stood before them alone. She wanted to read the Christmas poem to them.

“Jefferson showed me this poem, written by a man in 1823 for his children. We will always read this poem on Christmas Eve, as long as we are a family.

“I would hope that each of you will read this to your children, so they may in turn, read it to their children, and so on,” Rose said, as she took the book from Jefferson and faced the room of family and boarders.

A Visit From Saint Nicolas published by Clement Clarke Moore 1823

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And momma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below, When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

Now Dasher, now Dancer, now Prancer, and Vixen, On Comet, on Cupid, on Donder and Blitzen. To the top of the porch to the top of the wall Now dash away, dash away, dash away all.”

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky; So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, With the sleigh full of Toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot, And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes, how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath; He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf, And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself; A wink of his eye and a twist of his head, Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose, And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thistle, But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight, “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”

“Read it again, Rose, we want to hear more,” Tin Yu jumped up and yelled.

She was laughing and crying. She was caught up in a celebration she had never known before.

Catt and Eva took their turns, reading hesitantly, but never missing a word as they showed their skills with the teachings of the white-man’s words.

Before the night was over, each of them who could read, read the story to the others, some more than once.

Tin Yu could not read, but she stood at the last and recited the entire poem from memory as she cried. The others were as happy as she was, just to have her as part of the family.

After they had handed out the gifts and the red stockings, the party soon broke up. The boarders left to go to their rooms, telling the family they had enjoyed this feast and this celebration more than any in their lives.

True to her promise, Mary took Clarissa’s hand and led her to their bedroom. She and Clarissa each washed their bodies at the wash stand in the bedroom.

“I am excited, Mary, have you been put with child in your short marriage?”

“Yes, I am with child, as is Rose, Catt, Juni, Eva, and we think Tin Yu is with child also. She is so happy that she is having Eli’s baby. We all are, truth be known.”

“All of you are having his baby?”

“Yes, all but Juni. Would you have Eli’s baby?”

“I hope I am with child when we awake in the morning. I would love to have the tall Cherokee Indian’s baby, if you will let me?”

“Then you will be with child when morning comes, you will have all his seed for the night.” Mary laughed.

“How many times will Eli spend his seed in a single night?”

“I have never counted, but he is a Wild Indian. You will have many, many spendings by morning.”

The next morning there were presents of clothes, gloves and wool stockings under the tree from Santa Claus to each of the family members. Tin Yu and Juni Moon ran to the door to look for his tracks in the snow, but it was still snowing.

True to the wishes of the seven women in the household, they were all confirmed with child by early January.

The winter remained cold and bitter, and they kept the fires burning in the big front room as well as the kitchen. Eli had a load of coal delivered and dumped onto the chute that sent the coal sliding to the cellar. He, Jefferson, and Duncan set about firing up the coal furnace to heat the pipes carrying steam to the radiators in the upper rooms and thus warm the whole house.

Duncan proved to be the best fire starter, as he soon had the coal burning from his pile of kindling, paper, and coal oil poured over it. The small boiler was already filled with water and they noticed the little needles on the gauges begin to climb.

The boiler had become hot and the relief valve popped off, scaring all of them. Jefferson opened the valve that allowed the steam to circulate through the pipes in the house. The pipes rumbled and shook, as the hot steam replaced the cold air and condensation in the pipes.

The three were pleased and shared a big mug of hot, hard cider as the heat began to slowly spread throughout the big two-story house.

Though the wintry winds howled and the cold rain, ice and snow whipped against the windows, the big boardinghouse was warm. They filled most of the rooms with steady boarders and Rose was busy with keeping her weekly and monthly books as the rent money began to add up.

By the time spring first broke through the cold of winter, letting the flowers bloom and the trees begin to put on buds, each of the seven women of the household were showing babies in their belly.

Though Eli and Duncan had been on a few missions to serve summons and solve domestic problems, there had been a lull in the longer treks into Indian Territory. The charges and claims were mounting up in the court clerk’s office, waiting for someone to issue warrants and more summons.

Fort Smith, Arkansas May 4, 1875

Judge Isaac Charles Parker arrived in the Arkansas border town of Fort Smith. At the age of thirty six, he became the youngest Federal judge in the West. He came up the Arkansas River on the paddle wheeler Ella Hughes, to take over the 5^th U.S. District Court, covering the western half of Arkansas and all of Indian Territory.

On May 10, 1875, Judge Parker held court in Fort Smith, Arkansas, for the first time. During his first term of court, eight men were found guilty of murder and qualified for a mandatory death sentence as set forth by federal law. Judge Parker held court six days a week, ten hours a day to help alleviate the case load.

In early May of 1875, Judge Isaac Parker hired 200 Deputy U.S. Marshals. He charged each of these deputies with the responsibility of bringing justice to all who had no respect for the laws of the United States of America – its territories and its citizens.

U.S. Marshals in 1875 drew a salary of $90.00 a month. Deputy U.S. Marshals drew no salary. They were paid at the rate of six cents per mile, whether sent to track and arrest a person for the warrant they carried, or sent to deliver a summons.

The court did pay the marshals and deputies for the transportation of prisoners, and reimbursed them for the necessary wagons, horses or mules, feed, food, and supplies needed.

Historical Note:

During Judge Parker’s 21 year jurisdiction, more than 60 U.S. Marshals and Deputy U.S. Marshals were murdered in the course of their duties.

On September 3, 1875, six men were executed at the same time on the Fort Smith gallows, sending a harsh message to everyone, that the previously corrupt 5^th U.S. District Court was functioning once again. From these first six hangings, there would be seventy-three more, until Judge Parker’s death in 1896.

In the 21 years Judge Isaac Parker sat on the bench, he tried 13,490 cases, 344 of which were capital crimes. A full 9,454 of those cases resulted in guilty pleas or convictions. In those twenty one years, Judge Parker sentenced 160 persons (156 men and 4 women) to death by hanging, though only 79 of the executions were ever carried out. The rest either died in jail, had their cases appealed, or received pardons.

With Judge Parker holding court 6 days a week, in order to handle the load on the courts, he maintained an average of two cases a day. Some say this was his downfall, causing his health to deteriorate rapidly.

Though he was known as The Hanging Judge, Judge Isaac Parker was passionately determined to see justice served and often took it upon himself to request some cases be sent to an appeals court after the jury found the accused guilty.

Judge Parker was one of the first judges in America to champion victim’s rights and always sided with those oppressed, and the families who were victimized by the lawless and ruthless men and women of the American frontier.

Judge Parker had put out a call for all the U.S. Marshals and Deputies in the district, now drawing pay, to come to his courtroom on May 7, 1875. At this meeting, he made it clear to the lawmen serving under him, that all men and women committing crimes against the citizens of his jurisdiction, would be brought to his court for justice to be served upon them.

A new day was dawning, to the previously corrupt and lawless jurisdiction of the 5^th U.S. District Court.

The Indian Territory was like a haven to all who were running from the law, or all who wanted a safe place to hide, while conducting lawless activities in the surrounding states and territories. This included the outlaw members of the various Indian tribes. If such a man had a total disregard for the law, he soon faced Judge Parker.

By the time the first hangings were carried out on September 3, 1875, the word was out. Though some men were of the opinion that they were too big or too bad to be taken into custody, in time, they too were soon convinced otherwise.

“Welcome Marshal Eli Crow, it’s a pleasure to see you once again. This must be Marshal Duncan?” Judge Isaac Parker said as Eli and Duncan entered his chambers after being summoned.

“Your Honor, I am proud to be here serving under your jurisdiction,” Eli said as he stepped forward and shook hands with the judge.

“Your Honor, I am Duncan and I’m also proud to serve under you as U.S. Marshal,” Duncan said as he too shook hands with the new judge.

“I have a special warrant for you two. I have confidence the two of you will bring this man and his band of outlaws to my court for trial. Here are the warrants for the four persons, unknown to me by name, but said to be in the company of Y.B. Yoes, a Half-Breed Indian said to be residing in Indian Territory, up near the Kansas border.

“They have robbed, killed, and raped women and children as they pillage towns in southern Kansas. Some say there are three women riding with him. If you find this to be true, I direct you to bring them to my court as well.”

“Yes Sir, Your Honor. We’ll have them here no matter who they are,” Duncan said as he took the warrants.

Indian Territory May 8, 1875

“Duncan, have you ever heard of this Y.B. Yoes feller?” Eli asked as they rode west.

“I’ve heard of him, he’s known to be a bad man, Eli. I heard he drinks a lot and gets even meaner, killing men and raping young girls and their mommas.”

Their horses were fresh and eager to be on the open trail once more. Before long, their horses were covered in sweat and they stopped to cool them often. They let them have plenty of water as they rode alongside the Arkansas River, in a northwesterly direction.

They saw few men on the trail, and those they did meet swung a wide path as soon as they saw the badges on the two men dressed in buckskins.

In Tulsey Town, early on the third day, they stopped long enough to feed, water and rest their horses at the blacksmith’s shop. Duncan had his horse shod as they ate a cooked meal at the boardinghouse.

“Smitty, you ever heard the name Yoes?” Eli asked as they came back to his shop.

“Marshal, I’ve heard of the man. Not a word of good was spoken of him, neither.”

“Have you ever seen him to know what he looks like?” Eli asked.

“No, but I’ve seen the woman, Annie Salter, that some say is his half-sister. She’s a right handsome woman and wears buckskins like yours. She’s Half-Breed too, Marshal. She has two part Indian daughters that ride with them. Talk is that Y.B. cares nothing about money. The womenfolk ride with him and take all the money and valuables they come upon. Bear in mind now, that’s just the talk I’ve heard told on them.”

“What else have you heard, Smitty?”

“Well, I heard old Y.B. likes pussy and rot gut whiskey more than he likes to eat. I even heard that his half-sister nearly killed him one night when he tried to mount one of her daughters while he was all liquored up.”

Eli took a small gold coin from his pouch. He knew nothing about the worth of the coin, but Smitty saw it was gold and he was pleased.

“Thanks Marshal, y’all stop back by another time. I know most of the bad ones and some of the good ones.”

“We’ll be through here more than a few times, now that there’s a new judge holding court in Fort Smith,” Eli told him.

“Most times, the judges are crookeder then the outlaws, so I hear tell.”

“Not this one. You’ll hear the name of Judge Isaac Parker more than a few times in the coming years. He means business and his mind’s set on cleaning up the Territory,” Eli stated, as they mounted up.

“What do you make of all that, Eli?” Duncan asked as they rode on north and west, toward the southern border of central Kansas.

“I reckon tales have been told about all of us at one time or another, Duncan. We have to listen and sort out what appears most likely to be the truth. That part about him being a drunk and a raper, seems to be what got him pointed out to the judge. I’d make bet on that part being mostly true. Kinda hard to believe that he’s got three women riding with him, knowing he’s about to rape and rob other womenfolk.”

The Marshals didn’t have any pictures or descriptions of him, or any designated places to look for Y.B. Yoes. They just knew from the warrant he rode this part of the Territory more than others, from the reports of him and his sightings.

The Kansas border has no markings, but there was evidence the two were in Kansas when they came upon one abandoned homestead and two more farm houses where folks lived.

Eli pointed to a man, standing at the door of his barn with an old long-rifle when they rode in. They rode right up to him and dismounted.

“I’m U.S. Marshal Eli Crow out of Fort Smith, Arkansas, and this is Marshal Duncan. We’re here in Kansas to ask about a man by the name of Y.B. Yoes. Do you know of him?” Eli spoke as the man lowered his rifle.

“Well Marshal, I reckon I’d know him if I saw him again. He raped my youngest daughter a week ago and took two horses and a cow, while his heathen women held me at knife point.”

Eli and Duncan shared a look as the man told them this.

“Could you tell us what the man looks like and where you think he hangs his hat most of the time?”

“I hear he’s got a small place down in the Territory on the west side of the Arkansas, about ten miles down from the border. One feller told me it was just a mud hut built in front of a cave, that him and his sister lives in with them heathen girls of hers.”

“Can you describe him, so we might know him when we see him?” Duncan asked.

“I saw him good, he’s got three long scars across his right cheek, from his nose to his ear, where some woman raked him good while he raped her – was the story I got. He’s tall, skinny and stinks like hell. He wears buckskins that look like they’ve never been washed and he rides a black and white Indian pony.”

“What about the womenfolk?” Eli asked.

“They all wear what looks like vests made from buckskin, that don’t even close over their tits. They wear moccasins and leather leggings, but only a breech-clout on their naked asses. Them’s some heathens I’m telling you.”

“So it’s Y.B., his sister and two of her daughters?” Duncan asked.

“There’s three of them daughters, but the youngest one is always tied up and even tied on her horse, naked. I saw that with my own eyes and I been told by others, they saw it too. That Annie Salter hollers at her all the time and cackles like a damn chicken as she whips that girl’s ass with a long willow switch.”

“We sure thank you for your help, mister. We aim to rid this part of Kansas and the Indian Territory of Y.B. Yoes and his kind,” Eli told the man.

“You’ll have your hands full, gettin them all rounded up and out of here.”

“Eli, I wonder why that crazy ass woman would tie a naked girl on a horse and whip on her all the time?”

“I was thinking on that too. Seems to me maybe the girl don’t want to be a part of all that’s going on here and her ma’s hell bent on making her like it.”

They rode west until they came to the Arkansas, then cut back south, riding on the east side of the river. They camped back from the river a ways, not knowing really how close they were to the Y. B. Yoes mud hut.

The next morning early, they were in the saddle, riding along the river, off a few yards on the east side.

Eli saw the smoke first and without a word, pointed it out to Duncan.

Tying their horses back from the river’s edge in some tall trees, they took their rifles, ropes, and all their chains and shackles with them as they made their way to the river and crossed on a sandbar to the other side. They closed in on the mud hut slowly in the early morning light, as the sun rose over the treetops to the east. Eli could see the mud hut and the smoke rising from it through a stovepipe in the top and pointed at it through the willows.