The story takes place from July to September 1870.
Five years after the end of the Civil War , Kirk Collins , a former captain of the southern army, devises a plan to force the president of the United States to grant independence to the southern states. Allied to a group of escaped prisoners, Collins storm a train on which General Praser travels . Ken Parker and a funny little man in a checkered suit, Oake Barnum , are also traveling on that same train.
The story takes place from 2 October 1870 to the first days of January 1871.
Ken, charged with soliciting the dispatch of an agent to the Dakota reservation controlled by Fort Smith , arrives in Washington , where he meets Ely Donehogawa, who has just been appointed commissioner of Indian affairs. Donehogawa, making use of the "testimony" of Ken (a man from the border), decides to bring the "Indian question" to Parliament.
