Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1892-06-15
CATTLE TRAILING.
AnInterestfng By Gone Feature of Vest
ern Life.

ern Life.
The barb-wire fences shut off the great
trails that stretched from Corpus Chris
tie through the Pan Handle of Texas,
and on up through New Mexico and Col
orado and through the Indian Territory
to Dodge City. The coming of the rail-
road also made this trailing of cattle to
the market superAuous, and almost de-
stroyed one of the most remarkable fea-
lures of the West. This trail was not, of
course, an actual trail, aud marked as
such, but general driveway forty miles
wide and thousands of miles long. The
herds of cattle that were driven over it
numbered from 800 to 5000 head, and
were moving constantly the from early
spring TO the late fall.
No caravan route in the far Eastern
countries can equal this six months jour
ney through three different States and
through all changes of weather and eli
mate, and in the face of constant danger
and anxiety. This procession of thou
sands of cattle on their slow march to the
North was one of the most interesting
and distinctive features of the West.
An "outft" for this expedition would
consist of as many cowboys as were need
ed to hold the herd together, a wagon,
with the cook and the tents, and extra
ponies for the riders. In the morning
the camp wagon pushed on ahead to
suitable resting place for the night, and
when the herd arrived later, moving, on
an average, fifteen miles day, and graz
ing AS il went, the men would find the
supper ready and the tents pitched. And
then those who were 10 watch that night
would slowly circle around the great
army of cattle, driving them in closer
and closer together, and singing as they
rode, to put them to sleep. This seems
an absurdity to the Eastern mind, but
the sound of something familiar quieted
and satisfied these great stupid animals
that can be soothed like child with n
nursery rhyme and when frightened can
not be stopped by river. The boys
rode slowly and patiently until one and
then another Of the herd would tumble
clumsily to the ground, and others near
woald follow, and at last the whole great
herd would lie silent and immovablc in
sleep. But the watchfulness Of the sem
tries could never relax. Some chance
noise-the shaking of a saddle, some cry
of a wild animal, or the scent Of distant
water carried by chance breeze across
the prairie, or nothing but sheer blind
wantonness-would start one of the sleep
ing mass to his feet with snort, and in
an instant the whole great herd would
90 tearing madly over the prairie, tossing
their horns and believing, aud filled with
wild unreasoning terror And then the
skill and daring of the cowboy were put
o their seyerest test, as he saw his mas
ter's income disappearing towards ca
non or a river, or to lose itself in the
brush. And the cowboy who tried to
head off and drive back this army Of
frantic animals had to ride a race that
meant his life if his horse made a mis-
step and as the horses feet often did
slip, there would be found in the morn
ing somewhere in the trail Of the stam-
peding cattle horrid mass Of blood and
flesh and leather.
Do you wonder, then, that after this
half-year of weary, restless riding by
day, and seepless anxiety and watching
under the stars by night, when the lights
of Dodge City showed across the prairie,
the cowboy kicked bis feet out OF his stir
rups, drove the blood out Of the pony's
sides, and "came into town" with both
guns going at once, and yelling as though
the pentup speech of the past six months
of Loneliness was striving for proper ut
terance ?-Hnper's IVeekly.