INTRODUCTION. 9 
accompanied with worry, because usually no rain 
fell between April and September. We used to mow 
down the alfalfa and rake it while quite green and 
as soon as possible pile it up in big cocks and leave 
it there to dry out a while. In that hot sun and 
baking air the moisture disappeared very rapidly 
indeed, so that by the time we could get to hauling, 
the hay would be dry enough, and thus it retained 
perfectly its color, leaves and delicious aroma. Very 
joyous times we had at this haying, a lot of harum- 
secarum cowboys and ranch hands, strong as wild 
colts and rejoicing to see which of us could lift the 
largest forkful of hay. 
At first we simply hauled the hay on wagons and 
stacked it by hand. Later an ingenious Mormon 
boy showed us how to rig a pole stacker, and then 
we let the horse do the pitching. We accumulated 
great ricks of hay, hundreds of tons, against pos- 
sible severe winters. 
Meanwhile we were feeding alfalfa to our saddle 
and work horses, to poor cows and calves that would 
have died before green grass came had they not had 
this help, and occasionally fattening a bunch of beef 
steers on it for the spring market, when fat beef 
brings a premium in Denver and Salt Lake City. 
We had no grain at all and fed only alfalfa hay, 
making with it very good beef indeed, though doubt- 
less we would have made much fatter cattle had we 
had corn to feed along with it. 
We had a few old sows on the ranch and must 
make provision for feeding them and their pigs. 
