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 naturally made us anxious to start the new
company. We were doing fairly well as a firm and personally, and with
our mastery of the business it was but natural that we should enlarge
rather than restrict our operations.
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