Expedition to Oregon Desert 167 



frightened, and did everything in his power to help 

 us. Such a looking horse you never saw as he was 

 when we got him out. His whole body was covered 

 with a coat of sticky, yellow mud, which we could 

 not scrape off. We had to take him into a creek 

 and give him such a scrubbing as, I think, no 

 member of the genus Equus ever had before or 

 since. 



All this took time, and it was late at night before 

 we reached the ranch. It was our habit, when we 

 got to the cabin and felt that it would be too much 

 trouble to open our pack and get out our own sup- 

 plies, to help ourselves from Mr. Button's store. 

 So, after we had put the horses in the barn and 

 given them a liberal feed of oats and plenty of hay, 

 we went into the larder to get something for our 

 own supper, for by that time we were pretty 

 hungry. 



After supper I lay down on the absent lord's 

 blankets, and was smoking the pipe of peace, when 

 a knock was heard at the door. It surprised me, as 

 it was the custom of the country to walk in without 

 the formality of knocking. I shouted, " Come in ! " 

 and a short, heavy-set man entered. He said that 

 he had been overtaken by night, and as both he 

 and his team were in need of food, rest, and shel- 

 ter, he wanted to know whether we would take 

 him in. 



