OTHER WATER BORDERS 



the shining wall of the village water gate ; 

 to see still blue herons stalking the little 

 glinting weirs across the field. 



Perhaps to get into the mood of the 

 waterways one needs to have seen old 

 Amos Judson asquat on the headgate with 

 his gun, guarding his water-right toward 

 the end of a dry summer. Amos owned 

 the half of Tule Creek and the other half 

 pertained to the neighboring Greenfields 

 ranch. Years of a " short water crop," that 

 is, when too little snow fell on the high 

 pine ridges, or, falling, melted too early, 

 Amos held that it took all the water that 

 came down to make his half, and maintained 

 it with a Winchester and a deadly aim. 

 Jesus Montana, first proprietor of Green- 

 fields, you can see at once that Judson 

 had the racial advantage, contesting the 

 right with him, walked into five of Judson's 

 226 



