‘Of course it would be uncomfortable.’
Max stared at Holiday.
During the Wakarusa War, Commander-in-Chief Charles established ranks based on the town council.
Lane was made a brigadier general, Holiday a colonel, and an outsider, John Brown, a lieutenant.
“It’s already become bean powder by now. Why are you making a fuss about it?”
“……”
“And when John Brown comes out like that, no one will find fault with me.”
“That’s because I trust you.”
Max beat his chest as if he was frustrated.
“There are quite a few new recruits among the Jayhawks’ conductors. How can they know me and trust me? They just keep their mouths shut because John Brown just follows my orders.”
“Oh, so that’s what you were aiming for? Anyway, I told you it was clever.”
Instead of muttering about Marx’s instructions, John Brown actively followed them and blocked out the complaints of others.
By trying to control him and putting him under one’s control, there were side effects.
In any case, there were reasons why people were so sensitive about John Brown’s position.
Even if you only look at Holiday, he will be honored with the title of Colonel until the day he dies.
That’s understandable, as most of those who made their names in the American Revolutionary War, the Mexican War, and the wars against the Indians ended up at the center of American society.
This means that in times of chaos, military rank meant a kind of rise in status, and it could be said that Marx’s involvement in the center of the armed struggle was in the same context.
‘But I don’t have a rank yet.’
The position is Commander of the Jayhawks.
It was also a temporary position until Charles and Lane arrived. Max had no other rank beyond sheriff.
‘Well, I can decide the rank and position.’
Of course, not right now.
*
Whenever you raid a village, Jayhawks will jump out from hiding and hit you on the back of the head.
On the other hand, Border Rufians were repeatedly killed by their attacks.
Harmony between enemy defense and attack.
Border Ruffian, who had suffered consecutive defeats, was gnashing his teeth in anger, but at the same time, he felt tired and helpless.
Acheson read the letter, pressing down harder on his pen than usual.
[The operation was not wrong. However, since they are looking into the information, we need to find the spies. Also, from now on, we need to change our methods and attack the supply route instead of the village. I planned to use it later, but now seems appropriate.]
When Jeb Stewart spoke of distribution, he meant the distribution network between villages.
Attack on the distribution route via the Kansas River and overland routes.
To prevent this, the Jayhawks would have to disperse their forces. Acheson would have to spread false information to confuse the spies, as Jeb Stuart had pointed out.
‘West Point graduates are different. This time, you Asian brat, things won’t go your way.’
As expected, people need hope to be alive. The dark circles under Acheson’s eyes began to fade.
“The information is a bit strange.”
“why?”
Among Max’s bases, there is a building about 40 pyeong in size. The intelligence unit used by Peach uses this entire place.
“I wonder if there is a discrepancy in the numbers.”
Marx broadly classified information into two types.
Directly observing the enemy’s movements or obtaining information in advance. The former has the effect of making the latter clearer.
However, Peach was skeptical that these two pieces of information were different.
“The information that they are attacking the village and the movement of the troops are different. Furthermore, it looks like they are splitting the number of troops into smaller numbers.”
Peach explained the question in detail.
And Max came to one conclusion.
“It looks like the agents have been discovered. Instead of revealing who they are, they’re going to use this to their advantage.”
“Then shouldn’t we bring the information agents out right away?”
Max shook his head.
“It’s quite a tedious and difficult task to uncover a spy. If you dig too deep, you’ll only cause distrust in the organization. They know this and they’ve chosen to use it.”
‘It’s not just people who are idiots.’
To be exact, I felt a sense of incongruity since the last Battle of Osawatomi. Did Border Ruffian change from a chicken to a thinking duck?
‘Fate, John Reed said they were the ones who moved with Stringfollow.’
There is a high possibility that it will be a long and narrow one.
What Max suspects is the involvement of a completely new person. But what remains unchanged is the fact that Acheson is at the center of this.
“Are you still moving around these days?”
“Uh. I’m going all around the towns of Independence, Blue Springs, and Lee’s Summit just in case I get assassinated.”
“In the future, write down and send me an observation log of not only the location, but also who visited and met Acheson.”
“okay.”
It’s clear that their tactics have changed.
‘What are you aiming for?’
If it were true to history, the Border Rufians and Jayhawks would be working together to massacre civilians and burn down villages.
However, due to Max’s intervention, the fighting was limited to between the two forces.
What this meant was that although the Jayhawks were under Max’s control, there was still a chance that the Border Rufians would attack civilians.
And this ominous thought of Max’s became reality a few days later.
Attack on a steamer bound for Lawrence from Green Place. Border Ruffians robbed of supplies.
They took some pretty bulky and heavy construction materials, but fortunately there were no casualties and it could be said to have been a stupid robbery considering the financial loss.
The problem was something that happened somewhere else.
A group of abolitionists and traders traveling from Clarke Village to Leavenworth were ambushed by Border Ruffians, resulting in the brutal murder of three civilians.
Max called all the Jayhawks.
“For the time being, ban the inter-village trade. The supplies that are essential to our livelihood will be supplied directly from Lawrence. The 2nd Battalion will be mobilized for this work, and the 1st and 2nd Platoons of the 1st Battalion will guard the steamer. And the 3rd and 4th Platoons.”
Max looked at John Brown and continued.
“Assault on Fate and John Washington Leader. Do not follow the retreating enemy all the way. As you can see from Stringfellow and Jones, there are plenty of replacements for the dead.”
As the commanders nodded, Max said one more word.
“The evaluation of those who kill civilians and those who don’t is clear. Also, those who go against the flow of the times will destroy themselves. We just have to go our own way.”
By the time Max gave his instructions.
Washington, too, was in dire straits, just as Kansas was.
President Franklin Pierson fails to seek reelection.
He lost to James Buchanan in the Democratic primary. Buchanan, who was the ambassador to Britain, was actually able to avoid the Kansas chaos because he was not in his country.
Pierson’s anger at failing to win reelection was also directed at the governor of Kansas Territory.
– Fire the incompetent Wilson Shannon!
The escape of Lawrence’s key figures.
The continued violence had already proven that Shannon had failed to control Kansas. And Shannon himself was rather relieved of his own dismissal.
– I’m finally getting out of this hellish place.
Wilson Shannon resigns as governor with a hollow smile.
When the gubernatorial office became vacant, the Kansas Territory’s lieutenant governor, Daniel Woodson, served as acting governor.
He was a staunch defender of slavery who stood firm on the side of the slaveholders while Andrew Reeder and Wilson Shannon split.
While the governor of Kansas Territory was being removed from office, the Jayhawks and Border Ruffians continued to fight. In fact, it was a fight, but the Border Ruffians were losing every game.
Acheson’s plan to disrupt the distribution network was not effective after its initial success.
The steamships were protected and the supplies brought in were then sent from Lawrence to each town.
It was not easy to attack, as it was escorted by a battalion of Jayhawks.
furthermore.
“Damn it! I’m stuck because of those damn Jayhawks!”
“We’d better gather our forces and strike Lawrence again!”
But that was just talk. Fate and John Reed were being pursued by their pursuers and had to hide in a Missouri National Guard base. Acheson was also moving around for fear of being assassinated, so there was no way the Border Ruffians could function properly.
And as September approaches.
An agent pursuing Acheson sent the following observation log:
[There is someone who periodically delivers letters to Acheson. The contents of the letters and the sender’s name are unknown through surveillance, but he is suspected to be an officer at Fort Leavenworth.]
When Max heard this report, he immediately thought of Jeb Stewart.
At the same time, I was able to recall several operations and figure out the identity of the mastermind.
‘It’s called West Point.’
Still, it was better than the others. At least the dirt on the toenails was gone.
Max wrote his letter in the same way.
And he gave instructions to the messenger, Tucker.
“Tell Commander Sumner. He must be given this while both of them are present.”
“Old story!”
A corner commander locked in a military fortress.
He couldn’t be killed as a soldier, and the future Civil War hero still had a lot of influence in the present. That’s why Max decided to leave Jeb Stuart’s disposal to Sumner.
A few days later.
Sumner contacted Jeb Stewart to confirm Max’s words and caught the departing messenger, taking the letter from him.
The content was somewhat shocking.
[There is a family living in Leavenworth who is close to the oriental kid. Kill the James Harris family and destroy the forge. That is the only way to shake him. Commander Sumner will be going on a campaign against the Indians soon, and I will stay here. Then properly····.]
A chill ran down his spine. Commander Sumner sat at his desk, checking the letter over and over again.
‘There’s nothing we can do about it if it becomes like this.’
The next day, Sumner called in Jeb Stewart.
“You know I’m about to go on a mission, right?”
“I know. I feel uneasy because it seems like the Commander is going into rough terrain.”
“A rough terrain is a rough terrain.”
Sumner goes to war with the Cheyenne Indians, who had recently attacked settlers on the Oregon Trail. The road is rough, and the war with them is dangerous.
“That’s why I thought how reassuring it would be if you were here.”
“……?”
“Come with me.”
“Wasn’t the submission of the list of dispatched troops already completed?”
“It was today. That’s why I included your name in it. Aren’t you happy?”
Jeb Stewart’s eyes flickered and his face contorted. But as soon as his eyes met Sumner’s, the corners of his mouth twitched and he said.
“It is an honor to be with you.”
“Thank you for thinking so.”
< Let's go together > End
Fort Leavenworth serves as a transit base on the way to the West, so its commanders change frequently without a set term of office.
In Colonel Sumner’s case, he kept his position to mediate the conflict between Kansas and Missouri, but his original position was as commander of the 1st Cavalry Regiment.
This force, which was protecting the western territory, had recently planned an expedition in the spring of 1957 to resolve a dispute with the Cheyenne Indians, and included J.E.B. Stuart, who was trying to escape.
Sumner had a secret meeting with Max at a location in Leavenworth.
The men they each brought stood guard at a distance, and Sumner handed Max the letter that Jeb Stuart had intended to deliver to Acheson.
“You’ve crossed the line.”
“It was my mistake. I asked Jeb Stewart to look into the copper warhead.”
In the process, we find out about the blacksmith, Max, and the James family.
“Leavenworth is home to many pro-slavery people. If we leave things as they are, something will definitely happen. What do you plan to do?”
The idea of James and Alfredo working together in the blacksmith shop was something I had envisioned for a long time.
The timing was the problem, but looking at the current situation, now was the right time.
“I plan to bring him to Lawrence.”
“Not a bad choice. It’s the most dangerous place, but also the safest.”
Besides, Lawrence today is home to a well-organized Jayhawks.
“By the way, the war seems to have come to a halt. That must be why Jeb Stewart resorted to such petty tricks. I can’t help but praise you for pushing the Border Rufian leadership into a rat hole.”
A smile appeared on Sumner’s lips.
He was very interested in the battle with the Border Ruffians this time. And the more he learned about them, the more he admired Max’s own abilities, as well as his leadership and strategic tactics in handling his subordinates.
“I’m so eager to take you on this expedition.”
“It’s hard now, but there will come a day when I can help you, General.”
“warlord?”
“In my heart, you are already a general.”
“You’re talking nonsense too. I thought you knew about the promotion news that I didn’t know about. Good.”
He’ll be a general soon anyway. Max salivated as he praised Sumner.
He was the one who would provide a foundation for his activities once the Civil War broke out.
Sumner smiled and changed the subject, perhaps pleased by Max’s sweet words.
“I heard some interesting news the other day. I heard that the fugitives are running wild, having forgotten their situation.”
The fugitives are none other than Charles, Lane, and Andrew Reeder, who went to Illinois.
‘What on earth are you doing when you’re already struggling to hide?’
Sumner smiles victoriously as Max looks curious.
Information seemed to enjoy the small pleasure of being above me.
“How could I not be interested in those I captured? I hear they’re hanging around Illinois politics.”
“The political scene?”
“It’s not something I would be interested in as a soldier, but I wonder if they’re trying to gain support from the newly formed Republican Party.”
The Kansas slavery conflict also had a major impact on the downfall of the Whig Party and the founding of the Republican Party.
The current Republican Party is a group of abolitionists. It was obvious what Charles and Lane would do among them.
“Anyway, it would be better to bring him here before something happens to him. If you find prey while you can’t attack Lawrence, wouldn’t it be worth taking aim?”
Although Illinois is a free state, there are slave advocates, criminals, and even slave traders living in it. If an assassination order were given in Missouri, it would not be surprising if a bullet were to fly into the back of the head at any time.
Yet, it is still very active in Illinois.
‘People are brave.’
Max stroked his chin for a moment, lost in thought.
The war with the Border Rufians was a one-sided victory, and Governor Wilson Shannon was removed from office. The important thing was who would take over as governor.
“Do you know who it is?”
“I know.”
“As expected, you are a general.”
Sumner chuckled and quickly unraveled the information.
“John White Geary. He was a lieutenant colonel in the 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment during the Mexican War.”
Max smiled inwardly.
As history has it, President Pearson appointed the governor, and as his resume shows, he was a man familiar with the military.
Perhaps that’s why the new governor deploys the military to every conflict.
What sets Wilson Shannon apart is his temperament.
He was closer to an abolitionist than a slaveholder, and fought for the Union Army in the American Civil War.
‘There won’t be any fighting for the time being.’
Border Rufian and Jayhawks’ break.
It was time to take care of things that had not been done before.
“When are you leaving for the expedition?”
“I’ll be leaving in two weeks. It’ll take a full year to get back.”
The journey to Fort Laramie, Wyoming, 1,600 km northeast of Kansas, is a long and arduous one.
Sumner planned to move before the cold winter came.
And before he left, Max wanted to settle Smith & Wesson’s patent issues.
“I’d like to make an appointment with Mr. Smith before you leave. Is that okay?”
“You seem to think the war is over.”
“I doubt it will end this easily. I plan to meet with the new governor while we wait to see what position he will take.”
Besides, the leaders of the Border Rufians, Acheson, Fate, and John Reed, are hiding and have no intention of coming out.
Sumner nodded and said.
“If you tell me the date and place, I’ll pass it on to Smith.”
“I will tell you within two days.”
