Some came on horseback with bedrolls to sleep on. Others rode the narrow-gauge tracks down from Denver or up from Pueblo. Some walked across plains or mountains, some brought wagons, some brought tents. Ab organized a committee among the early arrivals to designate chosen areas as campgrounds, speech platforms, and picnic grounds. The committee also approved a three-day schedule of events. Of music and food there would be no shortage. Pete brought Amelia to the ranch on Friday, the first full day of festivities. A former infantry captain was slated to give a patriotic speech as they arrived. Amelia listened politely to an hour of it, then heard a fiddle tuning up near the barn and nudged Pete. A bunch of old soldiers’ children were feeding handfuls of grass to Allegheny as Amelia turned the corner of the barn. “My gracious!” she said. “Why have you hung that poor beast from the barn door?” Buster and Caleb were just passing by with their instruments, on their way to join the band.
