The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1891-10-29
THE DECLINE OF THE COWBOY.

Globe Democrat writes as follows from /
Abilene, Kan: With the clearing off of
the Cherokee Strip and the fencing of
Oklahoma lands there has been ended
the usefulness of the Texas cattle trails,
which were a few years ago the great
highway from The feeding grounds of
the Lone Star State to the shipping
points in Kansas. Gradually, with the
opening of railroads, there have been
fewer and fewer herds driven over the
long journey, and now the last one has
reached its destination and the cowboy
of the West is a thing of the past. He
will flourish on the burlesque cage and
will figure in the flash literature of the
news stands, but in real life lie will be
known no more. No drives will take
place this fall.
The old cattle-trails which were the
trunk railways of early days are grassing
over. Once they were beaten hard and
bare by tens of thousands of hoofs.-
Long chocolate colored paths they were,
stretching out over hill and through
vale, crossing rivers and climbing steep
bugs, bordered here and there by the
bleaching bones of some weary member
of the herd who had found the trip too
much for his strength. From interior
Texas to Central Kansas they led, first
reaching to Abeline; then, after the
building of the Atchison, topeka, and
Santa Fe Railroad, to Dodge City, where
for many years were performed the Or
gies to which the cowboys were prone to
give way at the end of the drive.
The first cattle trail was located by
Mr.. Joseph &. Mccoy, now of Wichita,
Kan, and recently Superintendent of
the Livestock Bureau of the United
States Census. He was pioneer stock
man. and was the first to realize the pos
sibIe profits in driving the Texas cattle
part of the way to market and shipping
them the remainder. Mr.. Mccoy con-
ceived the idea of opening up an outlet
for Texas Cattle. Being impressed with
a knowledge of the number of cattle in
Texas, and the difficulties of getting
them to market by routes and means
hen in use, and realizing the great dis
parity between Texas values and North
equalize the extremes.
The plan was to establish yards at
some accessible point to which the Texas
drover could bring his stock and find a
buyer, or failing in that could ship to
any city in the country. After repeated
conversations and consultations with
reading stockmen it was decided to select
some point on the old Kansas Pacific
Railroad, now the Kansas Division of
the Union Pacific. The road was then
Tin 1867 completed 200 miles west of
Kansas City, and Abilene was decided
upon as the meeting point where North
ern BUYERS and Southern sellers should
meet. The town consisted of two log
huts and saloon; the surrounding
country was sparsely settled and well
watered, and with plenty of grass.
Land for yards was purchased and a
man we'll versed in the geography of the
country and used to the prairie was sent
out into Southern Kansas and the In
dian Territory to hunt up all Struggling
herds of cattle and send them to Abilene.
Mounting his pony he set out for a lone
ly 200-mile ride southwesterly, crossing
the Arkansas at the site of the present
city of Wichita, and sending every herd
he met northward with promises OF quick
sales and big profits. The long and ex-
pensive drive through the Ozark Nouns
tain region was gladly evaded, and 35,
900 cattle came to the new station the
first year.
Then were the Texas and Kansas cat
tie trails established. Two or three prin-
cipal highways were at once laid out
and for many years they were kept well
worn by the passing hoofs. Of these the
best known was the ''Chisholm trail, -
so-called after partly civilized Indian
who first followed it. Then there was
the ''Shawnee TRAIL" which was later
followed almost exclusively by the herds
from Western Texas. Leaving the Red
River, it ran eastward, crossing the Ar
kansas near Fort Gibson. Then it fol
lowed the banks of the Arkansas, taking
advantage of the level reaches of the
valley until it came into Kansas, when
it was necessary to cross the divide OF
eighty miles between the valley of the
Smoky Hill and the Arkansas. There
were side trails and cut-offs along the
line, intended to evade some precipitous
country, or to avoid some stream with
swollen waters.
y, fl,a iaf Ioy,
ger, outside of the stampedes, which the
cattlemen had to fear The Arkansas
and Cimarron Rivers, particularly, with
their wide sandy river beds, were in
times of high water very treacherous.
1t was sight never to be forgotten to
see herd of 5000 or more cattle crossing
a stream. A long line of horned heads,
bodies submerged, and the cowboys on
their swimming horses by the sides were
striking features of the drive. Several
cattle were usually drowned in crossing
a stream.
After the thorough establishment of
the trails began the rush of cattle. In
1869 there were $4,000 head shipped from
the little town, which became pande-
medium of cowboys, and was known far
and wide us the ''wickedest town in the
West" a title taken up later On by
Dodge City, Deadwood, and Leadvile
the quartette being the only ones gen
orally considered as entitled to the not
very creditable appellation. There was
nothing that was not possible in Abilene,
foto oil ,c
numerous as the days. In 1870 nearly
100000 head of Texas cattle were shipped
and the following year saw an influx
that surprised the most sanguine. 1t
seemed that every Texas ranch sent out
it's herds, until it was estimated that at
least 600, 900 head of cattle roamed over
the plains of Western Kansas awaiting
shipment.
One could go upon any hill and see
from 10000 to $4,000 head grazing over
the plains like the ''cattle on a thousand