The wagon had been
well provisioned, and we started southwest, expecting to go into
winter quarters on the first good range encountered. I had taken a
third interest in the herd, paying one sixth of its purchase price,
the balance being carried for me by my partners. Major Hunter
accompanied us, the herd being altogether too large and unwieldy
to handle well, but we grazed it forward with a front a mile wide.
Delightful fall weather favored the cattle, and on the tenth day we
reached the Medicine River, where, by the unwritten law of squatter's
rights, we preempted ten miles of its virgin valley. The country was
fairly carpeted with well-cured buffalo-grass; on the north and west
was a range of sand-dunes, while on the south the country was broken
by deep coulees, affording splendid shelter in case of blizzards or
wintry storms.
A dugout was built on either end of the range. Major Hunter took the
wagon and team and went to the nearest settlement, returning with
a load of corn, having contracted for the delivery of five hundred
bushels more. Meanwhile I was busy locating the cattle, scattering
them sparsely over the surrounding country, cutting them into bunches
of not more than ten to twenty head. Corrals and cosy shelters were
built for a few horses, comfortable quarters for the men, and we
settled down for the winter with everything snug and secure.
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