midnight
The vaqueros were disturbed over the journey , for Fort Worth was as foreign to them as a European seaport , but I jollied them into believing it was but a little _ pasear _ . Though I had never ridden on a train myself , I pictured to them the luxuriant ease with which we would return , as well as the trip by stage to Oakville . I threw enough enthusiasm into my description of the good time we were going to have , coupled with their confidence in Deweese , to convince them in spite of their forebodings . Our _ segundo _ humored them in various ways , and after a week on the trail , water getting plentiful , using two guards , we only herded until midnight , turning the herd loose from then until daybreak . It usually took us less than an hour to gather and count them in the morning , and encouraged by their contentment , a few days later , we loose-herded until darkness and then turned them free . From then on it was a picnic as far as work was concerned , and our saddle horses and herd improved every day . After crossing the Colorado River , at every available chance en route we mailed a letter to the buyer , notifying him of our progress as we swept northward .