Boone's Lick

The prospect worried G.T. too. "How many shots does it take to kill a bear?" he asked Uncle Seth, several times. G.T. had a habit of repeating his questions over and over again. Uncle Seth told him that the number of shots depended on where the bear was hit but the explanation wasn't thorough enough for G.T. What he wanted was a clear notion of how many times he'd have to shoot a bear, if one sprang out at him from hiding.

Uncle Seth finally lost his temper. "How many licks of a hammer would it take to make you shut up, you hardheaded fool?" he asked G.T.

"I just wish the dern bear would spring out, if it's going to," G.T.

said.

I felt the same way about the men we were going to attack. I wanted the Millers to spring out, if they were going to, so I'd know whether my fate was to be alive or dead. All three of the older men had strict instructions from Ma to see that we got back alive, but of course, in the heat of battle they would have to look out for themselves first. There were no guarantees--or so few that I was still a little shocked that Ma had let us go. I guess she figured it was time we grew up and learned to fight, in case there was fighting to be done on the trip we would be making shortly, once the Stump town business was over with.

All the same, things were happening too quickly. Only yesterday I had been a boy, with nothing on my mind except watching my brother fish for 23

craw-dads, or my uncle shoot the heads off turtles. When the sun was going down I was peacefully helping my mother cut up a dead horse; now the sun was just rising--it had begun to burn away the mist, turning patches of it a golden color--and here I was an armed man, riding off with other armed men, to kill or be killed.

"I am pleased to see there's going to be a fine sunlight today," Uncle Seth said.

"That may be, Seth," the sheriff said, "but there's something I ain't pleased to see: the dern Tebbits."

He pointed toward two men in black coats, just visible through the drifting mist. They were sitting their ski

"Now, Sheriff, reinforcements can't hurt," Uncle Seth said. "The Millers might be having a family reunion or something, in which case a little more firepower would be to our advantage."

Mr. Hickok glanced at the two men in black coats, but made no comment.

"What's the matter, Baldy?" Uncle Seth asked, lowering his voice. "Is it that you think they mean to rob us--or do you just doubt their allegiance?"

"Both," Sheriff Baldy said. "Hush up, Seth."

The Tebbits, if that was who they were, didn't offer to move out of the path, when we came close.

"Hello, Newt--hello, Percy," the sheriff said. "It's strange to come upon you this early. I suppose you spent the night in the road."

"You're on the move early yourself, Sheriff," the one called Newt remarked. "Going worming, are you?"

"We're on official business," the sheriff replied. "It don't do to lie abed when there's official business to be conducted."

"We want to join the posse," the one called Percy informed him.

"There's no need, we're fully staffed," the sheriff said.

Both Tebbits gave ugly snorts at that reply.

"Two Yankees and two boys and you, that's all I see," Newt Tebbit said.

"That's not enough."

"They've got our sister Nancy," Percy Tebbit said. "We fear that dern Ro

"You wouldn't deny two brothers the chance to rescue their sister from a swamp of sin, would you?" Newt Tebbit asked.

It was clear that the Tebbits had managed to put Sheriff Baldy on the spot. He looked at Mr. Hickok and he looked at Uncle Seth, but both of them were just waiting politely, with faraway looks in their eyes. If either of them had even noticed the Tebbits they gave no sign.

24

I believe the sheriff decided there was no way around taking the two men, not unless he wanted to provoke a gunfight before we even got to the main battle.

"If that's the situation, of course you can come," he said. "But I've no money to pay you for your time. How are you fixed for ammunition?"

"We've got enough cartridges, I guess," Newt Tebbit said. "You needn't be concerned about the pay. We'll see what we can pick up once we rout the killers."

"Fall in, then," the sheriff said.

8 PRETTY soon the mist burned off completely and we rode on to Stump-town through as pretty a morning as you'd want. It was the sort of warm bright day that usually put Uncle Seth in a high good humor. Sometimes he whistled on such days, or even sang a ditty or two--"Buffalo Gals," or something he'd learned on the river. At the very least he might tease G.T. by making up riddles that G.T. couldn't possibly guess the answer to.

This morning, though, the fine sunshine seemed to have no effect on him.

He was lost in thought again; and Mr. Hickok was no jollier than Uncle Seth. Maybe that was because they knew we were headed for a dangerous fight. But then bear hunting was a dangerous proceeding and bear hunting had never dampened Uncle Seth's spirits, that I could remember.

Stumptown was not a large community--in fact, so far as being a town went, it only had two buildings, a store and a church. When we got in sight of it we stopped on a little ridge to look it over. There were a few crab apple trees on the ridge, with several crab apples scattered on the ground nearby.

"A bear has been picking over those crab apples," Uncle Seth observed.

Nobody had any answer to that.

There was no sign of life in Stumptown. I saw a rooster, walking around on the porch of the store, but that was it.

"It's just a mile to the Millers'," Sheriff Baldy said. "They live south of the village."

We all started to move down the ridge toward the two buildings, but the Tebbit brothers didn't move with us. Just the way they sat on their horses looking at us made me uneasy--I have no explanation for the feeling. The Tebbits didn't seem friendly-- not even to one another.

"What's wrong, boys?" the sheriff asked, when he saw that the Tebbit brothers hadn't moved off the ridge.

"We'd best give that town a wide berth--be a perfect place for an ambush," Newt Tebbit said. "There's some brushy thickets off to the east.

I say we slip around that way."

"Why wouldn't a brushy thicket be just as good a place for an ambush as a little two-building town?" Uncle Seth asked.

25

"I second the question," Mr. Hickok said.

"I agree with my brother," Percy Tebbit said. "A swing to the east would be the safe way to go."

"Who lives in Stumptown, besides Old Lady Mobley?" Sheriff Baldy asked.

"Nobody--just Old Lady Mobley--but that don't mean the Miller gang couldn't slip in and hide in the church," Newt Tebbit argued.

"I didn't send them no telegram, informing them of our arrival," the sheriff said. "They have no reason to hide in the church--or anywhere else."

"News gets around," Percy Tebbit said.

"This palaver is a waste of time--remember that I don't work on Fridays,"

Mr. Hickok said.

He turned his horse, and so did Uncle Seth. The two of them rode up on the Tebbits, who held their ground.

"Ain't we missing a Tebbit?" Uncle Seth asked. "I had in mind that there was three of you Tebbits, not counting your womenfolk."

"That's right, there's Charlie," Sheriff Baldy said. "Why didn't Charlie come? Doesn't he want to save his own sister?"