The only available fuel was buffalo manure, of which
the odor permeated all our food. But despite these
handicaps we were happy in our work, for we had
some great meetings and many wonderful experiences.
When we reached the Black Hills we had more of
this genuine campaigning. We traveled over the
mountains in wagons, behind teams of horses, visit-
ing the mining-camps; and often the gullies were so
deep that when our horses got into them it was al-
most impossible to get them out. I recall with
special clearness one ride from Hill City to Custer
City. It was only a matter of thirty miles, but it was
thoroughly exhausting; and after our meeting that
same night we had to drive forty miles farther over
the mountains to get the early morning train from
Buffalo Gap. The trail from Custer City to Buffalo
Gap was the one the animals had originally made in
their journeys over the pass, and the drive in that
wild region, throughout a cold, piercing October
night, was an unforgetable experience. Our host at
Custer City lent Miss Anthony his big buffalo over-
coat, and his wife lent hers to me. They also heated
blocks of wood for our feet, and with these pro-
tections we started. A full moon hung in the sky.
The trees were covered with hoar-frost, and the cold,
still air seemed to sparkle in the brilliant light.
Again Miss Anthony talked to me throughout the
night--of the work, always of the work, and of what
it would mean to the women who followed us; and
again she fired my soul with the flame that burned
so steadily in her own.
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