Pythias sat his animal and laughed out loud, but then what else could he do as he watched the young man's horse have its way? "You got him now, son, don't let go!" And he laughed some more. when yer done wit the bath ya might oughtta git him up so' we kin cross, an' see how deep she is!" Not that it mattered to the cattle, or the horses, but to the chuck wagon, it could matter a great deal.
Horses sometimes had a mind of their own about such things as river crossings, some just would not venture into water, while others would jump right in and get across however they had to.
"'Mon boy, quit yer loafin' an' let's git to it!" He stated, still in good humor, it wasn't the boys fault the hosre laid down and rolled.
Justus glared alternately at Pythias and Mule, then shook his head and grabbed the horse's reins to lead him back to dry land. "Two'a you oughta bunk together," he grumbled, but there was a good-natured tone to it.
Dripping water, Justus swung back into the saddle, knowing that, come evening, he'd have to clean his rifle and pistol, and grateful that most of his gear was stowed on the pack animal. He did take the time to pull his rifle from its scabbard and lay it across his lap.
"Come on, now, ya lunkhead." This time, Justus didn't give the horse a chance to stop, he squeezed his legs and applied a bit of spur, and Mule plunged back into the river. All was fine for the first several paces, but then the horse was suddenly swimming, and a few moments later, Mule scrambled back to high ground on the far side, then onto the bank, where he shook again with his rider on him.
"Seems pretty firm where there's a bank," Justus observed. That was good, right?
Pythis followed Justus' lead and entered the river, the bed was firm, with plenty of stones worn smooth by the moving water, then into the deep part which actually was not that wide, and finally, he came up on dry land. Now both men were soaked. "This'll do, that deep part ain't none too wide, the firm bottom an' how easy it is gettin' up on this side, make for an easy crossin'!" He declared.
"We done right good, we did." He added. Herd'll be comin' shortly I figger, proly make camp close by, but fer enough off so's the wildlife has access to it. Hope thet don't include no redskins! Now, Frank, he'll likely want us back with the herd an' let some other fellas have a turn out front, jest so's you know."
Justus nodded. "Kinda reckoned we couldn't get away with this too long." He grinned, looking out at the landscape on this side of the river. Right in this area it was mostly trees and brush, not at all open.
"Reckon we should ride out a ways," he suggested, trying to sound like it was a good idea, "find a spot that's more open, so's it's easier ta keep an eye on all them cows at night?" So far, all the night stops had been in fairly open terrain, and it made good sense, but what did he know?
"'At's a real disappointment, it is. So, we stay on this side and head on up river lookin' best we kin do fer now. There'll be a spot. We jest ain't found 'er yet." Pythias replied. The young man was learning and that was good. The spot they were at was a good crossing, but the trees were a problem, the brush, they could make do with that, cattle would trample it down to get to the grass anyway,
So, they turned along the bank looking for a crossing that was good on both sides of the river, and Pythias knew they would find one so they could continue the herd's northward progression toward Montana and the 'Rocking P' ranch. That the drive so far had been almost without incident was good news to all of them. Yet there could be Indians, or more herd cutters, before they reached Kalispell.
Hoping that perhaps around the bend the conditions might be more favorable, Justus turned Mule to follow the path of the river, and they did seem to be rewarded a short time later with a place that seemed better suited -- a low bank, and just some scrub trees on the far side.
"How's this?" Without waiting to be told, he waded Mule into and across the river. There was some swimming involved, but it wasn't any worse than the last spot, and the far side only had some scrub brush to contend with, and there was some low, brown grass that seemed to be to Mule's liking, as he was contentedly munching away at some.
"She'll do Justus, she'll do jest fine. Yer catchin' on real good. Though I figger it's simple enough, but ya sortta have ta have an eye for it." And that was true, sure a lot of spots along a river bank might look good, but sometimes, as Justus just learned you had to cross and see what exactly was on the other side.
"I'll go across an' see what we been dealt this hand." Pythias offered. "I'm thinkin' mebee we got us a winner here," and with that, he started across. The river was running slow, and that was good. The horse had solid footing and moved easily through the water which barely touched the animal's stomach.
"Yes sir! You found a good 'un." He shouted back as he reached the other bank, a low-rising affair with few trees or scrub brush which opened to the north with plenty of room for the herds. "C'mon over! She's a sight to see!"
Following more or less the same track that Pythias had -- the 'less' got the better of Justus as Mule stepped into a deep hole, splashing water all over again, but recovering quickly. If Justus hadn't already been drenched, he might have been pissed, but there really was no avoiding it.
He stopped beside Pythias, where Mule shook again, then heaved a big, horsey sigh. "Least I got my baths fer th' next few months!"
He laughed, then looked out at the landscape spreading out before them. "Really is somethin', huh? Just goes on forever."
"Well now thet there's a positive attitude about it. Best we dry off these guns'a ares cuz we might have need of 'em." Pythias suggested. "We'll sit tight, herd'll be comin' up afore too awful long." With that, he stepped down and began looking about the country that would lie ahead of them. More to see if they were alone or not, not that the redman staked himself out to be seen, but there were ways to tell if a man was patient enough. And animals, where there was water every living thing would make use of it.
Staying alive demanded water, more so than food. Three days without water, a man could perish. Not that they were at risk of that, but it was something to consider. There was no telling when the next water would be available. Yet the country was green which meant there was water to be had.
The process of drying their guns was done one at a time, just to be ready in case. Be it man or animal, one had to be ready in open country.
Justus dismounted as well, loosening the saddle, but leaving it on, although he did take off the bridle so that Mule could graze in just the halter. But if needed, Justus could have the cinch tight, and be mounted and ready to run in just a few moments, using the halter and lead in lieu of the bit and bridle.
Squatting, Justus deftly took apart his revolver and started cleaning and drying it, occasionally glancing around. "Did ya fight in th' war?" he asked Pythias. "My pa did...I'd say it changed him, but I think he was like that from th' start."