pay attention!!

at the 76 ranch we turned the weaned calves back out to grow into yearlins, trying to make 600 pounders out of them. we were under stocked so we almost always had extra feed for them. i saved one pasture just for those calves so it was always good.now the owner didnt like to leave the house, he wasnt overly ambitious as far as anything physical was concerned. but he took a likin to mrs. jefe s cookin and started showin up to ride when we gathered cows or yearlins. of course then he would have to ride and work with us, and because he was the owner he didnt try to give orders or be bossy, he was good that way.  i kept his horse shod and ready when ever i thought he wanted to go, which wasnt very often.
    this particular fall the yearlins had done extra good. the summer rains had put a lot of water in the tanks and the gramma grass was stirrup high, and the summer mesquite bean crop had been heavy so those black baldie yearlins instead of weighing 600 were closer to700 pounds!!  i consighned two truck loads to a special stocker sale in november. i knew these big black baldies would knock a hole in the market.  i ordered trucks for the wedsday before the sale. then called my friend  wes to come help gather monday and tuesday then help load out on wedsday. when wes got to the ranch on monday mornin the owner followed him through the gate . mrs. jefe had breakfast ready and the boss wasnt gonna miss it.  the pasture was about 15 sections, flat with a southern drainage. the draws were heavy  with mesquite. there was a well traveled dirt road that slit the pasture east to west. the north half wasnt as heavy with the brush as the south half. we  worked the south half first throwin all the cattle north of the road into a dirt tank where we held them to settle them and water out. you could see a long ways into the north and one man could cover a big peice of country alone. so i sent wes up north and we started the drive down the road to the shippin pens. i made it real plain to everyone NOT to let those yearlins south of the road or we would loose them in those thickets.   the first two miles went well.
,  mrs. jefe took the drags the owner the swing and i had the point.  as we topped a rise i noticed wes was about a mile above us trying to turn a bunch of cattle to the drive and not havin much luck.  the drive was strung out good walkin along like milk cows headed to the distant corrals. i hollered at the boss and told him to keep the cattle like they were and i would go help wes.  he nodded as if he understood. i loped off in weses direction, sure enough that bunch was hard to turn but between the two of us we turned them to the corrals. there was a lane that led into the corrals about a mile long. our bunch got there just as the leaders from the main drive hit the gate, easy sailin from there on. one thing puzzeled me was mrs. jefe was in the lead and the owner was on the drags. that nite when every one went home i asked the mrs what had happened to cause her to switch with the owner.  
   she explained i had no more than gotten out of sight when those yearlins started crossin the road into a thicket on the south side. the owner was smokin his marlboro , lookin at the clouds and lettin the cattle scatter. she quit her post made a run up through a thicket and turned the cattle back to where they belonged. that was when she told the owner to pay attention or nomore bisquits for breakfast!!  he told me later  that she went by him like a paywagon passin a tramp and told him to put the damn ciggarette away and pay attention!!