We had just finished summarizing the live-play introduction of James Marsh in the archived thread, Planet of the 'Panzees. I'll reprint my last post here.
Superbly summarized. Mentions have also been made (alliteration aside) that you'll probably want to talk with Old Gunther. At least two individuals have said this independently of each other (once on the road and once in the wagon), apparently when the subject has come around to idea of you traveling with the chimps for a little while. You have not seen or been introduced to Gunter as far as you know.
I've forgotten all the names but one (Tom's), so I'll make them up again now unless you remember them yourself. We'll call the lady chimp who took you from the road into the wagon Rose; she's also the one who did you the favor of changing the subject away from your origin and back to the story that was being told before you arrived. The orangutan's name is Tom, and he apparently managed to track down and capture the ne'er-do-well tinkerer by means a steam-beetle and "Geiger's new device," despite having broken both of his legs in the fall from the balloon and spending the final week of the chase laid up in a hotel. He still received credit for the capture, however, and consequently got a share of the reward money. "And that's how I got this hat, Nathan: reward money."
That's as far as we got. Before I push on, do you have any questions, clarifications, or immediate actions? The attention in the wagon is off of you, for the most part, so unless you get involved in the conversation or otherwise draw attention to yourself you need not interact with your companions if you don't want to. There's no telling how long the ride will be, but it's currently early afternoon. Your bag and blowtorch, as you noted, are with you. The sense that you left something somewhere points generally in the wagon train's direction of travel.