250 AMERICAN INSOLENCE. 



good things, washed down with sherry, brandy, or whiskey, 

 which we liked best, and talked of the events of the day, 

 till the time for rest arrived. Brutus slept in my tent that 

 night, an indulgence of which he was very fond. 



Having arranged my bed, and in a chair at the head 

 of it put my revolver, breech-loading carbine, and Pape's 

 breech-loading double rifle, all loaded and ready for use, 

 feeling heated, I resolved to go my rounds to cool myself, 

 as well as to ascertain that my sentinel over my portion 

 of the camp was doing his duty. The first thing I came 

 to was a loose mule, which had pulled up her pin, and the 

 next two mules put so near together that they had got 

 their larriets entangled. I went then to the watch- 

 fire, where one of my men named Tom was supposed to 

 be on the look-out, and roused that gentleman from a 

 listlessly sedentary attitude, and asked him "What use 

 he was of, if he could not attend to the animals during his 

 watch ? " On this he replied most insolently, so I at once 

 told him if he gave me any more of his impudence I would 

 that instant turn him out of camp, pay him up to the day 

 of his discharge, and leave him to find his way back to 

 Kansas city the best way he could. He said something 

 about a constable when we got back if I did ; but I told 

 him that out on the plains there were no constables but 

 myself, when, on finding that I would put up with no 

 sort of American independence, he became more civil, and 

 said he did not wish to displease me, and the mules were 

 then forthwith better attended to. After this little episode 

 in the history of a prairie camp, I went to bed, and, in 

 spite of the yellings of wolves, slept till daylight the next 

 morning, although the night was disagreeable, cold, and 

 windy, and my tent had not been well pitched ; it was 

 too slack, and the wind not only flapped it about, but, 



