To do that, according to the terms of the 1862 Homestead Act, he had to settle on the land in a more or less permanent dwelling (a sod house or railroad shack would qualify) and make improvements on the land for five years. Although Julian was only sixteen and homesteaders were supposed to be at least twenty-one, land was so plentiful in the region and the government wanted settlers so badly that homestead officers didn’t check anyone’s age too closely. Julian Hayden’s second vow was simpler in its terms but larger in its demand: he was determined to do a better job than his father of caring and providing for the family. Julian brought his mother to Montana with him. She had a brother in Wolf Point who had promised to help them get started on their claim. As it turned out, his help consisted of giving them directions on how to build a tar-paper shack and advising them that if they paid more than twenty dollars for materials they were fools. Julian and his mother paid eighteen dollars and seventy-five cents.
