Virgil was shortly afterward offered a job as a driver for Patterson, Caldwell & Levally, a local freight company, during which he met John J. Gosper, Secretary of the Arizona Territory, and usually acting in the place of Governor John C. Frémont, who was usually absent. When Crawley Dake was appointed U.S. Marshal, he and Virgil became friends. In 1878, Virgil was appointed as Prescott's night watchman, which paid $75 a month. In November 1878, he was elected as constable for Prescott, for which he received fees for issuing licenses, collecting fees, and serving summonses. While constable, Virgil wrote his brother Wyatt about the opportunities in the silver-mining boomtown of Tombstone. In September 1879, Wyatt resigned as assistant marshal in Dodge City. Accompanied by his common-law wife Mattie Blaylock, his brother Jim and his wife Bessie, they left for Arizona. They would stop in Las Vegas, New Mexico to pick up "Doc Holliday" and Big Nose Kate.