Chapter 9. The Happy Family Buys a Bunch of Cattle - Page 2

I--don't hardly think any nester stock will get by us, J. G. And seeing our land runs straight through from Meeker's line fence to yours, we kinda think we've got the nesters pretty well corralled. They're welcome to the range between Antelope coulee and Dry Lake, far as we're concerned. Soon as we can afford it," he added tranquilly, "we'll stretch a fence along our west line that'll hold all the darn milkcows they've a mind to ship out here."

"Huh!" The Old Man studied them quizzically, his chin on his chest.

"How many yuh want?" he asked abruptly.

"All you'll sell us. We want to give mortgages, with the stock for security."

"Oh, yuh do, ay? What if I have to foreclose on yuh?" The pucker of his lips grew more pronounced." Where do you git off at, then?"

"Well, we kinda thought we could fix it up to save part of the increase outa the wreck, anyway."

"Oh. That's it ay?" He studied them another minute. "You'll want all my best cows, too, I reckon--all that grade stock I shipped in last spring. Ay?"

"We wouldn't mind," grinned Weary, glancing at the others roosting at ease along the edge of the porch.

"Think you could handle five-hundred head--the pick uh the bunch?"

"Sure, we could! We'd rather split 'em up amongst us, though--let every fellow buy so many. We can throw in together on the herding."

"Think you can keep the milk-cows between you and Dry Lake, ay?" The Old Man chuckled--the first little chuckle since the Happy Family left him so unceremoniously three weeks before. "How about that, Pink?"

"Why, I think we can," chirped Pink cheerfully.

"Huh! Well, you're the toughest bunch, take yuh up one side and down the other, I ever seen keep onta jail--I guess maybe you can do it. But lemme tell you boys something--and I want you to remember it: You don't want to git the idea in your heads you're going to have any snap; you ain't. If I know B from a bull's foot, you've got your work cut out for yuh. I've been keeping cases pretty close on this dry-farm craze, and this stampede for claims. Folks are land crazy. They've got the idea that a few acres of land is going to make 'em free and independent--and it don't matter much what the land is, or where it is. So long as it's land, and they can git it from the government for next to nothing, they're satisfied. And yuh want to remember that. Yuh don't want to take it for granted they're going to take a look at your deadline and back up. If they ship in stock, they're going to see to it that stock don't starve. You'll have to hold off men and women that's making their last stand, some of 'em, for a home of their own. They ain't going to give up if they can help it. You get a man with his back agin the wall, and he'll