Eagle Station Blizzard

By Tennessee

Big Dan said to Ben one day that the Indians said a blizzard was coming and the temperature would drop below freezing and strong winds would bring a lot of snow and ice.

Ben said, "I don’t think a blizzard is coming. It’s cold, but not that cold. The clouds don’t look like snow clouds."

"Well, Ben," replied Big Dan. "All I’m saying is make sure you have enough food and wood in the house. Get anything else you might need if you can’t get into town for a few days."

Ben tipped his hat. "Thanks for telling me."

Ben told Hop Sing about what Big Dan had said.

"Indians usually right," Hop Sing said. "You should listen to the Indians."

Ben went to town and saw the Greens and Goodmans. He told them about the blizzard, and they thought Ben was funning. He went home and told the boys about it.

Adam said, "Pa, we should do what the Indians say."

So the next day they cut wood all day. And Hop Sing got out all the blankets. Ben nailed the windows shut and hung blankets over the windows. Adam and Little Joe went fishing and caught a lot of fish. Ben and Hoss went to town and got candles and holders, oils lamps, oil, sugar, coffee, flour, beans, and everything else they would need. They ever got new longjohns for each member of the family, as well as warm socks and gloves. Ben got Adam a new coat. Hop Sing cut all the fish and salted it down.

Ben asked Hoss to take all their supplies home. "I’m going to see if I can get us some extra meat for the winter. Ben rode off and Hoss headed for The Ponderosa. Ben had his shotgun with him and was able to get a deer and a few rabbits, and when he got home, he cleaned them and salted the meat.

Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe went fishing again and got even more fish for Hop Sing to clean and salt. Hop Sing asked them to go to town and get more rice. Adam and Little Joe went back to town for the rice. Everyone that saw them mumbled about the Cartwrights. "The Cartwrights think there is a blizzard coming. It doesn’t even look like blizzard weather," one person said.

Adam said, "Come on, Little Joe." They got the rice and headed back home. Adam saw two Indians. They were looking at the clouds. Adam told Little Joe to ride faster, and when they got home, he told Pa about it. "Pa, the Greens and Goodmans have not done anything to prepare for the blizzard."

"Adam, do you think the blizzard is coming soon?" asked Ben.

"All I know is that I saw two Indians who were looking at the clouds. I don’t know what that means."

"Big Dan is here, Pa," Little Joe said.

"Hi, Big Dan," Ben greeted him.

"Ben, my Indian friend said the blizzard will be here in a few hours. We’ve got to tell everyone."

"Pa, Margaret and Mr. and Mrs. Goodman are out of town for a few days," Adam put in.

Ben said, "Adam, you go get Ann and sue and bring them here. Hoss, go get Tess. Bring all the oil and candles they have. And blankets, too. No one knows how long the blizzard will last yet. Tell the girls to bring warm clothes and anything else they need."

"Yes, Pa," both boys said.

"Little Joe, you and Hop Sing carry all the wood you can into the house. I’m going to tend to the horses and cattle."

The wind was getting up, and it was getting colder. Adam got to the Goodmans and got everything they needed and everything Pa said they should bring. He put the cover on the Goodmans’ wagon and told the girls to get in. He tied his horses behind the wagon and they headed for the Ponderosa.

Hoss had just gotten to the Green ranch. He told Tess, "We have to hurry. The blizzard is coming fast, Tess. She got everything she needed. Hoss got the Greens’ wagon ready, and he, too, tied his horse behind the wagon. Tess and Hoss were on their way to the Ponderosa, too.

Ben could not see anything the wind was blowing so hard. He got the cattle and horses to places where they would be protected and tied a rope to the barn and hooked it to the house.

When Ben got to the door and opened it, he asked if the older boys were back with the girls yet.

Little Joe said, "No, Pa."

Adam was doing his best to see if he was going the right way. He knew he was when he saw the lake. He hurried the hoses and when they got to the door, he yelled, "Pa!" And Ben came out to help the girls into the house.

"I’ll take care of the horses," said Adam.

"Hold onto the rope to find your way to the house," Ben told him. He gave Adam an oil lamp and went into the house.

Ann and Sue had things from home. They had tea, beans, sugar, blankets, oil and oil lamps, and candles. Hop Sing thanked them and told them to stay by the fire and get warm. And they did.

Little Joe got them some tea. Adam came in a few minutes later. He got some tea and sat by Ann. "Pa, where are Hoss and Tess?"

Ben said, "They will be here."

Hoss was having trouble seeing, and they lost their way for a few minutes. Eventually they saw the lake and knew they were going the right way. Hoss and Tess saw the house and Hoss yelled for help. Adam and Ben ran out to help them.

It was snowing hard. They helped Tess into the house and Hoss took care of the horses. Tess, too, had brought tea, coffee, flour, sugar, and beans. She was talking to Sue and Ann when Hoss came in. "Pa, it’s snowing real hard now, and the wind could cut you in two."

Ho Sing said, "Put something around the doors to keep the warm air in here."

Ben said, "Adam, you and Hoss put oil and light all the oil lamps. Little Joe, please put all the candles in their holders. Girls, you all put on your warmer dresses. It’s going to get cold. You can use the boys’ room to change."

He told the boys to put on their new longjohns. The girls came out and the boys went in to change. When they came back out, Hoss took Tess’s hand. It was cold. Hoss said, "You cold, Honey?"

She said, "Yes," and Hoss took both her hands in his and tried to warm them.

Adam said, "You are cold, too, Ann."

She admitted that she was. Adam put a blanket around her. Little Joe watched his brothers and moved Sue’s chair closer to the fire and then put a blanket around her. They heard the wind howling and snow was trying to come under the door.

Ben said, "Hurry and put another blanket on the door. It’s going to get colder. You girls put on some of the boys’ socks."

Little Joe and Sue tried to uncover a window so they could see the snowflakes, but Ben yelled, "No, you two!" And they stopped.

They could hear ice on the roof.

Ben said, "Everyone get close to the fire and stay there."

It was not nighttime, but it looked like it outside. Ben went to his room and took the cover off his window. He could not see much because it was so dark. He moved the oil lamps closer and saw a snowdrift on the barn roof. And the blowing snow was making it higher. He knew the barn could collapse from the weight of the snow. He heard yelling and ran back intot he other room. Snow was coming in the door and blowing in everyone’s faces.

The people in town hadn’t listened to Big Dan until it was too late. They were all in Eli’s store trying to keep warm. Eli had lots of food and oil lamps, candles, blankets, and warm clothes in the store. But they needed lots of wood for the fire in the back of the store where Eli and Ruth lived.

Ruth fixed tea and cooked a meal for all of them, and Big Dan and several other men went to get more wood. Big Dan saw one of his Indian friends when he was looking for wood. The Indian gave Big Dan a deer he’d shot so they would have meat. Big Dan told Eli to clean the meat and salt it down, then again went out to get wood.

It was so cold that Eli could barely feel his fingers and toes as he tended to the deer. Ruth ran to him. "Oh, Eli!" she yelled. "Get a bowl of snow. Elis has frostbite." She rubbed his fingers and toes with snow. It helped get the feeling back. He could feel his feet now, and she put another pair of socks on his feet, and he changed clothes, and she gave him some tea and soup. He told the ladies about the Indian bringing the deer so they would have meat.

Big Dan and the others came back with lots of firewood. Their earlobes were frostbitten, but that was all. They ate and drank coffee and talked.

Back at the Ponderosa, Ben ran to the door to block the snow. Hop Sing ran to get another blanket and Ben nailed the blanket over the door. He said, "The snow is falling harder than I’ve ever seen it, and the temperature keeps dropping."

Hop Sing said, "The wind is blowing harder, too."

Ben said, "Hoss and I will check the stock in the barn. Adam, you bring more wood into the house, and Little Joe, stay by the door and open it for Adam. Hold onto the rope, son, so you can find your way back to the door."

Ben and Hoss got their coats and boots on and opened the door. All they could see was black outside. Hoss and Ben held onto the rope and made it to the barn to feed and care for the stock.

Ben said, "There’s a lot of snow on the barn and house roofs. I hope they hold up."

"Pa, we can’t even see in front of us. How do you know about the snow on the roof?"

Ben said, "I just know, son."

Adam got his coat on and went to get more wood. Little Joe opened the door for him to go outside and come back in. He got six armloads of wood into the house until he was too cold to move. Ann ran to help him. It was below zero outside.

Hoss and Ben were on their way back to the house when the rope broke. Ben took Hoss’s hand and said, "This way, son," but they were going the wrong way until Ben hit his head on the house. He reached up and touched the house and said, "This way." They made it to the door and got inside.

Tess said, "Hoss, are you all right?"

He said, "Yes, baby."

And Little Joe said, "Your head is bleeding, Pa."

"I hit my head on the house, son."

Hop Sing cleaned Ben’s head, and he had supper ready. They all ate. Sue looked up at Ann and said, "I want Pa and Ma to be here."

Ann said, "It’s ok, Sue. Ma and Pa are fine."

Tess said, "I just hope they were not on their way home when the blizzard hit."

Hoss put his arm around Tess. "Your ma is fine, too."

Ben said, "After supper, let’s all get blankets and sleep by the fire."

So after they ate, they all went to bed near the fire, girls on one side, boys on the other side.

Ben and Hop Sing stayed up. Ben said, "Hop Sing, I bet there is almost 12 inches of snow outside.

Hop Sing said, "Sound like more to come."

About that time, they heard the wind grow louder again. The snow whirled. Ben stayed up all night.

The blizzard went on for the next two days. Ben and Hoss made it to the barn two times a day, but they could not walk fast in the heavy snow. Adam got wood about three times per day. Hop Sing made great food for all of them, and the girls cleaned the house. Adam read to them sometimes, and Sue and Little Joe would make funny faces at each other.

On the fourth day, the wind slowed down and the blowing snow tamed. It snowed only lightly.

On the fifth day when they were talking to one another, the sun came out and the snow stopped.

Ben said, "I think the blizzard is over."

They all jumped up and down. Hop Sing opened the door and it was still cold, but not like it had been the past four days. Everyone came to look. The ground was so pretty in white. Little Joe asked if he and Sue could play in the snow.

Ben said, "Son, there are several feet of snow on the ground. No, you can’t play in it now. It’s dangerous. You’ll be able to play in it in a few days.

Adam and Hoss got a ladder and got all the snow off the roofs of the barn and house. Ben turned the stock out of the barn.

The town was cleaning snow off all the roofs and trying to clean the streets. Ben and the others cleaned up around the Ponderosa. The next day Ben said, "You can all go have fun in the snow. It’s not so high now."

They made a snowman and had snowball fights and had a great time. A few days passed and the snow melted. Ben and the boys were working outside when they saw Big Dan, Margaret, and the Goodmans going toward the house. They ran to the house. Tess was saying, "Ma, I was so worried about you." Ann and Sue were telling their ma and pa the same thing.

Mr. Goodman said, "We were on our way back when someone stopped us. The nice man and his wife told us a blizzard was coming. We went to their house and stayed until it was over. We knew Ben and the boys would take care of you."

Big Dan told Ben and the boys how the town would not listen to him and they thought he was funny until the wind and snow started. "We all made it to Eli’s store, and we stayed there until the blizzard was over. You got a lot more snow out here than we did in town. We wouldn’t have had much to eat, but one of the Indians brought us deer."

Ben said, "I will always listen when an Indian tells us a blizzard is coming. We would not have been ready if you hadn’t warned us."

As Big Dan rode off, Little Joe yelled, "Thank your Indian friend for us!"

"I will!"

Ben and the boys went back to work.

The End