St. Landry democrat., 1883-06-30
A STAMPEDE OF TEXAS STEERS.
A Herd of One Hundred and Ten Texas
Steers Stampede in Chicago and Gauss
Death and Destruction.

CHICAGO, June 81.
One hundred and ten wild Texan steers,
making up a herd just received by Libby,
Mcneil & Libby, broke from the driving
corral early Wednesday evening, and cre-
ated the greatest stampede and excitement
known in the stock-yards region for many
years, causing children to shrek and women
to faint, and spreading terror and dismay in
the southwestern section. The cattle vera
driving quietly until Halsted and 4Oth
streets were reached, when giant
steer sounded the alarm, and the
herd at once took it up. In an instant
horns went down and tails went up, and
with terrifying snorts and bellows the mad
creatures broke. For moment the people
crowding the streets seemed dazed, but
speedily gained their senses and added
shrieks and yells to the cries and means of
the cattle. After concerted rush for two
blocks the herd broke and scattered in all
directions. A lot Of sixty took possession
of Wentworth avenue, and cleared the
street of everything living or movable.
At this point George Sweeney, genuine
Texan cowboy, in charge OF the herd, put in
an appearance mounted on herder mustang
and armed with a Winchester rifle. Waving
all preliminaries, Sweeney dashed after the
Wentworth avenue section and killed nine
of the animals in rapid succession. He fol-
lowed another section down Thirtieth street,
killing fourteen, and when he reached South
Park avenue he put an end to three more.
Sweeney took another turn, making sort
of skirmish detour, followed by hundreds
of men and boys armed with weapons Of
every conceivable sort, ranging from
Bridgeport sand bag and billy to an old army
revolver, and the stag-hunt was fully and
fairly inaugurated. 1t was difficult to lo-
cate the steers, but Sweeney directed his
volunteer army to scour the side streets, and
detachments left with whoop and yell.
The Bridgeport citizens considered the
steers their meat, and lost no time in secur-
ing it.
Within the Twelfth Street Police Precinct
between twenty and thirty animals were
killed. At the corner of Ashland avenue
and Rebecca street small, cream-colored
Texan ran up against house and was dis
patched by five pistol-balls; at Wood and
Nineteenth streets two were killed by shot
guns and rocks a brief but bloody battle
occurred at Morgan and Harrison streets,
where big steer fell and broke his fore
legs, and was murdered by saloon-keeper's
ak; Blue Island avenue was terrified, and
one steer dashed through the show-window
OF a small dry-g0odS store, causing general
havoc. The proprietor got even by killing
the steer, and the neighbors helped dress
the carcass and carry it awav.
The neighborhood of Fourteenth street
and Stewart avenue was wild with excite
ment. Five maddened animals bore down
on Mrs. Mary Mulholland, of 42O Rebecca
street, and trampled her to death. The
body was removed to the home Of a married
daughter on Fourteenth street. Another
dash of the steers carried them to Maggie
Carney, aged eight years, on her way home
from Stewart avenue store with pail of
milk and a loaf of bread in her hands. The
child stopped, transfixed with terror, and
the steers cruelty trampled OH her. inflicting
injuries necessarily fatal. The little one
was taken up tenderly, still grasping the
milk-pail, and borne to her home ON Max
well street. She has since died. One of
the animals was slain by street-car driver,
but the others escaped.
In the vicinity Of Morgan and Maxwell
head beaten to jelly with stones and clubs.
At the corner of Halsted and Meagher
streets Signal-Sergeant Fox met four of the
stays, and after desperate fight killed
them, escaping with nothing more serious
than bruised hand. One maddened Great
ure jumped into the river at the intersection
of Fifteenth street, and was captured by the
crew of the outward-bound schooner VIM
ME Wing. The boat was hurried upstream,
and the sailors will have plenty of fresh
meat on their voyage. At the corner of
Blue Island and Center avenues a steer
weighing 1900 pounds was killed by
q labOrer with a croWbar. Scarcely
had the brute fallen when remarkable
scene ensued. Twenty or thirty men and
women crowded around and began to fight |
for the carcass. 1t was skinned in patches,
and while the body was yet quiyering the |
meat was cut off in hunks and chunks and
carried off amid triumphant shouts and |
laughter. In less than fifteen minutes after
the crowbar struck the animal, nothing but |
the skeleton and the entrails remained, and |
an old woman returned and secured the |
heart and liver. The sight was little less
than disgusting, and the semi-cannibals were
in their blood-begrimed faces and |
clothing.
MIS-. GOTInan, OF 90 Brown Street, mar
rowly escaped a terrible death. One of the |
steers entered her garden. and she started |
to drive it out, thinking it was vagrant |
cow. The animal lowered its horns and |
was within six feet of the now terrified |
woman when Officer La Plant rushed up |
and planted bullet in the creatures brain.
Mrs. German tainted, and was carried |
into her house suffering from nervous |
shock.
OF the one hundred and ten steers in the |
herd when it broke, forty were killed |
Or lost, and the remainder secured after |
night Of hunting by the stock-yard men.
One ingenious fellow was determined to |