The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-11-15
A Cowboy and a Sand Hill Crane.

mantle about the ordinary cowboy.
Just what it is that lends him this ro-
nance we will not attempt to define
unless it be his extravaganza. His
life is an extravaganza one. Out on
painless prairie, away from clViliZa-
ton and all it's civiliZing influence
except the whisky bottle-he Wanders
from the ordinary manners of men
and acquires an individuality OF his
own. He looks upon himself in this
light, too. He believes he is different
from all other classes of men, and he
takes great pride in his Ieccentricity
and never looses an opportunity to ex-
hibit it. No living human being but
a cowboy would be seen in civilized
respectable society with the out
landish hat he wears with a
mules circingle buckled around it for
a hat band and the crown decorated
with fantastic bead-Work like Poca-
hontas in her Sunday dress going to
save the life of the historical John
Smith. Who but cowboy would
wear that peculiar strap about his
midships that reminds one Of the
clothes worn by savage in the interi-
or of Africa, or decorate himself with
the delusion that they give him the
air of great bravery and win the
awe and admiration of that inferior
class who do business in store, shop,
bank or perchance hold office? Could
anything in the world induce any other
class of men to buckle to their boot
heels a pair Of Michigan plnery
buzz-saws, and parade the haunts OF
civilization with the murderouS-look-
ing machinery trailing behind like
GOg-cart behind Il donkey? No; the
cowboy is different from every one
else-he is eXtravagant in everything
he says, means or does. This eXtraV-
agance becomes a kind of paStime
with him. Ask him if he was drunk
last night, and he will tell you he was
$50 drunk that the whisky ran out OF
his ears Inquire about his health,
and he will inform you that he is so
healthy that pizen couldn't make
him sick Seek t09earn his age, and
he will inform you that he is so old
that he sis tougher than bull skin"
He is always on the extreme and
never stops at halfway house.
Last night one of this
genus homo was looking at
a sand-h1ll crane, which an Austin
taxidermist had on exhibition in a
Congress avenue saloon. Quite num-
Der of ordinary citizens were admir-
ing the bird, because it is fine speci-
men and quite large. While they were
looking at it cowboy came saunter-
ing out, and heard the group remark-
ling its size and appearance.
"Gentlemin, L have killed morn
$4,000 of them ERE birds" he quietly
remarked, as though a little matter
like that was not very extraordinary
thing to do.
"Well, that is a pretty large one, %
said one by-stander, referring to the
remark of the belted knight, but
which was taken by the cowboy to re-
fer to the bird.
"That !' he calculated with tone
of supreme contempt, "That why,
sir, [ have shot 'em that could swaller
SIGH bird as that ere is as easy as a
Shanghai rooster could get outside a
mustard seed.''
"What a whopper?" said the by
stander, referring to the remark. The
cowboy thought he was making a
favorable impression and he conclud-
ed to astonish the greenhorns with
something good.
eyes, sir, that was a whopper COM
pared with this ERE bird, but let me
tell you what 1 actually did and the
sort of birds / have seen out in Tom
Green county. One time l was out
hunting quail, and 1 came suddenly
up to the river. You see 1 came
from behind a clump of woods
and 1 was walking mighty
still so that I wouldn't scare
the quail, and there right before me
saw great black thing that stood
more'n twenty feet high! 1t was
sort of dark brown in color, and stood
right in front of me in the river. VI
see it hadn't seen me at all, and haG
got so close to it that 1 had a splendid
shot; it actually went twenty fleet
off,
The cowboy stopped and looked al
the crowd to see the degree of aston
ish1nent his bird story was producing
in the minds of his credulous listen
ers, and as he stopped one of them in
quired:
"What kind of bird was it? Did yor
kill it?"
Kill it? MOI 1t was nothing but +;
rock, gentlemen. Did you think i
| was a bird ?"