The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-07-29
THE CATTLE TRADE.
The Rapid March Ii is Taking Toward
the Far Distant West.

the Far Distant west.
New York SUM-
DENVER, Colorado, July 24.-The cattl,
trade has undergone wonderful changes
during the past five years. In 1871
Abilene was in It's glory as the grea.
cattle mart The annual Texas "drives'
centred at that place for shipment t
Eastern markets, and from June til
November it was the scene Of an almost
riotous activity, that town being filleo
with drovers, spectators, stock agents
and hangers-on, and the surrounding
country fairly swarmed with "long
horns" This has all changed. From
year to year now trains have been
taken further and further West, made
necessary by the Kansas laws re-
lating to dead lines, compelling. drovers
to keep out Of the farming districts, and
allowing them to drive their cattle only
through unoccupied country. Salina,
Emporia, Brookville, Newton, Great
Bend and Ellsworth have in turn seen
their day as the Brightons of the West,
until this year the new law fixes the
trail SO far west that Ellis on the Kan
sas Pacific and Dodge City on the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail-
ways are the centres Of the cattle trade.
These points are in the middle Of the old
buffalo grounds, far out toward the
mountains, and only a hundred miles
from the Colorado borders. This
changing of the trails and shipping
stations has gradually worked an
entire revolution in the business
Drovers found the grazing good
in the vicinity of the new trails,
and being in no hurry to market their
beeves have got into the habit of hold
~ Than, hna ittrrr Prr Iat tor >s;,,
gradually they got to driving them on
further westward and holding them on
the range until spring, hoping to take
Of an early market. The
cattle were found to thrive upon the
grasses, and could be win
tered generally at small expense on a
good range. The frontiersmen and
to the growing territory Of
Colorado began to take hand In the
business by buying up Texas cattle at
the shipping places and driving them
west, and bringing out the best blooded
stock from the East to cross the breed.
The results have been a much better
grade Of cattle and an improved de-
mand.
Although it Is now but five or six years
since any considerable attention was
given to this business, one who travels
ONOL UAO l. hClAC lblllObuS Will S6o Iudb
The plains are well dotted with herds all
along between the western limits of
In Kansas and the mountains.
The cattle men have occupied the val
leys and buffalo grounds north as far as
the Chugwater and Laramie plains in
have possession Of pretty
much all the available grazing lands be-
tween the Platte and the Republican
away up to their headwaters; have large
herds in the very heart Of the noun
tains, fattening in the great parks
and grazing in the San Luis and Rio
Grande valleys far down into New Mex
leo. The June drives out Of Texas every
year OF 100000 head Of cattle no longer
go Immediately into market, but Craze
westward, the plains country receiving
more than one-half. And besides this.
cattle men 60 down into
Texas and pick the best of the herds
ind move them to the northern country.