“That’s what I said to myself as soon as I saw you. I’m wondering why you’re content to slave your life out in this God-forsaken country. I never saw such poor-looking soil in my life. Why don’t you pull up stakes and move up into Ohio where I live?”
The resident hillsman shook his head.
“You see, stranger,” he answered, “I’ve always lived ’round here and I guess I’ll stay awhile longer.”
“Well,” said the tourist, “every man to his own fancy, and I guess a fellow might get attached even to such a spot as this. But what can you expect by staying on? You are bound to get poorer and poorer all the time.”
“Mister,” said the hillsman, “I’m a blamed sight better off than what you seem to think. Why, I don’t own nary acre of this here land.”
§ 349 The Curious Ways of Sheep
They tell this story on Charlie Russell, Montana’s famous cowboy painter, who by a very great many is regarded as Frederic Remington’s successor as the greatest delineator of Western life. Probably it isn’t true, because Russell, as an old cow hand, naturally would have the utmost contempt for all phases of the sheep-growing industry; but as the story goes, he once fell upon hard times and in this emergency accepted a position as herder for a sheep man.
Now, Russell knew about all there was to know about beef cattle and about horses but his education regarding the ways and habits of sheep had been neglected. All the same, he went out on the range with a flock of woolly baa-baas. Ten days passed, and he returned to headquarters to replenish his supply of provisions. The boss met him at the ranch-house.
“Well, Charlie,” he asked, “how goes it?”
“Oh, all right,” said Russell.