Mormon troops were enlisted and set out on their journey from Iowa at the end of July 1846. Some women and children accompanied the battalion, which to begin with had twenty-five army wagons and twelve privately owned wagons.
Five army wagons and three privately owned wagons reached San Diego where they were to meet with Kearney.

King of the Cowboys!

by Stephen Lodge

By chance, I get to visit the set of The Roy Rogers TV Show and meet its star!

   One day, while watching my brother Bobby work as an extra on the Fury TV Show shooting at the Upper Iverson Ranch, I heard gunshots coming from a tree-lined area nearby. At the time, I was busy filming some behind the scenes shots of the Fury Company with the little Kodak 8-millimeter movie camera Santa had brought me on my tenth birthday, three years earlier.
    While the Fury Company was shooting a scene, I pantomimed to my mom that I wanted to mosey on over and see what or who was making those gunshots. She nodded her okay and I was off.
    Making my way across several unoccupied insert roads (nondescript, earthen thoroughfares where chase scenes are filmed), around a large clump of bushes and onto a tree lined lane, I came across the film company that had been making all the noise.
    At first, it looked to me like just another, regular, western movie company, with its grip, camera and horse trucks parked alongside the road in the shade. Then my eyes were drawn to an old gray jeep -- a very special old, gray jeep with the name "NellyBelle" painted on the doors. I began to smile. I knew what TV Show I had stumbled upon.
    As I walked closer to the shooting set, shielding my eyes from the reflectors glare, I could see a very familiar golden Palomino one that was all decked out with just as familiar a saddle and tack. It was Trigger. That could only mean one thing to me. I was finally going to get the chance to meet my idol, Roy Rogers.
    I settled in behind my 8mm camera and began shooting some film, watching through the viewfinder as the director staged a scene between Roy and Dale with two bad guys. I got some good shots of both of them and Trigger.
    On the way back down the road, I passed a guy dressed in Levis and a denim jacket. One quick double take. Holy Cow, it was Pat Brady, Roys sidekick on the show and a long-time member of Roys original singing group, The Sons of the Pioneers. Brady was very congenial, allowing me to shoot close-ups of him with my movie camera as he made faces and told jokes. I spent more than a few minutes with Pat, got an autograph and left laughing.
    I still wanted to meet Roy and Dale. I trotted back toward the shooting set but when I arrived, found it deserted. The crew had moved off the road some distance, and were setting up near some rocks and bushes. There was absolutely no sign of the stars. I turned away, very disappointed.
    As I sauntered back down the tree-lined road, I passed several canvas directors chairs. I saw something on one of them that stopped me in my tracks. It was something belonging to Roy - the very familiar brown, tooled leather gun-belt he always wore, along with his two nickel-plated 45s gleaming from their holsters.
    I looked around. No one was nearby. There I was, alone with Roys guns. I had to try, didnt I? I moved over to the chair, subtly lifting the gun-belt. Man, it was heavy. I had never given thought to how much those things weighed when I saw my favorite cowboys riding hell bent for leather across the open plains, firing two guns at the outlaws they chased.
    I carefully put it around my waist, buckled the buckle. It fit perfectly! I should have known, I was a growing teenager and Roy had very small hips. I put my hands on the gun butts. I had no intention of doing anything more than trying them on, but then
    Excuse me, the voice said from behind. You must have made a mistake, I think those are my guns.
    Oh, shoot, I thought, turning slightly, with an embarrassed grin on my face. And there he was Roy Rogers looking me straight in the eye with the same solemn squint he always used on the villains.
    Uh, sorry, I said, as I began to unbuckle the belt.
    Keep em on, he told me. I want to see how fast you can draw.
    Uh, Im sorry, I repeated. I was just looking and I couldnt resist.
    Keep em on, he said again. Show me your fast draw.
    He took a step closer. I looked down, staring at his colorful, leather boots. Im serious, son. Let me see you draw.
    Slowly I lifted my hands, trying desperately to hold them steady. They shook so much I was embarrassed. I - I cant, I said. I just cant.
Then maybe you better un-strap em like you were about to do before, he said, smiling softly. A man shouldnt wear a set of irons like that if he isnt about to use em.
I unbuckled the gun-belt, handing it over to him.
He took the rig, strapped it on snugly. It sure looked better on him than it had on me.
Here, let me show you, he continued, drawing both guns in a flash quicker than lightning. He began to twirl them. He did several switches - tossing one gun over the other, then backward, over his shoulders, catching them both in opposite hands. He did a little dance with the guns, a short juggling act, then swiftly spun both again, holstering them just a quickly as he had drawn.
You see, son, Rogers went on. A mans guns are something real personal, like that camera of yours over there. You wouldnt want someone coming along and taking pictures with your camera when you werent around, now would you?
I had forgotten my camera. I had set it down on the same canvas chair where the gun-belt had been hanging and forgotten about it completely.
I, uh, sorry was all I seemed to be able to say.
Well, just remember, said Roy. Never touch another mans guns if you dont intend on using em.
I nodded. I had gotten his message.
He turned and walked toward the set and that was the last I saw of him.
I made my way back to the Fury location. I waited until we were in the car and on our way home before I told my brother about meeting The King of the Cowboys. Boy was he upset.

COMING SOON
Nickel-Plated Dream
_http://behlerpublications.com/titles-lodge-dreams.asp_ (http://behlerpublications.com/titles-lodge-dreams.asp)
IN PRINT
Charley Sunday's Texas Outfit!:
_http://www.texasoutfit.com_ (http://www.texasoutfit.com/)
Shadows of Eagles_http://www.shadowsofeagles.com/_ (http://www.shadowsofeagles.com/)

NIPPER'S GRAMMAR NITS

by Pat Nipper

Pity the Poor Preposition

    Prepositions connect two parts of a sentence and can be placed anywhere within a sentence.They commonly show location or timeliness. A few simple prepositions include at, by, for, from, of, on, over, under, to, up, through, with.

    However, because they are rather difficult to define, they are frequently misused or dropped. Many people now say graduate high school, instead of the correct graduate from high school, or they babysit children rather than babysit for children Then they add the preposition up, as in meetup with somebody, instead of just meet with somebody.These expressions have been accepted orally, but are now, unfortunately, becoming common inwriting.

    An old language rule dictated that sentences shouldn't end with a preposition because it is supposed to precede a noun or pronoun. Fortunately, that rule has become relaxed. Winston Churchill pointed out how silly it was to struggle with writing around a dangling preposition when he said, From now on,ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put.

AN AUTHOR'S RESPONSIBLITY

A few chats ago, we discussed if an author should explain or define every word he/she writes. The following are opinions:

    My opinion about defining words is that meanings are usually explained in the plot or character development. For example, I can call different characters a "Junebug" as long as I apply the appropriate characteristic of a Junebug to the character.
    A Junebug is brightly colored and a harbinger of sunny days, it is also short-lived and reckless. I could use that word to apply to a romance novel female or an urban tough male. If a reader does not know what a Junebug is they should have been able to pick up those traits from the character and say " Oh, a Junebug is a lot like Jane or John Doe. Some writers, like myself, need to invent words, in this case it might be good to give a short definition.
Allen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I, too, think that authors should not have to explain every unfamiliar word to readers. That is, after all, what dictionaries are for, and stopping often to explain such things can impede the flow.However, in certain contexts, it may be advisable to explain when the writer believes that the word is obscure. An example might be the term "Dipsomaniac." H.L. Menken used the word when describing a former American president.
   I had to look the word up, not only because I didn't know the meaning, but also because I found the term intriguing. It means alcoholic, and of course Menken passed on years ago. Yet I can see where the word might have a tongue-in-cheek application in certain instances.But there are also surprises, even when you feel you're on familiar ground.
   When I wrote an article for the carpenters union journal, I used the word "Yankee" to describe one of my grandfather's carpentry tools I inherited. The editor's insistence that I explain the term raised my eyebrows, since the publication is limited to union carpenters, some of whom were still using Yankees in the 1980's. As a result, in the article my grandfather's Yankee became "Yankee (a spiral ratcheted screwdriver.)" Methinks the editor never swung a hammer, but he was still the editor and I still had a feature published.
Brian Kelling

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

   Your message tweaked my interest in word definitions and usages in writing fiction. I belong to a critique group of writers who are professional and published for the most part. This subject comes up from time to time when someone is unfamiliar with a word. Our general consensus is that the following applies: The author is not obligated to provide a definition when a word is in common usage for the genre, setting, era or character. Sometimes a meaning can be inferred without disrupting the story's flow; however, keep it to a minimum. The only other alternative is to compile a glossary for the reader's reference -- not practical for fiction.
Kind Regards,
Fred Boling

Fredrick W. Boling
Writing the West
www.fredrickboling.com

FROM AFRICA TO THE AMERICAN WEST

by Allen Lee

NEGRO GEOGRAPHY AND THE WEST

   Some of my more discerning advisors have brought to my attention the risk of taking historical terms, titles, and vernacular literally. One such tip came in the form of learning whether a woman listed as a widow of record was a Grass Widow, meaning her husband was still on this side of the ground, or a Dirt Widow meaning he was six feet under. Another tip came from an author who advised me that just because a location had a Black signature to it, such as a name or an owner, it didnt necessarily mean that the subject in question had a Black history. This case is exemplified when we study the geographical history of locations that used the title, Negro or Nigger. Old maps and legends throughout the west are chocked with names like Negro Butte, Niggerhead Mountain and Negro Hill, and these are just places in California. Geographic names with Negro or Nigger prefixes can be found in New Mexico, Texas, Alaska, as well as eastern states like Ohio and Virginia. Even Australia has several places with the name niggerattached to geographic locales. For this article, I will start in the American West, return to Africa and come out west again.

    During one of my Seek and Enjoy travel missions in the 1980s I stopped in the southern Oregon town of Ashland and learned of the famous Shakespeare Festival. Just outside of the town is a road once known as Dead Indian Road, since renamed Dead Indian Memorial Highway by the progressive people of the region. One year while visiting, I read a local newspaper during the height of the conflict about the name Dead Indian Road. Someone asked why the road couldnt simply be renamed back to its original title? A local historian responded by saying that the original title, Dead Nigger Road would probably not be any more preferable than Dead Indian Road. This of course got my attention and I searched for perhaps a duel history of the road, maybe a Black settler, miner, or perhaps a race lynching contributed to the earlier title. My conclusion was that the history was based on a Native American who froze to death on the road, with the vernacular of the time addressing Native Americans as Niggers.
   I have not been able to find the article in my records and contacts with Ashland officials seem to be unfamiliar with this phase of the history of the road, but one official was willing to attribute the Dead Nigger Road
history to local folklore.

   I can point to times when both Negro and Nigger could be considered either derogatory or acceptable, depending on inflection and intention, but I dont intend to deal with the politics of the words as much as their historical uses in western geography. Occasionally I like to present the etymology of a word and this I will do to the best of my ability, especially since I can connect both words from Africa to the American West. Most etymologists agree that both Negro and Nigger are transliterated words from Latin Niger meaning Black, they just dont agree as to whether the French, Dutch, or English are credited with the transliteration. Anyhow, both words arise as a result of American colonization, of which all nationalities mentioned were present. From my observation, Nigger in its many variations of spelling, seems more prevalent in early U.S. English than the word Negro. Negro and Nigger landmarks show up all over the eastern half of U.S. history. Several Nigger Run Roads existed in states like Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York, usually signifying a slave escape route.
   Virginia, Tennessee and Florida had Negro and Nigger place names to indicate cemeteries, neighborhoods and work projects. As we move west, both words take on new meanings as settlers and miners use the words to describe geography. A description of a type of coal called Niggerhead coal mined by New Mexico settlers in the early 20th century is discussed in an interview of Grace Penne, born 10-8-1894 , done by Rosalyn McCain in June of 1979. Grace Pennes ethnic origin is listed as German, Pennsylvania Dutch and her family origin is listed as Isabell, Kansas. The following excerpt explains: RM: Now, did he work for the mining camps? GP: I don't know if he was hired; he perhaps was hired by the camp people that had those mines. Judisakes, they had a mine out there. And my sister- in-law is married to Happy Judscak. We used to go down, and take our truck and get coal for $7 a ton, the best coal. They had good coal here at Oakview and Ojo. It was niggerhead and I'll tell you, that was wonderful coal.
www.kmitch.com/Huerfano/oral25.html

   As best as I could decipher from mining vernacular, Niggerhead ores were generally less desirable ores and the term was used for other mining operation than just coal. Niggerhead was also used to describe a type of granite ore in Ohio. Before I go further here is an interesting set of data provided by Karen Mitchell of the Huerfano County New Mexico Miners Page. These statistics help give a clear view of the cultural diversity in the American West around 1915, an excerpt follows: Huerfano County New Mexico Miners Page.These statistics help give a clear view of the cultural diversity in the American West around 1915, an excerpt follows:
   Huerfano County New Mexico Miners Page. Men from all over the world came to Huerfano County to work, and sometimes die, in the mines. The nativity of the 3500 miners employed on April 1, 1915, was reported as follows: U. S. A. White 506, Roumanian 24, Slavic 83, Belgian 2, U. S. A. Colored 248, Swedish 12 , German 56, Cretan 2, Italian 896, Irish 7, Russian 56, Jewish 2, Mexican 602, Bohemian 5, Japanese 41, Danish 1, Austrian 429, Croatian 5, Polish 40, Macedonian 1, Greek 270, Serbian 4, Bulgarian 36, Norwegian 1, Hungarian 101, French 3, Welsh 34, Swiss 1, Scotch 31
www.kmitch.com/Huerfano/miners.htm - 45k

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