"Glad to get here. Like to sleep in a house again. Tired of shaking the
lizards out of my blankets every morning."

"Ever shake out a rattler?"

"Not yet, though they say it's been done more than once."

"You're just in time. Turn the beasts into the corral. And then will you
just ride back to Kitty Douglas' for me? She promised me a pie, and I
need a new starter for my sour dough (batter). By that time everything
will be ready to eat."

"You mean the 'Kitty Douglas' of the signs I've just passed?" asked
John, grinning.

"Yes. What were they, today?"

"'Fresh pies, by Kitty Douglas,' 'Bread made every day, by Kitty
Douglas,' 'New-laid eggs every day, by Kitty Douglas'!"

"Kitty's cooking is as fair as the reputation of her house is not. She
charges two dollars for a meal of pork and beans."

"'Tis the regular price everywhere. I'll be back soon." After the meal
John went to, the barbecue, imbibing rather freely of the fire-water
barrel and making a night of it.

Heavy travel continued over the bridge all afternoon - a prairie
schooner with three oxen, two mules and a bronco pulling it; a