Montana - W R Benton - Bog

Missouri isn't the place Corporal James Thomas remembers from before the Civil War. Deserters and thieves abound making life for his aging parents and neighbors harsh, and in too many cases, brutishly short. In the young Corporal's case a serious head injury leaves him with bouts of epilepsy, the unfriendly reminder of his years with the Confederate Army. James is torn, should he hold fast to his former way of life and fight for his Missouri town, or give into the desire of escaping the past and moving out west. Eventually, James can't hide from his dreams any longer. Accompanied by his new wife and a few others friends looking for low-cost land on the western frontiers, they pick up stakes to start out for a new life in Montana. Indian trouble and the rigors of prairie life challenge the new settler's courage. Their task is rough and the trail is difficult, but through it all James keeps alive his mission of living his way...in a wild Montana.