DOG-TOWN DIGGINGS 225 



the outcast dog but I missed most of this in 

 watching the snake mob. It, too, was a vehe- 

 ment, noisy mob. The wise old dog refused to 

 go into a hole but was literally jammed in, 

 with earth clawed in after him until the hole 

 was filled, then another barbaric, triumphal 

 war dance upon the buried one. 



Rattlesnakes eat young dogs and sometimes 

 boldly enter the dens for them during the 

 mother's absence. 



But what was the offense of the old dog 

 which had been attacked by his fellows? Was 

 it crime or misdemeanour? Had he been mis- 

 understood, or was it a case of circumstantial 

 evidence? In other dog towns I have seen the 

 populace putting one of their number to death, 

 and in this town, about two years later, I saw 

 two dogs entombed by the same wild mob. 

 In this case even the sentinels forgot the coyote 

 and joined the mob. Were the executed ones 

 murderers, robbers, or had they denied some 

 ancient and unworthy superstition and like 

 reformers paid the penalty of being in advance 

 of popular opinion ? 



One afternoon Cactus Center had a storm. 

 Black clouds suddenly covered the sky and a 

 storm swept the prairie. A barrage of large 

 hailstones led, striking the prairie violently at 

 an angle so sharp that stones bounded and rolled 



