e remembered. A bright fire
snapped and crackled in the ample fireplace. Every one told stories.
Several of the boys could sing "The Lone Star Cow-trail," while "Sam
Bass" and "Bonnie Black Bess" were given with a vim.

The next morning we were to leave for camp. One of the boys who would
work for us that summer, but whose name was not on the pay-roll until
the round-up, stayed with Jack. We all went home feeling fine,
and leaving Jack happy as a bird in his new possession. As we were
saddling up to leave, Miller said to Jack, "Now if you're any good,
you'll delude some girl to keep house for you 'twixt now and fall.
Remember what the Holy Book says about it being hard luck for man to
be alone. You notice all your boomer neighbors have wives. That's a
hint to you to do likewise."

We were on the point of mounting, when the coyote horse began to act
up in great shape. Some one said to Edwards, "Loosen your cinches!"
"Oh, it's nothing but the corn he's been eating and a few days' rest,"
said Miller. "He's just running a little bluff on Billy." As Edwards
went to put his foot in the stirrup a second time, the coyote reared
like a circus horse. "Now look here, colty," said Billy, speaking
to the horse, "my daddy rode with Old John Morgan, the Confederate
cavalry raider, and he'd be ashamed of any boy he ever raised that
couldn't ride a bad horse like you. You're plum foolish to act this
way. Do you think I'll walk and lead you home?" He led him out a few
rods from the others and mounted him without any trouble. "He just
wants to show Jack how it affects a cow-horse to graze a few days on a
boomer's claim,--that's all," said Edwards, when he joined us.

"Now, Jack," said Miller, as a final parting, "if you want a cow, I'll
send one down, or if you need anything, let us know and we'll come
a-running. It's a bad example you've set us to go booming this way,
but we want to make a howling success out of you, so we can visit
you next winter. And mind what I told you about getting married," he
called back as he rode away.

We reached camp by late noon. Miller kept up his talk about what a
fine move Jack had made; said that we must get him a stray beef for
his next winter's meat; kept figuring constantly what else he could do
for Jack. "You come around in a few years and you'll find him as cosy
as a coon, and better off than any of us," said Miller, when we were
talking about his farming. "I've slept under wet blankets with him