Drabble 19: A Determined Departure
Sam had the boys harnessing an extra team and then four more to be tied to the back of the buckboard. This would be a long, fast trip with no outside relief so they had to bring their own.
With the buckboard's sides set, the guest bed mattress was placed in back and tied down.
Mano and Buck carried Victoria out to it. They'd drive with Reno and Roy riding along for protection and to bring the first team home.
Violeta climbed in back with Victoria. Isabella handed her a basket of supplies.
Mano cracked the whip!
They were off!
~HC~
Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who is reading the story and especially to wotwasithinkin, Cathy, Nillis82, and Junebug for your very kind comments on recent drabbles. They are greatly appreciated! Thirty-five miles seems like hundreds when a horse and wagon are involved, so wotwasithinkin is exactly right; pioneer families crossing the continent in covered wagons usually did about six to twelve miles per day, but over short distances a determined group could travel much faster with the proper planning. Hopefully we've seen some of that in today's edition!
There were also mentions of the danger to Victoria and the baby, which is so true. The mortality rate for expectant mothers and their newborns was pretty high in even good circumstances in the United States in the 1800s, but this started to decline around 1870 due to improvements discussed in brief at
Eh dot net/encyclopedia/fertility-and-mortality-in-the-united-states/
Specifically, "The mortality decline since the late nineteenth century seems to have been the result particularly of improvements in public health and sanitation, especially better water supplies and sewage disposal. The improving diet, clothing, and shelter of the American population over the period since about 1870 also played a role."
Much of that still hadn't made it to the frontier and the American southwest in particular, and whipping along in the back of a buckboard for miles on end can't be considered anywhere close to "good circumstances" so that's not to say that there should be any expectations for any upcoming events in this story…
Finally, High Chaparral fans may recall that Reno left the show after the first two seasons. As a fan favorite, who, however, is to say he might not have come back eventually? :-)