AGES 14-18: 2- A Wild Day

PICTURE #5

2- A Wild Day 

      The hair on the back of Jem Coulter’s neck stood up at a rustling sound behind him. Motioning to his sister and cousin, the trio slowly slid to the ground behind a rock. Turning around, Jem prepared his rifle to fire. A golden ball of fur raced toward the rock, and he lowered the gun.

      “Nugget! What are you doing so far from home?” Jem gave his dog a rub and smiled, letting out a shaky breath. He, Ellie, and Nathan were looking around in the woods to discover the cause of some mysterious happenings around Goldtown.

      “That’s all it was?” Ellie jumped up to pat the dog, too. “You scared us, old boy!”

      “I wasn’t scared,” Jem boasted, and Ellie rolled her eyes, choosing not to bother arguing with him. Little sisters can be really annoying, he thought.

      “I thought we were finally going to meet that sneaky claim jumper,” Nathan said. “Catching him is turning out to be a lot easier said than done. A hardened criminal like him could really be dangerous. Maybe we should just turn back.”

      Although Nathan had come a long way since he had first arrived at the Coulter’s house, he was the first to bail at any hint of danger.

      “Come on, Pa’s been at this case for weeks,” Ellie said. “We can’t just sit around and let him do all of the work. People are starting to think that he might not be a good sheriff.”

      “Aw, don’t worry about it,” Jem said confidently, “Of course Pa will find him… with our help.” Although he acted like he wasn’t afraid for Pa, Jem knew that what Ellie said held a lot of truth. Their whole family had been subject to stares and whispered comments, even when they had gone to church on Sunday.

      It had all started a few weeks ago, when someone had come into the sheriff’s office with a complaint.

      “Sheriff Coulter? Someone has been messing around on my claim,” the man had said. He was new to Goldtown; had only been there a couple of months. “I found some coyote holes along the edge of my property, and some of my food has gone missing.”

      “I’m sorry to hear that, Bill. I’ll look into it right away. Why don’t you take me over to your claim so I can check things out?”

      When Pa had come home that night, he’d told them all about it. “I just don’t understand. Everyone knows the rules of the camp. Stay on your own claim. Pan for your own gold.”

Jem had nodded; he and Ellie had known those rules for so long that they couldn’t even remember when they had learned them. They had hoped the man would be caught, or else that he would get out of Goldtown. People that were willing to risk their lives to jump a claim were dangerous. Unfortunately, the reports just kept coming. Jem had been in the office last week when the last person had come in.

      “I know we just hired you, Sheriff, but this is getting out of control. There are coyote holes popping up everywhere; there’s gold dust missing; food being stolen. We trust you to do the job, but you’ve gotta find the man.”

      It was this that had prompted the trio on their adventure today. People were starting to doubt their father’s ability as sheriff. Although he was working hard, he couldn’t seem to find any leads on the case. He had asked questions to everyone who had been hit by the claim jumper (which was nearly everyone in town), but it seemed as if nobody had any idea who could be doing it.

It’s not fair that people expect Pa to figure everything out when they can’t even give him a decent clue, Jem thought.

“Jem!” Ellie’s voice broke into his thoughts. “What are we going to do next? We’ve got to make a plan.”

“I don’t know. We’ve got to keep looking. The guy must be around here somewhere.”

“I have to agree with Ellie. It’s our day off and if we don’t have a plan, it will all be wasted. We have to find a way to figure out who the man is without just accusing any stranger we find in the woods,” Nathan said.

“Well, if you guys just want to sit around and think, go ahead. I don’t see how that’s going to help,” Jem countered. “Pa needs our help, and like you said Nathan, we only have a day.” He slung his gun over his shoulder and started walking. A second later, he heard the crunch of leaves as Ellie and Nathan followed.

“We’re coming, but keep on the lookout for clues, not just bad guys,” Ellie said. “Why don’t we go around to all of the places where the claim jumper dug and stole things? We might get some clues about who he is.”

“It’s worth a try,” Jem conceded and they began walking towards the closest claim that had filed a complaint.

When they had reached the claim, they were welcomed coldly by the owner.

“So now the sheriff is enlisting kids to help on this case,” he shook his head. “I thought that Coulter knew what he was doing when he became sheriff, but…”

Even though Jem knew better than to interrupt grownups, he cleared his throat and did just that. “Oh, we just wanted to make our own investigations,” he said. “Have you heard about the Pinkertons? Well, I heard that if you wanted to be one, you needed to have a lot of practice. Nathan wants to become one, so we decided to help him on his first case ever.”

It wasn’t anywhere near what scaredy-cat Nathan wanted to do and he squirmed.

“Nathan, eh?” The man looked skeptically at the scrawny kid.

“Yes, sir,” Nathan squeaked out.

“He’s very quiet,” Ellie put in. “I’m sure he’ll make a fine, sneaky detective.”

“Yes, a lifelong dream of mine,” Nathan said unconvincingly.

The trio smiled at the man, trying to convince him to let them try.

“Well, have at it. It won’t hurt for a future Pinkerton to take a second look.”

“Thank you, sir!” they chorused, and he led the way to the location of the robbery.

Ellie took notes and they looked for clues like real detectives but didn’t find much.

Crime Scene #1

-                      Occurred at night

-                      Noticed stuff was knocked over and checked the gold pouch- missing a large nugget

-                      No footprints; too dusty

Jem wished that they had thought of this investigating weeks ago; before the rain washed away any traces. They thanked the man and went on their way to the next miner on the list.

Crime Scene #2

-                      Occurred at night

-                      A couple of coyote holes randomly dug

-                      Large footprints. Looked like wearing moccasins.

-                      Occurred again one week later after the miner had talked about striking it rich with his claim

-                      Holes proved to have gold in them

Jem wondered if there could have been anyone in particular that overheard the statement about gold on the claim, but the miner had talked about his luck after church. Anyone in the whole town could have heard it. Thanking the man for his information, they went on their way.

“I sure hope that you folks are better at this than your Pa,” he called after them.

Jem stiffened. Did everyone really need to tell them that Pa wasn’t getting the case closed? He knew it. They knew it. The whole town knew it! It wasn’t fair to expect this much of one man. Nobody could be a perfect sheriff, but Pa was a pretty good one. Couldn’t everyone give him some more time?

“Jem,” Nathan began nervously, “Is your Pa gonna get run out of town? People are really mad about this, and I don’t like it! Sure, I understand being upset that there’s a robber roaming around town, but it’s not Uncle Matt’s fault.”

“Well, it’s making me mad enough to yell at them,” Jem answered. “Maybe the next time, I will!”

“Don’t do that, Jem,” Ellie cut in. “It’s not right.”

“Oh, yeah? Well, them talking about Pa like he’s worse than a dead frog ain’t  right either.”

“You can’t be responsible for their behaviour; only yours,” Ellie replied wisely. “I don’t like the way they talk about Pa either, but sometimes you just have to do what the Bible says: ‘Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.’”

“You should be a Sunday School teacher, not out here tagging along,” Jem said crankily, knowing that his sister was right.

“You asked us to use our day off to help Pa,” Ellie reminded him, “and I don’t care if it does make me sound like a Sunday School teacher. It’s right and it’s what Pa has been doing all along.”

“Okay, but that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it,” Jem grumbled.

By this time, they had nearly reached the next claim to inspect.

“Got your notebook, Ellie?” Jem asked.

“Right here,” Ellie replied.

“And I’m ready to look like a future Pinkerton,” Nathan said proudly, looking much too frightened to be a serious detective.

“Sorry about that. It was the first thing that popped into my head,” Jem apologized.

They walked up to where two miners were working a rocker box.

“Hello sirs,” Jem began. “We were wondering if we could practice our detective skills. Nathan wants to become a Pinkerton and we thought that there was no better time to start than now.” The men studied them until recognition dawned on their faces.

“Hey, you’re the sheriff’s kids! Well, if that don’t beat all. Couldn’t figure it out himself, could he?”

Jem clenched a fist, but Nathan surprisingly stepped up before he could say anything they would all regret.

“Actually, we are here today of our own accord, wanting to spread kindness to all of the people of Goldtown. If we could catch the bad man doing all of this mischief, it would make a lot of people very happy. Would you mind if we searched for a few clues?”

Nathan’s polite city talk took the men off guard and they quickly agreed. They found the scene nearly the same as the others.

Crime Scene #3

-                      Occurred in the evening when the men were away in town

-                      Moccasin footprints that didn’t show well

-                      Coyote holes found dug all over

-                      Lots of rooting around and disorder, gold dust missing

Thanking the men for the information, the kids left; the leads were getting them nowhere. Though he could be lurking around, maybe the claim jumper was gone by now. In any case, Jem didn’t think they should waste too much more of their day.

“Where do you want to go next?” he asked halfheartedly. “It doesn’t seem like we’ll be able to help Pa after all.”

“Don’t give up yet,” Ellie said. “Let’s do one more before lunch and then eat. That’ll give us the time we need to think it all through.”

“Fine,” Jem conceded. “Which place do you want to go to?”

“Why don’t we go to where it all started?” Ellie asked. “It might give us a clue.”

Jem and Nathan shrugged. “It’s as good an idea as any,” Jem said.

They trudged through the woods past Cripple Creek and down to visit the man who had started it all.

“How are you kids doing?” the man asked. “I heard that your Pa is working really hard down at the office on this case. Have you come out here to help him? Come on, and I’ll show you around.”

The man appeared genuine in his helpfulness and kept talking with them as Ellie took notes.

“When I came to Goldtown, I knew right away that Matt Coulter would be able to tackle any problem that came his way. I’m sure he’ll find the claim jumper soon enough.”

Jem smiled. Finally, there was someone who believed that Pa was capable. Maybe he could finish off the day and actually solve the case. Before he could think more of the capture he would make, Ellie asked an unexpected question.

“Some people are having doubts about Pa, with the long case and everything. What do you think about the robberies? Do you think it’s solvable?” Had even Ellie lost her faith in their Pa?

“Of course it’s solvable!” the man laughed. “It’s been a good run for the crook, but it must come to an end.” He sobered. “Your Pa is a good sheriff. That crook must be hiding well.”

“Of course Pa will find him!” Jem agreed.

“If he doesn’t get away first,” the man said. “Now, let’s get on with this investigation, shall we?”

Crime Scene #4

-                      Occurred at night

-                      Coyote holes evenly spaced in very good locations

“I couldn’t have done better myself!” the man laughed again

-                      No traces to be seen

“The footprints looked exactly like my own! Heh-heh! I feel bad for the man.”

-                      Not too messy where the food was missing

“He must have known just where he was going,” the man commented.

      The tour was lengthy, but Jem didn’t mind. At last, there was someone who wanted to help.

      “I’ve been having some luck lately with my mining,” the man said, “So I’ve been getting along fine, even with the robbery. But, boy do I feel for the rest of them poor families. I can’t imagine what they’re going through. Tell your Pa that we all appreciate the work that he’s doing.”

      “Yes, we will,” Jem answered and they finally started following the creek to their house.

      “Hey, look!” Ellie remarked as they passed by a mining setup on the creek, “His rocker box is dry.”

      “That’s strange,” Jem said. “He said that he was having luck. If I hit colour, I would be going full out all day.”

      “And you probably wouldn’t take the time to speak to some kids,” Ellie said. “Something smells a little fishy around here.”

      “Still, you heard him say all those nice things about Pa. Why would he lie about how much gold he has on his claim? It just doesn’t make sense,” Jem defended. “Anyway, I’m hungry. Let’s just think about it over lunch. Maybe it will make more sense with a full stomach.”

      No matter what Jem hoped, it didn’t make much more sense. Ellie showed them her notes too and they didn’t match up either.

“It almost looks like we’re dealing with two different claim jumpers,” Jem said, studying the crime scenes side by side. “One of them was just checking claims for gold and then running away in sneaky, moccasined feet. The other one was a professional who guessed in the right place for coyote holes as if he had all the time in the world and instead of rifling through people’s things to find a bite to eat, calmly looked in exactly the right places like he owned it all.”

A sense of unease crept into Jem’s mind. Pa dealing with two claim jumpers, and one was a professional. He wasn’t sure that they would be able to catch them both.

“Maybe he did own it all,” Ellie suddenly said.

      “What do you mean?” Nathan asked.

      “Maybe the man set it up himself. He had the first robbery at his place, but do you think he looked very disappointed about it? Instead, he was using those carefully dug holes to find his own gold. Maybe there were no footprints because he was the one that did it.” Ellie seemed to be getting somewhere with all of her talk.

      “But he said he wanted to help Pa,” Jem said lamely. He wanted someone to believe that Pa could solve the case. Then maybe things would go back to normal. Pa wouldn’t lose his job.

      “You know what the Bible says about wolves in sheep’s clothing,” Ellie reminded.

      “Wow, you really should be a Sunday School teacher,” Nathan said. “And you can be the Pinkerton, because you’ve solved the case!”

      As much as Jem hated to admit it, Ellie was probably right. “I think we need to go and tell Pa everything that we’ve learned,” he said. “He’ll know what to do about it.”

      They all finished their sandwiches and then went to Pa’s office. As they ran, a branch cracked behind them. Was it Nugget again? Hiding behind the trunks of trees, Jem and the other two turned around. It was the newcomer; the suspected claim jumper! As quietly as they could, the three friends sneaked away through the brush. There was no way they wanted to meet this man.

      “Who’s there?” they heard him call loudly. What if he could hear their hard breathing and pounding hearts? Thankfully, he moved away. Running as fast as they could, they made it to the sheriff’s office and to Pa.

      “We… have important… news!” Jem panted, but Pa was in a meeting. Finally, the door opened and Pa stepped out.

      “Hi kids, what’s-” he was interrupted by their voices, all speaking at once.

      “We think we found the claim jumper!” Ellie said.

      “It’s the man that just moved here,” Jem explained, “you know, the one who got robbed first? Well, he didn’t actually. He just took his own things to avoid suspicion,”

      “I took notes Pa, and it’s all here,” Ellie pulled out her notebook.

      “And we just saw him in the woods!” Nathan told his uncle. “We were lucky to get away. We ran so hard!”

      Once they had calmed down enough to tell Pa the whole story clearly, he was nearly convinced. There was one thing left to do. “Let’s go home and see what will happen tonight,” Pa said. “We need some solid evidence on the man. Now, don’t go telling this to anyone. Claim jumping is a very serious offence.”

      As they walked home, the kids suddenly went silent.

      “This is where we saw him,” Jem whispered. Clang! The group all heard the sound of a shovel in hard dirt. Pa turned around and there, in the broad daylight, was the suspect. Well, he wasn’t a suspect any longer! This was Jem’s claim, and he was digging a coyote hole without a care in the world.

      “Get down behind this rock,” Pa advised Jem and the others, who quickly did as they were told. Pa walked over to where the criminal was.

      “Stick ‘em up Bill. You’re under arrest,” he said loudly and confidently, pistol drawn and handcuffs ready. The gold star gleamed on his chest. Bill turned around slowly, a sneer on his face.

      “Ha, Coulter. You really think I’m dumb enough to come here without backup? I had one last place to hit before I cleared out. I didn’t think you would figure it out so quickly. Your snoopy kids, though; I told them too much. Now, just let me go and you’ll never see me again.”

      “I’m the one with the gun and the one who has to uphold the law around here. You’re going nowhere except the state courthouse.”

      A motion across the clearing had Pa ducking to the ground. Bang! A bullet whizzed over Pa’s head, luckily taking only his hat. His gun skidded across the ground and Bill smiled, moving towards it. There was only one thing to do. Jem pulled his Pa’s rifle from his back. Seeing the shadowy figure that had fired, Jem made his best effort to hit the gun that glinted in the afternoon sun. Pow! Crack! The shot was dead on and enough of a distraction for Pa to take back his own gun. It wasn’t long before both criminals were on the way to the courthouse and a sad fate.

      The next day was a Sunday, and Jem and Pa were both congratulated by many of the miners on their sharp shooting and arrest. Ellie showed her notebook to all of the girls and Nathan was pretty excited to tell the story to his friends, too.

      “I’m going to be careful, though,” Ellie said. “You know the Bible says ‘Pride comes before a fall.’”

      “You really are going to be a Sunday School teacher, Ellie,” Jem said. “Why don’t you pray for us all, for thanks and help not to be proud?”

      “Dear Heavenly Father, thank-You so much for all that You have given us this week. You have helped us so much while we were looking for the claim jumper and when we just needed to be calm and polite when others weren’t to us. Please help us to remember that we did this only with Your help, instead of letting pride make us fall. In Your Son, the Lord Jesus’ name, Amen.”

      “Amen,” Jem said and then he remembered a verse that Ellie hadn’t said. God works all things together for good. He thought. Even when I was worried about Pa, God had it all figured out to teach me a lesson. He even gave me a cool story to tell to my friends at school! For once, Jem couldn’t wait for Monday morning. 

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