CHAPTER X
GOOD FIGHTING
Dawn found the boys in the saddle. A two hours' respite had freshenedhorses and riders. The morning was crimpy cold, but the horses warmed tothe work, and covered the two miles to the bend before the sun evenstreaked the east. Joel rode a wide circle around the entrance to thecove, in search of cattle tracks in the snow, and on finding that nonehad offered to leave their shelter, joined his brother at the rekindledfire under the cliff. The cattle were resting contentedly, the fluffysnow underneath having melted from the warmth of their bodies, while thediversity of colors in the herd were blended into one in harmony withthe surrounding scene. The cattle had bedded down rather compactly, andtheir breathing during the night had frosted one another like windowglass in a humid atmosphere. It was a freak of the frost, sheening thefurry coats with a silver nap, but otherwise inflicting no harm.
The cattle were allowed to rise of their own accord. In the interim ofwaiting for the sun to flood the cove, the boys were able to get anoutline on the drift of the day previous. Both agreed that the herd wasfully five miles from the corral when the storm struck, and as itdropped into the valley near the improvements (added to their presentlocation), it had drifted fully eight miles in something likefive hours.
"Lucky thing for us that it was a local storm," said Joel, as he hoveredover the fire. "Had it struck out of the north we would be on thePrairie Dog this morning with nothing but snowballs for breakfast.Relying on signs did us a heap of good. It was a perfect day, and withinthirty minutes we were drifting blindly. It's all easy to figure out inadvance, but storms don't come by programme. The only way to hold cattleon these plains in the winter is to put your trust in corn-fed saddlehorses, and do your sleeping in the summer."
"I wonder when the next storm will strike," meditated Dell.
"It will come when least expected, or threaten for days and days andnever come at all," replied Joel. "There's no use sitting up at night tofigure it out. Rouse out the cattle, and I'll point them up the divide."
The sunshine had crept into the bend, arousing the herd, but the cattlepreferred its warmth to a frosty breakfast, and stood around in bunchesuntil their joints limbered and urgent appetites sent them forth. Inspite of the cold, the sun lent its aid, baring the divides andwind-swept places of snow; and before noon, the cattle fell to feedingso ravenously that the herdsmen relayed each other, and a dinner for boyand horse was enjoyed at headquarters. In the valley the snow lay indrifts, but by holding the cattle on divides and southern slopes, theywere grazed to contentment and entered their own corral at the customaryhour for penning. Old axes had been left at hand, and the first cuttingof ice, to open the water for cattle, occupied the boys for fully anhour, after which they rode home to a well-earned rest.
Three days of zero weather followed. Sun-dogs, brilliant as rainbows andstately as sentinels, flanked the rising sun each morning, after whichthe cold gradually abated, and a week after, a general thaw and warmwinds swept the drifts out of the valley. It was a welcome relief; thecattle recovered rapidly, the horses proved their mettle, while the boyscame out more than victors. They were inuring rapidly to their newoccupation; every experience was an asset in meeting the next one,while their general fibre was absorbing strength from the wintry trialon the immutable plain.
Only once during the late storm were wolves sighted. Near the evening ofthe second day, a band of three made its appearance, keeping in thedistance, and following up the herd until it was corraled at the regularhour. While opening the ice, the boys had turned their horses looseamong the cattle, and on leading them out of the corral, the trio ofprowlers had crept up within a hundred yards. With a yell, the boysmounted and made a single dash at them, when the wolves turned, and intheir hurried departure fairly threw up a cloud of snow.
"That's what Mr. Quince means by that expression of his, 'running like ascared wolf,'" said Joel, as he reined in old Rowdy.
"When will we put out the poison?" breathlessly inquired Dell, throwinghis mount back on his haunches in halting.
"Just as soon as they begin to hang around. Remind me, and we'll lookfor tracks around the corral in the morning. My, but they were beauties!How I would like to have one of their hides for a foot-rug!"
"The first heavy snow that comes will bring them out of the sand hills,"said Dell, as they rode home. "Mr. Paul said that hunger would makethem attack cattle. Oh, if we could only poison all three!"
Dell rambled on until they reached the stable. He treated his mind tovisions of wealth, and robes, and furry overcoats. The wolves hadlocated the corral, the winter had barely begun, but the boys were awareof the presence of an enemy.
A complete circle of the corral was made the following morning. Notracks were visible, nor were any wolves sighted before thawing weathertemporarily released the range from the present wintry grip. A fortnightof ideal winter followed, clear, crisp days and frosty nights, usheringin a general blizzard, which swept the plains from the Britishpossessions to the Rio Grande, and left death and desolation in itspathway. Fortunately its harbingers threw its menace far in advance,affording the brothers ample time to reach the corral, which they did ata late evening hour. The day had been balmy and warm, the cattle camein, gorged from a wide circle over buffalo grass, the younger ones, asif instinctive of the coming storm and in gratitude of the shelter, evenkicking up their heels on entering the gates. The boys had ample time toreach headquarters, much in doubt even then whether a storm wouldstrike or pass away in blustering threats.
It began at darkness, with a heavy fall of soft snow. Fully a foot hadfallen by bedtime, and at midnight the blizzard struck, howling as ifall the demons of night and storm were holding high carnival. Towardsmorning a creeping cold penetrated the shack, something unknown before,and awoke the boys, shivering in their blankets. It was near their hourfor rising, and once a roaring fire warmed up the interior of the room,Joel took a peep without, but closed the door with a shudder.
"It's blowing a hurricane," said he, shivering over the stove. "This isa regular blizzard--those others were only squalls. I doubt if we canreach the stable before daybreak. Those poor cattle--"
The horses were their first concern. As was their usual custom, well inadvance of daybreak an attempt was made to reach and feed the saddlestock. It was Joel's task, and fortifying himself against the elementswithout, he announced himself as ready for the dash. It was less than adozen rods between shack and stable, and setting a tallow dip in thewindow for a beacon, he threw open the door and sprang out. He possesseda courage which had heretofore laughed at storms, but within a fewseconds after leaving the room, he burst open the door and fell onthe bed.
"I'm blinded," he murmured. "Put out the light and throw a blanket overmy head. The sifting snow cut my eyes like sand. I'll come around in alittle while."
Daybreak revealed nothing worse from the driving snow than inflamed eyesand roughened cheeks, when another attempt was made to succor thehorses. Both boys joined in the hazard, lashing themselves together witha long rope, and reached the stable in safety. On returning, Dell wasthrown several times by the buffeting wind, but recovered his feet, and,following the rope, the dug-out was safely reached.
"That's what happened to me in the darkness," said Joel, once theshelter of the house was reached. "I got whipped off my feet, lost mybearings, and every time I looked for the light, my eyes filledwith snow."
DELL WELLS]
There was no abatement of the blizzard by noon. It was impossible tosuccor the cattle, but the boys were anxious to reach the corral, whichwas fully a mile from the shack. Every foot of the creek was known, andby hugging the leeward bank some little protection would be afforded andthe stream would lead to the cattle. Near the middle of the afternoon,there was a noticeable abatement in the swirling snow, when thehorses were blanketed to the limit and an effort made to reach thecorral. By riding bareback it was believed any drifts could be forced,at least allowing a freedom to the mounts returning, in case the boyslost
their course.
The blizzard blew directly from the north, and crossing the creek on adirect angle, Joel led the way, forcing drifts or dismounting andtrampling them out until a pathway was made. Several times they wereable to make a short dash between known points, and by hugging thesheltering bank of the creek, safely reached the corral. The cattle wereslowly milling about, not from any excitement, the exercise being merelyvoluntary and affording warmth. The boys fell to opening up the water,the cattle crowding around each opening and drinking to theircontentment. An immense comb of snow hung in a semicircle around thebend, in places thirty feet high and perpendicular, while in others itconcaved away into recesses and vaults as fantastic as frosting on awindow. It was formed from the early, softer snow, frozen into place,while the present shifting frost poured over the comb into the shelteredcove, misty as bride's veiling, and softening the grotesque backgroundto a tint equaled only in the fluffy whiteness of swan's-down.
The corral met every requirement. Its protecting banks sheltered theherd from the raging blizzard; the season had inured the cattle, giventhem shaggy coats to withstand the cold, and only food was lacking inthe present trial. After rendering every assistance possible, the boysremained at the corral, hoping the sun would burst forth at evening,only to meet disappointment, when their horses were given free rein andcarried them home in a short, sure dash.
A skirmish for grazing ensued. During the next few days there was littleor no sunshine to strip the divides of snow, but the cattle were takenout and given every possible chance. The first noticeable abatement ofthe storm was at evening of the third day, followed by a diminishingfourth, when for the first time the herd was grazed to surfeiting. Theweather gradually faired off, the cattle were recovering their old form,when a freak of winter occurred. A week from the night the blizzardswept down from the north, soft winds crept up the valley, promisingthawing weather as a relief to the recent wintry siege. But dawn camewith a heavy snow, covering the range, ending in rain, followed by afreezing night, when the snow crusted to carry the weight of a man, andhill and valley lay in the grip of sleet and ice.
It was the unforeseen in the lines of intrenchment. The emergencyadmitted of no dallying. Cattle do not paw away obstacles as do horsesand other animals to reach the grass, and relief must come in the formof human assistance. Even the horses were helpless, as the snow was toodeep under the sleet, and any attempt to trample out pathways would haveleft the winter mounts bleeding and crippled. The emergency demandedmen, but two boys came to the front in a resourceful manner. In theirold home in Ohio, threshing flails were sometimes used, and within anhour after daybreak Joel Wells had fashioned two and was breaking atrail through the sleet to the corral.
The nearest divide lay fully a mile to the north. To reach it with thecattle, a trail, a rod or more in width, would have to be broken out.Leaving their horses at the corral, the brothers fell at the task as ifit had been a threshing floor, and their flails rang out from contactwith the icy sleet. By the time they had reached the divide it was highnoon, and the boys were wearied by the morning task. The crusted snowlay fully six inches deep on an average, and if sustenance was renderedthe cattle, whose hungry lowing reached equally hungry boys, the icycrust must be broken over the feeding grounds.
It looked like an impossible task. "Help me break out a few acres," saidJoel, "and then you can go back and turn out the cattle. Point them upthe broken-out trail, and bring my horse and come on ahead of the herd.If we can break out a hundred acres, even, the cattle can nose aroundand get down to the grass. It's our one hope."
The hungry cattle eagerly followed up the icy lane. By breaking out theshallow snow, the ground was made passably available to the feedingherd, which followed the boys as sheep follow a shepherd. Fortunatelythe weather was clear and cold, and if temporary assistance could berendered the cattle, a few days' sunshine would bare the ground onsouthern slopes and around broken places, affording ample grazing. Theflails rung until sunset, the sleet was shattered by acres, and thecattle led home, if not sufficiently grazed, at least withhunger stayed.
An inch of soft snow fell the following night, and it adhered wherefalling, thus protecting the sleet. On the boys reaching the corrals atan unusually early hour, a new menace threatened. The cattle werearoused, milling excitedly in a compact mass, while outside theinclosure the ground was fairly littered with wolf tracks. The herd,already weakened by the severity of the winter, had been held under anervous strain for unknown hours, or until its assailants had departedwith the dawn. The pendulum had swung to an evil extreme; the sleetafforded splendid footing to the wolves and denied the cattle theirdaily food.
"Shall we put out poison to-night?" inquired Dell, on summing up thesituation.
"There's no open water," replied the older boy, "and to make a dose ofpoison effective, it requires a drink. The bait is to be placed nearrunning water--those were the orders. We've got five hundred cattle hereto succor first. Open the gates."
The second day's work in the sleet proved more effective. The sunscattered both snow and ice; southern slopes bared, trails were beatenout to every foot of open ground, and by the middle of the afternoonfully a thousand acres lay bare, inviting the herd to feast to itsheart's content. But a night on their feet had tired out the cattle, andit was with difficulty that they were prevented from lying down inpreference to grazing. On such occasions, the boys threw aside theirflails, and, mounting their horses, aroused the exhausted animals,shifting them to better grazing and holding them on their feet.
"This is the first time I ever saw cattle too tired to eat," said Joel,as the corral gates were being roped shut. "Something must be done. Restseems as needful as food. This is worse than any storm yet. Half of themare lying down already. We must build a bonfire to-night. Wolves areafraid of a fire."
Fully half the cattle refused to drink, preferring rest or having eatensnow to satisfy their thirst. The condition of the herd was alarming,not from want of food, but from the hungry prowlers of the night. Beforeleaving, the brothers built a little fire outside the gate, as best theycould from the fuel at hand, expecting to return later and replenish thewood supply from headquarters.
The boys were apt in adopting Texas methods. Once the horses were fedand their own supper eaten, the lads fastened onto two dry logs, andfrom pommels dragged them up to the tiny blaze at the corral opening. Itwas early in the evening, the herd was at rest, and the light of thebonfire soon lit up the corral and threw fancy shadows on the combingsnow which formed the upper rim. The night was crimping cold, and at alate hour the boys replenished the fire and returned home. But as theydismounted at the stable, the hunting cry of a wolf pack was wafted downthe valley on the frosty air, and answered by a band far to the south inthe sand hills.
"They're coming again," said Joel, breathlessly listening for thedistant howling to repeat. "The fire ought to hold them at a distanceuntil nearly morning. Let's feed the horses and turn in for the night."
Daybreak found the boys at the corral. No wolves were in sight, but onevery hand abundant evidence of their presence during the night was tobe seen. Nearly all the cattle were resting, while the remainder,principally mother cows, were arrayed in battle form, fronting one ofthe recesses under the combing rim of snow. On riding within the corral,the dread of the excited cows proved to be a monster wolf, crouching ona shelf of snow. He arose on his haunches and faced the horsemen,revealing his fangs, while his breast was covered with tiny icicles,caused by the driveling slaver during the night's run. His weight wasresponsible for his present plight, he having ventured out on thefragile comb of snow above, causing it to cave down; and in thebewilderment of the moment he had skurried to the safety of the ledge onwhich he then rested.
It was a moment of excitement. A steady fire of questions and answerspassed between the younger and older brother. The wolf was in hand, thehorns of a hundred angry cows held the enemy prisoner, and yet the boyswere powerless to make the kill. The situation was tantalizing.
"Can't we poison him?" inquired Dell, in the extremity of the moment.
"Certainly. Hand it to him on a plate--with sugar on it."
"If Mr. Paul had only left us his pistol," meditated Dell, as apossibility.
"Yes, you could about hit that bank with a six-shooter. It's the risk ofa man's life to wound that wolf. He's cornered. I wouldn't dismountwithin twenty feet of him for this herd."
"I could shoot him from Dog-toe. This is the horse from which Mr. Paulkilled the beef. All trail horses are gun-proof."
"My, but you are full of happy ideas. We've got to let that wolf go--wecan't make the kill."
"I have it!" shouted Dell, ignoring all rebuffs. "Dog-toe is a ropinghorse. Throw wide the gates. Give me a clear field, and I'll lasso thatwolf and drag him to death, or wrap him to the centre gatepost and youcan kill him with a fence-stay. Dog-toe, I'm going to rope a wolf fromyour back," added Dell, patting the horse's neck and turning back to thegate. "Show me the mettle of the State that bred you."
"You're crazy," said Joel, "but there's no harm in trying it. Whateverhappens, stick to your saddle. Cut the rope if it comes to a pinch. I'llget a fence-stay."
Ever since the killing of the beef, Dell had diligently practiced with arope. It responded to the cunning of his hand, and the danger of thepresent moment surely admitted of no false calculations. Dell dismountedwith a splendid assurance, tightened the cinches, tied his rope good andfirm to the fork of the saddle tree, mounted, and announced himself asready. The cattle were drifted left and right, opening a lane across thecorral, and Dell rode forward to study the situation. Joel took up aposition at the gate, armed only with a heavy stay, and awaited theworking out of the experiment.
The hazard savored more of inexperience than of courage. Dell rodecarelessly back and forth, edging in nearer the ledge each time,whirling his loop in passing, at which the cowering animal arose in anattitude of defense. Nodding to Joel that the moment had come, as thehorse advanced and the enemy came within reach, the singing noose shotout, the wolf arose as if to spring, and the next instant Dog-toewhirled under spur and quirt, leaving only a blur behind as he shotacross the corral. Only his rider had seen the noose fall true, the tautrope bespoke its own burden, and there was no time to shout. For aninstant, Joel held his breath, only catching a swerve in the oncominghorse, whose rider bore down on the centre post of the double gate, thedeviation of course being calculated to entangle the rope's victim. Thehorse flashed through the gate, something snapped, the rope stood inair, and a dull thud was heard in the bewilderment of the moment. Theblur passed in an instant, and a monster dog wolf lay at the gatepost,relaxing in a spasm of death.
Dell checked his horse and returned, lamenting the loss of a foot'slength from his favorite rope. It had cut on the saddle tree, and thussaved horse and rider from an ugly fall.
"He lays right where I figured to kill him--against that post," saidDell, as he reined in and looked down on the dead wolf. "Do you wanthis hide, or can I have it?"
"Drag him aside," replied Joel, "while I rouse out the cattle. I'll haveto sit up with you to-night."