SILENT BLUFFS The coming of the railroad had changed Elkhead from a mere crossing of the ways to a rather important cattle shipping point.

Once a year it became a bustling town whose two streets thronged with cattlemen with pockets burdened with gold which fairly burned its way out to the open air.

At other times Elkhead dropped back into a leaden-eyed sleep.
The most important citizen was Lee Hardy, the Wells Fargo agent.
Office jobs are hard to find in the mountain-desert, and those who hold them win respect.

The owner of a swivel-chair is more lordly than the possessor of five thousand "doggies." Lee Hardy had such a swivel-chair.

Moreover, since large shipments of cash were often directed by Wells Fargo to Elkhead, Hardy's position was really more significant than the size of the village suggested.