eight
o'clock in the morning
On receiving their signal to come on , we allowed the herd to graze slowly forward , but gradually pointed them into an immense `` V , '' and as the point of the herd crossed the dry arroyo , we compelled them to pass in a narrow file between the two counters , when they again spread out fan-like and continued their feeding . The count confirmed the success of our driving by night , and on its completion all but two men rode to the wagon for breakfast . By the time the morning meal was disposed of , the herd had come up parallel with the wagon but a mile to the westward , and as fast as fresh mounts could be saddled , we rode away in small squads to relieve the herders and to turn the cattle into the trail . It was but a little after eight o'clock in the morning when the herd was again trailing out on the Powder River trail , and we had already put over thirty miles of the dry drive behind us , while so far neither horses nor cattle had been put to any extra exertion . The wagon followed as usual , and for over three hours we held the trail without a break , when sighting a divide in our front , the foreman went back and sent the wagon around the herd with instructions to make the noon camp well up on the divide . We threw the herd off the trail , within a mile of this stopping place , and allowed them to graze , while two thirds of the outfit galloped away to the wagon . We allowed the cattle to lie down and rest to their complete satisfaction until the middle of the afternoon ; meanwhile all hands , with the exception of two men on herd , also lay down and slept in the shade of the wagon .