noon
Summer had advanced until the June freshets were to be expected , and for the next month we should be fortunate if our advance was not checked by floods and falling weather . The fortunate stage of the Pease encouraged us , however , to hope that possibly Red River , two days ' drive ahead , would be fordable . The day on which we expected to reach it , Flood set out early to look up the ford which had then been in use but a few years , and which in later days was known as Doan 's Crossing on Red River . Our foreman returned before noon and reported a favorable stage of water for the herd , and a new ferry that had been established for wagons . With this good news , we were determined to put that river behind us in as few hours as possible , for it was a common occurrence that a river which was fordable at night was the reverse by daybreak . McCann was sent ahead with the wagon , but we held the saddle horses with us to serve as leaders in taking the water at the ford . The cattle were strung out in trailing manner nearly a mile , and on reaching the river near the middle of the afternoon , we took the water without a halt or even a change of horses .