The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1889-11-27
A LIVELY TUSSLE.
Pursued and Attacked by. Wild
Dogs On the Plains.

The sufferings which the pitiless
rigors of winter bring to cattle on the
exposed ranges of the West are little
understood by persons who do not go
among them have myself seen enough
of such suffering to touch the most cal
lous heart Even as | write, a report
informs me that cattle are dying by
hundreds in Montana from the COM
bined effects of cold, hunger and thirst.
When the ice-dust of the blizzard
whizzes before the blast of the north
wind; when the feeding grounds are
covered with crusted snow, and the
streams and water-holes are locked in
ice, then the cattle drift over the shelter
less expanses in Il hopeless, pitiable
way. The stronger ones among them
weather the storms; the weaker sue
cumb, and in the succeeding summer
whitening heaps of bones here and there
tell the tale of their last fight with the
bitter elements.
The winter losses among cattle on the
range sometimes aggregate one-half of
the whole number. But it costs little
to raise cattle, when no attention is paid
to feeding and sheltering them, and the
cattlemen, as an offset to their losses,
estimate in their favor the amount of
expense saved by the omission of food
and shelter, harden their hearts, and
continue in the same old way. 1t does
no good to talk to these men about the
cruelty and folly of their methods with
cattle. They tell you that it can not be
helped, and their cowboys say the same
thing. Their argument is the argument
of greed. No man has moral right to
own or control more cattle than he can
care for properly.
l set down these statements as an in
PRODUCTION to the following story:
As is we'll known by people CT Wyo-
ming, there are bands of wild dogs in
certain parts of that Territory, notably
in the region about Lander. Many
tales have been told to explain how
these animals happen to be there. The
dogs are mongrels, with, perhaps, a
strain of wolf blood, and to the fierce
vindictiveness of the bulldog, they
unite the strength of the mastiff and
scent and tenacity of the bloodhound
The winter of 1885, shut down suddenly
in the Wyoming mountains; but the
grass was good, and as the sides of the
hills and the high wind-swept divides
were mostly clear of snow, the cattle
men cared little, at first, for the cold
weather and the blocked canyons. All
of the cattle and most of the ponies had
been turned out upon the range more
than month before the coming of win
ter, and it was believed by the owners
that their stock would be able to go
through the winter without suffering
more than the usual losses in an ordi-
nary season.
On some of the ranches few COWBOYS
were still kept, but it was rather because
they were trusty men whose services the
cattlemen wished to secure for the next
season than that they were really needed
during the winter. Thus at one ranch.
known as the Double Dagger" from its
cattle brand, which resembled somewhat |
the character /, three men were retained
that winter-the foreman and two cow
boys.
Alter the first winter storm the weather |
moderated somewhat, and the Double |
dagger" spent much of their time in
hunting the black-tail deer, which had |
descended from the highlands in adj
vance OF the storm, and were to be found
III nerds In the protected and low-lying
laws o.aWs, ana among the scrubby thickets.
OCCASIONALLY the hunters came upon a
Dana OF elk, and then the hunting as
suinea wilder and grander character,
lor the elk is very monarch among
game animals.
IN the draws they also found many of
tnelr cattle, and cattle from other
ranges, which browsed on the scrub and
led on the grass where it had been ex-
posed by the trampling of their feet.
As the winter advanced, game be-
came less abundant. The weather also
became so intensely cold that even en-
thusiastic hunters preferred shelter to
the exposure they had to face in chasing
game. Thus shut indoors, and deprived
in large measure of amusement, the
three ranchmen naturally began to pine
for news and for communication with
the outer world.
twas forty miles across rough and
broken country to the nearest post-offce,
and the intervening ravines and canyons
were piled with snow; but there were a
pair of Norwegian skis or snow-skates,
In The ranch-house, and the inmates de-
ssded that trip to the post-office should
De made on these at least once month.
as soon as this plan was determined
o a the men began to practice with the
s@s' and each of the three were able to
HaSsi well on them; The foreman, |