The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1879-06-26
ON A RANCH.


n Picture O9 Eof1 1tle - tno koesme
SSopa.
Young men, instead o. complaining
that they can End no employment. should
90 q far vest as California and begin
''ranehing." Land il plentiful and cheap
and easily cultivated. A large crop with
little labor is the rule, and an occasional
dry season, however much il may affect
others, does the rancher no harm. II 10
true his crop will be small, but it takes
less labor to harvest it. and it Is at least
four times as valueble. A young lady
writing to the Philadelphia Times says:
Papa was ranching alone when the fam
lily joined him in the Golden State, and
neither his knowledge or facilities Wa
such as to make his housekeeping q mat
ter Of pride either to himself or friends,
and more particularly the aforesaid fam
lily. The house was . board shanty Of
Eve rooms, three of which had been added
for our reception. These had the advant-
age Of beng much cleaner than the others.
Ali the furniture the house contained
could have been built by any carpenter in
half an hour-a few stools and beaches,
made of rough boards. bedsteads of the
same nailed to the walls. and two station
airy tables. a large packingcase for .
dresser, and the list is complete. As no
furniture could be bought, all our ener-
giles were centred in the business Of man
ufucturing it at home. We could get
plenty of muslin and calico at the nearest
store, and this We used literally. We
covered all the walls and ceilings with
unb,eached muslin, which was nearly -
nice to look at as plaster. We made rugs
of grain sacks embroidered with rags Of
different colors, put fiounces Of calico
around the bedsteads, made arm-chairs
of barrels upholstered vita hay and calico,
ottomans of candle-boxes prepared in the
same way, and built a sofa Of boards,
which was similarly treated. Our mat
tresses were ticks filed with hay, and pill
lows Of the same. Somuch for necessities.
while Injuries were not wanting. We
had several copies Of illustrated papers,
with cuts after many good pictures. These
we tackled to the walls and surrounded
with frames of evergreen branches, and
when all was complete 1t was q much
prettier house than / could induce you to
believe from this meagre description.
Here we have entertained judges and
generals, clergymen and Senators, With
apparently as much satisfaction 10 them
as any hospitality we had to offer them in
after years.
There was no scarcity Of Indians about
the valley, mostly Diggers and Walla-
Wallas, harmless lot Of vagabonds, but
quite awe-inspiring to women not accus-
toned TO their little peculiarities. One
day an old fellow came to the door and
said he was mocha" hungry. His
wants were supplied, and the next morn
ing he returned with dozen of his COM
rades. who were all mocha" hungry.
These also were fed, and the next day he
came with the whole tribe, including
souaws and papooses, whom he claimed
were all IN the same miserable plight.
Nothing daunted by this Influx Of guests,
my father conducted them TO huge kit
tie filled With meal, dishwater and kitchen
refuse in general, which was intended as
a meal foy the hogs. OF this repast he
invited them to pertake, which they did
with much gusto. cleaning the kettle to
the last drop. and then indulging in "all
hands round" In token Of their satisfact-
ion. The next day they came. but the
support of a tribe of Indians was more
than he had bargained for and he declined
10 give tutu eul LINK. lucy inch ueAru
the privilege Of gatheringth the grasshoppers
on the ranch. and the hay and grain being
all in, their request was granted. Grass
hoppers are esteemed by them a. a great
delicacy, and they capture them in the
following manner: They first procured
several large fat stones, over which they
build FIRE, and. leaving one Of their
number to feed it, they disposed them
selves in circle around Geld FIVE or siI
miles in circumference. They all moved
slowly toward the centre. each carrying q
piece Of brush, with which they beat the
ground, allowing none Of the grpsshoppers
to go backward, and constantly closing in
on them until they all met, when several
that were provided with bags held them
open and the others drove them in. In
this way they secured about Eve bushels
and it wasn't good day for grasshoppers
either.