Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-03-23
"nourh,pr H. in the sou,h~ cat.

n private letter lately received from
young man who struck out for the sunny
southwest" last season, to engage in sheep
raising, gives bit of his experience which
at least borders on roughness. His letter
bears date, Chico Springs, Colfax Co., New
Mexico, Feb. %, 1877:
"Mr. Norton and / went down TO the
(TexasJ Pan Handle-six of the toughest
weeks 1 ever spent in my life. Two
months ago last night we made what Is
called dry camp. e., had neither wood
nor water. We were on The highest point
between New Mexico and Texas, just near
the line. On the morning of Dec. 23d 1--WE
slept on the ground l awoke and felt my
head wet. / looked out and it was snow
ing, and the wind was blowing a perfect
gale. We were obliged soon 10 get up. My
boots were filled with snow, and my hands
cramped with cold before could button
my overcoat. Our horses were tied aud
seemed frantic from the piercing cold wind
and driving snow. / united them and let
them go. Could not see more than rod
ahead. We got behind our wagon to screen
ourselves from the cutting blasts. Imagine
yourself on the top of the Catskills in such
n gale, and not the least thing for shelter.
We took an axe and spade and began 10
throw up an embankment against the wag-
on to keep off the wind, also TO dig hole
that we might screen ourselves little. We
dug down two feet and then tried TO start a
fire. We had, fortunately, two bags of
chips with us, but we soon found that the
heat melted the snow as fast as 1t struck us,
and as ii was so very cold we knew If we
got wet through that death was certain. At
noon we managed to get down little warm
coffee and gnawed some crusts of bread
blankets and food were all showed under.
At z. NJ, Mr.. Norton gave out. l went
out to feed the horses, and lost all feeling
in my feet, and supposed that they were
warm. We had been digging up TO p. NJ,
to keep from freezing to death. We then
got to some TALON, melted II in snow in a
kettle we had, threw in some crusts of
bread, and ate that warm-what the dogs
would not at housekeeping it out with
our fingers. This was at p. NJ. At sun
set the wind died down but the cold was
more intense. We then dug our blankets
out of the snow and made a little fire.
Then we had the long cold night and death
before us, aud must tramp up and down in
the little pit that we bad dug. 1t was
terrible night of suffering. Mr.. Norton
and had to shake aud wake each other all
the long night TO keep from freezing TO
death. Death seemed easy enough, but
the struggle was to keep it off. on the
morning of the oath we were alive, but
just. We had been thirty hours in that
fearful gale. We went but ten miles the
next day. / walked all the way. Ice froze
one foot thick on the night of the sd. At
White River we were snow-bound, and
lay there thirteen days. The sand was
frozen eighteen inches deep. Christmas
morning Mr.. N. took off my boots. Ny
feet were swollen and frozen black! He
said, "Grest God the boys feet are black
with modification" There we were, 40
miles from any doctor, and fifteen, as We
then thought, from any house. The tent
was pitched, bed was made, and Mr.. Nor
ton carried ME TO 1t and laid me down. /
| could not use my feet at all. l lay three or
four days on the ground, and al. this time
| the cold was intense the sun did not even
melt the snow for four successive days.
| Mr.. Norton put wagon grease on my feet.
| The coal oil that was in 1t took the frost
| out. On the 4th of January we started on
| TO go fifty miles further, down on the Ca
madam river. On the 9TH " Q were waylaid
| by another storm, but not as severe as the
| one of Dec. 23d. We took refuge in a
| blacksmith shop. The 18th of January we
| crossed the Canadian river with loaded
| wagon on the Ice. How Is that for semi
tropical climate2 We crossed again on the
| 18th. The ice was not quite as strong
| as the day previous. l took off my
pants, kept on my fiannels, and waded the
stream four times. The water was so cold
| that 1t almost burned. L had TO run as
| hard as l could to keep myself warm.
| When l took off my stockings my toes
peeled and bled. That night we had a
| heavy thunder storm, which settled in a
cold northern gale and snow storm. On
the 18th the cold was intense, aud the wind
blew gale. We took refuge in hole six
feet deep that the water had made, built a
fire, and kept very warm as long as we
| kept out of the wind. Such winter has
never been known in the Pan Handle as
this one. Old men did not believe that the
| Canadian river could freeze over. On the
18th we turned our backs on the cursed
Pan Handle of Texas. You will ask why
we went down. We took down some fine
Merino rams TO winter there. Lost five of
them. That trip cured me of sheep. 1 am
going into cattle-if not, shall not stay
here. Sheep are too much trouble, too
tender, and too much risk to have any
thing to do with them. II is estimated
that from 25, 900 to 81, 900 head of sheep have
been lost during this winters storms. As
high as 3400 persisted in one band on the
night of Dec 23d. The plains are literally
strewn with them. Not cow has been
lost during these storms. Here the coun-
try is warmer than in Colorado, Wyoming
and Nebraska, and the cattle are as fat as
moles in the spring. We do not have those
awful noTtheasters as in Texas"