noon
The cattle world was a small one , and it mattered little where an animal roamed , there was always a man near by who could identify the brand and give the bovine 's past history . With the prospects bright for a new owner on the morrow , these two wayfarers found lodgment among our own for the night . But when another day dawned , it brought new complications . Instead of the early arrival of any receiving party , the appointed hour passed , noon came , and no one appeared . I had ridden down to the lower camps about the latter hour , yet there was no one who could explain , neither had any word from the post reached Forrest 's wagon . Sponsilier suggested that we ride into Buford , and accordingly all three of us foremen started . When we sighted the ford on the Missouri , a trio of horsemen were just emerging from the water , and we soon were in possession of the facts .