Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1889-09-25
THE GOOD OLD TIMES.
Slug z" Relates Some Of His
Texas "reminiscences.
The Festive Cowboy Was Altogether Too
FREQ with His Gun-HOw tho Ropes
Popularity Destroyed That
OF the Pistol

al reckon Western Texas and New Mex
| loo In their palmy days just handicapped
| any other region in raising Cain and CATTLE"
said Slug the other day, as he deposited
handful of "sorts" in his nonpareil case and
turned round on his stool to join q little
group Of printers in "reminiscences Of West
ern life. 81 got tired of type-setting once
and turned cowboy down there. But soon
got enough Of 'punchin' cows 1t was too
blamed wild and wooly for me. But its
| different now. The ginger's all gone out
| OF that country. The days are past when
an enterprislng man could go down there
with = lariat and a branding-iron and start
| in the cattle business for himself. There
amt no show for fellers to become self
made men any more in that business. I
| reckon you couldn't find half dozen NAV
Orick yearlings now in a roundup of all the
ranges in that region. suppose it's on ac-
count Of the railroads and civilization get
ting In there that makes cattlemen more
careful and syStematic-like about branding
their stock. But there was time, and 1t
wasn't over awhile ago, that catching up
| unbranded cattle on the ranges and mark
Ing them with your own brand was a
| mighty good paying business. There wasn't
| nothing risky about it, either, for it's law
| Of the range that any unbranded calf run
/ uhnk AUOB0 dIUcT H WcdneQ Is Un0 leRlJl-
| mate property Of the first man who gets his
mark on It, OF course 1t was apt occasion
| some remarks not exactly complimentary,
and such remarks generally led up to row.
| knew 1t to happen that way once and It
wound up in regular free-for-all feud and
| things got so hot in the shooting line that
the vigiantes finally Clipped in and put the
| finishing touches on to make the thing right
and regular.
'1t happened In this way: Bill Baker and
. man named Houser had ranges adjoining
each other. Both had big bands Of cattle
| and both were as onery cusses as could be
| found in Texas. Each had gang of about
nfteen men riding for him, mostly his own
relatives, who would go mile out of their
way for quarrel No one seemed to know
whore either Baker or Houser came from
nor bow they got their start and no
ono cared. Tho trouble began by
Houser's vaqueros rounding up 2 bunch Of
Bakers cattle one day and putting their
brand on about dozen of his calves. This
meant war and nothing else, and when
Baker and his men found 1t out they were
mad enough to bite themselves. It wasn't
long after this that several Of Bakers cat
tie wcFe found dead on the range. They
had been shot. OF course no one knew to Q
| dead certainty who laid the steers out, but
Baker concluded pretty correctly that
:S1Anser and his men had done the JOB. Then
one of f1>user's men came into camp one
day with bullet "a his leg, deposited there
by the Baker gang for approaching too close
10 their camp. But he had returned tho
nro and tho result was that Bakers men
were engaged for an hour and a-half the
noxt forenoon In doing the last rites Tor one
Of their number who had passed over the
range
"After that things went on pretty quiet
and decent like for two or three weeks, nm
I'll one night the two ranchers, with several
Of their men, met in the 'Nightcap' saloon at
Liberty camp. Houser was in q game Of
poker when the Baker crowd came in and
walked up to the bar.
"'Al you galoots walk up here and nomi-
nate your comm varnish, said Baker, who
hadn't noticed that Houser and his men
were in the room.
"I want to inform you. Bill BAKER, said
Houser, if you meant to include Us in yer
call, that we amt accepting any favors at
your hands nor q lowerin' our dignity by
drinkin' with cattle thieves
"'Oh, you amt replied Baker, who had
turned around. We'll, there amt no ac-
countin' for the strange tastes OF some peo-
pie. Perhaps hoss-thieves are more in your
line, he said, remembering that Houser
was once suspected Of taking a hand in
deal of that kind. 'Whend invited the boys
up he continued, Il didn't notice that the
company was so mixed. Now, I'm little
particular myself. / draw the line at hoss-
thloves'
"By this time the outsiders had quietly
snealred out and the bar-keeper sauatered
over toward the back door whistling The
Texas Ranger as he went
"The two factions were IN good trim for
row. They had sampled ali the different
brands Of snake-ju in Liberty camp that
evening, and nothing could have been more
IN their hands than TO meet and have q good
excuse to settle their accounts.
"'Wel, ] don't draw the line' said Hous-
er. but draws something jest as good
and he flashed his six-shooter on Baker ana
pfunked him quicl1ern scatI
Hbaker dropped aud the two gangs went
a. IL In less than a second there was the
freest shortrangs shootins match you ever
saw. The lights were shot out at the start.
and then every body pcppered away regard
less till they didn't have any more loads.
The tight lasted for about as much as ten
minutes. Then those who had got enough
ptN end were able to get away quietly made
. sneak.
"When there wasn't any more shooting
the oar-keeper came back, hghted the
lamps, and took up his station behind the
bar ready for business.
Shaker lay where he had dropped when
the fight started and near him were two Of
bis men. Two Of Houser's men were killed,