108 THE WILDERNESS HUNTER, 



went in our turn, the horses swimming at ong 

 moment, and the next staggering and floun- 

 dering through the quicksand. 1 was riding 

 my pet cutting horse, Muley, which has the 

 provoking habit of making great bounds 

 where tlie water is just not deep enough for 

 swimming; once he almost unseated me. 

 Some of the cattle were caught by the currents 

 and rolled over and over; most of these we 

 were able, with the help of our ropes, to put 

 on their feet again; only one was drowned, or 

 rather choked in a quicksand. Many swam 

 down stream, and in consequence struck a 

 difficult landing, where the river ran under a 

 cut bank; these we had to haul out with our 

 ropes. Both men and horses were well tired 

 by the time the whole herd was across. 



Although I have often had a horse down in 

 quicksand, or in crossing a swollen river, and 

 have had to work hard to save him, I have 

 never myself lost one under such circum' 

 stances. Yet once I saw the horse of one of 

 my men drown under him directly in front of 

 the ranch house, while he was trying to cross 

 the river. This was in early spring, soon 

 after the ice had broken. 



When making long wagon trips over the 

 great plains, antelope often offer the only 

 source of meat supply, save for occasional 

 water fowl, sage fowl, and prairie fowl — the 

 sharp-tailed prairie fowl, be it understood. 

 This is the characteristic grouse of the cattle 

 country; the true prairie fowl is a bird of the 

 farming land farther east. 



Towards the end of the summer of '92 T 

 found it necessary to travel from my ranch to 



