They meant to have every blade of grass eaten by their own cattle, which would be counted as improving their claims.

They meant to give a homelike air of permanency to their dwellings.

They had already talked over a tentative plan of bringing water to their desert claims, and had ridden over the bench-land for two days, with the plat at hand for reference, that they might be sure of choosing their claims wisely.

They had prepared for every contingency save the one that had arisen--which is a common experience with us all.

They had not expected that their claims would be jumped and contests filed so early in the game, as long as they maintained their residence.
However, Andy was not dismayed at the turn of events.