Mark was excited.  We were going to Kearney to visit his aunt and uncle for their anniversary.  What made the trip even more enjoyable for him was we were traveling by train.  He was amazed how fast the train could travel.  We would get there by noon tomorrow.  "Forty-one miles per hour, that's awful fast", said Mark.  Just as we went to get on the train, two men got on a head of us. The one man was Marshal Dixon.  He was taking the other man, Walt Ryerson, a convict, to Omaha, to be hung.  Ryerson recognized me.  "Small world, isn't it McCain?"  The Marshal asked me if we had a score to settle.  I told the marshal that if we had, it was settled years ago.  They then boarded the train.  "Who is he?" Asked Mark.  I told Mark he was Walt Ryerson and that fifteen years ago he shot and killed a friend of mine by mistake.  "By mistake?"  Said Mark, puzzled.  I nodded, "he thought he was shooting at me".  I had a feeling this was going to be a long train ride.

We sat across from this talkative ole' timer, Nathaniel Cameron.  He had some stories to tell about him and Daniel Boone.  Mark was enthralled with this.  He even showed Mark his buffalo robe that Daniel Boone gave him.  Boone felt Nathaniel was a better man then he was, any day of the week or so he said.  Now I knew it was going to be a long ride!  I motioned for Mark to sit back and get some sleep. 

All of a sudden I was awakened by a bang, bang.  Nathaniel was off and running with his stories.  Mark was in his glory.  He loved to hear his adventures.  I questioned the conductor when he said we were stopping at Whitewater Junction.  Just then Ryerson said, "Hey McCain, I ah, see you still keep that rifle with ya."  "That's right!" I said.  "You think you'll need it?" Asked Ryerson.  The Marshal apologized for him and said that he wasn't going to be with us too much longer.  Ryerson had to get his two cents in....."You know, maybe I'll come back from the grave for ya. Maybe they'll give me one more chance," said Ryerson.  I told him that I wouldn't count on it.  I went back to my seat.

  "Pa, Mr. Cameron said we're heading into a northeastern". "What?"  I looked out the window.  "Yeah, look at those funny clouds", said Mark.  "Those aren't storm clouds.....", I said.  Suddenly the train began to stop.  I told Mark to stay with Mr. Cameron while I it checked out.  It was grasshoppers.  They had formed oil all over the tracks. I remembered when I was back in the nations I saw them eat everything in sight.  They stripped the crops, pastures, they even ate the bark off the trees.  There was no way we could continue on until the grasshoppers moved and sand was put on the tracks.  I told the conductor I would go back and tell the others what was going on.  Just as I started to leave the train car I heard several shots coming from the passenger car where Mark was.  I hurried to the car.  The door was locked.  I pounded on the door.  I yelled to Mark.  No answer.  I kept pounding on the door and yelling "Mark".  "Your boys with me McCain. Now stay back from that door", said Ryerson.  "Marshal Dixon, what happened? Answer me Marshal!"  I yelled. "He can't hear ya. The Marshal just gave me a reprieve.....by dying", said Ryerson.  "Ryerson, let my boy out of there or I'm gonna break this door down!"  With that he shot at the door.  Lucky for me I had just moved.  "Are you alright Pa?"  I told Mark I was alright and to do whatever he was told.  Ryerson was hurt.  During the scuffle with the Marshal he got shot in the leg.  He was giving the engineer and the crew fifteen minutes to get the train going, or somebody was going to die and they would keep on dying until she rolls. "Like your boy said, I'm hurt. I need a doctor".

I went to talk to the conductor.  He wanted to know how Ryerson got loose.  I asked him if he remembered the two men I had asked him about earlier.  The one was Ryerson's brother.  We told him about the fifteen minutes he had to get the train going.  He said there was no way.  I told him to do what he could and I headed back to the passenger car.  I told Ryerson, that the wheels had no traction, that it could be hours.  There was nothing we could do.  Ryerson yelled "fifteen minutes!"

One of the passengers started to make a move for the door.  Johnny shot him.  "Mark!" I yelled.  "Mark, are you alright?  Answer me son."  It was a relief to know he was ok. 

Mark was disappointed in Nathaniel.  He thought he should do something.  But he didn't.  Mark just couldn't understand. 

I told Ryerson if he didn't soon get a  tourniquet applied to his leg he would bleed to death.  He asked if anyone knew how to apply a tourniquet.  "My Pa does.....I think," said Mark.  "McCain!" yelled Ryerson.  "Your boy here tells me you know something about doctorin'."  "That's right!"  "He says you know how to apply that tourniquet you were talking about."  I'll make a bargain with ya.  You come in here and fix my leg, I'll let your boy and the others go.  When the train reaches Whitewater we'll get a couple of horses and be out of your hair. Is it a bargain?"  I wanted him to let them go first, but he wouldn't budge.  I had to get in that car.  I agreed to apply the tourniquet and After I did I told him to let the others go back to the baggage car.  He laughed.  I should have know he wouldn't keep his end of the bargain.  It was me he wanted.  He wanted to get on my hands and knees and beg for my life.  He wanted Mark to watch me die. I told him he has to kill me straight up, I wasn't beggin' for my life. I told him he was nothing but a braggart and a blow hard whose bark is bigger then his bite.  I told him he didn't have the nerve to kill me. He was getting madder and madder.  I kept pushing him.  I wanted to keep his attention totally on me.  Nathaniel jumped up with his rifle, Bessie in hand.  Ryerson look at him and just laughed.  He knew some how that he wouldn't use the rifle on him.  He told him to put it down.  Nathaniel looked at me with disappointment.  I couldn't believe my eyes.  Here was our chance and he couldn't shoot.  He looked at Mark.  You could see the disappointment in Mark's face.  Ryerson started to laugh. Nathaniel then threw the rifle to me.  Johnny shot Nathaniel in the arm.  I shot Johnny and told Ryerson I could finish him off now.  I told him the tourniquet had to be adjusted every ten minutes or he was gonna die.  I told him the choice was his.  He threw his gun down.

The train pulled into Kearney.  As we we're getting ready to depart the train,  Nathaniel gave Mark his ole' buffalo robe that Daniel Boone gave him. Mark was thrilled.  Once off the train Mark asked me, "Pa, do you think that Mr. Cameron was all he said he was?"  "What do you think?"  "I think he was."  "Well then, I think that's all that counts." 

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