noon
A short hour 's work saw the cattle aboard , when the dusty horsemen mounted and clattered into the straggling hamlet . The homeward trip was like a picnic . The outfit halted on the first running water , and saddle pockets disgorged a bountiful lunch . The horses rolled , grazed the noon hours through , and again took up their former road gait . An evening halt was made on the Prairie Dog , where an hour 's grazing was again allowed , the time being wholly devoted to looking into the future . `` If we stock the range fully this fall , '' said Joel , in outlining his plans , `` it is my intention to build an emergency camp on this creek , in case of winter drifts . Build a dug-out in some sheltered nook , cache a little provision and a few sacks of corn , and if the cattle break the line , we can ride out of snug quarters any morning and check them .