MY COMPANION MOSS. 357 



two men had occupied one room over the saloon, and one 

 morning the partner had been found with his throat cut, while 

 his money had disappeared. This man said that he found him 

 dead on awaking in the morning, and that the window of the 

 room was open. He was arrested and taken to Bozeman, 

 where he was tried for murder and had just been acquitted, 

 though my driver seemed to think him guilty. 



When we stopped for the night I had a long talk with this 

 man, whose name was Moss, and at the end of it he told me 

 that my next day's drive was ninety-six miles, and that 

 although we were supposed to get in that evening, we should 

 really be going all the next day, as the team was only changed 

 once, so he offered me the use of his second horse if I would 

 ride with him, in which case we should be in by seven and be 

 in time for supper. I accepted the offer, and then took the 

 driver aside to ask him what he thought of it. He advised my 

 going, as I should avoid a very tedious drive, and he thought 

 that Moss had now had a good lesson and would hardly risk 

 hanging, which would be a certainty were he tried again on 

 the same charge. To make sure I borrowed one of his 

 revolvers, not having one with me. 



We were off before daylight, and breakfasted under a very 

 curious rock, covered with Indian carvings, about twenty miles 

 from the stage station, having done this in something over two 

 hours and a half. We rested an hour, turning our horses out 

 to feed, and started again about eight o'clock, making forty 

 miles by dinner time, having dinner at a stage station where 

 the waggon was expected to arrive in about three hours. The 

 remaining distance we managed easily by half-past six, without 

 the horses having suffered at all. We had gone at a hand- 



