Cabin Fever - Page 41/118

July 5.

Miserable hot night. Burros trickled in sometime during night. Bud

better, managed to walk to big ledge after sundown. Suggests we call it

the Burro Lode. His idea of wit, claims we have occupied camp all summer

for sake of timing burros when they come to waterhole. Wish to call

it Columbia mine for patriotic reasons having found it on Fourth. Will

settle it soon so as to put up location. Put in 2 shots & pulpel samples

for assay. Rigged windows on shack to keep out bees, nats & flies &

mosquitoes. Bud objects because it keeps out air as well. Took them

off. Sick folks must be humored. Hot, miserable and sleepless. Bud very

restless.

July 6.

Cool wind makes weather endurable, but bees terrible in kitchen & around

water-hole. Flipped a dollar to settle name of big ledge. Bud won tails,

Burro lode. Must cultivate my sense of humor so as to see the joke. Bud

agrees to stay & help develop claim. Still very weak, puttered around

house all day cleaning & baking bread & stewing fruit which brought bees

by millions so we could not eat same till after dark when they subsided.

Bud got stung twice in kitchen. Very peevish & full of cuss. Says

positively must make trip to Bend & get cigarettes tomorrow or will blow

up whole outfit. Has already blowed up same several times today with no

damage. Burros came in about 5. Monte & Pete later, tied them up with

grain. Pete has very bad eye. Bud will ride Monte if not too hot for

trip. Still no sign of daddy, think must be dead or stolen though nobody

to steal same in country.

July 7.

Put in 2 shots on Burro Lode & got her down to required depth. Hot. Bud

finds old location on widow's claim, upturns all previous calculation

& information given me by her. Wrote letter explaining same, which Bud

will mail. Bud left 4 P.M. should make Bend by midnight. Much better but

still weak Burros came in late & hung around water hole. Put up monument

at Burro Lode. Sent off samples to assay at Tucson. Killed rattler near

shack, making 16 so far killed.