l
scattering shots after us, but we easily left them behind. They finally
turned and rode off towards the Saline River.

The Doctor thought this glorious sport, and wanted to organize a party to
go in pursuit of them, but I induced him to give up this idea, although
he did so rather reluctantly. The Doctor soon became quite an expert
hunter, and before he had remained on the prairie a year there were but
few men in the country who could kill more buffaloes on a hunt than he.

Being aware that Rose and myself felt rather downhearted over our
deserted village, the Doctor one day said that, as he had made the
proprietors of Rome "howl," he would give us two lots each in Hays, and
did so. We finally came to the conclusion that our old town was dead
beyond redemption or revival, and we thereupon devoted our undivided
attention to our railroad contract. One day we were pushed for horses to
work on our scrapers--so I hitched up Brigham, to see how he would work.
He was not much used to that kind of labor, and I was about giving up the
idea of making a work-horse of him, when one of the men called to me that
there were some buffaloes coming over the hill. As there had been no
buffaloes seen anywhere in the vicinity of the camp for several days, we
had become rather short of meat. I immediately told one of our men to
hitch his horses to a wagon and follow me, as I was going out after the
herd, and we would bring back some fresh meat for supper. I had no
saddle, as mine had been left at the camp a mile distant, so taking the
harness from Brigham, I mounted him bareback and started out after the
game, being armed with my celebrated buffalo-killer, "Lucretia
Borgia,"--a newly-improved breech-loading needle gun, which I had
obtained from the government.

While I was riding toward the buffaloes I observed five horsemen coming
out from the fort, who had evidently seen the buffaloes from the post,
and were going out for a chase. They proved to be some newly-arrived
officers in that part of the country, and when they came up closer, I
could see by the shoulder straps that the senior officer was a captain,
while the others were lieutenants.

"Hello! may friend," sang out the captain, "I see you are after the same
game we are."

"Yes, sir; I saw those buffaloes coming over the hill, and as we were
about out of fresh meat I thought I would go and get some," said I.

They scanned my cheap-looking outfit pretty closely, and as my horse