The date of Nevada Smith

Someone who has read The Carpetbaggers should know the dates of Max Sands search for the killers in the novel. The movies change events enough there is no guarantee that the date of Nevada Smith (1966) is the same as in the book.

The IMDB section on Nevada Smith (1966) - Goofs - anachronisms includes this:

When Nevada Smith is after Jessie Coe, the music playing in the saloon in the background is "Frankie and Johnnie." In a previous scene, Bowdre says he hasn't skinned an Indian since the war (Civil War) 15 years ago. Thus, the date of the story has to be no later than 1880. The first published version of the music to "Frankie and Johnny" appeared in 1904 (credited to and copyrighted by Hughie Cannon).

If that is correct the murder of Max's parents should be sometime between 1876 and 1880.

But watching Nevada Smith on Starz Encore Westerns on 12-09-2017 it sounded like Bowdre said "It's fifteen years since I skinned a squaw, man" or maybe "It's fifteen years since I skinned a squawman". I didn't hear any reference to "the war". watching it again I heard "It's been fifteen years since I skinned an Indian, but I ain't forgot how, squawman." or "It's fifteen years since I skinned an Indian, but I ain't forgot how, squawman."

I didn't see The Carpetbaggers and don't know when Max/Nevada becomes a cowboy movie star in that movie. If that happens in 1910 to 1930 and Max/Nevada is 60 years old but still fit enough to be a cowboy star, he would be born in 1850 to 1870 and his parents would be murdered about 1865 to 1885. If Max/Nevada is younger, maybe 30 to 40, when he becomes a cowboy star in 1910 to 1930, he should be born about 1870 to 1900 and his parents should be murdered around 1885 to 1915.

And I don't know if the dates in The Carpetbaggers movie count in Nevada Smith anyway.

Abilene, Kansas became the first cattle drive destination in 1867. Abilene, Texas, became a cattle drive destination in 1881.

After a cattle drive to Abilene (Abilene, Kansas or Abilene, Texas), Max is dangerously wounded, and the Kiowa prostitute Neesa takes Max from Abilene to a Kiowa camp to heal. After weeks or months of healing, Max leaves the Kiowa camp which is still in the same place.

Did Kiowas stay in the same place long enough for Max/Nevada to be healed of his wounds - weeks or days?

Could Kiowas live off the reservation without government rations for weeks or months? Not after the southern buffalo herd vanished in the 1870s, being gone by 1876, soon after the final defeat of the Kiowas, Comanches, and Cheyenne in the Buffalo or Red River War of 1874 to 1875. After 1875 Kiowas would need a reason and permission to leave the reservation. Maybe that Kiowa camp was on the Kiowa reservation in Indian Territory (modern Oklahoma) and they did periodically get rations.

But the Kiowa reservation should have been hundreds of miles from Abilene (Abilene, Kansas or Abilene, Texas), and dragging the badly wounded Max all the way to the reservation, instead of to the next town, for medical treatment could kill him.

If that Kiowa band was camped for a long time near Abilene (Abilene, Kansas or Abilene, Texas) how did the Kiowas support themselves if it was after the buffalo were gone? If they hunted cattle in place of buffalo the ranchers wouldn't stand for it. Maybe some of the Kiowas worked as cowboys on the ranches.

But the general idea of a band of Kiowas being off the reservation and camped near Abilene (Abilene, Kansas or Abilene, Texas) for a while and the local white people being unconcerned about it instead of calling on the army to take them back to the reservation seems a little dubious to me.