Chapter 7

The next morning, we continued our trip after taking care of Sunshine. That day we finally got far enough away from the river swamp that the mosquitoes didn't "tote us off".

We ate the last of the turkey that day for dinner and supper. Sunshine was finally beginning to look like she was healing up. I gently felt her breast and she said it was still touchy, but not anything like it was.

I shot a couple of rabbits that day and we had them for supper. I went hunting right before sunset and was able to shoot a deer. That old Spencer rifle was effective if low velocity. The horses got me up during the night. Some prairie wolves had come in smelling the deer and were aggravating the stock. I shot two of them with the shotgun and the rest scattered.

In the morning, Star and Sunshine had skinned the wolves, and rolled up the hides as well as the deer hide. I saw them putting something on the hides for curative, but I didn't know what it was. The deer meat was cut up for drying by the time I had gotten the stock taken care of, hitched and saddled.

The girls made a very good stew, for dinner. We saved the leftovers for supper.

I thought 'Having more than one spouse was really a good idea if the spouses got along. It made for more help, and more love'.

We finally got back to Smith's Trading Post. We stopped and visited and bought some supplies.

There was a man there looking at our wagon. I introduced myself and Star and Sunshine. He said, "I'm Harry Smith, could you use some help with your building?"

"Are you a carpenter?" I asked.

"My father was, and I learned right smart about it from him," he answered.

"I want to build a log house and a shed for the stock. Maybe a barn, if I can get it done with what materials I can get locally," I told him.

"I can do that," he said.

I said, "I can pay you five dollars a week, and your board."

"That is a good fair offer," he said.

"I don't like to bargain over wages," I said. "If a man feels he is well paid, he will work harder than a man who is angry about low pay."

"You have a carpenter," he said.

He led his mare out, and saddled up and went with us. He had an Appaloosa. I asked him where he got his Nez Perce warhorse. He said he got it from a fellow in Missouri. "She is a beauty," I said.

Sunshine said, "You are getting to be a better judge of stock. That man's horse is very beautiful. She has the long legs for speed and the chest for wind, and the fire to make her a true warhorse."

We went to Wildcat Branch. The first thing Harry said was "What in the hell is that?" Indicating the airplane.

I told him it was an invention called an airplane. "It was supposed to fly, but it only flew long enough to kill my dad." Pointing to the cross near the plane.

Over the next few weeks, Harry and I laid out the house and shed site with stakes, cut and dragged logs back to the site and let the bugs loosen the bark. We dug the foundation and began to collect rocks for building the fireplace, and chimney.

I am really glad that we hired Harry. He knew how to build things like they were supposed to be. He knew how to build with pegs and mortises.

He said he thought we could build a good barn and shed with the materials we had.

During the time we were building, Fireball bred all the mares, plus Harry's mare.

Sunshine recovered fully and wanted me to nurse on her breasts often. Star was nearing her time to deliver our child, so she was off sex. Sunshine kept me up with plenty of good loving from her. She said, "Husband, I am praying for a child from you."

"I hope that God will bless us with many children, but I don't know. You were married for several years and had not gotten pregnant. I sometimes think you were sent to bless me with your beauty and good nature. If we have children, it will be good. If I am only allowed to live many years with you it will still be good. Star is giving our family a child now so we will not be without little ones."

She said, "I love you Burr. I will be with you always."

We hugged and kissed for a few minutes, and went to sleep.

We built a slide for moving the logs. The end of the log was placed on the slide and tied down. The slide could move three logs at the time. It took a team of mules for each slide, but Harry and I were able to move many logs in a days time.

Sunshine kept us with some of the hunting. I had to go and hunt buffalo one day. I was able to get within 200 yards of a small herd and shot a young bull. The .56 caliber cartridge did a good job with him. He fell over in about 5 seconds. I went for the wagon and as I drove up and herd moved off. I field dressed the animal and skinned and cut him up in small enough pieces that I was able to load him up.

Sunshine with a little help from Star helped take care of the meat. We cut it up for drying. Sunshine made some jerky, she did many things so the meat could be used and not wasted.

Star worked on the hide. She would work for a while and rest for a while. I kissed her and asked her not to over do. She smiled and kissed me again.

Harry said we needed a froe for making shingles. I asked the girls if we needed anything else from Smith's. They gave me a short list of things, and I took Brownie and Sis and lit a shuck. I traded horses every hour or so and we made the three day trip in two days. I got a froe and the other items the girls wanted. I let the horses rest and get something to eat.

I rested overnight and we took off for a quick trip back. I got in late the second day and heard Star groaning. I got to the tent and found her trying to deliver our baby with Sunshine's help. I kissed them both and said, "I am glad I got home so soon."

Star labored another 2 hours and brought my son into the world. Sunshine put him on Star's stomach. He immediately started sucking on her breast. We cut the cord and Star took care of the rest of the birth. Sunshine and I cleaned up everything and Star and the baby.

"Mommies, I want you to meet Wilbur Adams the third. The finest boy there ever was," I told them. "Thank you both so much for this child."

I was amazed at how quickly Star recovered from the birth. She was getting around enough to take care of the baby herself in just a couple of days. Of course, Sunshine wanted to get a good share of baby holding.

We finished the cabin, Harry rived out the shingles and we nailed them onto the rafter system.

We moved into the cabin the next day. It felt good to have a solid structure around us. Harry had built a door and shutters from the lumber I had bought. We finished up the shed and the barn in another month. I had enough lumber left over to floor the cabin. After everything was finished, I had a whole keg of nails and a part of another, a few boards and a place to keep it all dry.

I told Harry thanks for helping us, he said he appreciated the job and the good food. I paid him four $20 gold pieces. It was $10.00 more than we owed him. I said, "Consider it a bonus for a good job."

Sunshine said, "If you ever want to sell that mare, we want to buy her."

He said, "She is a good horse but just a horse. I will sell her if you will give me and my gear a lift to Smith's."

We made a deal for $100 cash.

I told him to just take Knothead, one of the Wombles mares to Smith's and we would just pick her up the next time we went.

We said our good-byes, and separated.

The next day I unloaded everything out of the plane and stored it in the shed, and in the house.

I took the plane apart, and we put the seats in the house, I got all the cables from the control systems. I salvaged the wheels, tires and bearings from the landing gear. I salvaged the plexi-glass from the windows. I got what I could of the control surfaces. The plane was pretty naked and I had many nuts, bolts and screws, hoses and tubing. I was using the fuel tanks to store fuel that I was using from time to time to refuel the camp stove and lantern when the girls wanted to use them. Now I was unconcerned if the plane caught fire it would only burn up the plane, and not anything else.

I guess all the baby nuzzling and holding had an effect on Sunshine, as she turned up pregnant in the fall. She was so excited I thought she would have a fit. "I knew God would not give me a man like you and not give me your children," Sunshine said.

Wilbur III was very healthy and happy. I told Star that I was happy when I nursed from her beautiful breasts. She laughed and said, "You will still be nursing from these when your son has long since stopped, my husband."

Star and Sunshine both spoke Cherokee to Trey, and I spoke English to him, so he would be able to speak both languages with ease.

We all went to the Tribal council meeting in the winter. We had made arrangements for Hawk to stay at our place and take care of the stock while we were gone.

The council met, everyone visited and talked. Owl Feather brought me up for tribal membership since I had married two members of the tribe and was raising my children on tribal lands. The girls had obviously been singing my praises among the women, because the vote went quickly and positively.

I was asked to speak, so I gave a short, thank you speech in my poor Cherokee. I asked Sunshine to come and speak for me since my Cherokee was not as fluent as I would like.

I asked for the tribe to lease me 1000 acres of land at Wildcat Branch, for us to raise horses and cattle and to raise my family on. They did not understand lease. So I explained it was like I owned it, but that I was only using it and it would return to tribal ownership, at the end of the lease term.

There was a good bit of discussion. Basically the tribe did not work that way; everyone owned everything. I said, "White men don't understand that method of sharing, and they will try their best to run you off from this place if you don't make a strong claim."

"I suggest that you have the treaty boundaries surveyed and recorded. It will be expensive, but it will make your claim solid in a court, if you have to evict someone," I suggested.

"I also suggest you form a constabulary for Cherokee lands, and work with the Federal Judge in Fort Smith to make sure the law is obeyed."

The council asked me to see to having the boundaries surveyed, marked and recorded. They also asked me to be the first constable. I told them I would, but I needed to have some other men volunteer to work with me on both projects.

I had four volunteers to work with me on the boundary marking, and 3 volunteers to work with me as constables.

Does anyone have any money that can be given toward the boundary surveying and recording. Gold, silver or cash will be suitable, I said.

Two men came forward and said they knew where some money was. They were to take me to get it after the council meeting.

The last day of the meeting, a woman came walking into the camp and fainted. It turned out that this woman was Black Swan, Star's aunt on her father's side, her Dad's baby sister. She told us that her husband had been riding and his horse stumbled and fell on him. The horse and rider were both fatalities. Star was her only kin, so the only thing to do was ask her to come and live with us. We loaded them all up on the wagon and Sunshine drove Belle and Barney to pick up her aunt's things.

I took Brownie and Knothead to go with Fox and White Otter to see what they had in the way of money. Fox and White Otter both spoke passable English, and I spoke passable Cherokee, so we got along alright.

It was cold sleeping on the ground, but we made out for the two day trip to the first money. It was a strong box with Confederate cash and some Yankee gold pieces. I figured we could use the paper for something, so I kept it. The gold was $400.00. I told them that this was a wonderful find for the tribe, since it would almost pay for the surveying, I thought.

We traveled for two more days, and got to the second stash. Fox said he saw three men come and bury this money. He dug it up and moved it. It was all paper money. I told him I hoped it was Yankee money, since confederate money was worthless except to write on the paper. As it turned out it was Yankee money. From the writing on the canvas bag, I figured it was a military payroll. It contained $1400.00. I hoped it was still good.

I told them that I was going to bring their names up in next year's council meeting as being contributors to the tribes well being through this money.

We were all happy with the findings, and went to meet my family. Fox and White Otter rode most of the way and directed me the rest of the way to Swan's camp.

The girls were ready to go when I got there. The neighbors had seen to the burial of Swan's husband. Black Swan was a tiny woman, less than 5 feet tall and maybe 90 pounds. She and her husband had no children in the twenty odd years they were married. She was still pretty at 38 years old.

I put the bag and strong box in the wagon. I told them that I thought there was enough money to hire the surveyors and pay for some law enforcement equipment.

We left for home and had a wonderful trip, with Trey laughing and playing the whole time. Swan was very upbeat considering she had lost her husband.

I mentioned that fact to Star. She said, "She is just a very happy woman. I think it bothered her that she never gave her man children, but she just made the best of things and made others happy with her sweet ways."

"I can see that," I told her.

When we got home, Hawk and I put the stock away while the girls unpacked the wagon. Swan's things were mostly stored in the barn except, what she wanted with her in the house.