Summary
Chapter 31
Call momentarily feels passive in the face of planning for the sandstorm. He sends Newt to tell Dish and Soupy to hold up the cattle. Newt, Soupy, and Dish struggle to maintain control of the herd once the sand blinds them in the wind. Newt hits a mesquite thicket, and lightning and thunder make matters worse. Dish and Newt find each other but Soupy remains separated from the others. Dish tells Newt to avoid going near the cattle since they act as conductors for lightning. Rain pours down and disorients both Newt and his horse, Mouse. They plod along and wait for dawn to bring relief.
Chapter 32
Because Jake forgot to hobble the horses, Lorena's mare runs off. He manages to get the hobbles on his own horse and the pack mule. Lorena cries in fear of the lightning. Jake tries to convince her to get out from under a tree, but she refuses until Jake drags her near the river. They sit under a tarp and watch as lightning strikes their old camp. Jake remarks that they have Deets to thank for saving them, and Lorena thinks about how Jake did not actually thank Deets.
Chapter 33
In the morning, Call surveys the damage after the storm. Unless he finds a lightning victim, Call feels that they endured the storm as best they could. An exhausted Newt discovers that he was actually in his assigned position behind the herd. Deets locates all the hands except for Augustus. Dish feels proud of having guided the majority of the herd away from the worst area of brush. He makes fun of the hands who do not have extra underwear to use while they dry out their clothes. They wait for Augustus, leaving Call annoyed. Needle keeps his rifle ready to shoot an aggressive bull.
Chapter 34
Lorena spreads her gear on trees and bushes to dry. Although some of their food got ruined, Lorena feels happy to be alive. Jake goes off to look for Lorena's mare, but Augustus rides up with the horse. As Lorena prepares some breakfast for Augustus, he compliments her beauty. He then fires his pistol to call Jake back. Jake suggests that he and Lorena go to San Antonio, but Lorena refuses. Jake slaps her and commands her to do as he says. She ignores him and moves to pack up their gear. Augustus informs Jake that if he leaves, Augustus will take his place as Lorena's fellow traveler.
Augustus tells Lorena that she can come find him if Jake leaves her. Lorena refuses to let Jake's violent actions and mood ruin her good spirits.
Chapter 35
Call drives the exhausted cattle forward, determined to cross the Nueces River before the storm hits again that night. Mosquitos attack the humans and animals in droves. Sean expresses his longing to return to Ireland. A particular cow causes problems for Newt when she repeatedly wiggles into thickets and stops moving.
Call feels extremely irritated with Jake's lack of helpfulness. Observing Dish's longing for Lorena reminds Augustus of his love for Clara Allen. Augustus considers settling to live near Clara and her family instead of following Call to Montana.
As they cross the river, Newt hears a horrible, piercing scream. Water moccasins attack Sean, and he succumbs to his wounds. Call hypothesizes that Sean struck their nest. Pea Eye, who had been the first to ride in and try to rescue Sean, goes white with shock. Without cowboys to guide them, the cattle begin to drift. Newt regrets not telling Sean to go find passage back to Ireland before it was too late.
Sean's death is the most terrible that Deets ever witnessed. He feels guilty for having chosen the place to cross. Allen blames himself for his brother's death. The rest of the cowboys cross the river. They bury Sean, and Augustus says a few words when Allen cannot sing an Irish song due to his crying.
Chapter 36
Elmira does not regret taking the whiskey boat despite the strong smell. The whiskey traders surprise her by not attempting to accost or even bother her. When she hears the buffalo hunters relieving themselves over the side of the boat, she thinks about how reluctant July ever was to do such a thing in front of her. She feels relieved to have someone with whom to leave her son, Joe. Most of all, Elmira wishes to belong to herself again.
A fight breaks out over Elmira, and one of the men kills a whiskey trader. It turns out to be a buffalo hunter named Big Zwey. Elmira feels bitter and outraged that the men think she belongs to them and that they only leave her alone because the biggest among them already claimed her.
Chapter 37
A herd of wild pigs scares Roscoe's horse, complicating the beginning of his journey. Roscoe rides into a clearing and sees a farmer using mills to uproot tree stumps. The farmer turns out to be a woman named Louisa. She insists that Roscoe help her finish the job before dark, and later insults Roscoe's awkward progress. Roscoe asks where her menfolk are, and she replies that her husbands are dead and her sons have left. Louisa in turn asks Roscoe how old he is and whether he likes to cook. She serves cornbread for dinner and scrutinizes Roscoe as though seeing if he is worthy husband material. Louisa proposes to Roscoe.
Roscoe sleeps outside despite the risk of a rattlesnake that Louisa named Ed. The next morning, Roscoe finds Louise on top of him. They have sex and later go inside to eat more cornbread. Roscoe decides to continue on his journey to find July.
Chapter 38
July stays silent as he and Joe travel to find Jake. Despite how hard they ride, Joe still feels that this is the most exciting adventure of his life. The reason July pushes them so hard is that it is the only thing that distracts him from worrying about Elmira. He considers leaving Joe at one of the farms until he returns to collect the boy, but decides not to in order to spare Joe's pride.
They arrive at a boggy river. They see a man whose animals seem to be stuck. The man throws his parcels away one object at a time, including a bedroll. Once July and Joe cross, July helps the man get his horse and mule out of the river. The man introduces himself as Sedgwick and claims to study bugs. Even though Sedgwick strikes July as being very strange, Sedgwick correctly guesses that July is heading to do something he does not want to do, and that he travels with a heavy heart.
Chapter 39
Sean's death upsets everyone in the outfit. They speak endlessly about death in the week after the tragedy. While Jasper talks more than he used to, Allen ceases speaking all together. Dish excels at being a point man, while the Rainey boys listlessly do the bare minimum. Augustus rides at different points, sometimes irritating Dish by riding in front of the herd. Everyone dreads crossing the San Antonio River because of snakes, but Pea Eye worries more about hostile encounters with Native people.
As Augustus and Call examine the crossing for snakes, and disagree about whether they should keep encouraging talk about Sean's death. Augustus feels that talking is the best way to move forward.
Jasper charges his horse across the river and nearly falls. Newt is too exhausted from night herding to feel any fear. Augustus tells Newt that if the outfit has more bad luck, he does not expect to make it to Montana alive.
Chapter 40
Lorena finds that she enjoys traveling, but Jake's constant sulking leads her to travel mostly in silence. Deets stops by their camp nearly every night to make sure they are alright, and he teaches Lorena how to do the chores that Jake neglects. Jake angrily threatens Lorena but she ignores him. Jake feels caught between wanting Lorena and wanting to be free of her.
Jake asks Lorena if she ever saw anyone get hanged. A fortune-teller once told Jake that he would die this way. The conversation moves to Maggie, Newt's mother. Lorena asks which of the men is Newt's father since they all visited Maggie, but the answer does not matter to Jake because Maggie "was a whore."
Chapter 41
An accident with the mule-driven wagon almost kills Lippy. Newt and the Raineys manage to rescue him, and everyone tries to piece together what happened. The wagon breaks in the creek, ruining a great deal of their supplies. Bolivar resigns as the outfit's cook because he wishes to return to Mexico. It turns out he was dozing in the wagon seat, dreaming about his daughters, when he accidentally fired off his ten-gauge and startled the mules. He realizes that he is done living with Americans, and wishes to return to his people. Bolivar's sudden departure deeply upsets Newt.
As he rides away, Bolivar regrets leaving. He calls all the decisions in his life stupid, but he continues southward without looking back.
Chapter 42
Call feels depressed at Bolivar leaving. Augustus notices and tries to comfort him. Call decides to go to San Antonio to look for a new cook to hire. Augustus joins him, and Call chastises Augustus for needling Jasper about his fear of crossing rivers. As they ride to San Antonio, Augustus remarks that they did their job as Rangers too well and ended up killing everyone who made the country interesting, such as "Indians and bandits."
They buy a new wagon and two mules to drive the wagon back to camp. Augustus offers to drive the wagon but insists on a drink and meal first. They enter an establishment called the Buckhorn, hoping to see their old acquaintance Willie Montgomery. Augustus takes offense at the bartender's insolence and breaks his nose. The owner of the bar comes in and threatens to call the sheriff if Augustus and Call do not leave.
The sheriff walks into the bar, and it happens to be a man from their Ranger troop named Tobe Walker. Tobe advises the bar owner to respect Call and Augustus. He also wistfully expresses his desire to accompany the outfit, but says that his marriage keeps him in San Antonio.
Chapter 43
Roscoe worries that he will not be able to locate Texas despite it being a large place. Many settlers that Roscoe encounters cannot point him in the right direction, but he comes across a traveling band of soldiers who give him so much liquor he vomits repeatedly. They approach the river that marks the boundary of Texas. The soldiers tell Roscoe that he is lucky he ran into them instead of any Native people, and that white captives often face violent ends.
Roscoe comes across an old man skinning a possum in front of his cabin. A girl appears in the doorway, and the man warns Roscoe to leave her alone because he "bought and payed for" the girl. Hoping for a dinner invitation, Roscoe shares his whiskey with the man. The man drinks it all and goes inside without a word. Roscoe hears the man beating and threatening the girl, but he does not intervene.
The next morning as Roscoe rides off, his horse Memphis hits a tree branch with a wasp's nest on it. While Roscoe deals with the stings that he sustained, he spots the girl from the cabin, who apparently trailed him. The girl shyly introduces herself as Janey. She tells Roscoe that the old man used her badly and that she would have killed him if Roscoe did not show up. Roscoe feels reluctant to take Janey with him, except that she knows the way to San Antonio. She leads him to a creek to treat the wasp stings with a mud poultice. She also expertly catches a rabbit and a frog for them to eat.
Roscoe decides to let Janey accompany him to San Antonio.
Chapter 44
To the relief of everyone in the Hat Creek outfit, the mesquite thins out north of San Antonio. Newt rides with the Rainey brothers and discusses what they will see on the trail. Augustus tells stories about encounters with Native people. Once the crew gets used to night herding, Call falls back on his habit of taking time to himself at night.
Since Bolivar's departure, Call has been unable to find a cook. Different men try their hand at cooking, but displeasure runs rampant. Augustus and Call decide to stop in Austin in hopes of respectively finding a woman and a cook. On the way there, Augustus leads the pair to a creek. He cries at the sight of it because he and Clara used to picnic there together. As they ride on, Augustus uses his superior eyesight to pinpoint Jake and Lorena's camp. Lorena is by herself since Jake likely went to the city. Augustus suggests that they hire Lorena to cook, but Call refuses.
When they stop to talk to Lorena, she tells them that Jake has been gone for two days. Augustus irritates Call by deciding to wait with Lorena until Jake returns. As Call rides away, Hell Bitch bucks without warning and throws Call. He holds on by the reins. Later, Call tells Hell Bitch that he intends to ride her across the Yellowstone unless one of them dies first.
Chapter 45
Lorena feels relieved that Augustus stays with her. She reflects on why she trusted Jake at the onset of their relationship. Her capacity to make mistakes causes her to wonder if she is "touched." Despite the hopelessness that Lorena feels, she does not blame Jake. Augustus tells her he wants a poke, so they jokingly agree to play a game of blackjack to settle the matter. After Augustus tries to convince Lorena to no avail, he takes a bath in the little pool nearby. From there, he sees a Native man riding a pacing horse.
The man enters the camp and announces that he wants water from the pool. Augustus tells the man their names, and the man introduces himself as Blue Duck. He and Augustus exchange insolent taunts until Blue Duck rides away. Augustus tells Lorena that Blue Duck was part of a band that killed adult settlers and stole horses and children. Augustus urges Lorena to camp closer to the outfit for protection, but she wants to wait for Jake. Above all, she wishes to get to San Francisco. She asks Augustus to take her, and feels bitter when he tells her he's bound to Ogallala because of Clara.
Analysis
As if to emulate the quick strikes of lightning that come down in the storm, McMurtry shortens a few of the chapters depicting the characters' experiences during the storm. Specifically, Chapter 32 (which illustrates Lorena's extreme terror of lightning) is extremely short. In comparison, the previous chapter (which shows Newt's wearisome slog through the rain as he tries to control the herd and later just to stay on his horse) is much longer. This longer length contributes to Newt's sense of how drawn out the night feels and how much he yearns for dawn to come.
McMurtry wrote Lonesome Dove in the third person omniscient perspective: the narrator shares the thoughts, motivations, and feelings of multiple characters. Within the course of a single chapter, the narrator may switch perspectives any number of times. Before the Hat Creek outfit set out on their journey, the narrator solely focused on characters within the town of Lonesome Dove. However, in Part II of the book, the scope widens to include characters from Fort Smith. Once the outfit is well on their way, the narration crosses wider boundaries of geography to cover all parts of the story.
The concept of ownership plays an important role in the relationship between certain men and women in this novel. When women do not submit to particular men, violence ensues. For example, Jake slaps Lorena when she refuses to accompany him to San Antonio, where he wishes to gamble. Because they are in a relationship, Jake expects Lorena to obey him. Elmira's passage on the whiskey barge in Chapter 36 is a more extreme example. The other whiskey traders and buffalo hunters on board all lay claim to her without her knowledge. The only reason that the men leave her alone is because the strongest and largest man feels that she belongs to him.
Although violence against women (and between people in general) is common in this novel, McMurtry also portrays male and female characters who defy traditional gender roles. For example, Roscoe meets a woman farmer named Louisa in Chapter 37 who lives alone, does difficult physical labor, and directly discusses subjects such as sex and marriage. Women such as Louisa and Peach (July's sister-in-law) have dominant personalities and are unafraid to push people around. In Chapter 45, Augustus's comment to Lorena that he would be her whore if he lost their game of blackjack amuses Lorena due to how unusual it would be for a man to be a prostitute.
So far in the novel, there are two instances of men taking over the responsibility of raising a boy. When Newt became an orphan, Augustus and Call took him to live on the ranch. Everyone living there participates in teaching, looking out for, and teasing Newt. Another example of men playing an active role in raising a boy is the way that July and Roscoe take Joe under their wing due to Elmira's clear lack of interest in the boy. Whether being reared by a collective group of men or just having male role models to look up to, Newt and Joe benefit from their unusual circumstances.
The gray area of American laws and those tasked to uphold them comes into play in Chapter 42 when the proprietor of a San Antonio bar tries to get the sheriff to arrest Augustus and Call. Because the sheriff was once a Texas Ranger and greatly looked up to Call and Augustus, he refuses to arrest the pair even though Augustus illegally fired his gun in the bar. This demonstrates that personal relationships and motivations matter more than the law in some cases. The incident also causes Augustus to classify himself as a dying breed because of the way that society is headed toward valuing order over freedom.
