had had ample time to do so. Our provisions which we carried were quite
low, so after waiting as long as we could, and the mess wagon failing to
show up, we decided to start the hunt and take our chances on grub from
what we could knock over with our guns.

Accordingly the boys all started out for their several stations. After
waiting a reasonable length of time to give them an opportunity to reach
their positions, we made for the herd, which as near as we could judge
contained about seventy-five of the prettiest horses it was ever my
pleasure to see. The magnificent stallion who happened to be on guard
had no sooner seen us than he gave the danger signal to the herd, who
were off like the wind, led by a beautiful snow white stallion. To get
them going was our only duty at present, and we well knew the importance
of saving our saddle horses for the more serious work before us.
Therefore we only walked our horses, or went on a dog trot, keeping a
sharp lookout for the herd's return.

The band of wild horses would run ten or fifteen miles across the
prairie, where they would catch sight of the other boys, then off they
would go in another direction, only to repeat the performance, as they
struck the other side of the circle. In this way they would make from
fifty to sixty miles to our ten, and we were slowly working them down.
We kept them going this way day and night, not giving them a moment's
rest or time to eat. After keeping them on the go this way for ten days
we were able to get within a mile of them and could see some of the
stallions taking turns at leading the herd, while other stallions would
be in the rear fighting them on. In a few days more we were near
enough to begin shooting the stallions out of the herd. Then we could
handle them a great deal better. At this time our want of grub began to
tell on us. Our cook and mess wagon had not showed up, so we had long
since given them up as lost. We believed they had been captured by the
Indians and future events proved we were right.

[Illustration: The Big Wild Mustang Hunt--We Were Roping and Riding Them
in Fox Canyon]

Our only food consisted of buffalo meat of which we were able to secure
plenty, but buffalo meat for breakfast, dinner and supper every day
without bread or salt is not the most palatable bill of fare, especially
when it is all we had day after day, without any prospect of a change
until we got home. But we were game and resolved to stay wit