was not a beast in sight. For an hour he and West hunted them through
the bluff; and then, after making a hurried breakfast, they went on
their way again. It rapidly got hotter, the stock traveled quietly,
and, with a halt or two where a clump of poplars offered a little
shade, they rode, scorched by dazzling sunshine, across the limitless
plain. In the afternoon George began to look eagerly for the bluff
that the rancher mentioned. They had found no water, and the cattle
seemed distressed. The glare and heat were getting intolerable, but
the vast, gradual rise in front of them ran on, unbroken, to the
skyline. Its crest, however, must be crossed before evening; and they
toiled on.

At last, the long ascent was made, and George felt relieved when he saw
a dark line of trees in the wide basin below him.

"That must be the big bluff where the well is; though I don't see a
house," he said.

They had some trouble in urging the herd down the slope, but after a
while they reached the welcome shadow of the trees, and Edgar broke
into a shout when he saw a rude wooden platform with a windlass upon it
and a trough near by.

"Ride ahead with the horses and water them," said George, dismounting.

Edgar did as he was bidden, but presently the herd, attracted by the
sight of water, came surging round the trough, savagely jostling one
another. The lad worked hard with the windlass, but he could not keep
them supplied, and they crowded on the low platform covering the well,
with heads stretched out eagerly toward the dripping bucket. After