The Cowboys Page #5

- ls it clear?

- Yes, it's clear.

Go home!

No. No, l ain't gonna.

- You gotta stand watch.

- l ain't gonna.

- lt's your turn.

- l ain't gonna.

Why not?

l ain't gonna.

- What's the matter, Dan? -

Nothing. Just-- Just leave me alone.

Mr. Andersen, can l speak to you?

Go ahead.

Well, it's about Dan.

What about him?

He doesn't want to stand his watch.

- ls he sick?

- No, sir.

Well, did he break something?

No, sir.

To tell you the truth...

... l think he's afraid of the dark.

Come here.

What ails you, boy?

Nothing.

- You night-hawked

last night. - Yes, sir.

- Everything went smooth.

- Yes, sir.

lf you don't stand your watch,

somebody goes short of sleep.

Carry your weight, boy.

Yes, sir.

l don't steal off you and you don't

steal off me, not even a pinch of pie.

What's the matter with you?

Your house is your house

and my house is my house.

Mr. Nightlinger, you'd better

start being real careful.

How does it feel to be scared?

You think l was too rough

on the boy, is that it?

Yeah, that's it.

Well, l can't say l

always decide right.

ln that case...

...cut yourself a piece of pie.

Move easy. They're kind of jumpy.

They look funny from

up here, don't they?

My glasses!

l'll get them for you.

- Be careful, Charlie.

- Don't worry, l'll be all right.

Come on, come on.

Easy, boy.

Easy, easy.

Come on, boy, come on.

Come on, easy.

Easy, boy. Easy, boy.

Come on, easy.

Be real careful, Charlie.

Don't worry.

Get off him easy.

Just stop worrying.

l found them!

Come on up. Hurry out of there.

Easy, Charlie, don't spook them.

They're crowding me!

Charlie!

Sometimes, it's...

... hard to understand...

...the drift of things.

This was a good boy.

He'd have been a good man.

Didn't get his chance.

Death can come for you anyplace...

...anytime.

lt's never welcome, but...

... if you've done all you can do...

...and it's your best...

... in a way, l guess,

you're ready for him.

Go on back to camp.

All of you.

Go on, son.

What's that?

Little Big Horn.

They didn't even dig

him a decent grave.

Well, it's not how you're buried...

... it's how they remember you.

l guess l better go

into Fort Smith and...

...see if there's been any

Sioux activity up ahead.

Keep the cattle headed due east.

Tell Mr. Nightlinger he's in charge.

Why not put me in charge?

A big mouth don't make a big man.

Cimarron, come here!

Them ladies ain't

got their dresses on.

No, they ain't.

They sure are pretty.

Wonder who they are.

l don't know. Let's go find out, huh?

Girls, come on. Come on.

Hurry up. Hurry up,

get behind the wagon.

Move, move.

- Good morning, boys.

- Ma'am.

Morning, ma'am.

Fine morning, isn't it?

You on a drive?

Yes, ma'am, we're

going to Belle Fourche.

Where's your head man?

That's Mr. Andersen.

He's over at Fort Smith.

All right, then.

What's your name?

They call me Cimarron.

l'm Kate to my friends.

And who's the one with

the pretty pink blush?

This here's Homer.

Hello, Homer.

Ma'am.

How many men you got in

your outfit, Cimarron?

lf you're going by age,

we've got two that's 15.

My God!

lf you're going by what we

can do, there's 11 of us.

No offense.

ln this kind of country a poor

helpless woman likes to know...

... if there are any men around.

l mean, men who can take care

of us as we go along our way.

Well, we're getting

paid a man's wages.

And you look man enough

to earn them too, Cimarron.

Did you want me for

anything, Mrs. Collingwood?

That's Phoebe.

You're putting too much

merchandise on display, Phoebe.

You better cover some of that up

before you come down with pneumonia.

lsn't this a sweet-looking boy?

Wouldn't you like to

come inside, honey?

You'd be surprised how nice

we got everything fixed up.

l think that Homer just

saved himself a dollar.

That leaves you.

Well, excuse me for saying so, ma'am.

You're old enough to be my mama.

Well, if l were, l'd

teach you something.

Like what?

Like manners, for a start.

Morning, ma'am.

Will you see that the boys return

to work while l chat with this lady?

Ma'am.

My name's Nightlinger...

...and l'm in charge of these boys.

l'm Mrs. Collingwood and...

... l'm in charge of these girls.

Well, l just heard from a

highly excited youngster...

...that there were some soiled

doves swinging through here.

What do you want from me?

Madam, you know young boys.

They dream of golden

skin and unbound hair.

Even if l could lock them up

they'd find a way of getting here.

There's very little

l can do about that.

l'm sure you'll handle

everything most tastefully.

lt's a question of waiting for a

more appropriate time in their lives.

Perhaps it would be wiser

to wait until next year.

Or even the year after.

With any luck l'll be retired by then.

The first time should be in

the back of a buggy with...

...a girl they think

they're in love with.

All right.

We'll move on.

You're a charming and sensible lady.

What about you?

Well, l have the inclination...

...the maturity and the wherewithal...

... but unfortunately,

l don't have the time.

- You got them?

- Aye.

Can you fix it?

l think so.

Catch us by suppertime?

Do what l can.

Homer, drop out and help him.

- Mr. Andersen.

- l know.

They've been paralleling us

for the better part of an hour.

- What do you suppose they want?

- The herd.

Now you just go on about your

business like you hadn't seen them.

l'll pass the word to the rest.

Think you can do

something kind of ticklish?

Sure.

l want you to fade back and...

...find Mr. Nightlinger.

What'll l tell him?

Tell him to load his gun

and hightail it up here.

Yes, sir.

- Mr. Andersen?

- Yeah.

l can't find Weedy.

Well, l sent him back after Mr.

Nightlinger a couple of hours ago.

Don't know where the hell they are.

Looks like we're gonna

have a cold supper.

You want me to go?

Son, l wish we could all go, but...

...we gotta stay put right here.

Here's some jerky. Take

a piece and pass it on.

As soon as it's dark...

...they'll be coming in.

They're after the herd.

l don't know who they are

or how rough they'll get.

But right now they think we're

one man and a bunch of kids.

And that's what we're

gonna let them think.

l know you're more

than that, a lot more...

... but this is no time

to try and prove it.

You act like you just came out of

Ellen Price's grammar school and...

...you'll be all right.

Now scatter and get us some firewood.

- What's the matter with you?

- l should have told you.

Told me what?

They've been following

us for a long time.

l should have told

you, but l was scared.

- They said they'd kill me.

- Who said that?

The man with the long hair

who came looking for work.

Don't worry, Dan. lt's not your fault.

You got plenty of guts.

Now get out there and give them

a hand getting that firewood.

Hello, there.

Remember what l told you.

Well, bless my soul.

lf it ain't Mr. Wil

Andersen of the Double-O!

We knew it was gonna take you a long

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