Building a Dream

Sam saw Sally was blushing and decided to let them off the hook. He said, "Look, your married life is none of my business. I heard enough in the store that I think I know enough about your, uh marriage. All I care about is if you treat each other well, love each other and are honest hard working people. Besides, I suppose folks hereabout wouldn't approve of my marriage either. I have two wives at home and one of them is an Indian. I have her family living with us and helping on the farm. Does that bother you?"

The man looked at his wife and said, "No Sir. If you can accept us for what we are I sure don't think we will have a problem with your family. If that job offer is for real we would be honored to take it too Mr. Pritchard."

Sam looked around at the small poor camp site. He shook his head and said, "It doesn't look like you have much we need to move. If you want we can put it in my wagon and we can all leave now."

Sally jumped to her feet and started to pick up their belongings. She took the first load to the wagon and said, "Thank you Mr. Pritchard. We don't have much left. We have sold most of our things to get money to live on. We sold all our hand guns and kept the rifles to hunt with but we were almost to the point we were going to sell one of them. You may have saved our lives."

When Sam and his new employees arrived at his farm Jane and Dove quickly got them settled in. Sam promised they would build them a small cabin to live in as soon as they could. The next day Saul and Sally got up early trying to make themselves useful. After breakfast Sam took them into the fields and showed them what needed doing. He told Sally she would also have to help with the chickens. He made sure she knew the manure was to be used for fertilize on the fields also.

The third evening during the family style meal Jed, Saul and Sally listened to Sam and Jane talk about her latest experiment. Saul put his fork down and said, "Are you really working on making things from oil?"

Jane looked at him and said, "Of course. Didn't Sam tell you I was a chemist and worked in the laboratory?"

"Well yes but if he told us what you were working on we missed it." He looked at the other two and raised his eyebrows.

Sally looked around the table and said, "Tell them. They have a right to know."

"We all worked for Standard Oil in Cleveland. Well, actually we worked for one of the smaller refineries Mr. Rockefeller purchased in 1872. When he found out about us we were fired. Sally was a clerk, I was a research chemist and Jed worked in the refinery itself."

Jane smiled and looked at Sam. She said, "I can't believe it. We were going to advertise in Cleveland for someone who worked in research there to come help me in the lab. I have a degree in chemistry but it is general chemistry not directly related to petroleum. Would you like to come to the lab and see what I'm working on? Maybe we can work together and come up with something that we can sell."

To his surprise Sam found the three Phelps' only marginally improved his side of the operation but they were making Jane's work go faster and faster. Now the problem was entirely one of money. They needed money to do more research on the petroleum. He was expanding his farming operation as much as he could but there too money was a problem. He could sell more fresh produce than he could produce. He even received telegrams asking if he could ship to Dallas and Ft. Worth!

CHAPTER 4

Whenever he could find the time to work as an engineer Sam worked on designs for several new farm implements and a small tractor. His tractor, of course, was limited by the engine. So far he had not come up with a working engine strong enough to do much work. He was now waiting on his fourth attempt to be shipped to him from the shop he had hired to manufacture it.

Three weeks after the Phelps clan came to work for Sam and his family he again made a trip into Nacogdoches. This time he took Dove with him to help. They found and shot the game he needed to deliver with no problems. After giving it a quick field dressing they put it into the wagon with the other items they brought for sale and headed for town. This trip turned out to be a quick one. They sold all their meat and produce within three hours. Sam went into his favorite general store for the few items they needed and headed for the freight office at the railroad depot. He wanted to see if his new engine had been received yet.

The stationmaster said, "No Sir, Mr. Pritchard. We don't have your freight yet. Why don't you wait a couple hours though? We did get a telegraph that it was shipped. We have a train due in early this afternoon and we can see if it's on it if you have time to wait."

Sam and Dove decided to wait for the afternoon train just on the off chance the engine was on board. They wandered back into town to wile the time away. They slowly walked down the main street entering first one then another of the businesses shopping to pass the time. About three p.m. they decided to have a cup of coffee and some pie at a nice looking café near the station.

The café was across the street from a seedy little saloon and two doors down from the train station. When they turned to enter the café one of the rough looking men sitting on the saloon porch yelled at them. He said, "Hey, you there. This here's a respectable town. We don't allow no damn Indians on the streets and we damn sure don't allow them to go into our café's like they was regular folks. You and your squaw just get on outta town afore I have ta teach ya some manners now. Ya hear?"

Sam felt Dove tense up and start to turn from the café. He gently but firmly held onto her arm. He turned to the man and glared at him then said, "I think you've let the alcohol overload your common sense son. I'll assume you're drunk and overlook your rudeness this time. Now we're going to have our coffee and relax a spell then we'll move on."

The man jumped from his seat and reached for his gun. He didn't have it in his hand yet when he stopped. He felt his asshole pucker and fear surged through his stomach. He was looking down the barrel of Sam's revolver. Sam said, "You almost made a fatal mistake there partner. Now why don't you just hold that pistol by two fingers and bring it over here to me real careful like?"

The now sweating cowboy licked his lips and began to move slowly toward Sam. When he got about three feet away Sam held his left hand out and gently took the young man's pistol. He handed the pistol to Dove and carefully frisked the man down. Sam stepped back and said, "Ok now. Why don't you just start walking down the street away from the station there? You keep going until you're at least three blocks away then maybe you should sit down and think about your day so far. When we leave I'll leave your pistol at the freight office over there. Now MOVE!"

Sam and Dove watched until the man was several buildings away then they went into the café and had their late afternoon coffee and pie. They sat and visited with customers until they heard the train whistle. Sam paid for their snack and they walked arm in arm to the station. Sam watched the doors open on one of the box cars and a freight agent jumped down. He talked to the station manager for a moment. The Station Manager turned and walked toward Sam.

When the Station Manager got to Sam he grinned and said, "Well Mr. Pritchard it's your lucky day. Your freight is in that box car right there. If you want to bring your wagon over we can just off load your freight straight onto it and you can be on your way."

It only took a few minutes for Sam to get the wagon and have the small engine loaded into it. He and Dove quickly finished the paperwork with the station and moved off down the trail toward home. They knew they couldn't make it all the way but decided to sleep on the trail instead of get a room in town.

Near the spot Sam found Jane they were attacked by three rough looking men. Sam tensed when he saw them come out of the lane to the camping spot. They looked toward Sam's wagon and the leader of the three motioned toward them. They turned and began riding toward Sam and Dove. They spread out slightly as they did so and pulled their pistols. Sam was reaching for his pistol when he heard the first shots. He stopped the wagon and returned the fire. He fired three times and was aiming his fourth shot when he felt a tug on his left arm and a searing pain. About that time he heard horses behind the wagon and the sound of another shot from the rear.

Sam said, "Dove get inside the wagon and see how many are behind us."

As Dove was scrambling inside the wagon Sam jumped down on the side away from the rider coming from the rear. He heard him yelling, "We got ya now asshole. After we kill ya we're gonna use yer squaw fer awhile." He laughed and continued, "Hell, if she's good enuf we may not even kill her after. We may jus keep er fer a while."

Sam couldn't see the man behind but he sounded like the asshole he had problems with earlier in town. When Sam jumped from the wagon he took the rifle with him. He was now returning fire on the three men in front of the wagon. He shot one, then a second one. The third one got scared and turned his horse to run away. Sam fired once more and he, too, fell. Just as Sam turned toward the man coming from the rear he heard a shot from inside the wagon. He saw the man fall from his horse beside the wagon. Sam quickly reloaded both his pistols and stood.

Sam began moving slowly around the wagon. He stopped beside the man Dove had shot. It was the man from town. Sam knelt beside him and checked for a pulse. The man was dead. Sam stood and walked toward the other three. He had only checked the one nearest the wagon before Dove was beside him. She was carrying the rifle and watching the two men ahead carefully. They walked to them and made sure they were dead also.

After they made sure the men were dead Dove made Sam sit beside the road while she checked and bandaged his wound. After Sam's wound was taken care of they returned to the wagon and stripped the man Dove killed of his money and weapons. Dove caught his horse and tied it to the wagon then helped Sam onto the seat. They drove toward the other men and Dove stripped valuables from them, caught the horses and tied them to the wagon also.

Dove drove the wagon into the normal camping space. When they got there Sam and Dove saw another wagon parked in the prime camping spot. There were two dead men beside it. Dove and Sam checked them and the wagon for information on their identity. They could find nothing to indicate who they were or where they were from.

Sam and Dove buried the two men beside Jane's husband then made a light supper. The next morning they hitched both teams and took the men's wagon and their own home. It took ten days before Sam felt well enough to take another load of produce and meat to town. When he was there he asked around about the men and wagon he and Dove had found on his last trip. No one knew anything about it. The sheriff advised Sam to just keep everything since he was the one who killed the bandits.

When Sam returned home from that trip they began looking through the wagon to see exactly what they had "inherited". There were several weapons and some furniture. There were two chests full of women's clothes and jewelry. These items were very expensive looking. There was one chest full of expensive men's clothes and suits. The most surprising find was a large security box filled with gold coins. After they counted it Sam found they had over $7000.00 in coins and bills of various denominations.

Sam felt bad about the money but decided since he didn't know who it belonged to he would keep it. It would solve a lot of their money problems if they could keep it. He decided to keep a record of the funds and other items. If anyone came in the future to claim it he could pay it back.

After another week Sam felt his arm was healed enough he could begin working on his new tractor and the farming machinery he had designed. It didn't look like much but he had high hopes for it. Sam mounted the engine on the tractor frame and attached it to the simple transmission he had designed. He already knew the machine would drive roughly. It sat on locally produced steel wheels and there were no springs. The seat was on a large 'C' spring to help absorb bumps however.

It took Sam three more weeks before he was ready to try and operate his tractor. To his great pleasure this one worked! It was slow, noisy and cranky but it did work! Sam hooked his small two bottom plow to it and headed for a plot of ground he wanted to begin farming. He plowed with it for two hours then stopped. He returned to his cabin and hooked up a horse and plow. He returned to the field and plowed with the horse for another two hours. He again stopped and stood looking at what he had done. He plowed three times as much with his small tractor as with the horse in the same amount of time. He was ecstatically happy. Now if his new tractor would just last long enough to be cost effective he might have a winner on his hands. He had to quickly patent his ideas now and find someone to manufacture everything or find the money to start his own manufacturing plant.

After they got the crops in that spring Sam returned to the drawing board. He made all his drawings up in triplicate, described every piece of equipment in detail and took off for Washington DC and the patent office. Sam was gone for almost two months. While in DC he engaged a patent attorney. Before the patent application was accepted they had to fill forms out twice and Sam had to redo some of the drawings for the equipment. When they were finished Sam had applied for a patent on the engine, the tractor, a plow and disc harrow.

CHAPTER 5

Sam took a ship from DC to Port Arthur, TX. He was going to buy a horse and ride the few miles back to his home from Port Arthur. He didn't know what to do with himself. Every since his arrival downtime he had been busy. The trip home had only lasted part of one day so far and Sam was bored. He knew he could find a card game in the main passenger lounge but wasn't interested in that. He went topside and walked to the bow to watch the sunset. Sam walked around some canvass covered cargo and heard a slap then a young sounding female voice said, "You slimy cretin. Keep your hands off me Mr. Diggory or whatever your name is. I told you in Washington I wasn't interested in you and I'm still not."

A man's laugh came from the same area. He said, "Oh, I know what you said my dear but you really don't have much choice now do you? It seems your husband has died and you lost almost all your money and property paying his gambling debts. You really don't have much to live on now do you my dear? You need a man to take care of you and I'm willing to do that."

The female voice hissed, "You seem to think I need a man but even if I did it wouldn't be you. I know you had my husband killed and you know as well as I do that he didn't lose everything in any poker game. He never played for large stakes like you said he did that night and he never played with Senators and other high rollers either."

A disgustingly sinister laugh came from the man. "You say that but I have two Senators that will back up my statement to the contrary. Now who do you think they'll believe my dear? Come on. Make it easy on yourself. Let's go to my cabin tonight and we'll have the Captain marry us tomorrow. You should have just come with me in DC when I offered. Who knows, you might have saved me some trouble and your husband's life if you'd just been a little friendlier."

Sam heard a scuffle and the woman cried out. He stepped around the tarp covered cargo and rested his hand on his pistol. He said, "Is there a problem here ma'am? Do you need some help?"

The man looked over at Sam and snarled, "No asshole she doesn't need any help. If you know what's good for you you'll disappear right now. We're just discussing what we'll do this evening and that discussion doesn't include you."

Sam looked at the woman once more. Her eyes were pleading with him. She licked her lips and took a breath to talk. Sam saw the man flex his arm and tighten his grip on her. He glared at her and said, "Careful my dear. We wouldn't want anyone else to get hurt would we?"

Sam saw the woman grimace from the pain. She slumped in defeat and she whispered, "No."

Her assailant smiled and turned once more to Sam. "There, the lady has said she doesn't want your help. Now get out of here before I have to take action." He began pulling the woman toward the passenger accommodations once again.

Sam decided to take action. He just hoped he had really read the situation correctly and the woman did need assistance. Sam took the remaining three steps he needed to be in front of the man. His fist flashed and he sank his hand into the man's belly. His other fist slammed upward and hit the dandy on the chin. When he fell backward Sam stepped in and kicked him once in the head. The man groaned and slumped to the deck out cold.

Sam stepped to the now silently crying woman. He took off his coat and wrapped it around her shoulders. He began helping her toward the main salon. As they rounded the corner heading down the passageway the First Mate stopped them and asked, "Is there a problem sir?"

Sam looked at the woman. She gave him a pleading look and shook her head no. Sam thought a moment and then said, "No real problem Sir. My friend and I were accosted by a man on the other side of that cargo. I'm afraid I had to be unkind to him Sir. I left him lying on the deck contemplating the error of his ways."

"What was his name Sir? We'll get to the bottom of this."

"I'm afraid I don't know his name sir. I've never seen him before. He just came out of nowhere and began making inappropriate comments. My friend and I really don't want to see him again either Sir. Now may I take her inside? She feels unwell after the excitement."

Sam took the young woman inside and helped her into a seat in the passenger lounge. He got them both a cup of coffee and returned to the table. Sam found out her name was Virginia Blodgett. Her husband had been a young attorney working in Washington DC. She had been a Storekeeper's daughter from Beaumont, TX. Her mother died in childbirth with her. Her father raised her. He was killed in a robbery attempt. She sold the store and went east to college where she met her husband. They were married less than two years when the man who Sam fought came up to her at a party she and her husband were attending.

She had seen him at three or four parties previously and had even danced with him a time or two. She found him boorish and crass. He made inappropriate comments to her at the parties so she began refusing to dance with him. At the last party she and her husband attended he asked her to take a walk outside with him. She refused and returned to her table. He followed her and told her she was making a mistake. The man's name was Vincent. He told her she should be nice to him. If she was he promised her husband's business would prosper. He also said if she wasn't her husband would suffer. Virginia slapped Vincent and returned to her husband.

Three weeks later her husband was killed. He supposedly became angry about losing everything they owned betting on a losing poker hand and attacked the winner. The day of the funeral Vincent came to her and told her she now had no choice. She had to be nice to him or he would put her out in the street.

Virginia turned him out in the street at the point of a pistol. She spent the night trying to decide what to do then decided to return to her old home in Beaumont. She still had some friends there even if she didn't have a job. She sold some of her personal property and jewelry. She took what she got from the sales and money she and her husband had hidden at home when she left. She bought her ticket and left DC. She had no idea how Vincent managed to follow her onto the ship.