The Pony Express – And Martin
Luther King, Jr. - By Pegg Thomas
To
celebrate the release of The Pony Express Romance Collection, we're highlighting the date the
first Pony Express run began –April 3rd – and looking at other dates in history
to see what happened.
On April 3, 1968, Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., gave his last speech. In that speech, he asked if God granted
him his choice of time period to live in, which would he choose? Dr. King
suggested several time periods, including this one:
"I would come on up even to 1863, and watch a vacillating President by the name of Lincoln finally come to the conclusion that he had to sign the Emancipation Proclamation."
The Pony Express was of vital concern to President Abraham Lincoln. He feared that California might enter the Civil War and side with the Confederate States of America. The Pony Express filled a much-needed communication gap until the telegraph lines could be stretched from coast to coast. It was one cog in the war machine that eventually ended slavery in these United States. [tweet this]
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By Pegg Thomas
Wyoming Territory - August, 1861
She ignored the boot that shoved against her
ribs. The next shove came with more force, and Alannah Fagan let a groan escape
her swollen lips. Only she knew it was a groan of rage, not pain, although
there was plenty of that.
“She's alive.”
She forced herself not to flinch at Edward
Bergman's guttural voice. It was better they thought her still unconscious. They
wouldn’t bother to care for her, so she’d have a chance to escape once darkness
fell.
“Leave her.” Hugh Bergman's voice rose from the
direction of the camp. “She'll come 'round by mornin'.”
“Might rain tonight.” Edward's voice carried no
hint of concern.
“Then she'll get wet.” Hugh Bergman’s held even
less. He may have married her ma, but he was no stepfather to her or her
brother. “Whatever she put in the pot looks done. Come eat.”
Edward shuffled to the fire. More steps
announced that his older brothers, Carl and Arnold, joined them. The scent of
scorched salt pork and beans brought Alannah a slender thread of satisfaction.
The clatter of plates and spoons, an occasional grunt from one of the men, the
stomp of a horse's hoof came from behind her. Whoosh of an owl overhead. Clicking
of insects. Rustling and murmurs as members of the wagon train settled down for
the evening.
Where was Conn? Her brother had left to fill the
canteens at the creek right before...before Hugh’s fist had knocked her unconscious.
Alannah eased open her right eye. The left
refused. Pain radiated from her left cheek, engulfing that side of her face.
Careful not to move more than she must, she inched her head off the ground to
peer above the prairie grass. The creek lay a quarter of a mile or so ahead of
her. Their canvas-covered wagon was parked behind her in the large circle they formed
each evening.
The sky
darkened until she couldn't see the willows along the creek anymore. The night
sounds swelled and overtook the noise of the wagon train. A sentry walked past
on his circuit. If he saw her, he didn't pause. The whole wagon train would
know what had happened by now, but nobody would confront Hugh Bergman. Not
since he'd beaten the wagon master half to death over a senseless dispute about
where to camp one night. Now her stepfather ran the wagon train, ruling it by
fear.
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Pegg Thomas lives on a hobby farm in Northern Michigan with
Michael, her husband of *mumble* years. A life-long history geek, she writes
“History with a Touch of Humor.” When not working on her latest novel, Pegg can
be found in her garden, in her kitchen, or on her trusty old horse, Trooper.
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For my Pony Express
date-in-history, I chose April 3, 1986, the date the U.S. National debt hit $2
trillion dollars. $2 trillion doesn’t look all that bad. Let me spell that out
with zeroes: $2,000,000,000,000.00.
I chose the unpleasant
topic of debt because my heroine’s father ran away from a gambling debt—and
kept running. He keeps hoping that the next game will enable him to return home
with honor. The Gambler’s Daughter, in The Pony Express Romance Collection, chronicles the end of that battle and the start of a new one—I won’t tell you
more, to avoid giving away the story.
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