laugh, but they could not help but snicker. Leroy’s arms and legs were now quite hairy, and although he still had some freckles, he also had more than a few pimples. He had started wearing some of his older brothers’ clothes, and they mostly fit him except for the waist. He cinched the britches tight with an old belt that had belonged to one of them.
He stayed on the farm another year to help Henry and Mary Jane, and things were beginning to prosper. They planted wheat in the upper pasture and with the profit were able to purchase a heifer. Henry’s brother had a bull that they borrowed for a couple of days, and the result was a beautiful little calf nine and a half months later. They still had Smiley, their milk cow, and they had chickens, a sow with piglets and a couple of goats. And best of all, Henry and Mary Jane had a baby boy of their own, whom they named Harold.
However, as time passed, Leroy grew antsy. Although he loved his sister and his brother-in-law, he wanted to strike out on his own. After mulling over his options, he finally said, “I’ve made up my mind. Come spring, I’m headin’ to Texas to find those dad-gum brothers of ourn.”
“And jest how you gonna git there?” asked Mary Jane.
“If you’ll let me have her, I’ll take Molly.”
“Course, you can have Molly. She’d be heartsick without you. But I’ve heard Texas is mighty big. Do you have any idee where you might find ‘em?”
“Well, the last letter we got from Johnny mentioned he was in Fort Worth. Imagine him livin’ in a fort, and me too. That’s where I’m headed.”
“You’ll need to be in a fort with all those wild Injuns chasin’ around scalpin’ people. They would dearly love to get ahold of yore cotton top.”
“They don’t scare me none. I’ll take Paw’s old huntin’ rifle. Might not kill ‘em, but it would scare ‘em.”
“Leroy, you don’t have to go. You could stay here with me and Henry.”
“Naw, I gotta strike out on my own. I’m 15, and I’m darn-near growed. It’s time I started makin’ my own way. Texas, here I come. Yee-haw!”
4
On the Trail
Truth be told, Leroy was a bit scared of Indians. The tales haunted him and conjured up some scary nightmares. One in particular was terribly harrowing. A wild yelping Comanche jumped on him from behind pulling him to the ground with a sharp knife ready to relieve him of his scalp. Leroy woke in a sweat, totally disoriented and shaking like a leaf. His heart was racing, and it took more than a few minutes to realize it was only a dream.
In spite of his fears, on April 15, 1870, he saddled up Molly to head for Texas. He packed his bedroll with a woolen blanket, a change of clothes, some hardtack, a small frying pan and matches for a fire. He planned to shoot rabbits and squirrels with Paw’s hunting rifle on the trip, and he also carried a large sharp knife for skinning and for protection if necessary. In addition, he bagged up some pecans that he hoped would whet his appetite a bit. And Samuel had generously sent him a twenty dollar gold piece along with a note of caution to be careful about spending it or showing it off.
Leroy kissed teary-eyed Mary Jane goodbye and gave a manly handshake to Henry, who bowed his head and said a prayer, “Good Lord, watch over this young man. He’s in yore hands now, jest like Jacob on his trip runnin’ from his brother Esau.”
Leroy bowed his head and said his own silent prayer, Lord Jesus, I’m running towards my brothers. Please help me find ‘em and please let ‘em recognize me and take me in.
Mary Jane wiped a tear from her cheek and spoke with a catch in her voice, “I’ll write to Johnny and let him know yore on yore way. Please be careful, and if Texas don’t work out, come back to Tennessee, ya hear?”
“Don’t fret, Mary Jane. I’ll send you a letter when I find those son of a guns. You can be sure I’ll be fine on the road and mostly careful of who I take up with.”
“Me and Henry will pray fur you every day.”
Leroy mounted Molly and headed for Collinwood, the next town south of Waynesboro. As he came to the main road, he looked back one last time to get a good set memory of the house, the farm and Mary Jane holding the baby and waving with Henry’s arm around her. He feared he would never see them again this side of heaven.
Heading south, at first the trip was full of fun as he felt proud of his decision and very manly being on his own, but by late the very first day, he was already feeling saddle sore and somewhat homesick. He met up with a few other travelers, but “Girl,” he spoke lovingly to Molly, “we’ve gotta find a place to bed down and get some shut-eye.” He came to a grassy area near a creek where he and Molly could get their fill of water and Molly could graze. Soon he had a fire roaring, and he had some corn for popping, but still his belly ached for something more substantial. This was the test he had worried about. He grabbed the rifle, loaded it and crept into the shadows to see if there was anything about worth shooting. His stomach growled and then growled again. He saw a raccoon washing his hands down by the river and took aim but missed. Nothing else showed itself, so Leroy walked back to his camp, ate some of his hardtack, then added a few good sized branches to the fire and unfurled his blanket.
When he did, a small New Testament fell to the ground. It was Mary Jane’s. Leroy’s eyes filled with tears, realizing his sweet sister had snuck it into his bedroll. It fell open to Mark 8:3 where Jesus, said “If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.” Leroy bowed his head and said a quick prayer. “Jesus, if you can feed thousands, could you please provide a little something fur a hongry kid?” When he lifted his head, he saw something gray and white nestled in the soft grass just a few yards away. It was a good-sized rabbit. Leroy quietly picked up his rifle, aimed and shot. The rabbit let out a scream and then fell silent. Leroy skinned it, cooked it and ate every bit. With a full belly and sheer exhaustion from the long day’s ride, he thanked the Good Lord and fell into a deep peaceful sleep until near dawn when he felt something slither across his legs. He woke with a start to see a large rat snake winding its way into the taller grass nearby.
“Molly, you’ve got to warn me when varmints are about. I’m countin’ on you, girl. I cain’t git bit or chewed on in the night with you standin’ by silent watchin’ it happen.” Molly hee-hawed and gave him a cold I-don’t-care stare.
Leroy wiped the sleep from his eyes, rolled up his bedroll and then performed his morning constitution. He debated about taking a dip in the creek, but thought better of it. He was eager to get back on the trail, but he did take time to eat some of the hard tack and a few pecans. He was hoping for a good second day on the road to Fort Worth, Texas, a 650-mile journey as the crow flies. He figured if he could make at least 20 miles a day, he could get to his destination in a month’s time. Of course, that all depended on Molly. She wasn’t as spry as she used to be, so she would need plenty of grazing time and rest. He planned to go slow and steady because he also knew that he needed rest as much as Molly.
That same day, he came to the Natchez Trace, a well-worn narrow path where he joined other travelers, some going slower in horse-drawn wagons and others attempting to rip past him on gelded ponies. It wasn’t long until he made an acquaintance, a young man named Bugger who was also on a mule, though his was not as complacent as Molly, and Bugger kept reining her in from time to time. Bugger looked to be about Leroy’s age and close to the same size. He had bright orange hair and was completely covered in freckles. He had a sideways grin that revealed teeth that were not exactly white, since he had recently taken up chewing
