spare, all of which was a tempered wind to the Texas drover. I
spent several months in Dodge, shaping up our herds as they arrived,
and sending the majority of them on to Ogalalla. The cows were the
last to arrive on the Arkansas, and they sold like pies to hungry
boys, while all the remainder of my individual stock went on to the
Platte and were handled by our segundo and my active partner. Near the
middle of the summer I closed up our affairs at Dodge, and, taking the
assistant bookkeeper with me, moved up to Ogalalla. Shortly after my
arrival there, it was necessary to send a member of the firm to Miles
City, on the Yellowstone River in Montana, and the mission fell to
me. Major Hunter had sold twenty thousand threes for delivery at that
point, and the cattle were already en route to their destination on my
arrival. I took train and stage and met the herds on the Yellowstone.

On my return to Ogalalla the season was drawing to a feverish close.
All our cattle were sold, the only delay being in deliveries and
settlements. Several of our herds were received on the Platte, but,
as it happened, nearly all our sales were effected with new cattle
companies, and they had too much confidence in the ability of the
Texas outfits to deliver to assume the risk themselves. Everything
was fish to our net, and if a buyer had insisted on our delivering in
Canada, I think Major Hunter would have met the request had the price
been satisfactory. We had the outfits and horses, and our men were
plainsmen and were at home as long as they could see the north star.
Edwards attended a delivery on the Crazy Woman in Wyoming, Major
Hunter made a trip for a similar purpose to the Niobrara in Nebraska,
and various trail foremen represented the firm at minor deliveries.
All trail business was closed before the middle of September, the
bookkeepers made up their final statements, and we shook hands all
round and broke the necks of a few bottles.

But the climax of the year's profits came from the beef ranch in the
Outlet. The Eastern markets were clamoring for well-fatted Western
stock, and we sent out train after train of double wintered beeves
that paid one hundred per cent profit on every year we had held them.
The single wintered cattle paid nearly as well, and in making ample
room for the through steers we shipped out eighteen thousand head from
our holdings on the Eagle Chief. The splendid profits from maturing
beeves on Northern ranges natu