Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1891-08-13
A TEXAS TRANSPORTATION.
The Rapid Rise ana Hard Fail of
The Cattle Baron.

l'pcelal correspondence 70 GloOe-Democrat }
1t was the romance of the COW
business which departed with the
cattle baron. The reality is still
here. John r. Hoxie, who built
the nillion-dollar packing house
in Fort Worth, says Texas has
gained these grain n-growers and lost
nothing in live stock. He had
discussion not long ago with some
fellow capitalists who were mourn
ing the supposed decadence Of the
cattle industry. Mr.. Hoxie dis
puted their forebodings and the
assessors returns for county after
county were examined. ave
found" " said Mr.. Hoxie, "that in
those very counties where the most
land had been turned into grain
growing the live stock had in.
creased instead of diminished"
The explanation is easy. The
long-legged, racer-built steer is a
thing of the past in all this region
which the grain-grower has in
vaded. A stocky, short-horned ami
NAL has succeeded to the posses
sion of what grass land is left. And
this new conner, instead Of crust
ling" all winter until his ribs show
through his hide, consumes straw
and fodder and cotton-seed meal.
What would the COW baron have
said in 1882 to a proposition to
buy and feed cotton-seed meal at
Sl4 to SIS ton and the hulls for
roughness at $3.50 a ton? He'd
have called it rank folly. There
is q cotton-seed mill at Sherman,
another at Taylor, another at
Cameron, and there will be Others
at Bowie and elsewhere. Every
pound of meal and every pound Of
the rough hulls of the cotton-seed
are wanted by Texas cattle grow
ers. The Texas steer in his modi-
fed form Of to-day can be fatteped
TO the condition Of prize beef in
100 days Of winter on cotton-seed
meal with hulls for filling. One
man tried it with 10000 head last
year and made a fortune. Fifty
viii be in the business the coming
winter if they can get the meal and
hulls. More "good" cattle were
shipped out Of Texas tho past sea.
son than ever before. They brought
prices I'M which there was profit.
They taught tie object lesson that
henceforth Texas must send to
market fed cattle.n Stock cattle
remain where they were before the
boom began and where they were
after the boom collapsed. They
have not yet felt the advance,
Far out toward the Mexican
frontier a few Of the big concerns
stiil exist TO remind the people of
the cattle baron as he was in the
palmy days. Dan Waggoner has
$1,000 head scattered about, 10000
here and 10000 there, where range
can be found. His home rancho
contains 10000 acres. lie is the
biggest individual cattle owner in
Texas. In 1882 thore were twenty
men who thought themselves as
big bGrons as Mr.. Waggoner. The
Waggoner ranch was valued at
81 10000 in 1880, at 81, 900, 900 in
1882, aud AT $1,000, 900 in 1886.
Mr Waggoncr did not load himself
with liabilities, and il his ranch
doubled and then undoubled il
didn't hurt him. OF the surviving
cattle companies, those magnih-
cent aggregations OF capital which
acted as If Texas was steer and
they had II by the tail, in 1882, the
Matador siill survives. The Mat.
ador company owns lO5,O head
OF cattle, and pasture bought from
the state, which required 800 miles
Of wire fencing And to-day there
Is a law On the statute books OF
Iexag which says any land cor.
poration hereafter established shall
'only own such real estate ia this
state as may be necessary for It's
Office" w, H,6.
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