Oregon Republican. [volume] (Dallas, Or.) 1870-1872, 1871-04-15
TnE TEXAS CATTLE KINGS.
[From tie Pittsburgh Commercial.


Texas alone has 3,SO0,000 cattle.
divided into $4,000 bceves, $4,000
cows, and 90O, 600 young cattle The
plains on which these cattle roam eon>
tain about 152 600, 900 acres of ground.
The principal pasturages are on the
Nueces, Rio Grande, Guadalupe, San
! Antonio, Colorado, Leon, Brazos, Trim
! ity, Sabine, and Red rivers. The cattle
are owned by scores OF ranchmen. each
one Of whom has from 900 to 10000
head. On the Santa Catrutos river Is
a ranch containing 81, 1872 acres. Il is
owned by one man, Richard King, and
/ has on it 65 900 head of cattle. %, 900
horses, 1000 sheep, and 5000 goats
/ This Immense number OF live stock re-
duires 1000 saddle horses and 300
/ Mexicans to attend and herd It. Ten
thousand beeves are annually sold from
the ranch, and $4,000 young calves
branded There is another ranch on
! the San Antonio river, near Goliad,
which grazes 10000 head OF cattle, and
brands 1000 head OF calves annually.
/ Mr.. O'Connor, the owner Of this ranch,
sells $75, 600 worth Of stock each year,
and his herds are constantly increasing.
In 1852 he began cattle raising with
|, 800 head, aud his present enormous
herds aud wealth are the results oil
natural increase On the Gull, between
the Rio Grande and Nueces, is ranch
containing AZ $40 acres, and owned
b, Mr. Robidcaux. Ii is on peninsula,
having water on three sides, and to
enclose the other side, has required the
building Of thirty-oue miles OF plank
fence. Every three miles along the
fence arc houses for the hcrders, and
enormous stables and pens for the stock.
There are erazcd in this enclosure
| 30.000 head of beef cattle. besides an
/ immense number of other stock.
A ranch on the Rrazos river contains
| 1000 head Of cattle, 800 horses, and
| so hcrders john Ritson, the owner,
drives 5000 cattle to markei annually
| Ten years ago he was poor farmer in
| Tennessee. bat selling his land and GO
ing to the Brazos, he succeeded, by
dint OF hard labor, in getting. together
| sixty cows aud nine brood mares, when
he went TO raising stock. He has now
50.oO0 head of cattle, worth at least
Sl50.000, and lie is still ony forty
years old. , This man is establishing a
sroek ranch on the South Platte, in
! Nebraska, where he now has ) 600 head
of cattle. and next Spring will bring in
| 10000 more.
There is a ranch on the Concho river,
Tcxas, where, | am told. one man owns
10000 head Of steers and Milch cows
The best grazing counties in Texas
are those Of Thrcckmorton, Stevens
Jack, Young, Callahan, paIo Pinto
Hill, and johnson. These counties lie
along the Rio Grande, the Nueccs,
Guadalupe, San Antonio, Colorado,
Leon, Brazos, Trinity, Sabine, and Red
rivers The stock from these counties
are driven to the Gulf in great mum
bcrs. where they are slaughtered.
packed in steamers, or put on alive, aud
shipped to New York, Boston, aud
other northern markets 4 great
many cattle are driven north on foot by
way Of Abilene, Kansas. and Schuyler,
Nebraska Some follow the Pecos. add
pass into Arizona and California !;
others keep along the Arkansas to
Bent's Ford, thence across Colorado
over the Black Hills aud into Wyoming
aud on up into Utah. Montana, Nevada
and Idaho. There are some drivers
whose names | cannot mention but the
whole number OF cattle brought north
overland from Texas during the year
1870 did not fall short of 1000 head
OF these 10000 went to Montana,
s 5000 to Utah, 5000 to Nevada, 5000
to Wyoming, 10000 to California,
1000 to Idaho, and 10000 to Colora
do and New Mexico. The amount of
money handled along the base of the
mountains in transferring this stock was
over 81 ,250,000. At Abilene, the great
Kansas Cattle market, over 100000
head were handled The shipments in
September reached 60 900 head, and in
October nearly $4,000 head. This
Immense traffic may be estimated when
it is stated that it took Ill cars day
TO transfer the stock. and one bank in
t Kansas City handled s3.000,00O cattle
money. In Nebraska, the cattle trade
with the South is just beginning; yet
last year y 900 head changed hands at
Schuyler, and the First National Bank
of Omaha handled 100000 in conse.
quence Of this trade. 1t is likely the
trade at Schuyler in 1871 will reach
100000 head Of cattle, and it will re-
quire 1900 900 to carry it on.
Large as the cattle trade may seem
it is as yet in its infancy, not only in
Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, on the
Platte, but throughout the United
, States. The rapid increase of our pop
ulation, both from foreign and domestic