“I think it would be much more foolish to trust to a few cows to make out a living while trees grow,” said Miller, “than to the seasons to give us grain crops.”
“No, sir; because cattle are sure to increase, if they are not killed, and you could make cheese and butter, and sell your steers every year, while trees grow. You have been seven years a settler on this rancho. In these seven years you have raised two good crops; three poor, or only middling, and two, no crops at all.”
“Yes, because your cattle destroyed them,” said Mathews.
“No, sir; my cattle were not all over California; but the bad seasons were, and only in few places, moderately good crops were harvested; in the southern counties none at all. We had rains enough to get sufficiently good grazing, but not to raise grain.”
“I think you are right about the uncertainty of our seasons, and I think a good dairy always pays well, also a good orchard and vineyard,” said Darrell. “But the question is, whether we can adopt some feasible plan to put your idea into practice.”
“Yes, how many cows will you let us have?” asked Hager.
“I will divide with you. Next week I shall have my ‘rodeo.’ We can see then the number of cattle I have left. We shall count them. I shall take half, the other half you divide pro rata; each head of a family taking a proportionate number of cattle.”
“That is fair,” Darrell said.
“I don't want any cattle. I ain't no ‘vaquero’ to go ‘busquering’ around and lassooing cattle. I'll lasso myself; what do I know about whirling a lariat?” said Mathews.
“Then, don't take cattle. You can raise fruit trees and vineyards,” said Darrell.