The spring of 1878 was a busy time for the Double D. Morning lessons around the kitchen table were put on hold. The schooling during the winter months had been successful. Little Eagle and Little Turtle could now read rather difficult books, were well along in numbers, and could speak English rather well. The Ute language was also taking hold with the class, and during some school days, the tongue had been restricted to the Ute language.
The calves had been branded and the males castrated. The Ross ranch had been purchased and was now a part of the Double D. The two buildings in town were under construction. The equipment had been ordered, both the sewing machine and printing press. Jake would be leaving for Denver soon to begin his two-month training period. He could now walk without crutches or a walking cane and was pleased his limp was not nearly as severe as the doctor had originally predicted.
Springtime brought new life to the homestead and the ranch. The garden was planted. One of the milk cows had given birth to a lovely heifer calf. Baby chicks had hatched and two foals belonging to Star and Starlight were running about in the corral. Black had matters under control at the horseshoe canyon by the waterfall. Several new foals had been born, many resembling their father’s characteristics, including his black coloring. Since June was only a week away, supper time discussions turned to the upcoming cattle drive. “What’s your plan, Thomas?” Douglas asked. “When do we get started?”
“I was in town yesterday and hired six wranglers. They’ll be here next week. In the meantime, I thought we could begin to round up the stock at the Ross place. We’ll get them branded and castrated, and drive them over here, so they can join our drive to the James ranch.” Thomas paused, collecting his thoughts. “Ross must have had a terrible winter loss. I don’t believe there’s over seven hundred head remaining. It would be best to sell them all. From what I saw during our survey, they’re mostly Longhorns of low quality and not fit to be included in our breeding program.”
“When should we head out, Thomas?” Douglas asked.
“It’s up to you, Herb, but we might as well get started. I’d suggest we leave tomorrow.”
“Then it’s settled. We’ll leave for the Ross ranch in the morning. You men be here for breakfast at five o’clock.” Mr. Douglas looked at Morning Sun. She nodded.
“What happened to the Ross’ dead cow carcasses? Are they still lying around?” Liz’s question was unexpected, but her father responded.
“Mr. Ross disposed of them in the same manner as the Double D, Liz. It was the last ranch work he did before leaving. He blamed himself for letting them die and said it was his responsibility to dispose of them.”
Two weeks later, the cattle for sale had been driven to the Henry James Ranch and were already on the long drive to Omaha. The number of Double D cows on the drive was down substantially, in part due to the bad winter, but mostly because the ranch would be keeping back all of its heifers to restock the Ross ranch. The sale of the entire Ross herd would help offset part of the shortfall, and if Henry James’ prediction was accurate, the price per head this year would be up by at least two dollars and maybe as much as five, which would provide the Double D with adequate operating funds.
A few evenings later, when Douglas and Thomas were alone in the office, Douglas said, “Thomas, I want you to have the men drive the Double D cows to the Ross ranch.”
The foreman looked surprised. “Do you want all of the cows taken over, Herb?”
“Yes. I want to start preparing for a winter like we’ve just come through. I’ve made a commitment to myself not to lose another head of stock due to the lack of feed. Not ever again will it happen.”
“What’s your plan, Herb?”
Douglas spent a minute or two organizing his mind. “While the herd grazes at the Ross range this summer, we’ll make one or two cuttings of the Double D prairie grass and haul the hay to the cow’s hideout places. The grass should grow good this year with no grazing and should yield a substantial amount of hay.”
“How are we going to get the grass cut and hauled to the hideouts, Herb?”
“I want to put ten men on the job, cutting continuously for the entire summer. We’ll start with the grass at the fastest growing areas and migrate to the slower growing areas. When all of the grass has been cut once, we’ll start over. The grass should have grown back by then.”
“How are we going to keep the cows from eating the hay when we bring them back here, Herb?”
“We’ll build a fence around the hay piles with the new barb wire we’ve been hearing about. I understand the mercantile has some in stock.”
“When do you want me to start the project?”
“We might as well get started. You organize the moving of the cows. I’ll send Scar to town to hire men and buy the supplies.”
Two days later Scar pulled his team and wagon up to the front of the Flat Peaks mercantile and went inside. “What can I do for you, Scar?” the store clerk asked.
Handing a paper to the clerk, he said, “Mrs. Douglas wants this list filled, and I need some ranch supplies. My wagon is outside, but I won’t be leaving until tomorrow afternoon.”
“I’ll have the list filled. What kind of supplies do you need?”
“I need ten scythes and some of that new barb wire.”
The clerk took on a puzzled look and asked, “How many rolls of barb wire do you need, Scar?”
“How much does a roll have on it?”
“A thousand feet,” the clerk answered.
“I’ll take twenty rolls.”
“This sure is a strange order. What’s going on?”
“Mr. Douglas wants to put up enough hay to last the winter, no matter what the weather conditions are like. He doesn’t want to get caught again without enough feed like we did this year. We’re going to cut hay all summer and put it in strategic locations. Then we’ll protect it with a barb wire fence, so the cows can’t get to it. It won’t be used during normal winters, only severe winters.”
“What if we don’t have another bad winter for several years? Won’t the hay turn bad?” asked the clerk.
“The top few inches might go bad, but if the grass is dried sufficiently to start with, it’ll last for many years,” Scar answered. Scar started for the door but turned back. “I’ll be back later on this afternoon for my rig. Have it loaded by then if you can.” The store clerk nodded.
Scar crossed the street and walked to the construction sites. The dress shop was fifty feet south of the café. The newspaper building was another fifty feet farther south. Both buildings were identical and had studs in place to identify the rooms. Large windows were on each side of the door. The front room was twenty-foot square with living quarters in the rear. The head carpenter told Scar they’d be starting on the roof in two or three days and predicted they’d be completely finished with both buildings in two months.
Scar was about to leave the building site when the sheriff walked up. After they shook hands, the lawman invited Scar to the café for coffee. “Scar,” the sheriff stated, “I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What is it, Sheriff? You know I’ll oblige if I can.”
“I was having coffee with the stagecoach driver a few days back. He alerted me about the railroad coming our way. He said hundreds of men were working on the project. Men who work hard and play hard. He said the last town the tracks came through, the crews destroyed property, raped saloon women, hurt five men severely, and killed a man. He said at the rate they’re progressing, they’ll be to Flat Peaks by the first of November. I’m worried I’ll not be able to control the situation and the town will be overrun.” There was a long pause. “Can you help me out, Scar?”
Scar considered the request before answering. “Count me in, Sheriff. There’s plenty of time to get ready, but first, we need to come up with a plan. Why don’t we both think on the matter and get back together in a few weeks?”
“Thanks, Scar. It makes me feel a lot better knowing you’re gonna help out. I’ll be doing some thinking.”
The sheriff finished his last swallow of coffee and started to rise, but Scar spoke up. “Can you spend a few more minutes with me, Sheriff? I need some advice.” The lawman sat back down. “We need to hire ten men to cut and haul hay this summer,” Scar said. “How do I go about hiring them?”
“Why are you cutting that much hay, Scar? Your barn won’t hold it.” For the next several minutes, Scar outlined Douglas’ plan to keep the Double D’s cows fed even in the worst of winters.
“Let’s go to my office. We can make some posters and hang ’em in four or five businesses. I’m almost certain you’ll have several men applying for the job come morning.”
By noon the next day, Scar crossed the homestead bridge and pulled up at the barn. Douglas and Thomas were on the porch waiting for their noon meal when the team passed by. They went to help unload.
“I see you have the supplies. How about the ten men we need?” Douglas asked.
“The sheriff helped me out. We hung help wanted posters in five businesses, and by the time I got to Jenny’s for breakfast this morning, there were seventeen men waiting for me. I hired ten that I knew were good workers. They’ll be here by daybreak tomorrow.” After the scythes and barb wire were unloaded, Scar fetched Mrs. Douglas’ order from the wagon and headed for the house.
»»•««
It’s been said time passes fast when you’re busy. Such was the case at the Double D during the summer of 1878. By the first of September, huge mounds of hay had been hauled to the cow’s nine hideout locations with a barb wire fence surrounding them. All of the stock had been driven from the Ross pastures back to the Double D grasslands, except for the heifers kept for breeding and an allotted number of mature bulls. The herd was in fair condition and immediately took to the succulent Double D grass.
But the most exciting events that took place during the summer were the startup of Betty’s dress shop and Jake’s newspaper. A week before the construction was completed, Jake returned home from his Denver training with all sorts of study guides and ideas about the newspaper business. He couldn’t wait to begin. By the time the freight wagon brought the press and sewing machine, large signs over the front doors read, BETTY’S DRESS SHOP and THE FLAT PEAKS’ PAPER.
As soon as the carpenters had left, Betty and Liz started decorating both living quarters. They painted the rooms, made curtains, purchased furniture, and stocked the units with basic food items.
After the living quarters were finalized, the young women started on the dress shop. They brought the carpenters back to build display racks and shelving, along with a few other odd jobs. A four-by-six-foot table for cutting out material was constructed next to the sewing machine. Smaller tables were built to hold bolts of dress material and other articles they had ordered. A hat rack was constructed along a side wall. When the carpenters left, the women made dresses of various styles for the display stands in the front windows.