BooksBarbecue
Back Come Again No More Save as PDF
Chapters (55)
  1. Cover
  2. Back Cover
  3. Title Page
  4. Contents
  5. PART I 
  6. 1.
  7. 2.
  8. 3.
  9. 4.
  10. 5.
  11. 6.
  12. 7.
  13. 8.
  14. 9.
  15. 10.
  16. 11.
  17. 12.
  18. PART II 
  19. 13.
  20. 14.
  21. 15.
  22. 16.
  23. 17.
  24. 18.
  25. 19.
  26. 20.
  27. 21.
  28. 22.
  29. 23.
  30. 24.
  31. 25.
  32. 26.
  33. 27.
  34. 28.
  35. 29.
  36. 30.
  37. PART III 
  38. 31.
  39. 32.
  40. 33.
  41. 34.
  42. 35.
  43. 36.
  44. 37.
  45. 38.
  46. 39.
  47. PART IV 
  48. 40.
  49. 41.
  50. 42.
  51. 43.
  52. 44.
  53. 45.
  54. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  55. Touchstone Reading Group Guide

The auction came out a little better than they expected. Floyd Spracklen, a neighbor who already owned three hundred and twenty acres adjoining their land, won the bidding for the farm and most of the machinery. He spoke with Emaline and told her to take her time vacating the house. He would take possession when they were ready to leave. Apart from the things they planned to take to Oregon, everything on the farm was sold except Molly, even Emaline’s old bay mare. Because they had made a substantial down payment when they purchased the farm, they fared much better than most. Calvin Cox wrote them a check for $1,072.57 and wished them luck. Jake cashed it immediately because he was afraid the bank would fail before they got to Oregon and the check would bounce all the way back to Nebraska. But they had more than enough to take them to Oregon, perhaps even to make a little down payment on a house once they got there.

Three days before they left, Corky Dishman, the only mechanic Jake trusted, convinced him that the Ford Roadrunner would not make it to the West Coast. Corky just happened to have a 1928 Dodge Brothers sedan fixed up and ready to go. The Dodge was a pretty cream color with brown fenders, but it was ten years old and it looked pretty beat-up. It had an engine which ran thirty-five horsepower to the rear wheels, a floor heater and automatic windshield washers, all of which would come in handy pulling a trailer up and over the Great Divide.

Emaline thought it would be nice to have the car instead of the three of them being crammed into the truck cab all the way to Oregon, but she did not care one bit for the suicide doors in the back. The doors were hinged at the rear and opened in the center, so that if one flew open while the car was in motion, the wind would tear the door back and sometimes fling the occupant of the back seat onto the pavement. She didn’t want Red and Molly back there unless Jake could rig some way to keep the doors from opening while the car was moving. He cut a couple of six-inch blocks off a two-by-four and wedged them tightly inside the door handles so they couldn’t be moved. Emaline looked at them doubtfully, but Jake had whittled the blocks until they were so snug that he was the only one strong enough to pull them out.

34.