Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1931-01-22

creek, not far from a trading post
conducted by a Frenchman. The next
night we camped on the high ground
between the Judith and Snowy noun
tains and I nearly persisted for lack of
bedding. On the following morning We
descended from the country of sparse
pines to one of the branches Of Nc
Donald creek, and turning nOrthward
drove our cattle over many hills, cross
ing many streams. Here we narrow
ly avoided a small war with some bull
whackers who were "doubling-up'' on
a steep hill. AS we crawled slowly
past them we urged our herd with the
prolonged shouts Of "Oh-ma-ha" and
T-da-ho-oh." The well-trained oxen
responded by stopping whenever the
emphasis was placed on the co.. We
passed on with a consciousness of mis-
chief well performed.
This day at noon-camp we were
visited by three hungry Indians. The
word hungry is perhaps surplusage, for
Indians are always hungry. Donations
of food we're prohibited by foreman
and those of us who were soft-hearted
suffered under ~compulsion of eating a
hearty meal under the wol1Sh eyes Of
these savages. There was some re-
taliation, however, for the Indians, al
most in our camp killed an antelope
and sat down to o nauseating feast OF
raw liver and entrails, garnished with
brains and cracked marrow bones, and
when they had finished there remained
little of the antelope and less Of my
compassion.
THE following day was devoted to
branding calves born during the exodus,
and signalized my introduction to
calf wrestling" / nearly tainted with
horror when the hot iron was applied
to my first calf, but / revived with a
Whit of the acrid smoke and a sharp
prod from the immature horns. Our
work was done in a corral close to a
clump of quaking asp, within a hun
dred yards of the site of Giltedge, later
a flourishing mining camp.
when we we're under way on the
morning of the next day we met with
an example of Indian vigilance. Upon
the top of a rounded butte two or three
miles ahead, there rose a lone Indian,
who with his blanket made semiphoric
signals and then faded from view. This
was a wireless advice to his camp,
perhaps two or three miles distant,
and resulted in a visit from Is or 20
Blackfeet, crudely commercial and So
ciable.
I'VE were within sight of the new
buildings of Fort Maginnis and within
a mile or so Of the DIS home ranch
when we said goodby to our bovine
companions and left them. no longer
to be harrassed by us, but to face the
perils of a new range. hungry wolves
and Indians, and a desperately hard
winter.
1.-The home ranch Of the DIS was
on Ford creek. Black butte, the east
ern buttress of the Judiths, was at
our north, and the Judiths proper, like
an encircling arm, constituted our west
ern and northwestern horizon. This
location was an open, fertile, we'll
waite red valley. The streams were bor-
dered by a dense growth of willows
with occasional cottonwoods of gooo
size. Near a beautiful spring there
had been constructed a commodious
log cabin, L-shaped, and near it q
stockade corral of heavy logs, formed
in part by log buildings, quarters fol
the men and horses. The buildings
we're provided with loop-holes for de-
fensive purposes and were SO placed
that all sides of the corral were com
manded. The massive, hewn doors
swung on heavy hinges and could bt
firmly fastened by heavy wooden bars
We soon made ourselves at home II
the mems cabin and scraped acquaint.
nee with earlier arrivals, exchanging
experiences on the trail and a~pocrypha
anecdotes Of personal history. My so.
journ at the ranch was extended fol
some reason TO two or three weeks
the busiest leisure OF my life.
quite nea us there was a camp o.