San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-08-12
THE STORY OF "JlM."


-PittSburg Chronicle
THE STORY OF "JlM."
A Coyote, Captured with Dificulty, Was
Spoiled i'm the Menagerie.
"What do know about coyotes, young
mans" he asked, throwing himself back in
his chair. "By the way, we don't call them
kai-otes; k-a-i-o-t-e-es, kai-o'tees is the way
to pronounce it. And let me say right here
that I've seen many man get into trouble
by doing what you have just done. Out west
we don't like to have our feelings hurt. We're
mighty sensitive about some things, young
man, and coyotes-kai-o-tees, u say, so you
won't make that mistake again-is one Of
them I've seen the boys shoot for less than
that. you ever go out in Wyoming, don't
you forget that it is kai-o-tee, kai-o-tee," and
he bit the end of long cigar and struck a
match.
"Well, you ask me what | know about
them. | once owned cayote; that is, |
owned part interest in him. | think that
was the finest cayote | ever saw. He was
simply the tarnationalist all fighter you ever
saw Fight!-he'd fight anything, that crit
ter | once turned him loose on the cham
pion bulldog of Evanston, and wish you
minute He looked like a rag baby We
got Jim, that was his name, near billiard
l don't suppose you ever heard about Hill
lard. It's on the N. P, not far from Evans
ton; not big place, you know-water tank,
hume and four charcoal kilns. We were
rounded up there in 20, with 10000 sheep,
and that cayote used to come around camp
at night bowling funeral dirges, until we
IL, "a. FOL oil
we got him, but we had big job on our
hands
-Four of us started out on horseback with
lariats to lasSo him We chased him for
about fifteen miles, trying for him all the
time, but we couldn't get him. Finally he
got dead beat, and turned. Then the real
circus began One of the boys hooked him
the first time, but that crtter chewed the
lariat in two in three minutes. He backed
up against a sage brush and snapped and
snarled like mad dog. He had a wicked
looking set of teeth, and nobody dared 20
touch him. Three times we hooked him, and
each time he chewed the lariat in two. He
was fuller of fight than ever. We had only
one good ariat left, and that was Bill Ryder's
Bill allowed that he would fix that cayoto
He rode off about 100 feet and got his moose
ready He was mighty handy with a rope,
and when saw his game | said: Now, Mr.
Cayote, you're done for
Bill dug his spurs into his bronco and
they came on like a whirlwind AS he rushed
past the CayOte his lariat shot out in a circle
no bigger than hat. He caught Mr.. Cayote
square around the neck and jerked him
twenty feet. That took the life out of him,
and he did not try to chew anything again
that day. We got him to camp and chained
him to a stake. That night he almost chewed
the stake through. After that we fixed him
with an iron picket How Jim used to howl
at firstl 1t was simply terrible. We broke
him of that, though, by taking him off out of
sight and leaving him alone at night. When
we moved camp we used to chuck Jim into a
sack and tie it up around him, just letting his
head stick out Then we'd dump him into
the provision wagon.
1--WE kept jim for a year, and he got so
attached to us that | believe he wouldn't
have run away if we had unclaimed him; but
we never gave him the chance. The next
summer we struck Green river If you've
ever been there you'll remember that right
in front of the railroad restaurant at the sta
ton there is a large cage. It's full of prairie
dogs, rabbits and other small animals The
proprietor of the restaurant wanted jim for
his menagerie, and after talking the thing
over we decided to sell him for $40. So Jim
went into the menagorie. The next morning
we went down to see him. His new owner
was distracted. All that was left of that
menagerie was jim He'd chewed the whole
thing up. The floor Of the big cage was Gov
cred with Eur, bones and SKINS while Jim sat
in one corner, his eyes bloodshOt and rest
less and his long, white teeth cleaning white
He snapped at every one who came near him
and looked just as he did the day he backed
up against the sage brush
''The man gave US another $40 to take him
away, but that night spoiled Jim. He was
never contented with bacon after that, and
he got to be a great nuisance We unclaimed
him, hoping he would strike out for himself,
but he used to hang around camp, bowling
all night long We chased him off with
stones, fired our six shooters and did every
thing we could to brighten him away, but it
was no use Finally, we took pity on him
and let him alone, but he began to droop
Civilized life was too much for him, and he
died two months after his night in the
menagerie. New York Tribune
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