the rounded tops of the sagebrush, as night came
upon the mountain. With much sniffling, bleating, asthmatic coughing and
crackling of small split hoofs, each sheep settled itself in practically
the same little hollow it had previously pawed out to fit itself. A soft
rumble came from the band as they stirred in their little wallows.

Then Bowers fired a barrel of his shotgun into the air as a reminder to
possible coyotes in the rim rocks that he was present, and lighted the
lantern in his tepee.

"I'll have to warsh that chimbly in a couple o' years," he commented as
he set the lantern down and reached for a worn and tattered mail-order
catalogue in the corner.

Fumbling under his pillow, he produced the stub of a pencil and a
tablet, after which, crosslegged on his blankets and soogan, he pored
over the catalogue. Jewelry, clothing, cooking utensils and upholstered
furniture were on the list which Bowers, with corrugated forehead and
much chewing of the pencil, made out laboriously. When the amount
reached three hundred and sixty-five dollars, he hesitated over a
further expenditure of nine for a manicure set and a pair of pink satin
sleeve holders. That was a good deal of money to spend in one evening.

"Thunder!" he finally said recklessly. "No use to deny myself! I ain't
goin' to send it, anyway!"

Having written it all in proper form and affixed his signature, he
folded the paper and slipped it under his bed along with some three
dozen other such orders that never got any farther.

This was Bowers's evening diversion, one in which he experienced all the
thrills of purchasing without the pain of paying. He entertained a
peculiar feeling of friendship for the House whose catalogue had helped
him through long winter evenings, when night came at four, and
interminable spells of wet weather, so when he sent a _bona fide_ order
to Chicago he never failed to inquire as to the health of each member of
the firm and inform them that his own was excellent at time of writing,
adding such items concerning the condition of the range and stock as he
thought would interest them.

Bowers now slipped the lantern inside a flour sack, went outside in his
stocking feet, and wedged the lantern between two rocks. The light
"puzzled" coyotes, according to his theory, and gave them something to
think about besides getting into his sheep.

When he had folded his trousers under his head his preparations for the
night were complete a