Now they arecapturedasfollows: Of course, in each range there iswater, and usually—as I have already said—where there is water there is some small timber; but should there be none upon the range of the herd you wish tocapture, go some placeelseand get it, and after picking out a good location somewhere upon the range, build up a high, strongcorrallarge enough to hold the herd you wish to capture. Leave anentrance at one side, and run a lane from the entrance divergingly into the prairie, until the lane is about one hundred yards wide at the mouth. Now for thechase. Get four horses, well shod, and put two to a light wagon, and put in feed and provisions for several days; and get a man to drive. Have two good riding-ponies, and tie one behind the wagon andmounttheother. Now start after the herd in awalk, and let thewagonfollow just in sight of you. Of course, the first day the mustangs will burn the prairie, and you will not be in sight of themhalf the time; but just keep on, and never break thewalk. The wagon, of course, will not travel nearly as far asyoudo, for, as the herd circles, the driver can cut across. Choose a moonlight season, and at first go all night, keeping them excited so that they neither eat nor drink. The second day you can keep in sight all day; but they become very muchexcitedat seeing themselvespursued, and will run frantic here and there, and bycutting acrossyou need not go half their distance. You can get to the wagon tochange poniesand get abitewhen you wish. Go this way,nightandday, for aboutthree days, when they will become hungry and weak, andyou can get close. You can now sleep at night and chase during the day. If any of the range has been burned over, or the ground is otherwise rough, theirfeetbecome sore and they can be capturedsooner; butusuallyabout thetenth dayyou can ride up to the herd and drive them along. Whenthisis the case, take awhipandforcethem along until they are so worried that you can ride among them and handle them any way. Now drive them to thecorraland fasten them in. Now rope them together closely with strong ropes, and drive them to the railroad forshipmentor to theranchto breakfor use. While they areweakthey are easily broken.Large herdsare often captured in this way; and there are men who,every springwhen the grass is short and the ponies are poor, make this abusiness, and from it realize large profits.
There are many fine, large, branded horses, which have escaped from thehunters,cow-men,emigrants, and theGovernment, now running with the wild herds, and, of course, belong to whoever captures them. When there are severallarge mulesorfine horsesin a bunch, it tickles the hunter mightily; and not having forgotten theirformerlives, they render the herd easier to be caught, and are not much trouble to re-break.
Now this is the way theherdsare captured; but of course there are captures made now and then indifferent ways. The hunter sometimes conceals himself near the water where the herd comes down to drink, and, watching his opportunity,creaseshis animal; that is, he shoots him through the neck about an inch from the top and just in front of the shoulders. This willstunthe animal so that he will fall and not recover for some minutes, in which time you can bind him fast.Thisis, though,scientificwork, and none but afine shotneedundertake it; for a littletoo highdoesnogood, and the leasttoo lowdoestoo muchgood entirely.
Now, there yet remains to be explained thestockbusiness, which is so extensively carried on in this country, and to which nearly the whole prairie country is so peculiarly adapted. Were I to tell to persons who had never been here of the millions of cattle and sheep that are pastured here, and of the thousands that are annually shipped to the states, it would be incredibly received. As before said, the prairie is covered withbuffalo-grass, which is next tomountain bunch-grass, which is said to be the strongest grass in the world. It usually growsthicklyandabout six inches long, and curls up—though of coursethisdepends upon the range. It usuallyrainsandsnowssome in thewinterandspringseasons, but during thesummerseason it never sprinkles; and you can be just as sure of it as of the wrath to come. I have often thought that this would be a fine place to make hay. The snows and rains dampen the earth, and in the spring, when the grass springs forth and the prairie world is wrapped in its green mantle, there is no part of the earth more beautiful. About the first of May the grass is usuallygrown up, and it stays green until aboutAugust, when—except in the valleys—it all dries up in the hot sun and dry air, and cattle eat it like hay. It is then thestrongest. And stock-men hate to see the fall rains come; for they say it takes thestrengthout of thegrass.
Cattle-Business Explained—Branding Stock—Round-Up—Mavorick—Beef-Gathering—Stampedes—Tender-Feet—Stock-Raising in Texas—Cattle-Trail—Buying Cattle from Trail—How to Enter Stock Business—Sheep-Raising—Greasers—Texas Cattle-Fever.
Cattle-Business Explained—Branding Stock—Round-Up—Mavorick—Beef-Gathering—Stampedes—Tender-Feet—Stock-Raising in Texas—Cattle-Trail—Buying Cattle from Trail—How to Enter Stock Business—Sheep-Raising—Greasers—Texas Cattle-Fever.
The country has now perhaps beensufficiently described; and though I have doubtless been a littletiresomeinminutiæ, Ihopeat least to have succeeded in giving my readers agood ideaof the greatprairie-land, and can now perhapssuccessfullyexplain the subject ofstock-raisingwhich is so extensively carried on there, and a business that leads in occidental occupations. It has already been said that the rivers and streams and little lakes that dampen the sands of this great wilderness are nearly all watering-places for the herds that range along their banks. It now yet remains to explain how the business isconducted, as any person can see the positive necessity of somesystemwhere the country is so large and unfenced, and where there are so many owners and such great herds. Sometimes a herdis owned by oneindividual, butusuallythere arecompanies; and often one firm owns forty and fifty thousand cattle. It would of course be impossible to stable or feed these vast numbers, and they are left upon the prairie the year round, and never even get salt. Theyusuallykeep in pretty goodorderduring the winter; but when much snow falls and the grass is covered for some time, and the weather is very cold, thousands of them die. Poor and weak, they stand upon the railroad-track and are knocked off in great numbers. Of course these winters areunusual; and the profits are so large that a few cattle dying now and then is but a momentary break in the financial stream.
Now, each firm has a home ranch, and this is built by some pure, cool water, and nearly as practicable to a railroad or good trail. This consists of a substantial and commodious ranch,—usually built of stone oradobe,—also a good store-house in which to store feed and provisions,—which are bought at wholesale and then given out to the men as needed, a good stable,—and a large, strongcorral. Hay is then cut from the sloughs, and quantities of it stacked in thecorralfor the stock that is kept stabled. Thoughoften in wild places, these home ranches are usually pretty places, and stock-men often have their families here with them. They have good, stylish buggies and carriages, and riding and driving horses; and every pleasant morning and evening the women and children go out to ride. They have a good track around the ranch over the level plain; and while it is altogether delightful to ride through the pure air of this healthy clime, the glitter of the splendid vehicle in the morning sun attracts very little attention from the neighbors. The girls can ride like rangers; and to see them dashing over the prairie, the pony fall into a prairie-dog hole and send the fair one somersaulting over the head upon the sand, is as funny a sight as one could wish. Each firm has its own brand, and has it recorded in the county of the home ranch. This brand is a piece of iron, wrought into the shape wished. There is also a peculiar ear-mark accompanying each brand. The branding-irons have long iron handles with which to use them. They are made red-hot and then held against the animal until burned sore, and often until the hide is burned through. Of course the hair never grows out here again, and it is a perpetual mark. Thehome ranch is located upon some good, rich pasture-range, and by a good water. Thus, many cattle can be pastured in the vicinity of the ranch; but when the herd islargeit is divided up and driven to sometimes several other ranges that are not yet taken up—each firm having its particular ranges, which it holds against all others, except homesteaders or buyers. Upon each sub-range there is built one or more little picket-ranches, with goodcorralsin which to brand cattle. In each of these little houses stays a cow-boy to watch over the cattle and see that they are not killed or driven off by Indians, Mexicans, or hunters. The cattle usually stay upon the range very well duringsummer; but when winter comes, and storms set in they are drifted many miles, and scattered over many ranges. Cattle drift from the Platte country, Nebraska, all the way down to the pan-handle country every winter. When the winter winds are severe, great numbers drift to ranges where the country is very broken, or where there is timber; and they often become so thick that it is necessary to drive part of them to other ranges to keep them from starving. This is part of the cow-boys’ work.
Every spring each firm has about as many other brands upon its range as of its own; and after a long,stormyseason one brand is distributed along the waters of several states or territories. In order that each firm may know how it stands, and to brand the calves and gather up such as are fit for market, each spring the commissioners of each county appoint a captain for theround-uporrodere. The counties here are very large. There is a place and day set for the meeting, and all the cattle-men of the county are informed. The time of meeting is about the last of April; but the time varies according to the grass and the strength of the cattle. Some springs the grass comes on early, and some quite late. Each firm sends men to thisround-upin proportion to its herd—usually four or five to each county where it is expected that there are cattle—sometimes more, and often but one. Each boy has from four to eight horses; and when there are two or more from a company they have a wagon along. The beds, feed, provisions, ropes, branding-irons, etc., are hauled in it; and the driver of this wagon does the cooking for the boys of that firm. Where there is but one, he usually makes arrangements to go with some other firm.
The average cow-boy saddle weighs forty pounds, andsomeweighsixty-fivepounds. They are made with large, strong horns, and the back of the seat is very high. The skirt is leather, and comes back over the pony’s hips. Upon either side of the saddle there is firmly fastened two large, strong rings, and to each a strong strap, two feet long, and one inch and a half wide. The girths (sinches) are about three feet long, with a strong ring in each end. These sinches are generally made of hair, twisted into ropes, and about ten ropes to a sinch, making it three or four inches wide—two girths to each saddle. The straps to the rings upon the right side of the saddle are each passed through the rings at the end of a sinch, and run from one ring to the other and then fastened. Two good blankets are then placed upon the horse, and the saddle lifted to its place. The front sinch is then brought up and the strap to the front ring is passed through the ring of the sinch, and from one ring to the other three or four times, and then drawn up tightly and fastened with a ranger’s loop. The back sinch is then brought around behind the bulge of the belly and fastened as the other. By this fastening a saddle can bedrawn up very tightly, and fastened upon the animal so firmly that the pony can be jerked down and pulled away by the saddle-horn. There is not a buckle about the saddle. The stirrups are wooden, and are covered with leathers which hang in two large strips nearly to the ground. These leathers are calledtapidares. The bridles are strong, with raw-hide reins. Each boy has a half-inch catch-rope, about forty feet long, and made out of sea-grass, leather, or raw-hide. This is made fast to the saddle-horn at one end, and then coiled and tied up to the saddle. Each boy has also a large pair of spurs with rowels two inches long, and little bells to them, so that when the boy walks the spurs roll along upon the ground or floor, and the little bells make quite a noise. Now, with a belt around his waist, and two six-shooters and a large knife upon it, he is rigged. The clothing is made of California duck, lined with blanket, the shirt a double-breasted blue, and the hat a large white broad-brim. In an ordinary stock county, between two and three hundred cow-boys usually come together for the round-up. And you bet this is a big day for the hot coffee-houses of the place of meeting; for the boysusually draw their wages for the occasion, and usually succeed in getting things pretty well warmed up. The bosses try to keep their boys down; but toward evening, when the boys gather in from far and near, there are many social glasses drank. Often old feuds are stirred up; and when once a fight is begun each boy sides one way or the other, and there are seldom less than four or five killed. If a stranger comes in and gives the least occasion, the boys will then have their fun. They will make him stand still and hold out his hand, and then try to shoot between his fingers, or shoot a hole through his ears, or see how closely they can shoot to the top of his head by shooting through his hat. They can do this very well; and there is not much danger until they get pretty full and want to maketoo finea shot, such as shooting between the flesh and skin, and then the thing is too fine to be pleasant. Persons coming out here to learn this business find it necessary to keep lip and braggadocio to themselves, or else the initiation is pretty heavy. The boys generally get pretty well gathered in the first day, and the next morning they pull out.
The captain commands the men like an army officer. The loose ponies are all turned together,and the herd often has several hundred heads. The captain is a man who understands the country and knows every stream and pool in the range. He lays his plans and arranges his route, and, beginning at one side of the county, he takes a range; and dividing up his men, he sends them here and there, up and down the forks of the creeks and across to the little lakes over the range, and directs them to bring in all the cattle of the range and round them up at a certain place. In a week or ten days they generally come in with the cattle; and they often round up a mighty herd. Each brand now has one or more representatives, and they watch closely after the interests of their employers. They then prepare to take out of the round-up all the brands that belong to that particular range, brand the calves, and let them go. The herd is surrounded and held by cow-boys; and fires are built around, and all the different brands of that range are heated for action.
One man from each firm that pastures upon this range then goes into the herd to get the calves that they find following their cows. When one is found the noose is thrown, and whether it gets the calf round the body, neck,leg, or tail it is all the same; the pony is whirled and loped off to the fire, the little fellow rolling, tumbling, kicking, and bawling, but all to no purpose. He is then held by the boys, and the red-hot branding-iron is held against its tender skin until the hair is all singed off and the hide burned sore. The little fellow rolls his eyes in their sockets and bellows piteously as the smoke curls upward from his own body; but the operation is soon over, and he is sent loping into the free air upon the range. When all thecalvesare out, the cows and steers are then cut out as follows: Each firm has particular horses trained for this business, and they are called “cutting horses.†The boy goes among the herd, and when he sees his brand he needs follow it but a little way until the pony knows what animal is wanted; and all the rider has then to do is to stay on. The pony walks after the animal, dodging from one side to the other, and when he has him driven to the edge he lunges upon the cow with great fury. The cow, with fright, leaps from the herd; and in spite of her efforts to get back, that pony keeps her out. A rider has to beexperiencedbefore he can stick acutting horse; for they sometimes go after a cow upona dead run, and stop in two jumps, whirl upon the hind feet, and go off the other way.
When the cattle of this range are all cut out and the calves branded, the rest of the herd are then driven to another range. They are held here by some boys and left graze, while the captain divides up the rest of his men and sends them out over that range to gather in all the cattle. They are then all rounded up together, and, asbefore, the calves are branded, and all the stock belonging to the owners of that range is turned loose upon it. In this way they go from range to range until the whole county is gone over and each firm has its cattle upon its own range or ranges, and the calves of that year are branded. It is usually about three months before the boys all get in from the different counties, bringing the cattle upon their own ranges and making their reports to head-quarters.
A strict account is kept, by the boys of each firm, of all the cows and steers and calves that are gathered fromeach county; and when the round-up is over each company knows just how it stands. Sometimes the boys are a little careless and do not branddeepenough, and forget to mark the ear. In a year the brand becomesso indistinct that many a quarrel has arisen among the boys as to their identity; and I have seen some bitter consequences.
A calf that is following no cow, and is unbranded, is called amavorick; and though by law these now belong to the state in some places, they used to belong to the man who first put his brand there. There are many calvesmissedevery year; and before the next round-up they are weaned, and no one knows to whom they belong. There are men who have made themselves good herds by gathering upmavoricks, and often stealing calves from the mother, putting their brands upon them, and taking them off to another range. Sometimes, however, the mother and offspring get together again before they have entirely forgotten theirrelations; and then a calf of one brand is following a cow of another. This is very undesirable to the calf-brander; and if he can not destroy that mother’s affection, or in some way arrange that mixed-up family before other cow-men get to see it, from what I have seen I would advise him to let the darned calf go to thunder and get out of that unhealthy prairie atmosphere.
When the round-up is all over and the cattle are fat,—usually about the latter part of themonth of September,—the beef season begins. They then go upon their respective ranges, round up the cattle, and cut out such as are fit for beeves.Four yearsis the sale age; and seldom is one sold under this. Each firm has a foreman, who does the picking of the beeves; and he who is able to tell when a cow or steer is fat is considered a good cow-man. The beeves are then driven to the railroad, where there are stock-pens; and after the cars are bedded with about six inches of sand, the cattle are loaded up, making every other one face one side of the car, and the others the other side. Twenty is the average car-load, though this number varies with the size of the cattle. I have seen cars crowded with sixteen large steers, and know of one firm bringing in a thousand beeves at a time. The shipping-rates to St. Louis and Chicago are usually twenty dollars per car, making one dollar per head. The cattle are generally well fattened; and though they do not command quite as high prices as easterngrain-fed stock, the profits are nevertheless very large. One man is allowed to each car of stock, to keep them up and arrange them should they get fast or become mixed up in the car. In this way, during theshipping season, many persons are furnished free transportation to the East.
Beef-gathering does not generally end until the snow flies and the weather becomes severe. It is then very rough for the boys; for, good or bad, they must take it, with no shelter but a gum-coat, called aslicker. When they have a herd to hold they have to stand guard all night, the same as day. Now, when the clouds suddenly roll from the horizon and dash their contents upon the plain, when the thunder begins to bellow and the lightning to dart its fiery tongues through the air, then the cattle become perfectly frenzied and rush madly here and there; and then comes what they call a stampede. Then thereisa time. Often but five or six boys are holding a herd of several hundred large beef-steers when the storm comes on, and as they rush madly to and fro the boys dash their ponies here and there in front of them, and usually hold them; but when the storm is furious and the cattle become frantic and rush in all directions, they often break the circle, and then the work begins for certain. The ponies understand their business, and with all power they get to the front; and if the herd is not too badly scattered, and (if it be at night) if it be not too dark, the herd may again be rallied. Otherwise, they are gone, and the prairie fairly trembles beneath them as they, bellowing, rush over the plain. When once thoroughly stampeded they usually run a long way before checking, and it takes several days to gather them in again; and if it be a strange herd going through the country, the prospect is that many will never be recaptured. It is a sight to see a large herd of big Texas steers in a storm, with heads erect, racing here and there, clashing their great horns together, and loudly snorting. There isdanger, also; for when once they are under full headway they are as irresistible as the hurricane, and everything crumbles before them.
Sometimes when the tired, relieved guards are sleeping with their ponies at their sides, the herd stampedes, and before they can get into the saddle the pony escapes and the cattle rush madly over them, trampling them into the sand. I recollect of camping close to a large herd of Texas steers one cold November night, when the rain fell fast, and the lightning played upon the cattle’s horns like morning sunbeams upon the mountain-top, and lighted up the plain almost like day. The boys held them for some time; but at length the ponies became worried, and away went the steers, their trampling sounding like distant thunder. The boys all rushed for the front, and after about a mile chase, in which I joined, one of the boys dashed in front of the herd. In the darkness of the night and the excitement of the occasion he had forgotten a dangerous slough that lay in that direction, and his excited pony sprung into the mire. Of course the first jump the horse sunk deeply into the mud and could not extricate himself, nor could the rider get away before the maddened herd plunged in upon him. The pony with its rider was crushed into the mud and buried alive before our eyes, and the cattle struggling in the mud above them. The next morning we took ropes and pulled some of the steers from the bog with the saddle-horn; but some were smothered in the mire with the good pony and gallant rider, whom we left in their novel graves, knowing that they were dead anyhow, and thinking that perhaps their self-made tombs were as respectable as any we could hew.
As was said before, each firm sends a wagon with each squad of men that goes out upon theprairie. The wagons all have nice large cupboards (called mess-boxes) fixed in the back end, and when going out they take provisions, feed, clothes, beds, ropes, etc., and a good set of camp implements. This, then, is what is called a cow-outfit. The horses are not fed any grain unless worked hard and having no time to graze. In this case it is also necessary that they should be shod. Each company has on hand a large number of pressed shoes of all sizes, and before the boys go out they always fit their ponies with a couple pairs of shoes apiece; and taking also a shoeing outfit, they shoe their own ponies. When the boys are on a cow or horse hunt, they tell the cook where they will be for the next meal, and he goes immediately there and has grub prepared for them as they come in. From the cook being alone so much of the time, he is exposed to great dangers; and many an outfit has gathered to their wagon to find their cook lying murdered by the dinner-fire. It is necessary that the cook should be thoroughly acquainted with the country, for he is sent across the prairie in every direction from one range to the other. He is sometimes called upon to get up a meal for ten, fifteen, or twenty men at veryshort notice—often in twenty or twenty-five minutes; and you may imagine the skill that these fellows have acquired when this can be done, especially when the buffalo-chips are damp. The boys will run a dirty cook out of camp; but they think nothing of seeing the cook gather up buffalo-chips with his hands and then make up bread without washing. There is a great difference in camp-cooks; and some make nice doughnuts and puddings for the boys, while others get nothing but bread and meat, and sometimes beans and potatoes. Imagine an eastern girl scolding the boys for not procuring sound, dry hickory wood, or grumbling because the stove is not a good baker, and spreading paper over the bread, or flavoring here and seasoning there, touching up her delicate tidbits for an hour before the table is prepared. Ha, ha, ha! The cow-boys’ dinner is twice as good; and it is gotten without wood (and often wet at that), without a stove, and without any of the delicious flavorings, and is forgotten in half an hour. Why, if a cow-boy had to wait an hour for dinner he would go into camp and kick over the pots and skillets, and then step off and see how close he could shoot to the cook’s ear, just to hurry himup a little. Whenever they are out of meat, they shoot down a nice fat calf, and always have the best. It is seldom that they kill their own brands; but when there is no mavorick, they slide a ball into another man’s calf. Of course they always cut out the brand and destroy it. It is quite pleasing to see a cow-outfit taking dinner upon the wide, level prairie, with their ponies grazing by the camp-side. They all get around the hash, which sits in pans and skillets, and then crossing their legs they sit down upon their feet. This is the cow-boys’ seat; and when they come into a house where there are plenty of chairs they squat to the floor upon their own seats. Hot or cold, sunshine or storm, the greater part of the year they sleep and dine upon the wild, unsheltered plain. They are so used to it, though, that they think nothing of it, and stand out in the storm eating their biscuit and broiled beef with unqualified relish. They move their loose ponies from place to place in a herd—each boy having his own particular riding-horses. When camped they hobble the leaders, and the rest will not leave. The hobble is made by taking a piece of cow-hide about three feet long and two inches wide, tying aknot in one end, and cutting a loop in the other. This is put around one leg, above the pasture-joint, and then twisted and looped around the other. The twist keeps the hobble from working down, and the horse does not get around fast nor leave camp far unless stampeded by Indians or wild horses; and even in this case they are easily captured. Some of the ponies are very shy, and when the boys want fresh horses they tie a rope to a wagon-wheel, and a boy holds the other end. The others then drive the herd up to this and throw the noose over the heads of the wanted ones. They are so used to this rope that they will not attempt to cross one if it is but knee high. All idle mules are always hobbled; for the cow-boys say “a mule is hell in a stampede.†The boys of course do their own washing; and they usually keep pretty clean, with the exception of a few gray-backs, which are their warmest bosom and inseparable friends. Some companies have as high as seventy-five or a hundred men employed during the work-season; and about the first of December they discharge about half of them until spring, keeping the best men over winter, andtheyare scattered over the ranges among the little lonely shantiesto watch over the cows during winter. They are compelled to keep some men who understand the business and the country, and then they can make use ofsomegreenhorns. But oh! how those cow-boys curse the tender-feet. They usually try to get them upon a pony that understands bucking, to get their necks broken or disable them in some way or other to get them out of the way. There is no better fun than to get a big, clumsy tender-foot upon a well-trained cow-pony. He goes dodging along like a monkey, holding to the saddle-horn, with his stirrups shortened up and his knees under his chin, gaping in every direction. Pretty soon a steer dashes from the herd; the pony, quick as a flash, springs after him to round him in. The steer dodges; the pony braces, whirls upon his hind feet, and starts off in another direction, with the tender-foot hanging upon his side with one foot fast in the stirrup, the other leg wrapped around the saddle-horn, and holding to the mane with both hands. With a loud bellow the steer makes another whirl; the pony follows in a twinkle; and this time the grip gives way, the leg slips over, the horn ripping the cloth and bruising the skin, and with a heavy thud tender-foot comes to the ground, and after rolling over fifteen or twenty times he lies upon his belly and raises his head to see if the steer had run over the pony too. The boys are usually slow about going to help a walloped tender-foot, for fear he will not die if he is helped.
Cow-boys are ranked in the business something like officers in the army. There are foremen, bosses, and sub-bosses, down to privates; and they are paid according to their experience and ability. Some of them have been cow-punching—as it is called—for many years, and know every water for hundreds of miles around; and, of course, they command high wages. The common boy gets twenty-five and thirty dollars per month; and the wages range from this up to one hundred and twenty-five dollars. Of course, one has to be highly experienced to command the latter.
Ponies, riding-outfits, beds, etc., are furnished by the companies; but nearly all the boys have ponies and riding-rigs of their own. The object of this will be explained hereafter. They all furnish their ownfire-arms, and are usually pretty well belted.
There are large, wealthy firms in Texas—such as Hunter & Evans, and others,—who make it abusiness to breed cattle; and they sell to the ranchmen thousands upon thousands of stock-cattle every year. They usually cross the short-horn with the long-horn; for theTexican, while he is a good rustler and will find enough to live on where an American will die, does not fill out well, besides being usually very fierce and wild, while, on the other hand, theAmericanhas the set, and is tame; but when the pasture is poor or the weather severe he will not rustle as hard nor feed as far out upon the range as the other.
The trail comes over the prairie, from Texas, by Dodge City, Kansas, and goes on up into the Platte country, Nebraska. This trail is several hundred miles long, and is divided up into regular drives; and some of the stretches between waters are very long. It has been used for many years, and is worn wide and deep. Every spring and fall these stock-breeders send great herds up this trail. Sometimes as many as twenty-five thousand are strung out in one herd. At these seasons, persons wanting cattle gather along the trail and wait for a herd. The herds are composed of from one to three yearlings; and for first choice the usual price is twelve dollars, and ranging down to seven dollars.
There are largehorsecompanies in the South, and great herds of ponies are also driven up the trail each fall and spring. They sell for from twenty to fifty dollars per head.
Many cattle give out on the long march, and numerous riding-ponies get their backs scalded and rubbed and are worn down weak and thin, and can be bought for a song; and after a month or two of rest they are all right.
Many new wagons are brought up with the herds to haul the necessary supplies, and, not being needed for the return, they can be bought very cheap, from the inconvenience of running them back so far. There are persons ranched along this trail who buy the worn-out cattle and ponies and the wagons; and there have been fortunes made at it.
When a man wants to go into the cattle-business and does not know the country well, he finds out from the cow-boys some place that is unoccupied and that would make a good cattle-range. He then goes there, and at some good place builds a good ranch and strongcorral, then gets a branding-iron made and procures a wagon and camp outfit, ponies, etc., and then, hiring an experienced man to manage the business, he goes to the trail during one of the aforesaid seasons and buys what he wants. By paying twelve dollars per head he gets his choice from the mighty herd, and can make up his herd of good cattle nearly three years old. Buying half steers and half heifers, he will have the heifers to immediately breed from, and thereby have some steers ready for market in one year. This will pay his expenses. The next year he will have more to sell, and thecalveswill be coming on. By selling every marketable steer each fall and investing the money in young cattle, it is not long until the herd is numerous and the shipments can be great. When he has his herd he drives them upon his range, and hires some boys to help him brand them. Two strong posts are firmly planted in thecorral, about twelve feet apart, and part of the herd is driven in at a time. A boy rides in, throws his rope over the horns of an animal, and, all understanding their business, the cow is soon pulled upon her side. A rope is put around the hind feet and wrapped around one of the posts and held by a boy, and another rope is put around the front feet and wrapped around the other post and held by another boy, while the brander applies the iron.
This branding business is fine sport for persons who are not accustomed to seeing it; and when I first came to the country I was present on all such occasions when possible. The boys used to let me lasso the cattle, and took great pains in showing me how it was done; and at length it was a small job to catch a cow, still or running. I recollect very well the first branding I ever attended. The boys caught a two-year-old steer and threw him down, and, putting a rope around the hind feet, they gave it to me to hold. They told me to wrap the rope three or four times around my body and then turn my back to the steer and pull as hard as I could, and I could hold him easily. Well, I had seen steers enough to know that they could kick like thunder. But I thought that perhaps by having his legs pulled straight out behind I could manage him; and I was pulling like awheel-horse, when something happened. There was a sudden jerk from back toward the steer, and a loud snort. Then I whirled round so fast that it looked as though there were steers all around me; and I made a jump backward that beats the best on record. When I recovered I had a little pain in the stomach, and half the buttons were torn off my clothes; and I was altogether changed about. I tell you, boys, you can have your own opinion about it, but I believe that steer would have jerked the hind end of the world out if he had been fastened to it. I wish it distinctly understood that whenever there is a red-hot iron to be poked against a steer’s skin I want to be on the side where there are no legs.
It is notusuallymuch of a job to catch and throw an animal; but sometimes there is a large, powerful, wild Texican in the bunch, and the boys have some fun. In this case they throw two or three ropes upon the animal, and the ponies hold him fast. When the herd is all branded they are turned upon the range; and having prepared it, he takes up his abode in his humble little ranch. If his herd is not large, he and his little help can ride out every day to look after the cattle and keep them upon the range, and his herd will not be much scattered in the spring.
In choosing a range it is best, if possible, to take up a rough part, or where there is timber; for being thus sheltered from the fierce winter blasts, the cattle are not apt to drift. Of courseif he or they want to go into the business very largely, it will be necessary, perhaps, to huntseveral ranges, and build cabins there for the boys.
It is interesting to see a well-trained pony play his part in the roping process. He watches the lariat, and as the rider throws it he makes two or three rapid jumps to give the rope slack, and if it catches, he then stops, plants his feet in the sand, and turns to suit the cow. A small pony, if well trained, can hold a good steer by the horns or foot. The rider can dismount and go to the captive, and the pony will do the holding. Sometimes the animal is too much, however, and in spite of his greatest efforts, the pony is jerked heavily to the ground. I have seen the saddle jerked from the pony and taken across the prairie by the horns of a steer. This mostly happens when there is a bad throw, and the animal is caught around the neck or body. The saddles, as has been said, are large and very heavy, with big blankets under them, so that the back of the pony is never injured by the surges of any captive. I have often thought of the pieces that one of the eastern turtle-shell saddles would be jerked into should one of these powerful wild steers be tied to the horn. The catch-rope has a knot in one end of it, and when thrown in a certain way it will lap around the foot and tie. This is a good catch, and can be done at a dead run; but it requires much more skill than the regular noose-catch. The foot is sometimes caught in chase with the noose; but this requires superior skill, and the Mexicanonlycan practice this successfully. In case a steer gets cross, or is wild and mean about going into acorralor stock-pen, several boys dash upon him, some throwing their ropes around his horns, others around his feet, and others around his neck and tail, and with a whoop they drag him in. I have seen fifteen-hundred-pound steers dragged in this way. These ponies would pull nothing by acollar; but they are trained to pull by thesaddle, and can draw a big load that way. Cow-boys often pull emigrant wagons out of streams and sloughs, where good teams have left them stand. Of course this roping all requires practice, and the skill that may be acquired at it would astonish one who had never seen the performance here upon the prairie. Sometime a single and lone cow-boy is crossing the prairie, and happens to run across a two orthree year old that in some way has been missed. Riding upon it he ropes it; and while the pony holds it he takes his knife and marks the ear, and brands it by cutting the hair to the skin in the brand shape. This will stay until branding season, and then it can be done over.
Great flocks of sheep are also raised out here, and it is said that there is much more profit in them than in cattle,ordinarily. But the risk is much greater, as in case of a severe winter, like sometimes visit the prairie, many of them die; for there is no chance to shelter or feed them like in the East among barns and stocks. Experienced stock-men say that sheep usually pay from seventy-five to one hundred per cent upon the investment, and cattle from forty to sixty per cent. But of course this varies a good deal according to the season. There is an amalgam here called thegreaser, who is part Mexican, Indian, and negro, andtheydo most of the sheep-raising. They have straight black hair, very dark complexion, and are extremely wicked and cruel. They are very filthy, and hence the name greaser. They use the donkey, or burro, and pack from place to place. To see them with their flocks and asses upon the hill-side is suggestive of ancient times, and causes one to think of flocks and herds upon the plains of historical Europe and Asia. In order that all my readers may know the nature of these vile and odious specimens of humanity, I will describe them as the ugliest, meanest, most slovenly, cruel, treacherous, and quarrelsome beings I ever saw. Each greaser carries a large knife; and you bet he knows how to use it. He canthrowit into a man’s body at the distance of ten feet every time; and upon the least provocation, if close enough, he will cut your jugular-vein the first whack. They sometimes move their flocks upon the stock-ranges, and any one acquainted with sheep knows the condition in which pasture is left after several thousand sheep have ranged over it. This enrages the cattle-men, and they send cow-boys to move them off. There have been many bitter battles fought between these parties for this cause, and many a Mexican has bitten the dust and had his flock scattered and destroyed. When cow-boys start out to do anything that can be done with six-shooters, they usually do it; and could the bleaching Mexican skeletons but speak, the truth of the assertion would only be too well evidenced.
Most persons have heard of theTexas cattle-feverand its terrible ravages. It is almost entirely confined to the regions along the trail; and though not often the case, it is some years very destructive, and hundreds of cattle are stretched out dead upon either side of the trail, and stock-men are afraid to buy. Stock can then be bought cheap. There is much speculation as to what this disease is; and many theories have been advanced by scientific men as to its cause, and whether it is contagious. The following is one of the theories; and to me it seems the most plausible: In driving the cattle so far through the hot sand, their feet become sore and fester; and when they are halted by the drivers and left graze out upon the range the matter from their feet is imparted and deposited on the grass, and this grass being eaten by the cattle causes the affection. Others say that it is a regular disease, that it originated in Texas, and that it is contagious. But I have observed that the disease is not prevalent in Texas or any other country except the ranges along the trail. I have also observed that the disease is not contagious if cattle are not left graze upon the same range too soon after comingoff the trail. The cattle that are once badly affected with the disease seldom do much good afterward.
The stock-business being the almost exclusive occupation of the people upon the vast western prairie world, which to this is so particularly adapted, I hope I have been justified in treating of this subject at so great length. I have tried to picture the country in the imagination of persons (who have never been here) as it really is, and to satisfy the curiosity of those who have heard so much of the great western herds, as well as to inform those who would wish to engage in the business upon the vast free domain. Thinking that perhaps the subject has been sufficiently spoken of I shall conclude, and refer the reader to the closing letters of this work for further information.
Cow-Boy History—Mustangs and Broncos—Cow-Boys with Six-Shooters—Dodge City—Boot Grave-yard—Prairie Mysteries—Dance-Halls—Sketch of Buffalo Bill—Theory of the Plains—Trading-House—Antelope Chase—We Prepare for a Mountain Tour.
Cow-Boy History—Mustangs and Broncos—Cow-Boys with Six-Shooters—Dodge City—Boot Grave-yard—Prairie Mysteries—Dance-Halls—Sketch of Buffalo Bill—Theory of the Plains—Trading-House—Antelope Chase—We Prepare for a Mountain Tour.
Most persons of ordinary information have heard something of the character of the population of the great American plains, and have observed that thecow-boyshave had their share of attention and comment. From actual observations made during my long roam upon the prairies I feel able to contribute a few lines that will no doubt be interesting to persons who have read such speculative and varied accounts, and who wish to be well and truly informed.
The great country that has been described as adapted to no other purpose than stock-raising is necessarily almost exclusively populated with cow-men; and, without legal restraint, the prairie fairly trembles with their power. I am personally acquainted with many of the boys; and while I have manywarm friendsamongthem, I also have somedeadly enemies. I have studied their dispositions, and, by the instrument of warmest confidence, have drawn from their bosoms many dark and hidden secrets. When a person takes into consideration thepositionandsurroundingsof these boys, he is not astonished at the almost unexceptionably bold, bestial, and immoral character of these creatures of the broad western wilds. IncivilizedandChristianizedregions, if a person be disposed to be rough and immoral—though he often meets those of like disposition and isencouraged,—hemustandwill, from time to time, come in contact with those whom the faintest throbbings of natural manhood will move him to respect; for instance, the sweet smile or the soft, silver-toned word from the lips of a kind female or the address of a noble man. As he walks the streets by the dim light of the gas-lamp, profaning the Sabbath or planning dark vices, the sweet strains from the lips of the worshipers away up in the tabernacle will waft out of the open window upon the soft evening zephyrs and irresistibly appeal to his faint sensibilities. The voice of the good minister is heard; and though the heart be mailed with a coat of evil and the spark of celestial fire called conscience be almost smothered, these soft influences are felt and are fuel to the fire of man’s natural sensibilities. And back of all this is the strong hand of the law, backed by public sentiment, with which the latitude of man’s privileges is measured out. The checks are so many and so great that it is some time before the conscience of man can be overcome by the rolling waves of immoral and iniquitous temptations. But it is quite otherwise in the unsettled country where the musical strains do not reach nor the words of the gospel sound, and where the sweet influence of womanhood is not shed, and worst of all, where thelawis thewilland the might makes the right. There is nothing to stay the degeneration into which mankind is naturally so prone to drift; and in several years’ life with such surroundings the sensibilities of man become as callous as a stone. The very atmosphere is impregnated with profanity, and new-comers can seldom resist the epidemic. Many of these boys stay alone away out upon distant ranges for several months at a stretch without seeing a human being, with the howl of the wolf and the angry growl of the wild beasts constantly floating upon the prairiebreeze, and the monotony broken now and then by the war-whoop of the treacherous red-man, who cruises upon the plain beneath his white plume, seeking the lives and scalps of the lone boys. The effect of a life in the open air, and a diet of wild meats, together with the influences of an unsettled country, I have already felt by actual experience; and he who has described the wickedness and boldness of the cow-boy in the strongest language I will assure you is not guilty of exaggeration, for indeed they are savages. They do most all their work upon horseback; and being in the saddle every day, they are so expert at equestrianism that it is amusing to see them ride. They walk so little that the muscles of their legs are very weak, and on foot they can do very little. They always keep a pony picketed close by, and if they want to go a quarter of a mile the pony is saddled.
The bronco is a California pony, and the mustang is a pony that was found upon the plains of Mexico. Both these breeds are used by cow-men; and they are, with few exceptions, very hard to break. They are naturalbuckers; and some of them never forget it, and take a heat at it after being rode for several years; that is,they put their head between their knees, stick out their tails, and then begin to jump stiff-legged. The first lunge will perhaps be four or five feet forward, the next several feet backward, then from side to side, and all the while bawling like an ox. They sometimes begin as soon as the sinch is drawn and before it is fastened, and tearing furiously from the boy they buck over the plain until the saddle comes off or until they are entirely exhausted. It is a curious habit, but it appears to be natural with them; and if any person takes it to be an agreeable exercise to back one of these professional buckers, he should try it on once, and I will assure him that one fall upon the back of the neck will be sufficient to convince him that he was mistaken. It takespracticeto be able to ride one of these fellows; and men considered good riders in the East are tipped by these ponies as easily as a stone from a slippery log. To see a big tender-foot back a bucker is about as funny a thing as I ever witnessed. The first jump the boy pops up about six inches, the next a foot, and so on. Soon he pops up so high that the pony gets one pop ahead of him, and when he comes down the pony is gone; and with a thud he comes to theground, usually upon the back of his shoulders, with his feet gesticulating wildly in the direction he came from. These boys are so well up to them, however, that they do not think much about it,ordinarily, though there is one sometimes that it takes the best rider to stick. I saw a boy mount a pony that it was said could not be rode, while he said he could not be thrown. The pony began his wickedest; and such bucking I never saw. He bucked for full fifteen minutes, and was worried down. The blood was gushing from the mouth and nose of the rider. The powerful jerking had almostruinedhim; and of the effects of that ride he said he never expected to be cured. “But,†said he, “in all my riding-experiences in fifteen years upon the prairie, I never backed the like.†Now, when a littlemuleonce learns to buck, he is what the cow-boys call double-geared lightning; for this, with the natural-born ability of the mule, enables him to come as nearplaying hellas is possible without using the real material; and a person who did not see him begin would swear it was aherdof mules dashing around, so numerous and violent are his maneuvers. When a wild pony is to be broken he is roped, a saddlestrapped upon him, and the rider takes his seat. He is then turned loose upon the prairie to cut capers, while the other boys ride after him to keep from going too far, or from jumping into bogs or gutters. As they come dashing over the prairie whooping and hallooing, the pony bucking and bawling, and the rider applying his big spurs, the sight is grand; and it is seldom one of these boys is moved from his seat. When the pony is worried out, he then puts a bridle on him and drills him. Of course it would be impossible to ride these fellows with the saddles that are used in the states. But, as has been said, these saddles are large, the horn is high, and when mounting a bad pony a roll of blankets is tied upon the saddle-skirt, and it is difficult to get a rider from his seat. Some of these boys have been almostbornin the saddle; and ridingso much, they are so bow-legged they can hardly walk. I have seen these boys ride along on a dead run and grab up in succession four and five silver dollars that were laid upon the ground fifty yards apart. They become veryventuresomeandmischievous, and sometimes catch the big-horned Texas steers, jump upon their backs, pull their tail up over the shoulder, andmy, oh! what a time! The steer bounds away snorting, bucking, and bellowing; but in spite of his efforts the boy holds on to the tail and keeps his seat. When they want some milk they ride out and rope a cow; and while the pony holds the cow they milk what they want. From so muchpractice, these boys are as expert with the six-shooter as with the pony; and persons considering themselves good shots should not brand themselves superior until once shooting a round or two with a cow-boy. I have seen boys ride over the river bridge at Granada, and at a dead run shoot two and three glass telegraph insulators from the railing in one round from the six-shooter. They practice this so much that they can shoot better from a pony than from the ground. Some have the cells filed out, so that the firing can be done more rapidly. There are saloons all along the railroads and cattle-trails, and when the boys are out alone upon the range for some time they feel like having apicnicwhen getting to where somebody lives. They are usually very liberal when they have money, and everybody present is called on to “come up and represent.†Whisky is considered thegrace of Godin this country, and of courseit is very seldom refused. Now, if there are several together, a few drinks about makes happiness full; and the ball then opens. The boys all draw good wages, their expenses are light, and most of them aim to spend in saloons every dollar that is not needed for actual necessaries. They often draw from fifty to one hundred dollars at once, and spend every dollar of it before leaving a saloon. There are men making fortunes off the cow-boys to-day. There are professional gamblers lurking around most of these frontier saloons, and they watch tointoxicatethe boys and then play them out of their money. Though the game be begun in the best of humor, it is usual for each man to lay his six-shooter at his side; and themaximis,mind your eye. As long as everything is done squarely there is no trouble; but the first man that is caught tricking is in hot quarters; and I have seen some deadly battles without one word spoken. Sometimes the gamblers entirely strip the boys, and with an understanding, when there is a large pot, they point the six-shooters at the gamblers’ heads and pull in the pile.
Some years ago Dodge City, Kansas, was given up to be the roughest and most wicked placein the United States. It is situated right where the Texas trail crosses the railroad, and was a regular stock-center. Numbers of cow-boys were constantly going in and out, and whole dens of gamblers and prostitutes were quartered here for lucre. The population being composed ofsuch beings, and the clash of the six-shooter being the voice of the law, the vilest consequences are but natural. Ah! many a man played his last game here, and mingled his dying-breath with the lurid smoke of the six-shooters. Men were shot down like dogs, and buried as they fell, red with gore and horribly mangled.
There is at this place a yard called theBoot Grave-yard, a place well known to all western men, and called thus from the fact that thirty-eight men have been buried here with their boots on. There was scarcely a day that there was not a riot in town among the cow-boys, or between the cow-boys and gamblers; and of courseshootingandcuttingwas the consequence. Emigrants passing through with wagons, and not knowing the place, were decoyed into dark places and robbed. Passengers from the trains, on going in for refreshments and showing anyamount of money, were trapped and robbed, and were killed upon resistance. You are a stranger in the country, and they are all cliqued together; and what are you to do? If you go to making much trouble, or get to shooting off your mouth, the consequences can be imagined. Even when there areofficers, they are not able to command order; for the first day they try it a ball from some unknown villain will strike him. Hence the officers are usually cliqued with the desperadoes. The easier a person can get out of these places the better; for the officers themselves will put you into a dungeon for the gamblers to rob you.
Fully one half the gamblers and cow-boys of the West are persons who have committed dark crimes and fled thither to escapejustice; and wickedness, when oncelaunched, will find in this country easy sailing.
As has been said, almost every cow-boy has one pony and riding-rig of his own. In case he should come into a place andkillsomebody, this pony is calculated to skip with to another part, thereby avoiding the necessity of riding off one of the company’s horses.
The regular initiation to the cow-boys’ society is three murders; and when they find that youare good stuff, and will shoot without ceremony, you are one of theboys; and you may depend upon it that you have friends who will stand by you in the hours of darkest danger. But if you prove to be abragand acoward, your misfortunes are laughed at.
If a criminal is pursued, and he can reach the banks of the Arkansas River anywhere west of Dodge City, and then understands the plains, he is as safe as though he were in an uninhabited land. Or if he does not understand the prairie, and goes to a cow-camp and tells the boys what is up, if he has the right appearance one of them will mount aponyand givehimone, and lope across to another range. Persons who do not know the country can notfollowa person here; and if it is tried, and you do not perish fromthirst, death will meet you insome way—you can rest assured of that. Telegraph-wires and officers of the law are of little avail here in running down a felon; and if a person keeps on his guard, and stays upon the range away from the towns, there is no danger of ever being taken.
Many of the boys arenevercaught off their guard, and the belt is upon them at the board and in the bed. They areeverprepared. Everystranger is watched with an eagle eye, and the least suspicion is nipped in the bud.
There was one boy who had been upon the plains for several years, and who had proved himself a hero. He had committed murder in Alabama and fled from justice, and a New Yorkdetectivehad been employed to hunt him down; but it was some years before a clue could be found. He one night came to the home of the widowed mother, and passing himself off as a peddler not long from Germany, in a long, cunning conversation he obtained a slight trace of the felon son; and at length he trailed him to the Colorado plains. He learned that he was cow-punching; and the only way to get him was to cow-punch too. So, rigging himself out in a cow-boy’s dress, he hired to a company and went to work. He was at the business several weeks, and at length came across his man. He had been very careful about every word and motion, and, assuming a careless appearance, he was not in the least suspicioned. He knew he was in a dangerous position; for if the cow-boys even mistrusted him he would be shot. But with great cunning and ingenuity he had avoided all suspicion; and after awhile he becamequite intimate, and was taken into the cow-boy’s confidence. He watched his opportunity, and was alone with his man upon the Tepee, in Texas, one beautiful summer’s eve; and they both stooped to drink from the little stream. The detective was careful to arise first, and drawing his six-shooter he leveled it upon his man, and as he rose said, “Surrender, and be quiet; for you are my prisoner.†Quick as a flash the cow-boy saw his position, and resolved to make the most of it. Maintaining his presence of mind he coolly remarked, “Well, I suppose you want my arms.†The detective, not realizing his real danger, and not considering the cow-boy’s dexterity with a pistol, assented to the boy handing him the pistol, but kept his aim. The six-shooter was drawn from the scabbard, the fore-finger was slipped into the guard in front of the trigger, and, taking the pistol by the barrel, he reached it to the detective; and as he let down his own arm and reached for the extended weapon the cow-boy whirled the six-shooter, caught the handle, and in a twinkling a ball was sent whizzing through the body of the detective; and he lay pouring his life-blood upon the green bank of the Tepee, at the very feet of his intended victim.
It was only by long acquaintance and the most perfect confidence that I was intrusted with these secrets. I passed by the dead body before the color had quite left the cheeks. He was a fine-looking man, with an intellectual appearance; but, lest he should give himself away, he had cleaned out his pockets, and there was not even a paper by which his name could be ascertained. There may be a good woman and loving family somewhere in New York to-day waiting for the return of a long-absented loved one; but God forbid that it should be he whose bones lie bleaching on the banks of the Tepee. There are many such cases; and could the ghastly skulls but tell their tales, great volumes could be written of what will ever remain a deep secret.
Persons traveling over the plains will from time to time come upon human remains, some but partially decomposed and others disarticulated skeletons. A few miles north of the Arkansas River, in eastern Colorado, there is a long, deep hollow that from the great number of skeletons found therein is calledDead Man’s Arroyo. They appear to have been there for many years; but there is not a mark upon thevalley rocks or spirit-whisper in the soft air to tell the sad tale. It issupposedthat a hunting outfit was surprised at night and murdered by the Indians.
While hunting in the pan-handle country, we found the skeletons of four ponies lying in a circle, and a human skeleton (apparently a negro) lying among them. There were seventy-two Winchester cartridge-shells by his side; and it is thought that he was attacked by Indians, and for shelter shot down all his ponies, then fought off his enemies until his ammunition was exhausted, and died by a cruel hand. I have spent many interesting hours in the careful investigation of these mysteries, and surmising the causes and means by which these results were effected. From the fact that crime can be committed in the silence of the lonely plain, with so littledangerof ever being discovered (the body often wasting to a skeleton before being discovered), there are many cold-blooded killings. When the least difficulty occurs among persons here, the arbitrator is almost invariably the six-shooter.
There aredance-hallsin many of thelittle townswithin the cow-boy’s range. They areusually built of sod oradobe, and are about fifty feet long and thirty feet wide. In one corner there is a bar; and in the back end of the building are several small rooms in which stay the female dancers. They are usually Mexican girls. Musicians are employed to stay here all the time; and every night some of the cow-boys, Mexicans, or miners come in,—often from twenty and thirty miles,—for a dance. At the end of each set each boy must take his partner to the bar. Drinks and cigars are usually two bits apiece, and the lowest is fifteen cents apiece or two for two bits. If it is found out that there are boys in who have much money, the bar-keeper posts the musicians and the sets are cut very short. As long as the boys will spend money the dance is kept up, if it is all night; but so soon as the money stops the dance stops. The profits are large, and among these reckless boys a shrewd hall-man often clears from one hundred and fifty to two hundred dollars in a single night. Knowing the character and disposition of the persons who attend these balls, and considering the attending circumstances upon these occasions, the scenes can be readily imagined. Desperadoes gather in from all directions, boys meet here to settle quarrels, and cow-boys and Mexicans beingnaturalenemies, there are often mighty lively times. Each boy is ambitious to be abad man; and after they get pretty well fired with liquor the recklessness commences and the wild spirit begins to glitter. Six-shooters are jerked, knives are drawn, and with wild yells bottles and glasses are shot from the bar, lights are fired down, and the basest profanity floats out of the appertures of the earthly hell upon the prairie breeze. Old grudges are stirred up, bullies try to pick a quarrel from others and then strike them down and try to run the house. One boy will imagine himself insulted by some other, and getting his friends together a fight is begun. Boys are shot down upon the dancing-floor, and each man tries to be the bloodiest. The consequences of these wicked balls are often very bitter, and there are some sickening scenes to be viewed in the morning light. I recollect being at Las Animas, Colorado, one night when there was a dance at the old Alhambra (a Mexican dance-hall), and I went to the ball to see how things were carried on and to learn the Colorado styles. I got there early in the evening, and the Mexicans were having a big fandango in six-eight time. About nine o’clock the cow-boys began to gather in, when things began to warm up and the scene put on a new aspect. The cow-boys got wild with liquor, and riding around the hall yelling and shooting, they made the oldadobedust fly like sand in a hurricane. Bullets whistled in every direction, and when one cut through my beard I concluded things were getting a littlewarm; but wanting to see itall, I got behind the bar with the tender. There were a good manyMexicansin the hall, and the two parties began to contend for the house. There were two doors infront, and three boys arranged themselves in a line at either door. The doors were then thrown open by others, and leaning low upon the ponies, the six boys plunged their spurs into the sides of their animals and like a flash rushed into the house. They rode up to the lights and struck them down with their six-shooters; and then in the darkness the bloody contest was hand-to-hand. The women screamed, the horses snorted, the cow-boys shot, and the Mexicans cut. I knew the contest was bloody, and I was anxious to know how the thing was coming on; but the horses were prancing around so furiously, and it was too dark to dodge the bullets that were flying like rocks in an earthquake, so I kept behind the bar and waited for the curtain to rise. In about five minutes the noise abated; and when the lamps were lighted a horrible spectacle met my view. The ponies were all out; but three of the riders were horribly mutilated and bleeding upon the floor. Two Mexicans (greasers) were also riddled with bullets and gasping in death, while others were badly wounded. I went out among the cow-boys and found that some of them were also deeply gashed and bleeding. They had got theworstof the battle; and being late in the night they concluded to disperse and come insomeother night for some more fun. There was not a boy in the crowd that appeared to be in theleast affectedwith the loss of his comrades, and with wild whoops they rushed off like the wind. Going into the hall I found the band playing, and the Mexicans were preparing to continue the ball. The five bodies were dragged up in the corner and a blanket thrown over them, and in the blood of the expired men the fandango was carried on till the morn began to dawn. This was a regulardance-hallscene, andnot in any way an unusual one. I attended balls at a number of different halls, and witnessed many bloody riots.
Of course, these halls are not allowed near towns of muchsizeorimportance, where men live with theirfamilies, but are mostly in small places, and in many cases are far out upon the range. They are built in all shapes. The very air is contaminated with the vicious venom that arises from their walls like the odor from hell. Some are built by digging into thegrounda few feet and then putting a few feet ofadobeson top, making the ceiling just high enough for a man towalkunder; and when the fiends gather in the nights are made hideous and the noise of the riots sounds like the rumbling of the infernal regions. These houses are the manufactories of evil and the polluted fountains from which untold misery and wickedness have been drunk by the unfortunate ones who traveled thither. Many a noble thoughambitiousyoung man, the pride of a happy family and the delight of his fellow-comrades, has gone west to seek his fortune, like his forefathers in years gone by. The location is often made in these wild places, and when the cultivated delicacyand human timidity are once a little numbed, he walks with hiscomradesand is soon led to their venomous dens. Though it may be a littleshockingat first, there is nothing but his own lonely conscience to discourage him and warn him of the enormity and danger; and under the circumstances theordinaryman is tempted and will go down. When he visits these houses the seeds are sown in his breast that the oxygen of prairie air will hasten to maturity.
Every man who visits these places has his life in his hand; and it is as easily dropped as though it were the most insignificant article. Often when a fond family is daily looking for a loved one to return, his spirit is winging the subtile air and his bones are bleaching upon the prairie, the secret, like the body, melting into clay. Of course, as was said, these vile places and extremely wicked inhabitants are principally found in small towns in the midst of the unsettledcountryor where these earthly hells are pitched in the midst of the plain; for there are someprettylittle towns andgoodpeople. It appears somewhat strange that man—and not only man—will so degenerate, and become so extremely wicked and beastly; but it appears thatthe average person, when living in a wild, unsettled country, surrounded with so much evil, loses all his refinement and develops into a new creature.
While picturing western life and relating frontier adventures it may beproperand perhapsinterestingto many to give a sketch of the life of Hon. Wm. F. Cody,—“Buffalo Bill,â€â€”a man known the world over as a border hero, of whom too much can not be said in the way of praise for valuable services rendered the Government as an army-scout, guide, and Indian-fighter.
Born in Iowa in 1843, at a time when that state was a border, and at an early age going with his father to Kansas, in the midst of the troubles there that “tried men’s souls,†William F. Cody was reared amid scenes of danger, and met with many thrilling adventures ere he reached his thirteenth year, becoming a “boy hero†when killing his first Indian before he entered his teens.
The death of his father, from the result of wounds received in the Kansas war, left the boy the support of his mother and sisters, and, precocious for his years, he joined an emigrant-train as teamster, and rapidly rose from that position to hunter and guide over the overland trails to the far West.