268 CALIFORNIA DESERT TRAILS 



the Indians at Martinez, but he could n't ever keep 

 him. 'Most everybody in the valley owned him one 

 time and another before I had him. Dick? why, he 

 was my riding burro. Blue Dick, don't ye see? 



"Well, one morning I wanted to go over and look 

 at my Black Owl claim. It was only four miles away, 

 so I walked, and left Blue and Dick and my other 

 burro, a jenny, grazing in a little side caiion that 

 was wired across. When I got back they were gone. 

 That old devil had got away and took the others 

 with him. It was too late to go after them that day, 

 but next morning I took my small canteen and 

 started to track them. I did n't reckon they'd gone 

 very far, but I used up my water before I 'd much 

 more than got on their trail, so I came back again 

 to the Springs. 



"As it happened Aleck Cameron and Don Fergu- 

 son had just come in to Cottonwood that day. 

 They'd been over to Placer Caiion in the Palens, 

 but there was n't any water in the canon and they 

 came back. I borrowed one of their jacks and started 

 out again next morning with a gallon of water and 

 three or four biscuit. The burros had hit an old dim 

 Indian trail that goes over to Piiion. It was a trail I 

 did n't know about, but that old Blue devil savvied 

 every trail and water-hole from Chuck Warren's to 

 the river, dum him. 



"I travelled all day, but the tracks went right on. 

 When night came I had about a cupful of water left. 

 I was only about three or four miles from Pinon, if 

 I 'd known, but I did n't know the country then, 

 and the only water I knew about was behind. So I 



