The Log of a Cowboy

ON THE BRAZOS AND WICHITA

As we neared Buffalo Gap a few days later, a deputy sheriff of Taylor County, who resided at the Gap, rode out and met us.  He brought an urgent request from Hames to Flood to appear as a witness against the rustlers, who were to be given a preliminary trial at Abilene the following day.  Much as he regretted to leave the herd for even a single night, our foreman finally consented to go.  To further his convenience we made a long evening drive, camping for the night well above Buffalo Gap, which at that time was little more than a landmark on the trail.  The next day we made an easy drive and passed Abilene early in the afternoon, where Flood rejoined us, but refused any one permission to go into town, with the exception of McCann with the wagon, which was a matter of necessity.  It was probably for the best, for this cow town had the reputation of setting a pace that left the wayfarer purseless and breathless, to say nothing about headaches.  Though our foreman had not reached those mature years in life when the pleasures and frivolities of dissipation no longer allure, yet it was but natural that he should wish to keep his men from the temptation of the cup that cheers and the wiles of the siren.  But when the wagon returned that evening, it was evident that our foreman was human, for with a box of cigars which were promised us were several bottles of Old Crow.

After crossing the Clear Fork of the Brazos a few days later, we entered a well-watered, open country, through which the herd made splendid progress.  At Abilene, we were surprised to learn that our herd was the twentieth that had passed that point.  The weather so far on our trip had been exceptionally good; only a few showers had fallen, and those during the daytime.  But we were now nearing a country in which rain was more frequent, and the swollen condition of several small streams which have their headwaters in the Staked Plains was an intimation to us of recent rains to the westward of our route.  Before reaching the main Brazos, we passed two other herds of yearling cattle, and were warned of the impassable condition of that river for the past week.  Nothing daunted, we made our usual drive; and when the herd camped that night, Flood, after scouting ahead to the river, returned with the word that the Brazos had been unfordable for over a week, five herds being waterbound.

As we were then nearly twenty miles south of the river, the next morning we threw off the trail and turned the herd to the northeast, hoping to strike the Brazos a few miles above Round Timber ferry.  Once the herd was started and their course for the day outlined to our point men by definite landmarks, Flood and Quince Forrest set out to locate the ferry and look up a crossing.  Had it not been for our wagon, we would have kept the trail, but as there was no ferry on the Brazos at the crossing of the western trail, it was a question either of waiting or of making this detour.  Then all the grazing for several miles about the crossing was already taken by the waterbound herds, and to crowd up and trespass on range already occupied would have been a violation of an unwritten law.  Again, no herd took kindly to another attempting to pass them when in traveling condition the herds were on an equality.  Our foreman had conceived the scheme of getting past these waterbound herds, if possible, which would give us a clear field until the next large watercourse was reached.

Flood and Forrest returned during the noon hour, the former having found, by swimming, a passable ford near the mouth of Monday Creek, while the latter reported the ferry in “apple-pie order.”  No sooner, then, was dinner over than the wagon set out for the ferry under Forrest as pilot, though we were to return to the herd once the ferry was sighted.  The mouth of Monday Creek was not over ten miles below the regular trail crossing on the Brazos, and much nearer our noon camp than the regular one; but the wagon was compelled to make a direct elbow, first turning to the eastward, then doubling back after the river was crossed.  We held the cattle off water during the day, so as to have them thirsty when they reached the river.  Flood had swum it during the morning, and warned us to be prepared for fifty or sixty yards of swimming water in crossing.  When within a mile, we held up the herd and changed horses, every man picking out one with a tested ability to swim.  Those of us who were expected to take the water as the herd entered the river divested ourselves of boots and clothing, which we intrusted to riders in the rear.  The approach to crossing was gradual, but the opposite bank was abrupt, with only a narrow passageway leading out from the channel.  As the current was certain to carry the swimming cattle downstream, we must, to make due allowance, take the water nearly a hundred yards above the outlet on the other shore.  All this was planned out in advance by our foreman, who now took the position of point man on the right hand or down the riverside; and with our saddle horses in the immediate lead, we breasted the angry Brazos.

The water was shallow as we entered, and we reached nearly the middle of the river before the loose saddle horses struck swimming water.  Honeyman was on their lee, and with the cattle crowding in their rear, there was no alternative but to swim.  A loose horse swims easily, however, and our remuda readily faced the current, though it was swift enough to carry them below the passageway on the opposite side.  By this time the lead cattle were adrift, and half a dozen of us were on their lower side, for the footing under the cutbank was narrow, and should the cattle become congested on landing, some were likely to drown.  For a quarter of an hour it required cool heads to keep the trail of cattle moving into the water and the passageway clear on the opposite landing.  While they were crossing, the herd represented a large letter “U,” caused by the force of the current drifting the cattle downstream, or until a foothold was secured on the farther side.  Those of us fortunate enough to have good swimming horses swam the river a dozen times, and then after the herd was safely over, swam back to get our clothing.  It was a thrilling experience to us younger lads of the outfit, and rather attractive; but the elder and more experienced men always dreaded swimming rivers.  Their reasons were made clear enough when, a fortnight later, we crossed Red River, where a newly made grave was pointed out to us, amongst others of men who had lost their lives while swimming cattle.

Once the bulk of the cattle were safely over, with no danger of congestion on the farther bank, they were allowed to loiter along under the cutbank and drink to their hearts’ content.  Quite a number strayed above the passageway, and in order to rout them out, Bob Blades, Moss Strayhorn, and I rode out through the outlet and up the river, where we found some of them in a passageway down a dry arroyo.  The steers had found a soft, damp place in the bank, and were so busy horning the waxy, red mud, that they hardly noticed our approach until we were within a rod of them.  We halted our horses and watched their antics.  The kneeling cattle were cutting the bank viciously with their horns and matting their heads with the red mud, but on discovering our presence, they curved their tails and stampeded out as playfully as young lambs on a hillside.

“Can you sabe where the fun comes in to a steer, to get down on his knees in the mud and dirt, and horn the bank and muss up his curls and enjoy it like that?” inquired Strayhorn of Blades and me.

“Because it’s healthy and funny besides,” replied Bob, giving me a cautious wink.  “Did you never hear of people taking mud baths?  You’ve seen dogs eat grass, haven’t you?  Well, it’s something on the same order.  Now, if I was a student of the nature of animals, like you are, I’d get off my horse and imagine I had horns, and scar and otherwise mangle that mud bank shamefully.  I’ll hold your horse if you want to try it—­some of the secrets of the humor of cattle might be revealed to you.”

The banter, though given in jest, was too much for this member of a craft that can always be depended on to do foolish things; and when we rejoined the outfit, Strayhorn presented a sight no sane man save a member of our tribe ever would have conceived of.

The herd had scattered over several thousand acres after leaving the river, grazing freely, and so remained during the rest of the evening.  Forrest changed horses and set out down the river to find the wagon and pilot it in, for with the long distance that McCann had to cover, it was a question if he would reach us before dark.  Flood selected a bed ground and camp about a mile out from the river, and those of the outfit not on herd dragged up an abundance of wood for the night, and built a roaring fire as a beacon to our absent commissary.  Darkness soon settled over camp, and the prospect of a supperless night was confronting us; the first guard had taken the herd, and yet there was no sign of the wagon.  Several of us youngsters then mounted our night horses and rode down the river a mile or over in the hope of meeting McCann.  We came to a steep bank, caused by the shifting of the first bottom of the river across to the north bank, rode up this bluff some little distance, dismounted, and fired several shots; then with our ears to the earth patiently awaited a response.  It did not come, and we rode back again.  “Hell’s fire and little fishes!” said Joe Stallings, as we clambered into our saddles to return, “it’s not supper or breakfast that’s troubling me, but will we get any dinner to-morrow?  That’s a more pregnant question.”

It must have been after midnight when I was awakened by the braying of mules and the rattle of the wagon, to hear the voices of Forrest and McCann, mingled with the rattle of chains as they unharnessed, condemning to eternal perdition the broken country on the north side of the Brazos, between Round Timber ferry and the mouth of Monday Creek.

“I think that when the Almighty made this country on the north side of the Brazos,” said McCann the next morning at breakfast, “the Creator must have grown careless or else made it out of odds and ends.  There’s just a hundred and one of these dry arroyos that you can’t see until you are right onto them.  They wouldn’t bother a man on horseback, but with a loaded wagon it’s different.  And I’ll promise you all right now that if Forrest hadn’t come out and piloted me in, you might have tightened up your belts for breakfast and drank out of cow tracks and smoked cigarettes for nourishment.  Well, it’ll do you good; this high living was liable to spoil some of you, but I notice that you are all on your feed this morning.  The black strap?  Honeyman, get that molasses jug out of the wagon—­it sits right in front of the chuck box.  It does me good to see this outfit’s tastes once more going back to the good old staples of life.”

We made our usual early start, keeping well out from the river on a course almost due northward.  The next river on our way was the Wichita, still several days’ drive from the mouth of Monday Creek.  Flood’s intention was to parallel the old trail until near the river, when, if its stage of water was not fordable, we would again seek a lower crossing in the hope of avoiding any waterbound herds on that watercourse.  The second day out from the Brazos it rained heavily during the day and drizzled during the entire night.  Not a hoof would bed down, requiring the guards to be doubled into two watches for the night.  The next morning, as was usual when off the trail, Flood scouted in advance, and near the middle of the afternoon’s drive we came into the old trail.  The weather in the mean time had faired off, which revived life and spirit in the outfit, for in trail work there is nothing that depresses the spirits of men like falling weather.  On coming into the trail, we noticed that no herds had passed since the rain began.  Shortly afterward our rear guard was overtaken by a horseman who belonged to a mixed herd which was encamped some four or five miles below the point where we came into the old trail.  He reported the Wichita as having been unfordable for the past week, but at that time falling; and said that if the rain of the past few days had not extended as far west as the Staked Plains, the river would be fordable in a day or two.

Before the stranger left us, Flood returned and confirmed this information, and reported further that there were two herds lying over at the Wichita ford expecting to cross the following day.  With this outlook, we grazed our herd up to within five miles of the river and camped for the night, and our visitor returned to his outfit with Flood’s report of our expectation of crossing on the morrow.  But with the fair weather and the prospects of an easy night, we encamped entirely too close to the trail, as we experienced to our sorrow.  The grazing was good everywhere, the recent rains having washed away the dust, and we should have camped farther away.  We were all sleepy that night, and no sooner was supper over than every mother’s son of us was in his blankets.  We slept so soundly that the guards were compelled to dismount when calling the relief, and shake the next guards on duty out of their slumber and see that they got up, for men would unconsciously answer in their sleep.  The cattle were likewise tired, and slept as willingly as the men.

About midnight, however, Fox Quarternight dashed into camp, firing his six-shooter and yelling like a demon.  We tumbled out of our blankets in a dazed condition to hear that one of the herds camped near the river had stampeded, the heavy rumbling of the running herd and the shooting of their outfit now being distinctly audible.  We lost no time getting our horses, and in less than a minute were riding for our cattle, which had already got up and were timidly listening to the approaching noise.  Although we were a good quarter mile from the trail, before we could drift our herd to a point of safety, the stampeding cattle swept down the trail like a cyclone and our herd was absorbed into the maelstrom of the onrush like leaves in a whirlwind.  It was then that our long-legged Mexican steers set us a pace that required a good horse to equal, for they easily took the lead, the other herd having run between three and four miles before striking us, and being already well winded.  The other herd were Central Texas cattle, and numbered over thirty-five hundred, but in running capacity were never any match for ours.

Before they had run a mile past our camp, our outfit, bunched well together on the left point, made the first effort to throw them out and off the trail, and try to turn them.  But the waves of an angry ocean could as easily have been brought under subjection as our terrorized herd during this first mad dash.  Once we turned a few hundred of the leaders, and about the time we thought success was in reach, another contingent of double the number had taken the lead; then we had to abandon what few we had, and again ride to the front.  When we reached the lead, there, within half a mile ahead, burned the camp-fire of the herd of mixed cattle which had moved up the trail that evening.  They had had ample warning of impending trouble, just as we had; and before the running cattle reached them about half a dozen of their outfit rode to our assistance, when we made another effort to turn or hold the herds from mixing.  None of the outfit of the first herd had kept in the lead with us, their horses fagging, and when the foreman of this mixed herd met us, not knowing that we were as innocent of the trouble as himself, he made some slighting remarks about our outfit and cattle.  But it was no time to be sensitive, and with his outfit to help we threw our whole weight against the left point a second time, but only turned a few hundred; and before we could get into the lead again their campfire had been passed and their herd of over three thousand cattle more were in the run.  As cows and calves predominated in this mixed herd, our own southerners were still leaders in the stampede.

It is questionable if we would have turned this stampede before daybreak, had not the nature of the country come to our assistance.  Something over two miles below the camp of the last herd was a deep creek, the banks of which were steep and the passages few and narrow.  Here we succeeded in turning the leaders, and about half the outfit of the mixed herd remained, guarding the crossing and turning the lagging cattle in the run as they came up.  With the leaders once turned and no chance for the others to take a new lead, we had the entire run of cattle turned back within an hour and safely under control.  The first outfit joined us during the interim, and when day broke we had over forty men drifting about ten thousand cattle back up the trail.  The different outfits were unfortunately at loggerheads, no one being willing to assume any blame.  Flood hunted up the foreman of the mixed herd and demanded an apology for his remarks on our abrupt meeting with him the night before; and while it was granted, it was plain that it was begrudged.  The first herd disclaimed all responsibility, holding that the stampede was due to an unavoidable accident, their cattle having grown restless during their enforced lay-over.  The indifferent attitude of their foreman, whose name was Wilson, won the friendly regard of our outfit, and before the wagon of the mixed cattle was reached, there was a compact, at least tacit, between their outfit and ours.  Our foreman was not blameless, for had we taken the usual precaution and camped at least a mile off the trail, which was our custom when in close proximity to other herds, we might and probably would have missed this mix-up, for our herd was inclined to be very tractable.  Flood, with all his experience, well knew that if stampeded cattle ever got into a known trail, they were certain to turn backward over their course; and we were now paying the fiddler for lack of proper precaution.

Within an hour after daybreak, and before the cattle had reached the camp of the mixed herd, our saddle horses were sighted coming over a slight divide about two miles up the trail, and a minute later McCann’s mules hove in sight, bringing up the rear.  They had made a start with the first dawn, rightly reasoning, as there was no time to leave orders on our departure, that it was advisable for Mahomet to go to the mountain.  Flood complimented our cook and horse wrangler on their foresight, for the wagon was our base of sustenance; and there was little loss of time before Barney McCann was calling us to a hastily prepared breakfast.  Flood asked Wilson to bring his outfit to our wagon for breakfast, and as fast as they were relieved from herd, they also did ample justice to McCann’s cooking.  During breakfast, I remember Wilson explaining to Flood what he believed was the cause of the stampede.  It seems that there were a few remaining buffalo ranging north of the Wichita, and at night when they came into the river to drink they had scented the cattle on the south side.  The bellowing of buffalo bulls had been distinctly heard by his men on night herd for several nights past.  The foreman stated it as his belief that a number of bulls had swum the river and had by stealth approached near the sleeping cattle,—­then, on discovering the presence of the herders, had themselves stampeded, throwing his herd into a panic.

We had got a change of mounts during the breakfast hour, and when all was ready Flood and Wilson rode over to the wagon of the mixed herd, the two outfits following, when Flood inquired of their foreman,—­

“Have you any suggestions to make in the cutting of these herds?”

“No suggestions,” was the reply, “but I intend to cut mine first and cut them northward on the trail.”

“You intend to cut them northward, you mean, provided there are no objections, which I’m positive there will be,” said Flood.  “It takes me some little time to size a man up, and the more I see of you during our brief acquaintance, the more I think there’s two or three things that you might learn to your advantage.  I’ll not enumerate them now, but when these herds are separated, if you insist, it will cost you nothing but the asking for my opinion of you.  This much you can depend on:  when the cutting’s over, you’ll occupy the same position on the trail that you did before this accident happened.  Wilson, here, has nothing but jaded horses, and his outfit will hold the herd while yours and mine cut their cattle.  And instead of you cutting north, you can either cut south where you belong on the trail or sulk in your camp, your own will and pleasure to govern.  But if you are a cowman, willing to do your part, you’ll have your outfit ready to work by the time we throw the cattle together.”

Not waiting for any reply, Flood turned away, and the double outfit circled around the grazing herd and began throwing the sea of cattle into a compact body ready to work.  Rod Wheat and Ash Borrowstone were detailed to hold our cut, and the remainder of us, including Honeyman, entered the herd and began cutting.  Shortly after we had commenced the work, the mixed outfit, finding themselves in a lonesome minority, joined us and began cutting out their cattle to the westward.  When we had worked about half an hour, Flood called us out, and with the larger portion of Wilson’s men, we rode over and drifted the mixed cut around to the southward, where they belonged.  The mixed outfit pretended they meant no harm, and were politely informed that if they were sincere, they could show it more plainly.  For nearly three hours we sent a steady stream of cattle out of the main herd into our cut, while our horses dripped with sweat.  With our advantage in the start, as well as that of having the smallest herd, we finished our work first.  While the mixed outfit were finishing their cutting, we changed mounts, and then were ready to work the separated herds.  Wilson took about half his outfit, and after giving our herd a trimming, during which he recut about twenty, the mixed outfit were given a similar chance, and found about half a dozen of their brand.  These cattle of Wilson’s and the other herd amongst ours were not to be wondered at, for we cut by a liberal rule.  Often we would find a number of ours on the outside of the main herd, when two men would cut the squad in a bunch, and if there was a wrong brand amongst them, it was no matter,—­we knew our herd would have to be retrimmed anyhow, and the other outfits might be disappointed if they found none of their cattle amongst ours.

The mixed outfit were yet working our herd when Wilson’s wagon and saddle horses arrived, and while they were changing mounts, we cut the mixed herd of our brand and picked up a number of strays which we had been nursing along, though when we first entered the main herd, strays had received our attention, being well known to us by ranch brands as well as flesh marks.  In gathering up this very natural flotsam of the trail, we cut nothing but what our herd had absorbed in its travels, showing due regard to a similar right of the other herds.  Our work was finished first, and after Wilson had recut the mixed herd, we gave his herd one more looking over in a farewell parting.  Flood asked him if he wanted the lead, but Wilson waived his right in his open, frank manner, saying, “If I had as long-legged cattle as you have, I wouldn’t ask no man for the privilege of passing.  Why, you ought to out-travel horses.  I’m glad to have met you and your outfit, personally, but regret the incident which has given you so much trouble.  As I don’t expect to go farther than Dodge or Ogalalla at the most, you are more than welcome to the lead.  And if you or any of these rascals in your outfit are ever in Coryell County, hunt up Frank Wilson of the Block Bar Ranch, and I’ll promise you a drink of milk or something stronger if possible.”

We crossed the Wichita late that afternoon, there being not over fifty feet of swimming water for the cattle.  Our wagon gave us the only trouble, for the load could not well be lightened, and it was an imperative necessity to cross it the same day.  Once the cattle were safely over and a few men left to graze them forward, the remainder of the outfit collected all the ropes and went back after the wagon.  As mules are always unreliable in the water, Flood concluded to swim them loose.  We lashed the wagon box securely to the gearing with ropes, arranged our bedding in the wagon where it would be on top, and ran the wagon by hand into the water as far as we dared without flooding the wagon box.  Two men, with guy ropes fore and aft, were then left to swim with the wagon in order to keep it from toppling over, while the remainder of us recrossed to the farther side of the swimming channel, and fastened our lariats to two long ropes from the end of the tongue.  We took a wrap on the pommels of our saddles with the loose end, and when the word was given our eight horses furnished abundant motive power, and the wagon floated across, landing high and dry amid the shoutings of the outfit.