The First Trail Drive

At the dawn of the American Revolution, Ben and Ezra Cross answer the call to help the new nation by leading one of the frontier's first cattle drives, in order to bring fresh meat to the Continental Armies

Though the temporal setting of Winter's first novel-the years of the American Revolution-is unusual for a western, its other ingredients are more mundane: a few bad Indians (Comanche), one good Indian (Yaqui), a fort full of enemies (British), some good guys (American, Mexican), some bad guys (Mexican), a lot of Texas longhorns, some stunning casual carnage and a plot that just trudges on. Colonial mountain men Ben Cross and his uncle, Ezra, are called to New Orleans to meet with the city's Spanish governor, who asks them to travel to Spanish Texas to collect a herd of wild cattle to feed the troops that Spain, about to ally with the Colonies, will be pitting against British forces in Mississippi. Despite a brush from a hurricane, a flood, legal problems, hostile Indians and a couple of treacherous Mexicans, the Crosses manage to get the cattle to Louisiana. Along the straightforward, plodding way, the pair spout a few anachronisms ("I'll check it out," says Ben of a thin column of smoke), while Ben falls for a fiery Texas senorita only to learn that she's been lost at sea. Not one to give up easily, he proclaims, "She's out there somewhere 'n I mean to find her"-clear warning of a sequel that, hopefully, will outclass this offering, suited for die-hard genre fans only.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ben Cross and his uncle Ezra are a couple of Revolutionary War-era mountain men with a penchant for solitude and smelly buckskin. The colonies are starting to chafe against British rule, and the upstart army needs beef. Enter our heroes, hired by a New Orleans businessman to gather up a herd of Texas longhorns. The trails are uncharted and the Indians unfriendly, but Ben and Ezra, mixing patriotism and economics, brave all the dangers and even meet a comely lass or two along the way. This is a simple tale but well told, with plenty of period detail. The characters of Ben and Ezra are both several cuts above the cardboard norm. Fans of western fare will be pleasantly surprised by this little gem. Wes Lukowsky