LAND CLAIM 2 Near Ulysses, Kansas

Last story brought us to the point where my grandfather, his brother and a friend had almost driven off a cliff in the darkness out on the prairies of Western Kansas. They did finally spend the night out in the open and the next day drove on into Ulysses Kansas and on to the land claim.

The next few days were spend scouring the plains for the boards that had blown off the shack he had there and shooting grouse and having fun. Every evening, they would cook supper and toss the scraps out in the bare yard in front of the cabin. My grand father said the rats and mice would swarm out of the grass to get the scraps and the rattlesnakes would be right on their tails trying to catch them.

SO he and his brother would sit on the stoop and shoot rabbits for the pot and snakes that came in the yard after the mice. He related that he never came back from one of those trips without a quart jar or more full of rattles from the snake tails.

The grass in those days was almost endless out in that part of the country and the snakes were horribly thick. Tall boots were the norm and a person carried a stick or some sort to part the grass before ever reaching a hand down in it. Its a wonder more people didn't die from snake bite but my grandfather said quite a few did and horses and cattle were always being bitten.

They returned to Dodge City after that trip and had no more incidences. His brother got deed to that land eventually and sold it later in life for a good profit.

kk