Elephants and Snakes, Part 2
Families prepared for bed. Daniel kissed Emma goodnight at the fire. He had to be up before sunup to hitch their team and assist with getting the wagon train underway.
Emma touched the belly that was growing beneath her dress. There was a baby inside and she was feeling both joy and anxiety. The women had figured that the pregnancy was about eight weeks along. The kicking that she had felt was only fluttering; something the baby does as it grows. The real kicking would come later.
"And how they can kick!" Vada May Wilt had warned. She had nine children and they were going with her to Oregon to live with her brother. Her husband had been an army topographical engineer and had died in a disaster while in the Colorado Rockies. "A topographical engineer draws maps," she had explained to Billy Riley who had made friends with her sons and visited them often.
Everyone in the Oregon camp had taken to Billy, in one way or another, and was helping him cope with the loss of his mother. A capable worker, he did not complain when it was his turn to collect cattle chips for the fires. He was good at milking the cows, fetching water, gathering firewood, and helping with the laundry. Some of the men had taught him how to trap rabbit and other small game, and young Billy excelled at catching rabbit. Everyone in the Oregon train had plenty to eat.
Emma felt the fullness of her stomach, likely caused from the food she had been eating. Ham or bacon every morning for breakfast, along with considerable amounts of bread made of hardtack, cornmeal and flour; and then beans and an occasional stew for lunch and supper. She had wanted to eat fresh vegetables and fruit as much as possible, but the journey through the summer heat would melt the paraffin and spoil the foods canned for the trip. So she and Daniel had exchanged them in Independence for sacks of ground corn and dried beans and fruit.
The night was cooling and Emma pulled her sweater closed. She sat with some of the other women and helped sew bonnets. The Fazenbaker sisters had shown her how and she was pleased with how well hers were looking. She loved to sew and it had taken her no time to learn how to make her new hats.
"We're gonna need 'em when we reach dry climate," Lettie Bunce had told the rest of the women. Her husband had been a soldier fighting the Mexicans in the Republic of Texas and was now somewhere in northern California. Lettie planned to meet up with him at Fort Hall. From there they would to go to Canada.
"I once sailed to the California Republic," she said to Emma. "'Tis a land of beauty like no other. But like any garden, there are nasty things crawlin' around."
Emma wondered what sort of nasty crawling things Lettie was referring.
"The ground shakes," Lettie said while twitching her hands in front of Emma's face. She had transfixed the girl by how she enacted each word with her body and hands. "But then it stops and the sunshine takes your mind from it. And then it may rain a pleasant sunny mist and make you feel young again. But look out!" She waved a finger. "Old Lucifer makes it rain on the towns until there is only mud. Mud so deep that horse and wagon are literally swallowed up in it. And the only things able to walk across it are his filthy rats."
Emma shuddered at the mentioning of rats.
Lettie glanced at the girl. "Ain't you glad you ain't goin' there, child?"
Emma looked toward the California group, then said softly in a matter-of-fact way, "I hope the fighting with the Mexicans doesn't keep our neighbors from getting there."
The small old woman let out a large, wonderful laugh and said, "Neither do I, child. Neither do I."
The crackle of the fire drew Emma's attention to the water boiling her husband's work clothes. She put her sewing down, took a long stick and stirred the black iron pot. Then she removed the hot garments one by one with the stick and hung them over a line. The boiling water dripped and splashed, scalding her ankles.
Emma sat again and looked around. Many of the women had gone to bed. She sewed her bonnets by the light of the fire and thought of names for her baby. She knew she would name her child after family, but she mulled over the newer names she had come to know. She rattled off the names of Vada May's children in her head. Ira Delbert, Annie Jane, Stewart Nelson, Alva Garman, James Cletus, Jennie Irene, Martha Theretha, Elsie Bell, and Ned Olen. She wondered what futures lay ahead for them.
When Daniel's clothes had cooled she went to them and began wringing out the water. Large round rocks made the work easier, and in no time she had them hanging again to dry. She pulled her steaming dresses from the water and put them over the line. She was looking forward to finishing and going to bed, joining her husband sleeping in their wagon.
Vada May had finished doing her family's laundry and was preparing the food for their morning meal. Annie Jane was helping with the flour, hardtack and sugar. They would be having griddlecakes and bacon for breakfast. Emma looked at Vada May's large, spare wagon and thought of the significant amount of food that surely took up room inside. Plus, the boys used it as their sleeping quarters. And although Vada May's regular wagon was larger than Daniel and Emma's, she was sure it had to be crowded.
"You look tired, mama," Annie Jane said to her mother. "Why don't you sit with Emma and let me finish?"
Vada May gave her daughter a hug and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you," she said and sat down on the log the men had brought to camp that night. They had peeled away the bark and hacked off branches to keep the fire going. Vada May ran her callused hands over the smooth wood and closed her eyes. Annie Jane brought both of them some tea before returning to work. The two women sat quietly staring at the fire. Emma sniffed at the cool June air and smelled sweetgrass growing nearby.
"You sew very well," Vada May said, looking at the bonnet.
"Thank you. I learned from my mother, a very good seamstress."
Vada May smiled and held her tongue. She was trying to keep from thinking of her own mother, but the tears pooled anyway until they were running down her cheeks.
Emma heard her sniff and saw that she was crying. She went to the woman and put an arm around her shoulder.
"Are you okay?"
Vada May shivered away her emotion and composed herself. She smiled at Emma and said, "Yes, I'm fine. Just tired, that's all."
"Oh," was all Emma said, and no more than that. She knew Vada May was keeping something from her, but she respected the woman's privacy.
The weary woman stood and said, "Annie Jane, I'm goin' to bed now." She looked at Emma and expressed regret with her sorrowful eyes. Then she forced a small but sincere smile and said, "Good night, Emma. God bless you, child."
Emma said goodnight and watched Vada May climb into her wagon. Then Emma stood and went to work at finishing the laundry so she too could go to bed. Wolves howled in the distance and she heard the night watchman walking past her wagon. The soldier peered away from Emma and Annie Jane, looking in the direction of the woods and said nothing.
Emma wondered what dangers lurked in the darkness. Then a scream from Vada May's wagon curdled Emma's blood and sent her heart into her throat.
"Mama," Annie Jane cried and ran toward the wagon. The sentry sped past her and reached the wagon first. Crying children had started climbing from beneath the wagon and the sentry stepped out with their mother in his arms. She looked dead. He laid her on the ground as others responded to the scream and crowded around.
"Get me some saleratus and vinegar," he ordered. "She's been bitten by a rattler." He took out a knife and began cutting at her arm. Then he sucked at the blood and spat it out.
"I need some cloth for a tourniquet. Quickly."
Emma grabbed a bonnet she had been working on and ran it to the soldier. He tied it to Vada May's upper arm and sucked at the cut once more.
Annie Jane had taken the younger children away and was trying to hush their crying. The older children stood peering at their stricken mother lying on the ground. The rest of the party stood around praying and clasping each other. Emma had seen the tragedies of rattlesnake bites before. Although no one in her family had died from one, she had lost some horses.
"What happened, Emma?" Daniel came from their wagon and peered over the heads of the others.
"You there," the soldier barked, spotting Daniel. "Go to the sentry tent and tell 'em to send a medic's kit."
Daniel looked at Emma and kissed her cheek. Then he ran in the direction of the army encampment.
Ineta Fazenbaker hurried through the crowd, clutching the vinegar and baking soda to her breast. She practically dived at where the soldier was kneeling. He quickly applied both medicines to the wound, pouring the vinegar first, sprinkling the soda next and rubbing it into the wound with his fingers, and then pouring on more vinegar.
Other members of the party had begun arriving and asking questions.
"Where's the snake?" Ian MacGregor asked.
"Dead. But still inside her wagon," the soldier said.
After a long minute had passed, the wagon master came out holding the dead snake. It looked to be about four feet long. He laid it by the fire and cut the rattle from its tail. Then he cut off its head and threw it into the fire. He skinned the hide and cut the meat into strips. Then he took some paper from his back pocket and wrapped the food in it. He placed this in his coat pocket, wiped away the blood from his hands and watched the soldier spit more venom and blood onto the ground.
Liam handed the army man his bottle of whiskey. The soldier spat one more time before drinking from the bottle. He handed it back and placed Vada May's head in his lap. She was conscious and moaning. The soldier took the bottle and poured some of the bourbon into the corner of her mouth. She swallowed and sputtered, spraying the drink into the air.
Just then, Daniel arrived with a young officer carrying a medical bag. The doctor checked the wound and poured a liquid solution onto it. Then he bandaged it and constructed a sling for her arm. No one said a word as the man worked. Then he said to Vada May, "Can you sit up?"
She groaned as she tried. "I'm very dizzy," she whispered, her voice sounding weak and tired. The men gathered around and helped Vada May up into a sitting position. Annie Jane and the rest of the children ran to their mother. The sentry helped her stand and she vomited. The mess struck no one and it landed safely in a splatter on the ground where two camp dogs ran to eat it. The soldier wiped her mouth with his handkerchief, led her by the fire and helped her sit on the log where she and Emma had shared tea together. She sat hugging her children, crying and holding them, while the young ones cried and kissed their mother.
A man that Emma did not recognize spoke out. "I say, I do believe I have seen the elephant."
Liam, stepping from the crowd, stood next to the man. "But the adventure 'tis only beginnin', Carl," he said.
"I don't give a hang," the old man said. "I have seen the elephant's tail and that's enough for me." He smiled a toothless smile and held out his hand to Liam.
"We're gonna miss ye," Liam said shaking Carl's hand.
Carl nodded to Emma and Daniel as he left.
"Is he leaving us?" Daniel asked.
"Yep."
"Why?"
Liam's answer, "Because he saw the elephant," did nothing to replace Daniel's confusion. Liam laughed and excused himself.
Emma thought of her pendant tucked away with some trinkets and jewelry. She too wondered what the old man had meant. Watching him walk away, she stood hugging her husband and shivering in the night's cold air. She listened as the army medic reminded everyone to check their bedding before crawling in to go to sleep. She squeezed her husband's hand. He hugged her shoulder, led her to their wagon and tent, checked their bed, and kissed her goodnight. Then he left to finish the laundry. She lay awake looking at the stars through the opened canvas flap and waited for Daniel's return.
A child's tiny voice called from outside. "Emma. Daniel. Hello, it's me, Billy."
Emma stuck her head from the tent's canvas flap. Billy stood looking down at her and shivering in the coolness of the night. He looked scared.
"What do you need?" she asked kindly, certain she knew the answer.
"Can I sleep with you and Daniel tonight?" He shivered and his teeth chattered.
Emma smiled. "Daniel's finishing the laundry right now and I could certainly use the company. Come on inside before you catch cold."
The boy crawled into the tent.
"Cover up with this," Emma said, handing him a quilted blanket.
"Thank you," Billy said, still shivering.
Emma knew that the little boy had been through much in his young life and was certain that tonight's episode had frightened him more. She tucked the blanket around him. "Good night, Billy."
"Good night," Billy yawned.
Then she couldn't help but ask, "Billy, what do you know about elephants?"
"They're big and fat and live at the circus."
Emma laughed. "Of course." Then she crawled back into bed.
"I know somethin' else," Billy said.
Emma yawned. "What's that?"
"The day before Maw died, she told me she had seen an elephant. But I didn't see it. Mr. Charles told me Maw had said that 'cause God had told her it was time for her to go to Heaven."
Emma peered at the darkness while thinking of the old man Carl and said, "Oh."
"I'm sorry it wasn't a real elephant, Emma," Billy said, disappointed that he had not been able to tell her what she wanted to know. "Mr. Charles said that Maw must'a dreamt it."
Emma felt the little boy shiver. Then Billy said in a tiny voice, "I hope I ne'r dream of no elephants." He began to cry.
Emma hugged the child and sang him to sleep with a lullaby. She wondered if some people really thought that visions of elephants meant someone would die. But before she could ponder it any longer, Daniel was with her for the night. She put her thoughts away and fell asleep at her husband's side.
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