The
Description Of Their First Drive, When Both He And His Companions
Were All Bogged; And How That Twenty-Seven
Mules and twenty-eight
horses bought at St. Louis all arrived one night at the station
about 5 o'clock, after
Sixty hours' travelling with no food or
water, had to be unloaded from the cars, and they hadn't a halter
or even a rope to do it with. Eventually they got all the poor
beasts into a yard with wooden pailing round, but, something
startling them, they made a rush, the fence gave way, for which
damage the proprietor charged them ten pounds, and all galloped
straight on to the prairie, and it took the men all night getting
them together again. One pair of horses disappeared altogether;
but were brought back when a reward of thirty dollars was offered;
they had wandered nineteen miles.
Mike slept in A - - 's room. They talked so much, and told so many
funny stories, that we despaired of ever getting them down to
breakfast; Mike declaring he would like to bring his bed along
with him, as he hadn't slept in one, or been between sheets since
leaving New York, six weeks previously. We drove him over one
afternoon to fish in the creek about two and a half miles off; but
as we had to go in a light waggon, and with only one spring seat,
both Mike and A - - had to hang on behind, with a plank as seat,
which was always slipping and landing them on their backs at the
bottom of the waggon.
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