Matt returns to Texas on assignment with a direct reference to Season 7's Long, Long Trail and a passing reference to Season 10's Hung High. The situation with the Texas cattlemen & Indian land is based on the history of that geographic area.
Chapter 11 – Plans and Decisions
A new year, 1866, dawned. Matt felt he wasn't doing much to bring a new respect for the law to western Kansas and Dodge City in particular by the routine tasks he was performing. On the other hand, he hadn't asked Lee to marry him yet or turned in his resignation. He wanted to get his savings from the San Antonio bank where he'd left them and to scout out a possible site to begin building a cattle and horse ranch. The San Antonio money and what he'd managed to save so far in Dodge gave him a good start.
Then there was Lee. She had a way of doing things so she got what she wanted. First she convinced him to take her with him from Sherlock to Dodge. Then she took it upon herself to convince Carl and Brenda Weber that the relay station she named Sherlock was a better place to raise a family and a far better fit for a couple than for a single woman whose young man was assigned as a lawman to Dodge City. Sarah Peters would never have done anything like that. As far as he knew she was still waiting for him to send for her in San Antone or, even better, hold the wedding there. Matt had never known a strong woman like Lee. All that remained was to find a place for them to settle and for him to quit his job once she said yes.
It was during the January thaw that a chance came to head south. Washington notified him through Mr. Bodkin at the bank that they wanted him to deal with a situation down along the Cherokee Strip in The Nations. The city of El Paso was sending their top deputy to meet him in Beaver along the north fork of the Canadian River. It wasn't really a town, more a trading post and stage stop for the Indian Agents and other Whites passing through, among them Texas cattlemen seeking a better place to pasture the long-horn cattle they'd roped between there and El Paso than the land immediately around the west Texas border community. If they could graze them near Beaver, they'd be that much fatter when sold.
The problem was the Kiowa under their young chief Little Bear didn't want them there and would do anything to keep all Whites associated with the cattlemen out of the lands they occupied under agreement with the Cherokee who owned the land.
Matt knew why he was chosen. He'd been a Texas cowboy before the war as well as a hired gun along the border in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona before becoming a deputy in Yuma, Arizona to Adam Kimbro before his 18th birthday. Even before he set out on his own at not quite 15 after his parents' deaths, he'd come to know the ways of the tribes living in The Nations and to respect, if not agree with, their ways. He knew nothing much about Roy Tuttle, whom he'd met once when sent on government business from San Antonio to El Paso, except that the man was a scout for the army during the Indian wars before rejoining civilian life after the South surrendered as a deputy in El Paso near where he came of age on a ranch and now worked for another mentor and friend, Sheriff Jim Downey.
Matt's first stop was the stage depot where Lee was behind the counter dispensing tickets to passengers. He waited until the last person in the short line bought his passage to Hays before walking up to talk to the blond young woman who fascinated him so much that if possible, he wanted to keep her in his life. He looked around the room to make sure nobody could hear before starting to speak.
"Lee, you're the only person in town not on the city council who knows who I really work for. They want me to do a job for them down in The Nations. I'll be leaving as soon as I take care of a few things."
"Matt, a real assignment. That's wonderful! I'd really love it if you took me along!"
"Sorry honey. It's just too dangerous for a pretty white woman in Indian Territory even with me escorting her, you know. Then there's the Texas cowboys stirrin' them up who wouldn't mind one bit if you were to share some of their time."
She tried to argue that if she was with him nothing could possibly happen to her, but he stood his ground. There was no way he'd let her be exposed to that sort of danger. Finally, she reluctantly let the matter drop and kissed him goodbye. Matt's next stop was the jailhouse. He hoped Stryker would give him the time off without asking too many questions. Although the older man had relaxed enough with him to allow Matt to call him Josh, instead of Mr. Stryker, the man still considered himself to be his boss.
"Hey there, Deputy. What's on your mind?"
"Josh, it's pretty quiet around here and the weather's good so I wonder if you'd do me a favor? I'd like some time off to ride back to Texas and bring back the rest of my stuff."
"Sure thing. Just be sure you don't take more than a couple of weeks, but then I'm sure you want to get back to that gal of yours."
There were only two more places to stop. First at the bank so Mr. Bodkin could wire Matt's bank in San Antonio to send his depositor's money from there to El Paso with an accompanying authorization for Matt to pick it up there. Doc would then send Matt's acceptance of the assignment. That way Barney wouldn't be able to guess that Matt was the "our man in Dodge" referred to in the telegram asking him to perform the special assignment or if he did, wouldn't think Matt was doing anything more than gathering his remaining gear from his old home.
Matt brought his horse from Moss Grimock's stable, along with a second animal that the government had assigned to him to use as a packhorse, and stepped into Wilbur Jonas' store to give him a list of things he'd need. When the money for that second horse had come through Matt made a big show of buying the gelding from the stableman in case he needed a spare. Finally, he climbed the stairs to Doc Adams' office.
"Be with you in a minute. Have a seat," Doc said before glancing up from rolling pills. "Oh, it's you, Matt."
"Yeah, Doc. It's me. I'm heading to The Cherokee Strip and then Texas on assignment, but you already know that. What you don't know is I plan to look at that ranch you've been telling me about that's between Meade and Sherlock but still in Ford County about 20 miles from here. If I like what I see I'll make arrangements to stock it on my way home. I plan on bringing the money back here, but I'll cancel the agreement if Lee doesn't like the place or she says no to marryin' up with me. If she agrees, I'll file a claim at the regional land office in Wichita."
"Matt, are you sure that's what you want? It would mean giving up your badge."
"Yeah, I know that, Doc. You're the only one who knows about this. I don't plan on resigning unless Lee says yes. I'm not doing much good, but she's the only reason I'd forsake my oath. You'll send the coded wire that I've started the assignment right after I leave so Barney can't give Josh any reason to suspect I'm more than his deputy, won't you? Bodkin took care of the rest."
After a quick bite at Delmonico's and loading his supplies, Matt turned toward the Arkansas, riding due west once he reached it for ten miles before turning south for another ten miles toward Crooked Creek. The southern border of the place was along the creek, but the actual house was closer to Dodge, while the northwestern edge of the property lay closer to Sherlock. It was a small ranch, only around double the standard 240 acres of a homestead, but there was room for expansion onto other homestead land if needed. There might not be enough water for straight farming, which was why, along with the threat of Indian attack, the folks who had it before abandoned the place, but there was plenty of grass and water for livestock and a deep well had already been dug to supply the house, a three-room cabin really, barn and vegetable garden. He'd probably even be able to provide enough hay to feed his herd during the winter snows. Expanding the cabin to accommodate a growing family wouldn't be much of a problem.
Matt was pleased with what he saw. He only hoped Lee agreed. First, however, he had a job to do. He left the shelter of the small cabin, retrieved his horses from the barn and was on his way to Beaver to perform what might be his last assignment as a US Marshal as dawn was breaking the next morning. Of course, he'd stay on until they found a replacement. He and Lee would marry and settle on the ranch as soon as that happened.
Matt managed to cover 40 miles that day without pushing it and arrived in Beaver a day later at dusk. Roy Tuttle, the local Indian Agent, Tom Wiggins, an army patrol and several dozen cattlemen and cowboys were there to greet him along with the proprietor. He put up his horses, secured a room and was seated at a table with Roy, Wiggins, two representative cattlemen, Jake Hawthorne and Clay Hopkins, and the lieutenant leading the patrol, Jim Seaver talking strategy and filling their bellies within 15 minutes.
The two lawmen agreed to ride out to meet the rest of the cattlemen where they were camped along the river along with their cattle while Wiggins would ride back to his post at the Darlington Agency. Matt and Tuttle spent the rest of the evening before turning in finalizing the marshal's strategy for handling the potentially explosive situation. Matt, being the federal man, was in charge and made sure Hawthorne and Hopkins were aware of it as they rode out early the next morning.
By the time the four men reached where most of the Texas cattle were grazing, Matt had a pretty clear idea of where the cattlemen stood. They wanted to lease grazing rights from the Indians at the lowest possible price with the stipulation that the lease would in reality amount to something permanent. Forget negotiating the terms each spring. If they could keep a certain percentage of the cattle in the Strip, those steers would be that much fatter when they reached the railhead in towns like Dodge City, whose depot wasn't finished yet. However, the adjoining stockyards soon would be.
Matt left finding out how flexible the Texans might be to Tuttle while he rode on toward the nearest Indian village to learn where they stood and if that stance was open to negotiation. After a couple of hours he saw two whites tormenting a young Kiowa woman – a girl really – just beyond a cover of cottonwoods beside a pond. Her dress was already torn half off. Instead of riding straight on, he veered off into the trees where he left his horse. Even if this northern stretch of The Nations was barely within his jurisdiction, there was no way he could allow the girl to be molested.
Matt inched forward on foot until he was at the edge of the trees providing his cover. He called out to the two men to leave the girl alone as he shifted his rifle to his left hand and drew his peacemaker from his holster with his right. They ignored him even after he fired above their heads. Identifying himself before firing off another round, one of the men let go of the girl and whirled toward him, shooting as he did so. In the instant the ruffian turned, Matt fired. The man lay wounded by the pond. Matt advanced and the second man turned toward him, allowing the girl to run off toward another stand of trees along the pond to Matt's left. However, he wasn't quite ready to surrender.
The would-be defiler's defiant attitude didn't matter. Before Matt could make another attempt at arresting him, an arrow pierced the scumbag's shoulder and he fell forward like his partner. The brave responsible ignored Matt while the young marshal checked to see how badly off the men were. Then, to Matt's surprise, after other braves arrived to drag off the prisoners, the Indian spoke in English.
"Do you defy my right to punish these two? You are white man, they are white men, but they have done harm on Kiowa land. This is not first time whites with herds have done this. We will bring war to white man's village called Beaver if you cannot show you are different from them."
"I only tried to stop them. Punishment under Kiowa law may be different from what it is under white man's law, but I respect your right to enforce your own law on your land. I'm a United States Marshal chosen by the Great White Father in Washington who sent me here to stop a war between our two people because of men like the two your braves took away. I, Matt Dillon, would like to hear your side."
"I am Little Bear. You come Matt Dillon. We talk and listen, but first you watch."
Matt followed the young chief to where the punishment of the two men was taking place. Matt wanted to turn his face away from what he considered torture. The punishment reminded him of the violent cruelty he'd witnessed during the war. Still, he sensed Little Bear wanted him as a witness along with the girl they'd molested. It was a test just like this assignment was yet another test designed to prove he was really ready to be a marshal.
"It is done. They will die. My sister Spring Dove is avenged. It is time we sit and you listen before you talk."
Little Bear led Matt to his teepee where they sat and performed the required rituals. Matt was offered a bowl of water for washing, food and finally a pipe, in all of which he partook. This seemed to please Little Bear.
"You do not shun our ways, Lawman Matt Dillon. This is good."
As the day became night, Little Bear told Matt of what the Kiowa thought of the Texans and their cattle. They had no objections to the use of their land for the cattle to graze as long as such activity didn't interfere with the herds of buffalo that were so necessary to the tribe's way of life. They also wished for them to obey Kiowa law while on Kiowa land and generally respect their ways. Matt began to feel he might just be able to negotiate an agreement.
The next morning, after enjoying the hospitality of the Kiowa encampment, Matt and Little Bear rode to a meeting ground Agent Wiggins suggested where the North Fork of the Canadian River came close to Buffalo Creek. The chief was backed by a contingent of five warriors, which was matched by Hawthorne and Hopkins representing the cattlemen and Lieutenant Seaver and Roy Tuttle with Matt as the arbiter.
