- Billy Arnold wanted to see whatever marauders,
land grabbers, and horse thieves came to his neighborhood before they arrived,
so he perched on top of the highest hill he could find, building his soddy
right at its peak.
- He could see ten miles in any direction from his
hill, including his three brothers’ and his dad’s homes.
- He felt safe.
- Day by day, wind ripped at his clothes, filled
his eyes with dust, and dried out his crops, but still he prospered.
- His wife couldn’t wait for a real, frame house
and Billy wanted corrals and barns and granaries—so he borrowed money.
- Instead of land grabbers, he lost his place to
bankers, BUT he homesteaded a new place in Oklahoma and struck oil.
