Character Interview: Rachel Semmes

Sometimes you just have to take one for the team. It's a tough job but someone has to do it. We are interviewing Rachel Semmes today, and as things go we were forced to conduct our interview on the Island of Oahu, in the Kingdom of Hawaii. I know, the trials we must endure.

One of the trials is that we had to do the interview at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, instead of, say, Diamond Head. It has also taken us six years to get the interview, the result of red tape at the public affairs office. That has been a blessing in disguise. I was all set to interview Lieutenant-Commander Rachel Semmes, Captain of The R.N.S. Prince Maksutov and architect of the Pacific Alliance. However, my interview today is in the office of the Commanding Officer of PACCOM, Rear Admiral Rachel Semmes. And while a bunch of you will be shocked that there is a woman in this high position here in the year 1881, I'll have to revive some of you when I tell you that she is not yet thirty. And while a rear admiral is the equivalent of a one or two star general, and I have already interviewed a three star in General John Lee Anderson, it always sounds much cooler to be Admiral.

• CG: Admiral Semmes, thank you for the interview. Would you mind introducing yourself to my readers.
• RS: I would be glad to. My name is Rachel Semmes, I'm twenty-eight years old and have been in the Republican Navy for the past six years. Mobile born and bred. And I am the favorite niece of my Uncle Rafe.
• CG: There is so much to follow up here. First of all, Uncle Rafe?
• RS: That would be Admiral Raphael Semmes, commander of the C.S.S. Alabama during the last war.
• CG: I guess Naval greatness is in the blood.
• RS: Our initials are both RS, so that's something as well. Honestly, until I was given command of the Prince Maksutov I never commanded any more than a rowboat.
• CG: That would seem to lead to the next question. From civilian to Admiral in six years. Was everyone in the Republican Navy afraid of your uncle.
• RS: I wish. Most of them never heard of him. There aren't many naval historians in the West. I owe most of my success to the Pacific Alliance. 
• CG: So no great Naval Battles to speak of?
• RS: I didn't say that. The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 got The United States in the door with the Hawaiian Government, and then war broke out. And now we wanted to establish a base there, and have refueling rights. We knew that Grant wanted to establish a base there, and we needed to get there first. The Prince Maksutov held her ground against a better armed American Ship, and when they broke off to regroup we pulled out our ace. We had a handful of torpedoes. 
• CG: A torpedo. How did that work.
• RS: It wasn't easy. You have to put them in the water and launch them manually, so we had to set out the lifeboats. The federals thought we were abandoning ship and so never reacted until it was too late.
• CG: The press probably had a great time reporting that.
• RS: Yes, we were a bunch of pirates who launched a cowardly attack on an innocent party. Massacre and all that. But the end result is, Hawaii is ours.
• CG: And the Pacific Alliance?
• RS: There are four members at present. Us, Hawaii, Russia and New Zealand. We have entertained a Russian Vessel but that is the extent of their aid. I think we are still on our own. I will not be holding my breath for a Russian Fleet.
• CG: Have you gotten any advice from your uncle.
• RS: After I got my command I asked his advice. He said do not seek a fight. The federals will find me soon enough. But if I am forced to fight do not spare any cannon. It is better to go down to the sea in defeat than to surrender.
• CG: With the war and all the activity with the alliance, have you had any chance at having a personal life.
• RS: Prime Minister Davis eldest son, James, has recently begun courting me in earnest. He is a nice man, but I am still not sure if it is proper.
• CG: Is he your subordinate?
• RS: Everyone is your subordinate when you're the admiral. He is not directly, though. He is a clerk, not in active operations. He is the same age as I, so that helps somewhat.
• CG: You said you were mobile born and bred. Was your home like Sauf Asir.
• RS: I wish. I wasn't born into such riches.
• CG: One last thing. Since you are Minister of The Navy, are there anything new in the war effort going on?
• RS: I will give your readers a scoop. The engineers over at Fort Bering are working on perfecting the idea of an armed submersible craft. Now that we have working torpedoes the time seems right. There will be no repeat of a Hunley Disaster.
• CG: Minister Semmes, I thank you for your time.

Character Interview: Eye of The Lioness

Things change over time. Events happen. So maybe it is a good time to talk to a Character from time to time and see what is going on in their life. It's been over a year since I talked with Susan Bradford of Thames Electronics aka Lioness, aka Falcon. I thought I would see how things fare, so I set up an appointment for an interview.

So I was off to London. Susan had a need for speed, so we had sort of a working date, though I don't think her father can count on any wedding bells. She took her motorcycle an she let me drive the Jag XKR Red, by the way. Going over 100 mph on the wrong side of the road is quite a thrill.

We went back to her Penthouse Apartment for the interview. (Must be a security thing. I guess former cat burglars like to take the high ground). I was a little distracted, I admit. I was kind of hoping to have her change into something more casual but she chose to remain in her curve hugging leather catsuit/racing suit.

CG: Are you sure you wouldn't prefer to change into some more professional attire before our interview?

SB: I guess it all depends on your profession. Modesty shouldn't be an issue. I am covered from head to toe.

CG: And yet I can study every curve as easily as if I were looking at you naked. I'm sorry, did I say that out loud?

SB: You do know you're looking at an android?

CG: Yes, though I haven't noticed anything robotic about what I'm looking at. I think we should change the subject before your father asks me about my intentions toward you.

SB: Why should he? I am dressed from head to toe. I do get the same reaction from the Jihadis. Called me a common whore. Imagine, me, common.

CG: No comment. Are you comparing me with the Jihadis?

SB: Only slightly. The Jihadis say that a woman should not have any flesh exposed, and when I attempt to accommodate them by dressing from head to toe, albeit, as you say, in a curve hugging latex cat suit with high heel boots, they call me a common whore. Honestly, there is no pleasing some people. 

CG: I think they would say while you are holding to the letter of the law, you are violating its spirit.

SB: What's the good of a law if there's no loophole?

CG: In the year since we talked, you seem to have opened up a bit more. How are things going with the Falcon Force?

SB: We are looking to fill a vacancy.

CG: Who died?

SB: Mongoose, or at least he will any day now. One of us will kill him.

CG: Sure, kill off the American.

SB: It's not just a European thing, though Red Bear constantly offers to "whack him" pro bono. Even White Fox hates him. Do you know how hard it is to p*** off a Canadian? If Mongoose were to suddenly meet his maker, I think Julie Morgan should join the team.

CG: The Generals assistant? Forgive me for sounding chauvinistic, but that would tip the balance of power on the team to the ladies.

SB: You've got a problem with that?

CG: Not in any eye candy fashion, but a three three tie does make for good symmetry. Besides the mongoose problem, how are things with the team.

SB: We get along pretty well. We have three Chameleons in Chameleon, White Fox and Red Bear. They can get us into about any situation. And Mongoose and Viper get us out. Once we are in is when I take over. I mean, Cat burglar and all. Plus my computer experience is pretty extensive.

CG: Plus you get all the toys.

SB: I love my toys. You know what they say about this job. It's like they say "Except for the people out trying to kill you, it's not just a job, it's an adventure."

CG: I don't remember the navy using that first line, but I get your point.

SB: Unfortunately the adventure doesn't include nightlife. Cairo, Tripoli, Benghazi. Not exactly night club central. Neither is Split. Oh, I'm in Hell. Falcon is going bloody crazy.

Sorry. That's one reason I come back to London, despite my father's matchmaking attempts.

CG: Maybe this isn't a great segue, but how is your relationship with the General?

SB: He has been more of a father to me than a boss. I shouldn't be surprised. I kind of owe my life to him. At least he hasn't tried to set me up on a blind date yet. No, despite the fact that he sends me out on missions where people are trying to kill me all is good. Why couldn't I get sent on a mission to Cannes once in a while?

CG: On that note, Miss Bradford, I shall end this interview. Thank you for the time, and the date.

Character Interview: James Davis on Family

We conclude our interview with Republic of Ansdale Prime Minister James Davis. The tough questions are done, and we finish with family.

CG: Tell me about Katherine. First of all, is it spelled with a K or a C.
JD: With a C. To blend with American tradition she has been known to use both spellings. Catherine Anne Bradford was the teenage daughter of one of the British Embassy staff when we met at one of the numerous Washington balls in 1849. Tall, golden blond hair, blue eyes, feisty attitude, and that captivating British accent. When we married the following year I was twenty-four ans she was eighteen. I don't know how she's done it, but she still has the accent, though it has faded a little over the years.

CG: How has Catherine adjusted to life on the frontier?
JD: She loves it. When John showed up at my Georgetown townhouse she was the one who volunteered me for what she called "a Grand Adventure." That adventure has taken her from London to Washington, DC, and to Fort's Pierre and Ansdale. After seven years in the Dakota Territory I thought that was all, but the adventure has continued with Montana, Alaska and now Nevada.

CG: How about your taste for adventure.
JD: I like it now. Reno isn't Washington, but it is civilization compared to the frontier of Alaska. And, as Prime Minister, I direct the entire war effort, so I direct the action.

CG: How have your children fared?
JD: We have three children. James Andrew Davis III, my eldest. Yes, I was a "junior". James is 28 and has followed his fathers path, this time in the Republican War Department, though as a civilian clerk. Paul, the middle child, is 23, born in Dakota. I thought we were done, and after a while so did Catherine, but God had other plans. My baby girl, Ellen, was born in 1866. Catherine was 34 at the time and we were in Montana. Since there was now an infant in the family there was no way I was going to ask Catherine to move to Alaska.

CG: So Ellen is with you at Reno?
JD: No, Catherine is convinced that at least one member of the Davis clan must have a British accent, so she has been sent away to a private school in London. She is now 15 and has been in London for the past three years.

CG: Have there been any additions to the Davis clan yet?
JD: Not Yet. James became quite smitten with Captain Semmes when she was in Reno last.

CG: How does Catherine feel about it? I know your sister isn't too happy about Robert courting Captain Quantrill, though she was happy with Katherine marrying Major Morgan. The vote seems to be split as to her approval of Confederate relations.
JD: Catherine likes Rachel, so that helps. She did hope James would have found someone younger than him, to maximize the potential for grandchildren. Still, Rachel is a beautiful girl, and you can't take living in Hawaii out of the equation.

CG: Probably not. Still it makes for a difficult courtship when one party is in Nevada and the other party is in Hawaii.
JD: James has that problem solved. He has asked me to transfer him out of the War Department and into the Department of The Navy.

CG: Will you approve the transfer?
JD: It's not up to me alone. Captain Semmes is Minister of the Navy. I think it's safe to say she will approve of the transfer. I'm Prime Minister, and he's my son. My brother in law is Minister of War for a few more months at least. But there is Catherine to consider.

CG: I thought you said Catherine approved of Rachel?
JD: She does, but approving of a marriage and allowing her baby to move to Hawaii appear to be two different matters entirely. She would much prefer Captain Semmes to relocate to Reno.

CG: That doesn't make much sense, considering the major naval theater of war is the pacific.
JD: California would be an ideal choice, but it has only been two years since its secession, and the State is still being shelled by the United States Navy.

CG: I was hoping to keep this part of the interview on family, and yet how quickly we get back to military matters.
JD: Things get intertwined quickly in a time of war. Alaska was remote and secure, but disconnected from the main body of Republican troops. Reno is connected to all but Alaska and Hawaii by telegraph and railroad. However it is landlocked and California would provide better access to the Pacific. Since the United States Navy is constantly bombarding the California coast it is unsuitable as a Capitol. I will not make the Confederacy's mistake of moving the Capitol closer to Washington, DC. We will stay at Reno, and Captain Semmes will have an autonomous command at Pearl Harbor. We will make a Hawaii wedding work.

CG: Prime Minister Davis, I thank you for your time.

Character Interview: James Davis, Part Three

This has seemed to be a very involved interview. Of course things can get that way when you are interviewing the leader of the Free World. (What, you thought that was the President of the United States. Could have been, if the U.S. had remained united. The War of Western Independence dashed those hopes). When we last left off, the Anderson Expedition has finally reached Fort Pierre.

CG: Tell me about the Fort Pierre years?
JD: They were horrible. The fort was literally falling apart around us, and there was nothing that Captain White could do about, short of performing some sort of miracle. Even the Ansdale joked that General Anderson was cursed. Our military escort was quickly depleted. 50 of our Cavalry were sent to Pembina on the Canadian border and ten horses were given to the Ansdale to sign a treaty. Captain White started designing a new fort immediately.

CG: Tell me about the Ansdale?
JD: We thought they were Sioux when we encountered a hunting party soon after our arrival. We learned they were Ansdale, a separate nation. Red Thunder, their chief, was very generous, allowing us to live among them. Graywolf, Red Thunder's fourteen year old son, took an immediate interest in us and was constantly about the fort, watching us. General Anderson made him our first official scout.

CG: But you were still a First Lieutenant with a desk job.
JD: Yes, but, then the Civil War broke out, and strange enough for a post far away from the action, the war was very good for my career.

CG: How so?
JD: When the war broke out my brother in law launched a power grab which netted him control of virtually all the territory of the West. Since the War Department was busy pulling western troops and sending them south, they failed to notice that General Anderson was replacing them with caretaker forts loyal only to him. I got sent to Pembina for my first command. It lasted a year, and Catherine stayed at what was called Ansdale City. I also got my long awaited promotion. I skipped Captain and moved directly to Major.

CG: What happened after a year?
JD: General Anderson established the Third Military District on the Milk River in Montana Territory. As soon as the garrison, named Fort Atsina after the native tribe we treated with, was established, I sent for Catherine and the children. We were there five years and then I was sent to Alaska.

CG: Fort Sitka?
JD: Correct. Catherine went back to Ansdale City for about two years while Fort Sitka got up to speed. We were originally supposed to operate covertly, and that meant no families. That changed after the incident.

CG: That was the matter between Jefferson Columbus Davis and Colchecka.
JD: And it quickly escalated from an insult to a war between the United States and three Inuit nations. It almost became a massacre on both sides. I am still amazed that it was averted. And it could have been easily averted.

CG: How so?
JD: The Ansdale are an Inuit Nation, and they, and the others, have a custom that an injured party receive a gift in payment for an insult or loss.

CG: Blackmail?
JD: Perhaps, but any payment would have been easily met by the United States. Trinkets or War. General Davis chose the latter. I have asked my sister repeatedly and she assures me that nobody as stupid as him is related to our part of the Davis clan. Soon after the incident Fort Sitka became the headquarters of the Ninth Military District. I still officially command it, though Major Graywolf is acting commander, and I lead the Republic from Reno. Catherine and I maintain a home in both locations.

(I will end it here. This part may be shorter, but I want to keep the Family side separate. Our concluding post is next time.)

Character Interview: James Davis, The Soldiers Life

CG: Since you brought up General Anderson, I think this would be a good time to talk about your life. Tell my readers how you got to where you are.
JD: I was born to a slaveholding family from Mobile, Alabama on August 2, 1826. That makes me fifty-four year old.

CG: And that would make your sister fifty-one.
JD: Just don't tell anyone that I said it. Hell hath no fury like that of a woman whose age has been revealed.

CG: Were you born at Sauf Asir.
JD: No. My parents were visiting Washington, DC when I was born. If I were superstitious I would say that is why I'm a politician now.

CG: Did you always want to be a soldier?
JD: No. I just didn't want to be a planter. My father got me an appointment to West Point. I graduated in 1846 and was immediately sent to Mexico as a young 2nd Lieutenant in the infantry. I was under the command of Zachary Taylor. It was while in Mexico that I met a Cavalier First Lieutenant of Artillery from Kentucky by the name of John Lee Anderson.

CG: So Mexico was your chance to "See The Elephant".
JD: Mexico was a fun war

CG: Because you won?
JD: That is always fun. No, it was how we won. In most of our engagements we were heavily outnumbered and had to capture the high ground. Yet we still won overwhelming victories.

CG: Better aim?
JD: Maybe. If I were more devout I would say that we had God on our side. Either way, all the land we acquired in that war is now in The Republic. When the war ended, I invited John to spend some time at Sauf Asir. It was there that he met my sister for the first time. She was eighteen.

CG: Susan says that she was married at eighteen. It must have been a whirlwind courtship.
JD: She would turn nineteen about six weeks after her wedding. The courtship was helped by the fact that Brevet Colonel Anderson was stationed at Fort Morgan.

CG: That's convenient.
JD: Almost as convenient as my first assignment being in the War Department. I am convinced that my cousin Jefferson Davis had something to do with both our assignments. My parents didn't have that much influence.

CG: How was life in Washington?
JD: It was a whirlwind of social activity. Dinners, parties and dignitaries. I was bored out of my mind

CG: How so?
JD: It's not the kind of excitement that a young soldier seeks. Mexico had whetted my appetite for combat.

CG: So you hated life in Washington?
JD: At first. I spent nearly seven years at the War Department behind a desk. Maybe it's a relief for a soldier posted at some isolated fort that was fated never to get any action.

CG: Like Sumter and Leavenworth.
JD: Point taken. The Confederate attack on Sumter and the Republic's attack on Leavenworth both had this in common, they were the first major battle at the garrison. My time in Washington had one benefit, though.

CG: What is that?
JD: It's where I met Katherine Ann Bradford, who after a short courtship became my wife.

CG: We will come to Katherine and your family shortly. What ended your life at the War Department?
JD: Family, in a way. My Sister, while courting John, made it clear that she didn't want to be travelling all over the nation. She wanted security. So she convinced John to resign his commission and they began life as civilians in a place neither had any ties to. Trenton, New Jersey. I didn't get to see my sister and her family much. And then family life intruded on my life in the War Department.

CG: How So?
JD: My cousin, Jefferson Davis, became Secretary of War. We were able to meet quite frequently and I told him about life in our part of the Davis clan. One day during the Winter of 1855 my brother in law shows up at my house. He's back in military uniform but this time it's as Brigadier-General, not the Captain brevet Colonel I knew. President Pierce has ordered him to take a civilian homesteading expedition to the upper parts of the Nebraska Territory. Since I was in the War Department, he wanted my advice as to who to pick.

CG: Who did you pick?
JD: First, let me say, never let the War Department lead a civilian expedition. To the soldier, civilian means wife and children. I don't think we had one true civilian family in the group.

• John, Susan, Thomas Walter and Robert Lee Anderson
• Colonel Kenneth Mark Bassett of Maine, Single, Captain at the time, courting Kimberly Ann Chase of Boston at the time.
• Kenneth Lee Dawes of Virginia, stationed in Texas at the time with his wife Maureen, a Texan, and their young son Robert. Promoted to Captain on his arrival.
• First Lieutenant Gary White of Boston, Corps of Engineers, stationed at Fort Warren. Single, though courting Laurie Ann Jacobson of Sandwich.
• Major Thomas Garfield of Illinois, commander of Fort Ridgely in Minnesota. Wife Michelle and four children.
• Colonel Willard McDowell, born in Scotland, lately of Florida. Commander of Fort Jefferson in the Caribbean. A Career soldier, single.
• Pierre Renault, Colonel, Canadian army, wife Patricia, formerly of Montreal.
• Catherine, myself, and the first of our three children.
• We were also given one hundred cavalry.

We arrived at Fort Pierre and realized that what we really needed was engineers, and First Lieutenant White was it. We were forced to improvise winter barracks. I remained John's aide-de-camp for seven years, which Susan loved, because she had her brother on hand to help raise a family of four children.

(I have been deciding whether to make this 3 or 4 parts, I'm leaning to 4. We'll continue with the arrival at Fort Pierre next time.

Character Interview: James Davis

Today's interview will also be the first of at least three parts. I still don't know how long things will take. This interview is with James Davis, the Prime Minister of The Republic of Ansdale, and you just can't snag a juicier interview. Like an interview with the President of The United States, you want to cover as much ground as you can. I still haven't decided if this is another military or a government interview. Things sort of overlap in the Republic of Ansdale. Far from a military dictatorship, the overlap allows each group to serve as a check and balance to the other, allowing the Constitution the Supreme Role.

CG: I never knew Americans were into all that King and Country stuff. Prime Minister.

JD: We came up with the idea as soon as we rebelled. It just sounded more important than President. I am no more powerful, though.

CG: Alaska is cut off from the rest of the Republic. How has that affected the war effort.

JD: It hasn't. As soon as the war began we established a War Capital at Reno, also called Republican Capital South. Reno is linked with the mainland republic via Telegraph and Railway. Second Minister Graywolf commands the Alaska front.

CG: Tell me about the Pacific Alliance.

JD: The Pacific Alliance is the baby of Captain Rachel Semmes, so to speak. She's on station at Kamehameha Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. You should talk to her about it.

(Oh the hardships we journalists must go through to get a story. Hawaii. I don't know if I'm up to the task.  Hey, Quiet down in the peanut gallery - Who knew there would be so many volunteers?)

CG: I will attempt to schedule an interview with Captain Semmes. Meanwhile, mister Prime Minister, what can you add on the Pacific Alliance.

JD: To hear Captain Semmes tell it, The Pacific Alliance was born when King Kalakuau wanted assurances that the Republic was not simply a band of Pirates before signing a treaty with us. She left Hawaii with the purpose of creating a loose alliance of nations in the Pacific which would give the United States Navy pause before attacking us. The First to sign up was New Zealand and then Tahiti. Not really naval powerhouses, but it was enough to convince Kink Kalakuau to sign a treaty. The United States of Colombia was next, and it was their addition that got the United States interest because of their interest in the isthmus of Darien (That's Panama, folks) for use as a Shipping Canal. Canada joined last year. That surprised me, considering we took British Columbia and the Yukon from them as part of the war.

CG: What is the Republic's issue with Canada?
JD: Nothing. Negotiations with Canada allowing free travel of Republican troops through those two provinces to Alaska had broken down. We needed the access, so we invaded.

CG: I would've thought that would have brought Great Britain into the war on the U.S. Side.
JD: It didn't. Perhaps Canada realized we were right. Joining the Pacific Alliance makes it seem so.

CG: The war is now entering its sixth year, and it seems no closer to resolution then when it commenced. How do you judge its success.
JD: For a war which has gone on longer than the War for Southern Independence, it may seem strange for me to say that it is going better than we had ever dreamed. Considering the population imbalance, Washington could have ended the war quickly by coming in force, but they feared being drawn in and ambushed, and so have not risked a full engagement. I do not anticipate any Gettysburg's in this war.

CG: The United States may not be willing to risk a full engagement with Republican Troops, but there have been plenty of engagements.

JD: The Federals have made their strategy to conduct a proxy war against the native tribes. It is a war of extermination. There is no reason for it except they know of the mutual defense pacts signed by General Anderson.

(I'm making this part one, folks. We will take a turn in the interview in our next part. Until then Happy Presidents Day.)

Character Interview: Susan Anderson, Part Two

Welcome Back to our interview with Susan Anderson, the matriarch of the Republic of Ansdale. If you missed part one, click on the link. When we left off our interview, Susan was beginning to tell about her daughter Katherine joining the war effort as a soldier.

CG: You bring up Lieutenant Commander Semmes. Can I infer that you think women should be warriors like your husband?

SA: Women don't belong in the Army. Or the Navy. I know John and James have decided to let women serve because we've got a bigger population deficit than the south did, but I still don't like it. Women should rule the home. That's why one of the first things I did after the last war was to send Katherine off to Mobile Bay School For Girls. To learn to be a lady.

CG: It didn't work?

SA: I should have known better. I did know. I knew it when she first picked up a pistol when she was five. She wanted to be just like her brothers, even though the blast knocked her down. She didn't cry. She wanted to try again, and again, until she mastered it. So while I was disappointed when she told my husband that she wanted to be a soldier, I wasn't surprised. John got her stationed to Fort Shoshone in Wyoming as part of the Territorial Police, which is sort of like a police officer. Then the war erupted and the Territorial Police became Cavalry and she also became a sniper. She was also one of the founding members of the Emerald Guard, which is also tasked with protecting our government officials, including Prime Minister Davis.
CG: Your brother.

SA: Yes. Katherine seems to seek out the most dangerous assignments. A mother wants to protect all her children, so I saw to it that she got her first command with the founding of Fort Republic in Southwest Alaska. One of the reasons J.D. is going to Fort Bannock is because "he doesn't want to be bossed around by his sister."

CG: But you did get half of what you wanted. She did recently get married.

SA: Yes, to Major Morgan of Fort Shoshone. So she is an army wife as well. Though the couple is hardly together. Major Morgan is soon to replace my husband at Reno as Minister of War. It was a grand wedding which would be the envy of every Southern Belle. The distance is not conducive to grandchildren. That may change. Katherine is asking to go back to the Emerald Guard. Perhaps I can get her assigned to Reno.
CG: A related question. What is the status of Sauf Asir?

SA: Sauf Asir is an active plantation. All workers are hired. At twice the freedman's bureau rate, I should add. I inherited the plantation. James wanted nothing to do with it. I think Katherine wants to inherit it from me. That gives me joy. Uncle Ezra manages the estate, and has defended it proudly against United States troops since war broke out. He actually almost shot Katherine during one of her missions east. Another reason I wish she wasn't a soldier. Perhaps Major Morgan will settle her down.

CG: Perhaps. I hear there may be another wedding in the Anderson family. I hear rumors that your son Robert and Captain Quantrill are courting.

SA: They are. Young lovers never realize how obvious their actions are to others. I want Robert to be happy, but he could have done much better.

CG: I take it you don't approve?

SA: Her father was a cold blooded murderer and her mother a saloon girl. They weren't even married at the time of her birth.

CG: There was nothing she could do about any of that

SA: She is a gambler, frequents saloons, and dresses like one of General Hooker's camp followers. Like most gamblers she is probably a cheat.

CG: I have interviewed Captain Quantrill previously. She appears to be a good Christian girl who reads the Bible every day.

SA: Even Satan masquerades as an angel of light. She taught Robert to play poker. Even if she is an honest girl, it is tradition that the bride's family pays for the wedding.

CG: And since Captain Quantrill is an orphan, there's no family.

SA: Captain Quantrill will gain much more from the marriage than Robert.

CG: Pardon me for saying this, Mrs. Anderson, but while your family may have been Southern Royalty, there doesn't seem to be any High Society here in the West.

SA: He could have done much better.

CG: Mrs. Anderson, thank you for this interview. I will not ask you another question, but I hope you will permit me a final comment. You have raised four children who have risen to the highest ranks of prominence in a new nation. That takes character. I believe despite surface appearances Captain Quantrill is a woman of excellent character because of the fact that Robert is in love with her. He learned to judge character from you.

And that concludes my interview with Susan Anderson. Not much left to cover here. Thank you, Mrs. Anderson, for being a talker. Not sure who will be next, but stay tuned.

Character Interview: Susan Anderson

(While doing this interview, I was unprepared for the information volunteered by Mrs. Anderson. The military interviews have been pretty sparse with volunteered information. Because of that, I have decided to split this interview into two. We will start with the Army Wife side and her family history, and we shall continue in the next post with her children.)

I've finally tracked down a civilian to interview. With a major Sort of. I guess an army wife still qualifies as a civilian. The Civilian in question is Susan Anderson, wife of General John Lee Anderson. She looks to be about 50, originally a brunette, but now mostly gray.

CG: Tell us about your life before you became an Army Wife.

SA: Army wife, it makes it sound so official. I like it. I was born in the deep south. Mobile, Alabama to be precise. I was born Susan Ruth Davis at Sauf Asir, the Davis family plantation.

CG: All you left out is your age.

SA: It's impolite to ask a lady about her age. I will say that I am four years younger than my brother James and ten years younger than my husband.

CG: From what you've told me already I can infer that you are old enough to have been raised among slaves.

SA: Both my husband and I are from slave owning families. I'm the youngest of four siblings and the only girl. At our families greatest we had six slaves. By the time I married John when I was eighteen there was only Uncle Ezra. John was fresh out of the Mexican War, a Major, and stationed at Fort Morgan at the time. Soon after our wedding he resigned from the army and we moved to Trenton, New Jersey. I was a young mother of two boys when my cousin Jefferson, who was Secretary of War, informed my husband that he was being sent to the northern parts of the Nebraska Territory. He was re-commissioned into the army with a rank of Brigadier-General.

CG: At least the bump in pay was appreciated.

SA: Not that I could appreciate it. Fort Pierre, which the army renamed Fort Bennett, but which we settlers still called Fort Pierre, was sold by John Jacob Astor of the American Fur Company. If A trading post couldn't survive, money was useless. I probably shouldn't say this, but I think I know how Astor made his money. By selling useless forts to the Army. It was a wreck from the day we moved in until we burned it to the ground and moved into Fort Ansdale. I thought we had arrived in Hades itself when we arrived. And then we met the savages.

CG: The Ansdales?

SA: Yes

CG: I take it from your answers that you are a Democrat?

SA: Women can't vote in the United States, but yes, my family was Democrat. It is the natural home of the slave owner. And yes, I know we can vote in the Republic, but I haven't so far. My husband is a founder of the New Republic Party, so I guess I am too if I chose to vote.

CG: Back to the Ansdales.

SA: I did see them as savages when I met them. Savages that lived in houses, but still savages. Now Red Thunder and his tribe are our closest allies. Red Thunder is also godfather to the twins J.D. and Katherine.

CG: J.D., that's....

SA: Jefferson Davis Anderson. One of his brothers is Robert Lee Anderson, affectionately called Bobby Lee. I guess I'm the rebel, even though they call John one.

CG: That's four children, and all of them are in the military.

SA: Along with her age, never ask a lady about her failures.

CG:  You didn't want your children to be soldiers?

SA: I had no objection to my sons joining the military. I did insist on them being officers. You have no idea how difficult it can be for someone from the territories to get into west point. Thomas and Robert both graduated from there, but J.D. resigned a year before he would have graduated because war broke out. I have managed to keep my boys out of harms way, however. J.D. is finishing an assignment as Warden of Fort Baranov Military Prison in Southwest Alaska and is about to begin an assignment as Commander of Fort Bannock, because Colonel Renault wants to have a field command before the war ends. Thomas has been at Fort Sitka from before the war, and Robert has been at Fort Bannock as a Ranger. War is a mans job. John is a warrior, it is only natural that our sons should be.
CG: As a Southerner by birth, did you influence your husbands decision to Keep Fort Ansdale out of the previous war?

SA: Not at all. John felt, as did I, that the war was unnecessary, and that he owed it to the people of the territories to maintain an army presence. Washington was busy emptying western garrisons of their troops to send them South. While the orders to do so never reached Fort Ansdale, I think they would have been the only orders my husband ever would have disobeyed.

CG: So then your sympathies were with the South.

SA: No, though we have tapped former Confederates and their families for service in the Republic. Sauf Asir also served as a waystation for escaped Union Prisoners, as well as Confederates wishing to escape capture. We played both sides.

CG: You say you have Confederates in your army.

SA: The best known is Lieutenant Commander Hunter, commanding officer at Fort Bering Naval Yard. He was a blockade runner, escaped prisoner of war, and passed into the territories through Sauf Asir. And then there is Rachel Semmes, niece of Raphael Semmes of the CSS Alabama. She commanded one of our first Naval Vessels in the war and is currently Minister of the Navy, commanding From Hawaii. She is also creator of the Pacific Alliance and temporary ambassador to the court of King Kalakaua.

I think this is as good a place to end it, and I think it gives me a jumping off place to discuss the concept of Women in the Military. Should be fun.

Character Interview: Gray Wolf

This is the biggest scoop yet. I mean really big. An interview with an Ansdale. The Ansdale are an Alaskan Coastal tribe that many years in the past got expelled by stronger tribes. They eventually found their way into the Dakota Territory, and when discovered by Brigadier General John Lee Anderson and his expedition in 1855, the Department of the Interior misclassified them as Ansdale Sioux. It is just Ansdale.

The most powerful Ansdale in the Republic of Ansdale would be the current Second Minister of The Republic, and we'll let him take over from here:

CG: How should I call you?

GW: I was born Gray Wolf, son of Red Thunder, Principal Chief of The Ansdale Nation. When my father decided I should be a Scout for General Anderson's "Blue Tribe", I was also given the Christian name Daniel, so I also go by the name Daniel Graywolf..

CG: So you will be Chief someday?

GW: No. That will fall to my older bother Swift as a deer. I am content to be a soldier.

CG: And second in command to Prime Minister Davis.

GW: And third most powerful in this nation. Even Prime Minister Davis acknowledges that he is less powerful than General Anderson, though he is officially the leader.

CG: Tell me about the Ansdale.

GW: The Ansdale are a nation originally from the coastal parts of Alaska. We were the weakest of the nations in the area and so were forced to leave out native land. We migrated from the area commonly called Anchorage southward and eastward until we arrived in our current homeland in what you call Dakota Territory.

CG: So you are not a branch of the Sioux as the United States Department of the Interior maintains to this day. You are listed as Ansdale Sioux.

GW: We are not Sioux, or any other nation. We are Ansdale.

CG: If your tribe was weak, how is it that you avoided assimilation by another, stronger nation.

GW: For Six generations of Ansdale Chiefs, including my Father, we have created alliances with other nations, through trade. Both the Cheyenne and Dakota, enemies though they are, are both allies to the Ansdale. That has kept us strong.

CG: For our audiences reference, where is the Ansdale Reservation located.

GW: There is none. General Anderson and his blue tribe, as they were originally called, dwelt among us, and even though their presence has grown, they have never forced us off our land. Perhaps it is because, as a former Alaskan nation, we were accustomed to living in houses as they, instead of teepee's. Of course you can always recognize an Ansdale home, it having a totem at its entrance.

CG: In closing I was informed by my staff that you wished to clear up a misconception regarding the death of George Armstrong Custer at Little Big Horn.

GW: Crazy Horse did have a role, but not as much as is given him. What is not known is that the Ansdale Native Cavalry, working with the Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho, lured the United States Cavalry into an ambush. Custer thought he was going to face some of Anderson's troops and crush the western uprising in one battle. What happened was that the ANC lured the American Troops into a much larger force than they had planned to face. The result was inevitable.

CG: One final question. Your opinion on General Anderson's practice of naming his garrison's after the nation he has allied with. Fort Ansdale or Fort Shoshone for example.

GW: I can not speak for all of the nations, but the Ansdale are honored. Is not the family of the Blue Tribe Warrior honored when a garrison is named for them.

CG: I would think so. Second Minister Greywolf, thank you for your time.

Three interviews, all with a military bent. Next time I'm going to try to scare up a civilian of sorts. If you think of any questions for Greywolf if I should get another interview, please leave a question in the comments below.

Character Interview: Leah Quantrill

Today I'm pleased to announce that I've snagged another big interview. Big in reputation at least. I do have a few problems with this interview, however. She's just a kid, Yes I said She, looks to be about or so. I really feel ambivalent with grilling a teenager with tough questions. My other problem is that she really is a Smart alek and rarely gives a straight answer. I say kid, but that's just me showing my age. She appears to be about twenty or so, five six, average build and looks quite fetching in her gold cavalry uniform offset by her flame red hair. Enough of that.

CG: Let's start with the beginning. How about your name?

LQ: Pick one. Poker, Faro, Twenty-One. I am pretty good with them all.

CG: I am sure you are. But I said name, not game.

LQ: The games are much more interesting.

CG: Maybe, but I want your name, please.

LQ: I guess I should say pickem as well. Leah Clark, Leah Hart, Rachel King, or maybe Leah O'Brien

CG: How about your real name.

LQ: (mumbles) Leah Marie Quantrill

CG: I didn't quite get that

LQ: Leah Marie Quantrill. Yes, Quantrill, as in Daughter of Satan, Demon Spawn, destined for hell and all that. Happy.

CG: Not really. but thank you. Tell me about yourself. Your family life.

LQ: Family, that's funny. I was born, so they tell me, on March 24, 1859 in a mining camp near Salt Lake City, Utah Territory. My father went by the name of Charlie Hart at the time and my mother was an Irish immigrant by the name of Kate O'Brien. They weren't married at the time. I have been told that my father really loved her, and that he was grieved when she died of some outbreak a few months later. I was sent north to be raised by his family and was called Leah Clarke for as long as I remember. I just found out my real name on my twelfth birthday.

CG: Nice present.

LQ: A few years later I left home. I've made a life for myself as a gambler ever since, except for joining the army.

CG: Tell me how that happened. I didn't think the army admitted women.

LQ: They don't. Well, not unless that woman is the daughter of the most powerful soldier in the West.

CG: That would be Katherine Sue Anderson, daughter of General Anderson.

LQ: Yes. Kathy took me under her wing from the start. She's been like a big sister to me. Kept me from getting courts martialed when I ran. I'm still not thrilled with being a Quantrill, but I think I can come out better than my dad. Kathy's the only friend I have, except for midnight. Midnight's my horse.

CG: I think you have at least one additional friend. Robert... You're turning the color of your hair, young lady. Have I hit a nerve?

LQ: It was completely accidental. I was making a report to General Anderson and in he walked. There's got to be some army regulation prohibiting it. Still, I can't stop thinking about him. I've managed to schedule some patrols while here at Fort Bannock so they overlap. We're both in the Idaho Rangers but in different squads. I don't think Colonel Renault suspects anything.

CG: Would you marry him?

LQ: I don't know. I would probably have to resign my commission, and right now I like being a Cavalry Officer a lot. That's probably a frightening thing to hear from a Quantrill.

CG: Not at all. Thank you for your time.

Two interviews with leaders of the rebellion. This trip back to 1881 is proving extremely successful. If I can snag another interview with Leah, is there any question you the reader would like me to ask? All I ask is you keep it clean and somewhat relevant to conditions in 1881. Nothing about American Idol or Obama, but questions about the Grant, Hayes and Garfield administration are up for grabs, as well as questions on Womens Suffrage, Women in the Military, Native American relations and others are quite germane. Right now I would ask that you post questions in the comments, I think that would be best.

Character Interview: John Lee Anderson

Don't let this get around, but writers have access to some of the most cutting edge technology out there. I mean, there would be a mad rush if everybody knew, but we have a Way-Back Machine. For this interview, we are going back to the "City" of Reno. I put that in quotes because there's only six thousand or so in the Whole of Washoe County. Now this is a kind of scoop for bloggers everywhere. Getting a one on one interview with the Minister of War of the Republic of Ansdale during their War of Independence against The United States. Minister of War John Lee Anderson.

CG: General Anderson, thank you for having me here today.

JLA:  If an interview with an Eastern Newspaper will help put pressure on Washington to let us go our own way, then it is worth it (NOTE: I told him I worked for a newspaper. It's easier than explaining a blog to someone in the 19th Century.)

CG: How shall I describe you to my readers? Western Pioneer?, Mexican War Veteran?, Father of His Country?

JLA: I think that 'A Loyal Servant of His Country' would suffice.

CG: Some would think that strange coming from someone currently at war against his former country.

JLA: That would depend on your definition of country. Since 1855 I have considered my country to be Dakota, and by extension, the West.

CG: 1855, that would be President Pierce.

JLA: Correct.

CG: A review of your military career reveals only one gap, that of the civil war. Some would accuse you of disloyalty by sitting out the war when you were needed.

JLA: If President Lincoln had ordered Fort Ansdale to joint the fight, then I would have complied. Dakota was far outside the theatre of war, and I was not going to risk the lives of my men in a regional squabble that we had no cause to involve ourselves in. The Decision did make me many enemies, though.

CG: One of those enemies, George Armstrong Custer, recently met his untimely, though some would say not entirely unexpected end at Little Big Horn. Now history records the actions of Crazy Horse being responsible to the victory, but you have a different view.

JLA: Crazy Horse was involved, but I think it is unconscionable that the role of the Ansdale Native Cavalry was not recognized. Without their and various other Republican Troops, Custer and his troops would have triumphed, which would have been very bad for our cause. I know it is uncouth to feel no sorrow over the passing of a former soldier in arms. Perhaps if he was less of an ass I would.

CG: Back to the former Civil War. Since you are a native Kentuckian and having married a Southern Belle who was cousin to Jeff Davis himself, one might infer that your sympathies were with the South.

JLA: And they would be wrong. I am also brother to Robert Anderson of Fort Sumter fame. As to Susan, she was the loyal Army Wife and followed my choice. Sauf Asir was even used as a stop on the Underground Railroad, with the full approval of Mistress Davis (NOTE: Sauf Asir is the Davis Family Plantation near Mobile, Alabama)

CG: That may not clear you of suspicion, General. I know for a fact that you were not exactly a fan of Secretary of State Seward, at least as far as your brother is concerned.

JLA: Seward used Sumter as a pawn to placate the South, and he failed. There was a way to save both Sumter and Pickens, and he failed. Seward is dead, however, and I am not. I will speak no more of this.

CG: Certainly Seward couldn't be all that bad. He was responsible for the Alaska purchase.

JLA: In some sense he is the Father of The Republic. Alaska has been quite profitable to our cause in that respect.

CG: I feel its profitability is yet to be tapped, General. Getting back to the Southern rebellion, what is your personal view as to Slavery?

JLA: I am glad it is gone, but I am still convinced that the price was too high. If we could have been just a bit more patient, I am convinced that agricultural machines such as the McCormick Reaper would have caused slavery to wither and die in a couple of years.

CG: So your view on the Freedman's Bureau call for "40 Acres and a Mule"?

JLA: It is misguided. I am glad it has not been official policy for Lincoln, Johnson or Grant. You can not rectify a wrong by creating another wrong. We have already proved that with the so-called Reconstruction. The Rise of The Klan can be directly linked to the misguided attempts of the Radical Republicans to make the "South Pay" for the war.

CG: I know that your wife's family was a slave holding family, and I believe yours was as well. Wouldn't it be reasonable to say that you should have favored the Confederacy?

JLA: Not at all. Fewer than ten percent of Southerners owned slaves, and most of those were like Susan's family, which owned less than five slaves. While the war eventually revolved around the abolition of Slavery, it was initially about States Rights. Secession occurred to protest Federal Control of State affairs.

CG: Some feel that the last war settled the issue of secession forever?

JLA: I disagree. All it settled was slavery. And the fact that the side with the most guns will most likely win. We only have a few States out west, mostly we have territories. Until war broke out, we had a desire to be admitted to the Union as a State. If we were not in the Union, how can we be faulted for leaving it?

CG: For the sake of my readers, what are your reasons for separation?

JLA: There are many, but I will mention the most egregious. While the people of Alaska should have been admitted to all the rights and privileges afforded Citizens of The United States ten years ago, they had not even been afforded the most basic of civil laws. We had to act. Now we have war.

CG: The war is now entering its sixth year, already two years longer than The Confederacy held out. They say there is no end in sight. What is the secret to your success?

JLA: Success only comes with victory. The secret to our resistance lies in the fact that the Federals have been unable to control the field of battle. We are able to attack quickly and then withdraw into the frontier. It has been extremely disheartening to the Federals

CG: Is that all?

JLA: No. We have also gambled on new weapons. Our artillery has been assigned the Gatling Gun, and our navy has purchased a new invention which is called the torpedo. We are extremely pleased with the tests on this weapon and are eager to see how it performs in an engagement.

CG: It is interesting that you have used the word gamble, because I see that your middle son Robert is courting Leah Quantrill, who is quite the card shark.

JLA: And quite the Cavalry Officer. Yes, Yes, and the Daughter of Satan. Susan is still not quite sure how to act around her, but Robert is smitten with her, and she with him. On one of her trips through she gave me some plans for a series of gambling and music halls that she thinks would liven things up here. I admire her initiative, but I doubt that sort of business would amount to anything.

CG: I would not reject the proposal entirely, General. You could hide them from the general population, so as not to stir up much opposition. Perhaps the Nevada desert. At least if the idea is unsuccessful it will be lost in the desert sand.

JLA: An excellent idea.

CG: In closing, I heard your daughter Katherine recently got married. Congratulations.

JLA: Susan and I are extremely proud. I think we'll have to wait a while for any grandchildren, because Katherine is happy at Fort Republic in Alaska and Major Morgan is commanding the First Cavalry at Wyoming. Susan did an extremely fine job transforming Fort Republic into Mobile, except for the weather.

CG: General Anderson, thank you for your time