Los Angeles herald., 1892-06-25
RANGE INSPECTORS.

Detectives of the Plains whose Work OLD
Sleuth Himself Might Envy.
Column after column has been writ
ten about the daring deeds, miraculous
escapes and cunning capture Of crini-
mails by the detectives of Europe and
America In thousands of cases the
praise accorded these officers for their
ingenuity and daring has been deserved;
but there is class Of detectives in this
country who risk their lives oftener,
and who must know not only the ways
of the highwayman when he is in the
city, but also his haunts and his hiding
places and his go-between in the thinly
settled country as WELL These men
are on the. go almost all the time-to-
day down in New Mexico looking for
horse thief, who is a murderer as well;
next week far across the Canadian line
on the trail of a gang of cattle thieves
who have been despoiling the Montana
or Wyoming ranges. 1t is only in the
past ten or fifteen years that their worth
has been appreciated or their services
valued as they should be-.
In the early days of cattle raising in
Wyoming and Colorado, whenever the
range thieves became too bold, the
ranchmen for miles around would or
ganize, get on the track of the thieves,
run them to their holes and then shoot
or hang them. After visitation of this
kind herds would be comparatively safe
for time. Nevertheless thousands of
head of cattle and horses were stolen
each year and shipped to Chicago, for
which the rightful owners received not
d cent. The stockmen of Wyoming or
ganized stock growers association and
appointed for each county in the state a
stock inspector. Colorado followed suit
in few years, to be followed later by
Montana. The duties of these inspect
ors were not to look out for diseased
cattle, but to inspect every carload of
cattle shipped out of the state, get list
of the brands, who the consignee was
and report the facts to the secretary of
the association.
There were of course mistakes made
at first, but of late years SO perfect has
the system become that it is almost an
impossibility for thief to ship a head of
beef by rail out of Montana without de-
lection. Gradually the duties of the in
spectors were added to, and in addition
to watching the shipping points they,
have become thief chasers. The in
spectors are selected from the bravest
class of western men, thoroughly con-
versant with the country, and men of
intelligence. Their powers in Montana
are equal to those of deputy sheriff,
and their authority is recognized all
over the state.
Among the Montana inspectors are
men who could tell some thrilling sto-
ries of their adventures, not only with
horse and cattle thieves, but with In
dians as well. In point of continuous
service Inspector w. d. Smith, now the
representative of the Montana associa-
ton at Chicago, and whose headquarters
were formerly at Miles City, outranks
his associates. He has been in the serv-
ice Of the association some eight or ten
years, previous to that time being an in
spector in Wyoming. He is typical
westerner, close mouthed and without
q particle of fear. He walks with
slight limp, and one unacquainted with
his history, meeting him on the streets
of Chicago, would almost Immediately
conclude he was cattle grower of
moderate means, who was satisfied with
life, attended strictly to his own bust
ness and would be the last person one
would pick out of crowd as the most
noted trailer Of cattle and horse thieves
in Montana. Independent.