I think he would be portrayed as a cold-hearted leader rather than a psychopath.
These days, there are quite a few people in the United States who support Quantrill.
At that time, it was considered morally wrong for guerrillas to kill civilians, set fire to civilians, and loot.
It wasn’t just Quantrill’s problem.
The Jayhawks, led by James Henry Lane, were no exception;;
In any case, from the Confederate (pro-slavery) point of view, Quantrill was a war hero.
Because the main characters are abolitionists and free-states
The villains that pop up at the opposite end are all slave advocates.
Perhaps these distinctions will become blurred after the Civil War ends.
< A business that can never fail >
With the name William Quantrill firmly engraved in our minds, it’s time to focus on the Colorado mines of the future.
Max called James Harris and Ulysses Grant into the conference room.
“In a few months, I plan to build a blacksmith shop in western Kansas.”
“What’s there?”
“It’s a gold mine.”
“!”
James and Ulysses’ mouths dropped open.
A gold mine out of the blue.
“I thought it would be better to make the mining equipment there rather than here.”
“…. Well, that’s true, but···.”
James trailed off at the unrealistic gold mine story. Ulysses, who had been watching, chimed in, seemingly dumbfounded.
“It’s not like a gold mine suddenly appears out of nowhere. You seem to be thinking about starting a mining business. Business isn’t that easy.”
“I know the approximate location of the gold mine.”
“Oh my. If you know this, then others should know it too. My one piece of advice is to not jump into something unless it’s certain. Business isn’t for everyone.”
“Surely you don’t have a good feeling about this?”
Ulysses looked into Max’s eyes and nodded vigorously.
“It’s really bad. I feel like I’m going to die.”
‘Then we must do it even more.’
What do you think business idiot Ulysses has in common?
Max, on the contrary, became more confident.
That it’s a business that can never fail.
“Whether or not the gold mine is discovered, people will surely flock here sooner or later. For the time being, let’s focus on building our own mining equipment. You see the blueprints I gave you a while ago? You can build those equipment.”
“Well, I’ll do whatever I’m told, but a gold mine? That’s really out of the blue.”
“I speak from my own experience in business…”
After the blacksmith meeting, Max went to see Governor John Geary.
The secretary said.
“I’m talking to the new Secretary of State, Denver.”
“What is your name?”
“James William Jim Denver.”
Max narrowed his eyes and looked around the office.
If history were to be followed, John Geary would have been removed from office by now and another governor would be in place.
And that guy was also cut off by the president, and the next governor was this guy named Denver.
There’s a reason Max remembers him so specially.
The future capital of Colorado, Denver City, was named after him.
‘I feel like I have to hurry up and do something.’
Why the gold mining town is called Denver.
This may be because he is involved, directly or indirectly.
If Denver had pushed out John Geary and become governor, things could have gone wrong.
Suddenly.
The office door opened and a handsome middle-aged man appeared. Max avoided the encounter, as he had no reason to confront him.
“You may come in now.”
Max, at the secretary’s word, knocked on the office door.
*
“Denver was the Director of Indian Affairs until recently. He had worked with me in California before.”
“Are you on good terms?”
John Geary shrugged and continued.
“Well, it’s just so-so. I think that guy piqued your curiosity, is there a special reason?”
“It’s not just curiosity. I asked because I was wondering if it might have some influence on the governor’s position.”
“My seat?”
John Geary looked interested.
“The president appointed him when the Jayhawks and Border Rufians were at their peak, so it took a while.”
“Did you think that after just a quick glance?”
“We have a lot of work to do. We have to be careful about everything.”
John Geary burst into laughter, then nodded with a serious expression.
“I think the same as you. That’s why I’m worried. The president is waiting for me to make a mistake. If it doesn’t suit his taste, he’ll put Denver in the seat.”
“That seems likely.”
You never know when the storm will strike. It wasn’t easy for John Geary to keep his governorship.
“I can take care of all the paperwork so that it’s hard to turn back. If the exploration is successful, everything else will proceed according to your plan.”
“I will believe you.”
“We’re on the same boat, so we have to trust each other.”
John Geary continued, shuffling through the rolled-up map and the papers he was giving to Max.
“Except for the plains, all the mountains are public land. You know the mining laws, right?”
As John Geary said, the plains may belong to someone, but the uninhabited mountains are mostly the property of the state.
Current mining laws follow Mexican law, which states that the ownership of a mine belongs to the discoverer.
It was after the discovery of gold in Colorado that the United States began to seriously discuss its own mining laws.
John Geary took a map of western Kansas and some papers and gave them to Max.
“So when are you planning to leave?”
“Tomorrow. If a gold vein is found, I will send someone to take follow-up measures.”
Experts will be dispatched to the mine and reserve measurements will also be made immediately.
“I will pray for you.”
“You must pray for us.”
“I see you use the word ‘we’ a lot.”
“Koreans are originally like that.”
Max left his office only after finishing his cup of coffee.
Upon returning to Lawrence, Max was called to a town meeting along with Wilson Shannon.
“Oh my, aren’t you the governor?”
“I hope the former governor is in good health.”
Andrew Reeder and Wilson Shannon, both of whom were ousted as mayors of the Kansas Territory, exchange self-deprecating greetings whenever they meet.
The only difference was that Shannon had a bitter expression on her face, while the leader seemed to be enjoying it.
Also attending the meeting were Max, Charles, Lane, former mayor Blood, current mayor Carmi Babcock, Shelah Eldridge, Holiday, Samuel Pomeroy, Samuel Newitt Wood, and George Brown.
These are the key figures who move Lawrence, and they are capable people who participated in the establishment of the town through NEEAC.
The current mayor, Carmie Babcock, was a builder who would later build the Cow Bridge over the Kansas River, and Samuel Pomeroy would work with Holliday in the railroad business.
In the case of Pomeroy, they were having daily meetings to plan the holiday and the railroad, and the name of the line was.
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad (AT&SF).
The problem was that the planned railroad route passed through the town of Acheson, a pro-slavery community founded by David Acheson.
The two were plotting everything to take over the town, and were bothering Max with this.
Before the meeting started again today, Pomeroy clung to Max and threw a tantrum.
“How could it not work?”
“Go and drive out the villagers?”
“Hey, of course not. Isn’t there another way for you?”
“I told you how. Just wait. Now is not the time to worry about the railroad.”
“No, what difference does it make whether it’s next year or this year? The sooner the better for these things.”
Pomeroy wanted to raise funds as quickly as possible through his railroad plan.
This was a time when people were increasingly moving west, and at the same time there was a railroad boom. It was a time when speculative investment was booming and money could be raised simply by submitting railroad planning documents.
But in September of this year to be exact.
An incident triggers the Great Depression, and railroad investment projects plummet, peaking in July.
After somehow getting Pomeroy to give up, this time the current mayor, Babcock, approached us quietly.
“I’m thinking of opening a bank soon.”
“What kind of bank is this in this chaotic time?”
“There should be one in Lawrence.”
“Not now, sir.”
“So when?”
“Just wait a minute.”
Babcock returned to his seat with a sullen look on his face. He was the one hosting the meeting, by the way.
Babcock, who had washed his face dry with his palms, looked around the room and opened his mouth.
“Now let’s begin the meeting. The reason we’re here today is to discuss the Border Rufian issue, the upcoming large-scale Recompter gathering, and the absence of Max.”
When Babcock looked at Max, everyone followed his gaze. At some point, whenever Max was in a meeting, everyone tended to stare at his mouth.
It was burdensome, but I had to say it anyway.
“I just came back from meeting Governor John Geary this morning.”
Max turned to Charles and Lane, mentioning the new Secretary of State, Denver.
“I hope the governor will not be caught for the time being. The large meeting at Lecompton, which is intended to promote their constitution and rally the pro-slavery crowd, can be ignored.”
“And what if they force the Constitution through?”
James Lane asked.
“They are the ones who think the president is on their side because of the Dred Scott decision. They won’t go to the trouble of making things difficult for the president.”
“This is following the procedure.”
“That’s very likely. We’ll have to challenge the legitimacy of the Topeka Constitution and the Lecompton Constitution, which we’ve put forward, but they’ll have to go through the Senate and the House. It’s going to be a long fight.”
The Lecompton Constitution, which was not even presented to the National Assembly. The Lawrence legislators were sensitive, but it was a bill that would eventually be discarded. There was no reason to fight it.
As the meeting drew to a close, there was much talk about Max’s extended absence.
“Why are you exploring a mine at a time like this? I would like to stop you.”
The majority nodded in agreement with Rep. Lane’s remarks.
Why mining exploration when railroads and banks are not the time? Pomeroy and Mayor Babcock nodded vigorously.
But inside, they were brimming with anticipation. They were investors in Mineral Explorer.
“Shareholders. Can you say something like that while I’m packing my bags? We need to cheer you on, cheer you on.”
“I’ve been cheering you on since a while ago. Looks like you didn’t hear me.”
Andrew Leader burst out laughing.
Mining gold is not a simple matter.
Not only is it impossible to eat it alone, but when many different people come together, the pie can grow.
‘I’m not a miner.’
So Max enticed the people gathered here to invest in ‘Mineral Explorer’.
Their role was to secure land purchase capital, mining equipment, and professional manpower. Their participation was necessary.
*
Max, Colin, Fitch, Hickok, Lore, Joe Jim Jr., and Cody left Lawrence.
People called them a mining expedition.
The straight-line distance to Denver, Colorado is approximately 850 km.
From Lawrence we took a steamer and headed west.
The lower reaches of the Kansas River are shallow, so Max’s mining expedition had to disembark at a settlement town established by NEEAC called Manhattan.
After getting a horse there, we passed the great Milford Lake and rode across the vast plains that seemed to go on forever.
It’s been a week since I left Lawrence.
Taaaaang!
To fill his stomach with fuel, Max hunted a buffalo. He tied it up with a rope and dragged it away, and his companions applauded and cheered.
“You should be preparing dinner instead of yelling.”
“Old story!”
The Buffalo dismantling was handled by Max and Colin.
And the eyes that watch this.
Just as Buffalo Bill was drawn to the buffalo, Cody watched the whole process with sparkling eyes.
Max, who was looking into Cody’s future, spoke up.
“Cody.”
“Yes, boss.”
“We hunted because we were hungry.”
Cody blinked at the unexpected words.
“You must never hunt for money or for fun. Do you understand?”
“Surely there is such a person?”
‘You did it, Inma.’
After the Civil War, Cody hunted a whopping 4,200 buffalo in 18 months.
The government encouraged buffalo hunting to provide meat for transcontinental railroad workers, which led to a rapid decline in their population.
It was a fatal blow to the Indians, who relied on buffalo for their main source of income, and was criticized as the U.S. government’s ugly plan to exterminate the Indians.
Anyway, Cody, who was a buffalo hunter at the time, continued hunting as if he was enjoying it and even received the title of ‘Buffalo Bill’.
“Anyway, I caught it because I was hungry. Got it?”
While Max’s brainwashing began, the other group continued to build a campfire and prepare a meal.
But at this moment, a group of people were running from afar, kicking up a cloud of horse dust.
Max, who was doing the dismantling work, sat up and opened his mouth.
“Each of you take your positions.”
“Old story!”
‘I felt so comfortable on the way here.’
Max stared at the approaching crowd and began to equip his weapons on his body.
< A Business That Can Never Fail > End
< Hey, dig the ground >
An evening in western Kansas after the sun has set.
Peach hid behind a rock and observed the herd through the scope mounted on his Sharps rifle.
“Four in total. Two white men and two Indians.”
Max was also watching through his telescope.
When they got close enough to see their faces, they could tell that they were being chased by someone.
There was a look of urgency in his expression as he glanced back.
When they were close enough to see each other with their own eyes, they suddenly slowed down.
As Max and his group were armed and aimed their guns, their expressions of confusion and conflict were clearly visible as they looked back and forth.
Among them, a white man in his early 40s moved his horse’s head from side to side and then stepped forward.
He appeared to be a leader leading the group.
“The Indians are chasing us! If we join them, they won’t chase us anymore!”
The story was that if the number of pages increased, he would step down.
Max asked.
“What are the numbers and tribes of Indians?”
“There are about ten Cheyennes! They are probably stragglers from the war!”