Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1891-04-09
CHASED BY WOLVES.
A Young Pioneers Escape from
the Ferocious Boasts.

1t was in the early part of 1870 that
nv father settled among the cotton
wood trees of Major creek, one of the
many streams watering the fertile San
Luis valley of Colorado. The country
was wild enough in those days. Deer
and antelope in abundance ranged the
foothills of the Sangre de Christie
mountains, whose snow-capped peaks
threw shadow over our sodroofed
cabin until far into the morning.
Skulking coyotes, and yet more cow
ardly Indians, travelled up and down
the broad valley that opened out
grandly to the south and west of us,
extending in . sunny sweep of twenty
miles to the swiftly-rising heights of
the Saguache and Chochetope ranges,
while other neighbors, such as mountain
lions, cinnamon and silver-tIp bears,
made stockman's life burden to him.
Last and most dangerous were a band
of the huge gray timber wolves.
There are no wild animals more to be
dreaded than these same timber wolves,
especially when pressed by hunger
Then they become veritable demons,
and woe upon the living thing whose
trail they happen to cross
They at once begin mcrciless chase
and continue it untiriagly, rivaling in
speed and endurance the most sinewy
horse. Nothing daunts them. Shoot
one down and he is instantly devoured
by the rest of the pack, who thereupon
rush forward with unchecked courage
and appetites but whetted by their
unnatural feast. Fire alone can hold
them at bay.
With these ugly brutes it was my luck
to have an adventure the second spring
after we settled on Major creek. was
then lad of fifteen, small of my age,
but wiry, and as capable Of enduring fa-
tigue as any man, while no one in the
valley could excel me in riding after
catte, throwing lasso or sticking to a
buc ing hroncho.
Ii early days in Colorado it was the
GUS o let stock, both hor es and cat
tle, site for themselves G., run
atL on the dry grass of the range
DUR the cold ieason; but the first
win. r we were in ;he valley the wild
anirIals were so lischievous Il we
were compelled to herd every be, we
had from fall to spr The graz was
unusually late in surfing up thatk ear,
hence all of our stock, even our Il ding
animals, grew very thin.
And thereby hangs my tale" for
one evening, in the latter part of March,
a particularly cranky old COW broke
away from the herd as we were round
ing the cattle up. preparatory to driving
them to the corral for the night, and,
our horses being so weak and poor,
neither my brother nor myself could
overtake the runaway.
But when we reported the loss at the
supper-table that night, mother was
much vexed, as the missing cow was her
pet mixer.
you must hunt her up tomorrow,
boys" she said, earnestly.
mo use, mother, my brother Horace
replied. Something has eaten her up
before now"
Il am not 50 sure Of that, father re-
marked Don't You remember how
last spring we found her standing off
mountain lion from her calf? You had
better LOOK for her little tomorrow"
That settled the matter, of course, so
in the morning | herded the stock,
while Horace rode among the foothills
10 the south of US, and, as he was I'M
successful in his search, that afternoon
left the cattle with him and started
off to the mort. ward hoping to find
some trace Of our ray by the time 1
reached Stee1 U1iIg D. if not before.
My pony seemed ~ TOO nearly worn
out BY his morning work for SO long a
ride that day; 50 | first went home and
exchanged my broncho for fathers yell
low cayeuse, which happened to be
standing n the stable.
Right here let me explain that "bron-
cho" is Colorado yer acular for a native
pony, while ''cayeuse" is the Montana
term for the same animal Fathers
pet riding horse, Selim, had been
brought from the latter State, henee we
usually called him by the local name.
AS I was changing my saddle from
one pony to the other, mother came out
70 the corral with a steaming cup Of
strong coffee for my refreshment and,
when l role away, repeated her injunc-