The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-12-22
SOUTHWEST TEXAS.
MISS MACGOWAN's DESCRIPTION
OF THE COUNTRY.

BnnQlng SlnOko-IAe run Out and
Back Through the Chill Evening
Air.
BUESA VENTURA Rancho, CROCKETT
COUNTY, TEX, Dec. 16-This is a cattle.
n,he in a country where sheep ranches ar 81
the rule. 1t is a beautiful country, partly
high, level plains and partly rolling prairie.
broken by low, fiat-topped hills and ridges
anto hundreds Of draws. hollows or valleys.
The land is fertile, mostly; the varieties a
mesquite grass grow rich and plenteous; the
climate is mild and delightful, northers IA
frequent and of modified ferocity, but dc
great desideratum is water.
Running water of any sort there is mona
except during and Immediately aftsr
heavy rains. The water-courses are nina
tenths of the time arroyos, dry beds or runs
and the lagunas or lake beds scattered over
the plains to the northeast of this place ar,es
only dipsin the prairies, where the graz
grows fresher greater portion Of the year.
For all these reasons this is an ideal Sheen
range, especially desirable to winter shsen
ON. They can find among the hollows and
draws shelter from wind from any Girec~l
tion-or dlrections-plenty of long, riclll
mesquite grass, while the absence of watersl
Is no drawback, for sheep drink very littls*
or no water in winter. anyhow
But this, as l said, is a cattle rancho.
The family consists of the rancheman and
his mother; the other members of the house,
hold being the ranchman's assistant and.
Just now, myself.
have been tout on the rangen with Mr.
jackson every day since got here. A rancho
man goes out on the range-or rides overf
the land where the body of his cattle run
to see if they are all right, If any are hurt!
or sick, or molested by wild animals, etc.
We each take a gun slung TO the saddle
hook. one well trained hound and two puus
"rhat amt old enough TO have any sense
yet" my host says, and are on the lookout
for deer, antelope, cat or panther. The dogs
go to start aud trail cats, foxes or panthers
so far we have seen only deer, and the two'
senseless pups always rush in yelping just
IN time to drive the game away
L can never, somehow, receive the i'm
preston of the utter solitude Of the country
miles upon miles, leagues beyond lie agues
of plains as level as a floor, or of broad
winding valleys and draws, like great an
Gent water courses, where prehistoric man
may have looked on noble streams taking
their way in stately majesty to the Rio
Grande, leaving greenness and life and
music behind them, but now thirsty, and
silent, and soundless, save for the occasional
whirr of patridges. the flight of hawk, the
silent bounding away of gray deer like
the frightened deity of the place, the rare
call of plover OF curlew, or the clusters of
cattle feeding by twos and threes.
Yet, such b0nd-slaves Of habit are our
thoughts; such creatures of our longtime
surroundings and experiences, | can never
convince myself of the genuineness and
completeness Of the solitude.
All is SO soft, the slopes are so gentle, with
the slant sunlight smiling over them, the
occasional mesquite is SO like peach tree,
live nak IL
that | see in every heap of rocks or Irregu-
lar break in the horizon line cluster of
little houses; leafiess twigs are spires; q
colony OF tall sotol stalks on a bank above
adry arroyo looks little vineyard. or a
garden, beside a stream with thrifty
bean sticks; along the winding cattle trail
Ito me little tame, domestic rural path l
LOOK and look to see man or boy coming.
with gun, maybe, and rabbits, or a scythe
over his shoulder; hear the whistle,
bark; hear distant COW bells. mellow
voices of reapers, or mowers, or plouwmen,
laughs and calls of hunters, the little treble
cry OF children playing, cackle, calls,
clucklngs, hammerings, all the suggestions
and sounds. ipGistinct and softened by dis
lance, of rustic life-and our nearest neigh
Dor, sheep ranchman, ten miles away!
We 'lope on and on, we make detours,
circle around the foot of little bills and
skirt low bluffs, the favorite haunts of cat
and panther; then creep cautiously over d.
vides, gallop boldly out across high plains,
the feeding grounds of deer and antelope. |
look continually for fence or other bar to
our progress, but there is none, none, none
IN any direction. 1t is all space, unlimited
unhindered, like an eternity, or a universe;
but still, for me, just over the next divide,
around the next turn, under the brow of
the next queer-looking HILL always awaits
the village or hamlet. or nestles the farm
house.
The solitude has in it nothing of desola-
ton. 1t Is such a fair, kind, inviting land
80 friendly, so humanized, SO gracious and
familiar, that 1 can never really know or
teel our utter loneliness and isolation; l can
never convince my fancy, my imagination
OF 1t, and 1t is still with me as with Tenny-
sons Princess Ida's" lover, the dream is
the real and the real but dream.
we had been out all morning, some days
since, beef hunting-the ranchman, the
cowboy and myself. We had found fat,
eurly-faced, muley yearling and driven him
nome. tie bolted, to my great delight, just
at the corral, and I was allowed to help
round him up again.
1t was perfectly astounding to me the
way my chunky little pony, that had Sc
cretly thought lazy and sleepy all the morn
Ing, conducted himself The moment the
caif bolted Little Wilson-without SO much
~ Jun ActtNo WIS OIL alter ullIl llh0
shot. The cowboy was on the other side
WITH with his rope swinging around his head.
we headed him back again and again, and
every time he bolted. If the cowboy had
Deen on Little Welson he could have roped
Tue calf readily, for Little Wilson ran in
CLOSE alongside over and again, shook his
mead and snorted with zeal, then sheared
on, and when he found there was no rope to
make taut, dashed up again. l felt sorry
ior him. 1t seemed humiliating for such
business little fellow to have to carry q
clumsy tenderfoot-a female one, at that
But we got the calf in the corral.
steeled myself to look while my host
cropped him in his tracks, with his nose
right at his forefeet; then we rode to the
mouse to get some dinner, Mr.. Jackson tying
up our ponies with the remark that we
would go out and look for a cat or a pan-
Their after dinner
But while we were at the table a weary,
smoke begrimed man rode up to tell US he
mad let out the fire from his camp over on
SIZE draw. He and his partner had been
Hghtlng it all morning alone, but had
round they were losing ground, and had
come for help. IF it gets through here
INTO johnson your whole range is gone"
said he.
We all get up very promptly; canteens
were filled with water, old coats and
green" deer hides hunted up to fight the
ure with; girths frightened; all made ready.
Win you goY" said MIR. jackson, look