OH, SHOOT! 



house blooms held high on military lances; 

 fragrant herbs that Angel told us were food 

 and medicine. It was a wonderland of curi- 

 osities and contradictions. For instance, I 

 cut a branch for a staff, but it ran blood all 

 over my hands. I cut another, and it exuded 

 milk. The third gave forth honey instead of 

 sap. 



With sweat pouring from us, now that the 

 sun was back on the job, we toiled up a four- 

 thousand-foot spur of the main range. Near 

 the top we ran upon a sloping meadow, a 

 lush and lovely beauty spot, carpeted with 

 strange red and blue and yellow flowers, the 

 perfume of which was heavenly. 



Sheep "signs" were plentiful all up and 

 down the ridge; we hung our feet over the 

 edge of the cliffs and let the view soak in, then 

 combed the country with our glasses. 



Near by, we came upon a city of cave 

 dwellings in very good repair. The whole 

 face of a long bluff was perforated with en- 

 trances, lending it a Swiss-cheese effect, and 

 opening from the main chambers, in some in- 

 stances, were smaller compartments which had 

 doubtless served the original homesteaders as 

 china cabinets, coat closets, and butlers' pan- 



258 



