ARJ woke with a start, his arms and legs kicking under the quilt. His eyes told him he was in their cabin, but it didn’t feel as safe as it had the morning before. A vague memory stayed in his mind of the ocean breeze spilling out of a fleeting dream, and then disappearing into nothing.
He lay still until he felt his heartbeat slow and finally lifted his head to see that he and John William were laying on the floor palette, that was their usual sleeping spot. His parents’ bed was made. The quilt that had shielded them from the frightening experience the night before, pulled straight and taut. A pale winter sun shot cool rays in through the unshuttered window. It was still early morning. He turned and saw the back of his father’s head, wild, dark hair in curly tufts stood up on the top of it. He could hear Eva Anna squeal and laugh. She must be sitting on his lap, he thought. Mum stood at the stove stirring something in a pot as steam wafted from it. She turned and noticed ARJ peeking from beneath the quilt.
“Rise and shine, son.” She said gently. “The porridge is about ready.”
While Dad went out to take care of his chores, ARJ and JW sat down at the table. Mum let them eat their porridge before getting dressed that morning.
“I am dressed, Mummy.” John William told her as he spooned porridge into his mouth.
Mum laughed. “Well, you are dressed, but you got dressed yesterday morning. Last night you slept in your clothes! Now, eat without talking. Remember your manners.”
John William began to speak again but ARJ nudged him with his elbow, and he dug into his bowl again.
The door opened and Dad walked back in, bringing winter with him. “It sure got cold last night.” He hung his hat on a hook by the door and looked at Mum. “I think we’ll need to get an early start into town so we can be back before dark.” He said, “That is if you still plan to go with me.”
“I’d feel better if we all went today. It will take some time before I feel very comfortable here when you’re away.”
Dad nodded.
ARJ took his bowl to Mum and and then looked back at his dad. “Did you become a citizen yesterday, Dad?”
“It’ll be at least five years before that happens, son, but I did file what they call my first papers while I was in Wichita yesterday. That means they know I intend to become a citizen someday.”
John William spoke up. “Is that why everyone is mad at us, Daddy?”
Dad smiled at him. “No, JW, that isn’t the reason. There was just a misunderstanding. It’ll all work out.”
The family rolled onto the road an hour later, bundled up and huddled close together. They passed a few other wagons along the way and ARJ thought he noticed a few suspicious looks on people’s faces as they passed them. He wondered what they knew about last night and it made him feel embarrassed to think about it.
ARJ saw the word ‘Wichita’ on a sign shaped like an arrow at an intersection they crossed. He read it aloud.
Mum smiled as she looked back at him. She said. "A woman at the store in town told me it’s an Indian name.”
Before ARJ could answer, they were in town, and he was distracted by the activity surrounding them. The houses didn’t look like the ones back home. In Ryde, they were close together or attached to at least one other house. Here, the houses were farther apart and had very large gardens surrounding them. Wichita’s Main Street was different, too. In Ryde, the streets leading to the harbor were very steep and paved with stone. The buildings were made of stone, also. Wichita’s Main Street, the wagon rolled down now, was all dirt and most of the shops and businesses were wooden buildings with flat wooden fronts. Only a few were made of brick or stone. The names of some of the shops were painted right across the front of them. The shops back home had hanging signs over each door. Dad had reminded him last fall that Wichita was a young town. It took time to build a town like those in England, or even Boston.
Dad had patted him on the back after that and smiled. “We can be a part of the building of this town!”
A big black bird called a crow cawed loudly from the boardwalk, interrupting ARJ’s thoughts. The crows reminded him of the greedy sea gulls of Ryde, causing him to feel the homesickness he had learned to push out of his mind.
ARJ’s game of comparison ended suddenly when Dad pulled
Sugar and Spice to a stop in front of a
small, white building with a hanging
sign that said SHERIFF’S OFFICE. Dad set the brake and jumped from the wagon, landing
soundly on the dirt street. He tied the team’s reins to the rail in front of
the door.
“We’ll come in with you.” Mum said. Dad walked around the wagon, took Eva Anna from Mum, and then helped her down.
“Come on, boys!” he told his sons. “We’re all going inside.”
Dad and Mum, baby on her lap, sat in two chairs in front of a big desk filled with papers. The man behind the desk leaned back in his swivel chair as he listened to the story. Clothed in white shirt, black vest, and thin black tie, Sheriff Massey listened. He looked up at ARJ once during the story and winked at him as he stood quietly behind Mum and Dad holding JW’s hand.
“Yep… “the sheriff said, when Dad had finished. “Sounds like we have a few instigators and a whole lot of followers… You didn’t happen to recognize any of them?”
Dad shook his head. “The only one I can identify is Robert Williams and that’s because he told me his name.”
to meet some of those men on the road late last night. He overheard the conversation and gathered they’d been harassing you. I got some names from him that will be extremely helpful; one of them was Robert Williams.”
Dad leaned forward on the squeaky chair. “What do you think I should do? Can I press charges?”
The sheriff paused, his eyes tracing the trim that edged the ceiling.
“I think you have a case… You probably haven’t been here long enough to make friends with very many neighbors… What with the trespassing and acts of threat at your own home and all… you may have a legal path.”
Dad put his right hand on the desk. “That’s what I want to do.” His mind made up. “I won’t be intimidated, and I won’t have my family frightened. I’d like them arrested today.”
ARJ looked up when the Sheriff’s office door abruptly opened.A man dressed all in black walked in and headed around the desk to the back of the room. His boots clomped on the wooden floor, his revolver swung in the holster with every step, and for a moment, ARJ lost track of Dad’s last sentence. He and JW were immediately enthralled by this curious figure, and if the man hadn’t been wearing a badge on his black jacket, ARJ might have thought he was an outlaw.
The man pulled a large ring of keys from a hook on the back wall, and then turned to face the room, leaning against a counter as he sorted through them. When he finally looked up, ARJ noticed his dark piercing eyes scrutinizing them. John William started to whisper something to ARJ but was quickly shushed with a nudge of his brother’s elbow. The man’s long black mustache was the bushiest he’d ever seen on a man without a beard. It reached past his cheeks and almost farther than his chin.
“Take a look at these names.” The sheriff said, swiveling on his chair and handing the list to the other lawman. “Know any of ‘em?” He asked.
The man looked over the names. “Recognize one of ‘em.” he said, “This Williams fella.” He tapped the piece of paper and handed it back. “Need me to pick ‘em up?”
“We’re heading toward that conclusion...” The sheriff answered. “Might be best to go together. Seems they organized a mob last night to harass Mr. Dibbens here.”
The lawman looked up at Dad, then his eyes moved to ARJ and JW, standing frozen behind their parents. He squinted slightly and nodded at the sheriff’s words.
By the time they left the office, it was done. Dad had signed a statement and a warrant was issued. There would be three arrests.
Dad helped Mum back into the wagon. “Those men are about to find out that Arthur Dibbens won’t stand for such absurdity!” he said in a forceful whisper, as he handed the baby up to Mum.
Payne Township
They were just finishing tea the following evening when hoof beats drummed on the drive. Mum froze for a moment, grasping tight an empty cup and saucer in her hands. She looked at Dad as he slid from the table and walked to the window.
“Daddy?” JW whispered.
“It’s alright, son. Not every visitor is planning to do us harm.” He pulled the curtain back. “It’s the sheriff.” he said. He pulled his coat from a hook and opened the door. ARJ went and stood at the window, watching as Dad and the sheriff talked in the yard. He couldn’t hear the words they were speaking but Dad’s expression told him it wasn’t good news.
Mum readied the palette and placed the baby in her bed, as she kept one eye on the door.
After a few minutes, ARJ saw the sheriff shake Dad’s hand. He climbed into the saddle of his tall, cream-colored horse. Dad walked to the porch and stood for a minute, watching the sheriff ride off.
“Boys, it’s time you were in bed.” Mum said as Dad walked back in.
ARJ settled under the quilt as told, but his eyes remained open. He wanted to hear what the sheriff had to say.
“So, what was that about?” Mum asked as dad sat back down at the table.
“He came to let me know that Misters Williams, Mason, and Rockey are counter suing me; saying I committed perjury against the state by filing a false report.”
Mum sat across from Dad, elbows on the table, her forehead resting on the palms of her hands. After a moment she raised her head and looked at Dad.
“It wasn’t about the land claim?”
“No. They were probably afraid they’d lose on that one. They want it to appear that they just paid a friendly, neighborly visit the other night.”
“Arthur!” Mum started and then remembering the children, lowered her voice. “That couldn’t be farther from the truth!”
“And…” Dad continued, “because perjury is a crime against the state, I have to go to court to settle this nonsense.”
“I don’t understand how you can be guilty of perjury! You just told the truth!”
“That’s just it. It’s their word against ours. Massey said I should come in tomorrow. I think he believes us… you, for sure. The best thing I did was take you and the children with me into town the other day. The sheriff said he could hear the fear and distress in your voice, and he could see it in the boys’ eyes. To repeat his words, ‘that kind of fear is hard to fake.”
“What happens next?” Mum asked.
Dad shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll have a better idea of our way forward after I visit the sheriff’s office tomorrow.”
“You’re going alone? What if they retaliate?” Mum sounded worried and ARJ felt his own stomach do a slow flip.
“They’ve had a warning with the arrests. Don’t worry! Those men will be on their best behavior.”
Dad left for town again early the next morning. Between ARJ and JW, the window had someone watching from it all afternoon as they waited for his return. As evening approached, Mum set the table for tea. It seemed like she was moving much slower than usual, getting the cups out, putting the kettle on, and slicing the bread. When everything was ready and Dad hadn’t shown up, she brushed her hands across her apron and said, “Boys, it’s time for tea.”
“What about Daddy? Should we wait for him?” JW asked from the window.
“Tea is ready now. I’m sure as soon as we sit down, he’ll walk through the door.”
Mum smiled slightly, and the boys found their seats.
ARJ noticed how slow Mum was at getting through her tea, sipping a little at a time. He knew she was hoping her words would come true and Dad would come through the door.
It was only when the last dish, except for Dad’s cup and saucer, was cleaned and put away, did they hear the wagon roll into the yard. Suddenly, the air in the darkening cabin felt light again!
“Daddy!” JW cried as their father came through the door. He and ARJ crowded close, hugging the cold coat Dad was attempting to remove.
“Just a minute, boys!” he told them as he slid out of his coat, scarf, and hat. He proceeded to the fireplace and stood there rubbing his hands in front of the flames.
“You’re later than I expected.” Mum said, as she poured Dad’s tea.
“There was quite a lot to do once I got there. The charges being filed against me are serious. I visited a law firm while I was in town. They’d like to speak to both of us in their office next week. They’d especially like to speak with you, since so much of the threatening acts happened before I got home that night.”
“Just how serious are these charges, Arthur?” Mum asked as she sat down across from Dad.
“It could mean seven years in…” Dad ended the sentence abruptly, glancing over his shoulder.
He continued, “IF… I’m found guilty, Anna. We must have faith. It’ll be a jury trial.”
Dad looked at Mum for a long minute. She finally broke his gaze and looked down at the table. She picked up a small card Dad had laid there.
“Howitt, Salisbury and Brewer, Attorneys at Law,” she read. “Well, at least Salisbury sounds a bit like home…” her voice faded away.
“I don’t care if it sounds British, Danish, or Greek, as long as they know American law, and how to prove my innocence! They do come highly recommended; some of the best around.”
“Well,” Mum said, “we’ll just have to make our way through it.”
ARJ walked over to Dad and put his arm around his shoulders.
“I’m scared, Dad. Can we go home now?”
Dad pulled him onto his lap. “I saw something today in the office I visited that I think you’ll find interesting.”
ARJ looked in Dad’s eyes as he listened.
wall. “Dad’s hand moved in a circular motion as he explained what he saw. “It was the seal of the state of Kansas—where we live now. It had a nice picture of a farmer plowing, buffalo, covered wagons, a cabin like ours, and even a steamboat, right in the middle of the picture! Across the top were some words written in an old language called Latin.” His hand swept the air in a wide bow as if he was looking at the seal. Dad looked back at ARJ as he recalled the words. “– AD ASTRA PER ASPERA – I asked the man what it meant, and he told me it’s the Kansas State Motto. It means ‘To the stars through difficulties.”
Dad patted ARJ’s shoulder and continued. “I thought about it all the way home. Even when times are hard, we’ll just keep reaching for the stars! Ad Astra Per Aspera!” He set ARJ on the floor and smiled at him. “Now, go say your prayers and get into bed, son.” One hand nudged him toward the palette. “It’s going to be alright.”
ARJ thought he understood what Dad was trying to tell him. As he crawled under the quilt next to his little brother, who was already sleeping, their new motto floated through his head.
‘AD ASTRA PER ASPERA - To the stars through difficulties.’
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