114 EARLY DAY STORIES. 



had kept my word and had not used the rifle again at all, 

 although two or three others had borrowed it without any 

 success in getting game. I did not intend to say anything 

 about it to Mr. Taylor, but on his return someone told him, 

 explaining why we were out of fresh meat. Mr. Taylor 

 sent for me and I went to his tent, partly expecting a repri- 

 mand for not using my rifle. However, he said nothing 

 about it, but explained that I was to start the next morning, 

 with Bob Skiles as my helper, for the valley of the Middle 

 Loup river, in Sherman county, to examine and report on 

 the timber found on railroad land. He instructed me to first 

 make the necessary examination, and then to hunt until we 

 had killed a load of game for the camp. That is how there 

 happens to material for this story. 



Getting an early start next morning we followed up 

 the valley of Oak creek seven or eight miles, passing the 

 place where the village of Ashton now stands, and then 

 turning to the southwest made our way over the rough 

 divide for about twelve miles to Middle Loup valley. We 

 had a team of horses and a wagon to carry the camping out- 

 fit and bring back the game that it was expected would be 

 killed. Of course we took none of the small supply of veni- 

 son still left in camp, there not being a quarter enough to 

 last the camp until our return. We expected to get a deer 

 before reaching the Loup valley, but none were seen, and 

 game signs were scarce. We struck the Middle Loup a 

 mile or two below the present site of Loup City, where there 

 was a cottonwood grove in which we encamped. While Bob 

 put out the team and made camp, I started out with the com- 

 pass and tripod to find a section corner and get a start to 

 begin work. This was easy, for the survey was new, hav- 

 ing been done only a few years before, and the government 

 mounds were plain and most of the corner stakes stand- 

 ing; and besides the prairie had been burned only a few 

 weeks before which exposed the mounds that otherwise 



