Dodge City times., 1877-06-09
THE CATTLE TRAIL.
Ending in 1877 at Dodge City, Kan.
A Drive-of 2S5,OOO Head Makes
Lively Times up the Arkansas.
Some Inklings About The Trade
Picked mp Among the Frisky
Dodgers.


Dodge City, May IS. ls77.-Abiene, Els
worth and Hays City, on the Kansas Pacific
Railroad, then Newton and Wichita. and now
Dodge City, on the A;chison, Topeka & Santa
Fe road have all in their turn enjoyed the ''boil
aad bubble, toll AID trouble'' of the Texas
cattle trade.
Three hundred and sixty y-seven miles west
from Kansas City We step of at Dodge, slum-
berinS yet (s:50 a m in the tranquil still
ness of a may morning. In this respect Dodge
is peculiar. Size awakes from her slumbers
about II 4. m. !; takes her sugar and lemon at IL
m, square meal at p. m, commences biz at
2o'clock, gets lively at 4, and at 10 p. m it is
hip hip hurrah "till O'Clock in the morn
ing"
Not being full iiedged Dodgcr, we break
tasted with Deacon Cox, of the Dodge House,
at o'clock, and then meandered around until
we found ourselves on top of the new and han l.
some coart house. 4 lovely prairie landscape
Was here spread out before us. Five miles to
the southeast nestled Fort Dodge, coyIy
hiding, one would think, in .he brawny arm of
the Arkansas. Then, rs far as the eve could
reach, for miles up the river and past the city,
the bright green velyety carpet WAS dotted bv
thousands of long horns which have in the last
few days arrived, afler months of travel, some
OF them from beyond the Rio Grande and which
may, IN a few more months, give the Bashi
l5azouks fresh courage for choppins up Chris
tians and carrying out the dictates of their
Koran But We are too far OF. We have in
vaded Turkey with Texas beef, and, though a
long-horned subject, must somewhat contract
ours.
Dodge sity has now about 200 inhabitants,
residents we mean, for there is daily popula-
tion Of twice that number; SIX or seven large
general stores, the largest Of which, Rath &
Co.'S, does quarter Of a million retail trade 4
year; and the usual complement or drug stores,
bakers, butchers, blacksmiihs, &C.; and last.
but not by any means the least, nineteen saloons.
No little l0Nls, but - TO 100 feet long glittering
with paint and mirrors, and some Of theE, pay
ing sl00 per month as rent for the naked room.
Dodge, we find. is IN the track of the san Juan
is, numbers of which stop here 10 outfit on their
way TO the silvery hills
We had the good luck to interview Judge
Beverly, Of Texas, who is the acknowledged
oracle OF the cattle trade. He estimates the
drive at 2s5 900, probably amoaniing TO 800, 600,
including calves. Three-quariers of all will
probably stop AT Dodge and be manipulated
over the A. T. a :. +. by that prince of raj road
agents, J. II Phillips, Esq. Herbert, as he j.
ianiliariy called, Is a graduate Of Tammanv
sIall, and is understood TO wear in his shirt
front the Identical solitaire once Worn bv Boss
Tweed. 1t is hInied that Herbert will buy ev-
cry hooi destined for the X p. road at four
times is value, rather than sre them 20 that
way He would long, long ago have been a
whiie-winged angel, playing on the halp of !,
thousand strings, were IL not for the baneful
associations of Frazer, sheedy, Cook ct. al
M@sser5 Hardesty and sheedy are holding
l SOC wintered cattle about Laiin II Is under
stood they Will buy largely and ship direct to
Baltimore. All Others will probably be resold
Ut Kansas City. \ large number of buyers and
stock inen are already here. They of course all
stop nj the Dodge House, where Il man can in
fifteen minutes hear more about 'scutting out. -
rounding up &c, &c, than he can in such
small towns Chicago or ST. Louis in life
time.
viii give you Dodge CRY at l a. m. IN my
TC&DV