Summary
Chapter 16
Call hires four boys under the age of 18, two of them from the Spettle family. The widow Spettle struggles to raise her eight children in extreme poverty, and she is happy for Call to hire two of her sons. The remaining Spettles stand in the yard and cry as Bill and Pete (the eldest sons) head towards the ranch on foot.
Call then stops by the Rainey ranch. Maude Rainey invites Call in for dinner. He asks Maude and her husband Joe if any of their boys would like to join the Hat Creek outfit. After securing Jimmy and Ben Rainey's employment, Call spends the night and heads back to his ranch in the morning. Just outside of town, he sees Deets, Newt, and the Irishmen with the horses. Call finds Augustus on the porch of the house, and Augustus tells Call that according to Jasper, Pedro Flores died. The news surprises Call. His constant need to hurry about and keep busy stops for a spell, and he tries to convince Augustus that it is time for them to move to Montana. After they discuss the matter, Call rides off to hire Jasper Fant.
Chapter 17
Lorena decides to ensure that Jake will take her to San Francisco. After living together for a few weeks, Lorena finds that Jake seems more attached to her than she is to him. She realizes that Jake is a childish man who needs to be taken care of.
Several cowboys drift into town looking for work, and they stop in to play cards and drink at the saloon. Lorena avoids teasing Jake about Dish being in love with her for fear that Jake will shoot Dish. The cattle branding operation is likely to finish in a week, and Lorena feels an impending personal emergency. Jake avoids mentioning the cattle drive, and Lorena does not push him.
Augustus comes into the nearly empty saloon one day. He tells Lorena that he wants to have sex with her. She tells him that she is with Jake, but Augustus points out that she is the one taking care of Jake, not the other way around. Augustus refuses to give up easily, and he offers Lorena $50, which shocks Lippy. Augustus bribes Lippy's silence for $10. Lorena feels cornered. They decide to settle the matter through gambling. Augustus wins, pays her, and they have intercourse. This does not greatly affect Lorena, who feels no guilt and still considers herself to be Jake's sweetheart.
Chapter 18
Augustus returns to camp expecting the cattle branding work to be finished. Every night, Call and a few hands stole cattle from Mexico. The hands work in shifts, but Call works tirelessly night and day to prepare for the journey. The Irishmen demonstrate an eager hands-on approach to learning, which impresses Call.
Jake avoids arguing with Call about the amount of work that needs to be done, whether Jake will actually commit to the cattle run, and whether he could bring Lorena along. Newt and the Irishmen hold the herd, and the Irish brothers sing to the cattle. Jake decides not to accompany the outfit to Montana. Out of Call's earshot, Augustus suggests to Jake that he ought to bring Lorena and stop in Denver.
Jake heads to town instead of staying for another cattle raid in Mexico. Augustus tells Call that he invited Jake to bring Lorena along on the cattle run.
Chapter 19
Newt thinks about the ride to Montana, imagining the terrain. He develops a friendship with Sean O'Brien, who struggles with homesickness and grief over his dead mother. Newt perceives Jake's lack of interest in the other members of the outfit. The other men resent him for causing Lorena to retire from sex work. A taunting comment from Augustus spurs card games, and the men gamble their future wages. The younger men play for pebbles amongst themselves since they are barred from gambling.
Deets feels uneasy about Call's decision to pick up and go to Montana. Life in Lonesome Dove is steady for him, and he takes comfort in the sky and the changing moon when he experiences sadness. Deets and Newt are friends, though Deets does not share everything about his life (particularly his melancholy feelings) with the young boy.
Newt considers it a double standard that everyone criticizes Jake for not working while refraining from commenting about Augustus's lack of work ethic. When a distracted Newt nearly hits Deets in the face with a flying piece of mesquite, Newt doubles down and concentrates on the task at hand.
Chapter 20
Jake enters the Dry Bean in a sulk, and Lorena pours him a glass of whiskey. She watches closely to see if Jake found out about her selling "the poke" to Augustus that afternoon. Rather than feel afraid that Jake will find out, Lorena figures that his reaction would reveal valuable information about his character. Jake goes upstairs in a huff, and Lorena follows him. They have sex, and afterward Jake complains about Call and Augustus. Lorena decides to reveal her encounter with Augustus. Jake slaps her but without the aggression that Tinkersley used to level at her. Lorena refuses to lend Jake money. He tells her that if she had slept with anyone other than Augustus, he would have shot her. Lorena's reply makes it clear that Jake only knows about this incident because she chose to tell him.
Lorena confronts Jake about his promise to take her to San Francisco. Jake agrees to go with the outfit to Montana. Later, he wants another poke but Lorena refuses. Jake falls asleep but Lorena stays up, impatient to leave Lonesome Dove.
Chapter 21
In the morning, Jake feels less antagonistic toward Lorena. He even imagines being in San Francisco with her. She gives him the $50 she earns and he leaves to buy her a horse. Xavier knocks on Lorena's door in tears over the news of her imminent departure. He begs her to marry him, claiming that he will provide her with safety, material wealth, and a place to live in California. Lorena refuses.
When Xavier offers an exorbitant amount of money, Lorena submits to a quick poke. Afterward, Xavier mournfully tells her goodbye.
Chapter 22
Jake and Lorena ride into camp, and Augustus notices that Lorena is wearing pants. Augustus finds the whole situation (including Call's silent fury) highly amusing. Lorena perceives how anxious Jake is around Call, and she has to accept Augustus's help in dismounting from her horse because Jake does not offer.
Bolivar, who hates traveling, wavers between staying with the outfit or leaving. But he dreads facing his wife back in Mexico. Sean O'Brien sings an Irish melody that makes Newt cry. Augustus's cheerful chatter aggravates Jake. Call directly asks what Jake's intentions are, and Jake shares his plan to ride with the outfit during the day and make a separate camp at night.
Pea Eye sharpens his bowie knife. Whoever had to wake Pea Eye for his night shift to herd the animals ran the risk of getting stabbed.
Augustus helps Lorena mount her horse, and she and Jake go off to camp. Call walks off and encounters Newt. The Captain tells Newt that he intends to embark on the journey the following day. Newt asks how far north they will go, and Call regrets that they did not better educate the boy. Call responds that they are going much farther north than San Antonio.
Chapter 23
The next morning, Call feels determined to start the journey. A man named Soupy Jones comes in with the late night shift consisting of Newt, Dish, Pea Eye, and Jasper. He turns out to be an old fellow Ranger and an excellent horseman, and Call hires him on the spot. Call worries that Bolivar will not embark on the journey with them because that will leave the cooking to Augustus (which apparently is not a good idea).
Augustus tells Call not to weed out too many horses in case they will need to eat them. This irritates Dish, who asks why they would not just eat the cattle they are herding. Augustus hitches the mules to the wagon and announces that he is going to town.
Bolivar feels torn between staying and going. If he goes, he may never see his daughters in Mexico again, but thinking about his village makes him tired. Augustus stops by Jake and Lorena's camp. Jake digs a green mesquite thorn out of his hand while Lorena attempts to make breakfast. Jake is in a sour mood after little sleep and Lorena's refusal to have sex the night before. Augustus observes them with amusement.
Augustus does not feel sad at the prospect of leaving. He knows he is lucky to be alive, and acknowledges that he could die on the journey. Augustus stops at the Dry Bean and talks to a demoralized Xavier. Lippy decides to accompany the outfit to Montana.
Chapter 24
Newt cannot sleep out of excitement. Call tells the hands to repair any broken equipment. Dish scorns the fact that Call puts Lippy in charge of the horses, but Augustus informs him that Lippy was once an excellent hand. Jasper impresses everyone with his intense fear of drowning. Deets and Call work to weed out the weak horses and cattle. They watch an ill-tempered, multi-colored bull mount a cow.
Call assigns Deets to be the scout, a position that fills Deets with pride. Call asks Augustus to count the herd to see how many they are starting with. Dish wakes abruptly from a nightmare. Augustus tells Call that the other men cannot relax around their Captain because he himself is never relaxed.
Call feels conflicted about Bolivar going on the journey without informing his wife and daughters. Augustus jokingly asks Call if he regrets leaving Lonesome Dove now that the town is peaceful. Call responds by saying that they should have left soon after their original arrival.
Chapter 25
The hands each choose four horses that they will ride on the journey. Call assigns their positions, which causes some resentment. Call intends to scare off bandits and leave negotiating with Native chiefs to Augustus. Augustus numbers their cow herd at over 2,600. Once they get started on the trail, the cows raise an enormous amount of dust. Newt rides past 30 cattle and nearly gets thrown from his horse when he doubles back.
The first challenge will be brush country, which could potentially cause the outfit to lose hundreds of cattle. Call and Augustus decide to head through it anyway to avoid having to go the long way around. Leaving Lonesome Dove makes Augustus sentimental, but Call remains unaffected.
Chapter 26
Part II of the novel begins from July Johnson's perspective. At twenty-four years old, July experienced the hardest year of his life. His new wife, Elmira, expresses intense disapproval and impatience towards him. He also suffers from jaundice. Roscoe Brown, despite being double July's age, serves as his deputy. The pair sees Peach (the wife of July's deceased brother, Ben) approaching.
Peach demands to know when July will go after Jake, who she calls "that murderer." July feels tired at the thought of chasing anyone. The killing itself confused him because he was fonder of Jake than of Ben. While Peach pressures July to hunt Jake down, Elmira disapproves of his going off to serve justice to Jake. Elmira lectures July as much as she lectures her son, Joe, which led to Joe and July's friendship.
July feels a sense of responsibility toward the town, but not toward his dead brother, who he disliked. Rowdy cowboys often passed through the town, but July warned gamblers (including Jake) to move on.
Chapter 27
When July arrives home, Joe has already finished milking the cow. The boy dreams of being a cowboy and constantly practices roping animals. Elmira prepares bacon and cornbread for dinner, but she does not come down from the loft to eat with them. This greatly bothers July.
Elmira's anger leads to a great deal of conflict in the household, though July tends not the respond with the same rancor. She tries to convince July to not go after Jake. July is unaware that his wife has known Jake for many years, since the time she was a sex worker.
When July tells Elmira that he intends to go after Jake, Elmira tells July to bring Joe along. July goes to town to make his nightly rounds. Elmira feels happy at the prospect of July and Joe leaving. She considers going off on her own to look for Dee.
Chapter 28
It saddens July that Elmira still avoids making love with him on their last night together. He does not understand why she clearly will not miss either her husband or her son, though July will miss her immensely. The only aspect of the situation that relieves July is that he is doing his duty as a sheriff. Roscoe resents that he will actually have to work when July leaves, but gifts Joe a large black felt hat.
Chapter 29
Peach brings Charlie Barnes, the town banker, to the jail to speak with Roscoe. They berate Roscoe for not looking after Elmira, who they discovered is missing. The three head to July and Elmira's empty cabin. Roscoe assumes she was eaten by a bear, but Peach and Charles hypothesize that she ran away. They figure she probably took a boat filled with whiskey traders a day or two after July left. Peach tells Roscoe that he should go after her. The local ferryman confirms that he saw Elmira board the boat.
The townspeople question and consult Roscoe about Elmira's disappearance. Roscoe gets drunk and goes to sleep. When he wakes, Peach urges him to find July if Roscoe does not wish to go after Elmira. Roscoe reluctantly embarks on his journey.
Chapter 30
Lorena bathes in the Nueces River while Jake drinks off the pain in his thumb from the mesquite thorn. After, Jake tries to have sex with Lorena but he is too ill and drunk to manage. While Lorena makes a fire, Deets rides up and works on extracting the needle from Jake's hand. Deets informs Lorena that they should cross the river because a storm will raise the water level that night. He helps her cross when her horse shows signs of fear and refusal.
Deets advises Lorena to make a fire and do her cooking before the winds start up. He also tells her not to tie the horses to any big trees because they could get electrocuted when the lightning starts. Lorena's spirits sink in fearful apprehension.
Analysis
Call feels stunned upon learning that his old enemy Pedro Flores has died. Without any imminent danger, Call considers himself emptied of purpose and thus loses any sense of meaning in his life. Even if Call does not nurse personal vendettas and allow them to fuel violent actions, he requires a sense of danger and duty to keep himself going. According to Jake, Call "never seemed to need any of the things other humans needed, like sleep or women" (Chapter 18).
Different cowboys prioritize different things, including hard work, drinking, pride, sex, and gambling. Although Call focuses only on hard work, he shares a commonality with these cowboys in that most are willing to take risks. While Call takes risks in big ways (such as by stealing horses and cattle from Mexico and driving them to Montana), other cowboys take risks in smaller ways such as betting all their wages in a single night of card games.
Call embodies the (at times conflicting) qualities of leadership and rugged individualism. He reveals himself to be a natural-born leader in Chapter 24, having commanded groups of men for nearly his whole life. Ironically, however, Call dislikes groups because they reveal immodest behaviors that Call would rather not witness in his men. This distance that Call feels from other men who like to talk, play cards, and be with women leads him to erect barriers between himself and others. He makes nightly patrols to give himself time alone.
Power relations between men and women are evident in Augustus's illicit encounter with Lorena. On the one hand, all the men in the region consider Lorena to be common property, and many desire more of a relationship with her than she cares to give. Lorena's body remains easily accessible to almost everyone, but Lorena still exercises agency in the matter. She elects to make a living as a sex worker in the first place. In addition, she refuses to allow Lippy to buy her services because he disgusts her, and when she meets Jake, she stops selling sex altogether for a time. Overall, Lorena makes the best out of her circumstances that she can, considering the patriarchal times and place that she lives in. This type of misogyny is made evident when, (throughout these chapters), calling someone "a girl" is an insulting way to imply that they are inadequate.
Crying men are considered weak and foolish. When Augustus witnesses Lippy cry as they leave Lonesome Dove in the wagon, he warns Lippy that the outfit won't hire any "sick" hands (Chapter 23). Sean O'Brien, one of the Irish brothers working for the outfit, often cries out of homesickness and grief. This makes everyone uncomfortable, showing that the only acceptable strong emotions that men can display are anger and jealousy. Qualities such as sensitivity do not bolster their reputations.
Women exercise personal liberty by keeping secrets. For example, Lorena does not intend to tell Jake that she had sex with Xavier in exchange for an exorbitant amount of money. Similarly, Elmira keeps her past sex work a secret from July Johnson. She married him to escape the rough and life-threatening way that a buffalo hunter used her. Dee (Elmira's supposedly dead ex-husband) convinces her to spread the falsity that he died of smallpox so as to present herself as a widow. Elmira lies to July so as to save herself from violence and death. She also hides her unwanted pregnancy from July. With no clear path towards a life on her own terms, she bitterly submits to being July's wife. However, her secrets fester between them.
As in the previous chapters, American law is construed as a malleable thing. July Johnson—the sheriff of Fort Smith and the brother of the man that Jake Spoon killed—has a choice in whether or not he hunts Jake down. Different townspeople share their opinions about Jake, including that July ought to let him go since the killing was an accident or, conversely, that it is July's duty to bring justice upon the fugitive. July himself believes in the collectivity of society and in following laws. In comparison with Call, who also takes his duty very seriously, July has less of an independent streak.
