The Russellville Democrat., 1892-07-28
A CATTlE FUNERAL.
How the Wild psr.is of the Prairies Mourr
 ss Death.


 thing to write about, but 1t is ten times more sad to witness. If the observer happens to be on foot in l the vicinity of the scene of the cere- mony, however, he Is apt tte find 1t anything but odd, unless there be a tree or some other place of refuge convenient, or the curious onlooker be unusually fleet of foot. But doubtless the average reader does not know what cattle funeral is like, and perhaps is not inclined to give credit to the possible exist ence of such a thing. If he has never lived in locality where cattle of more or less untamed disposi- ton are wont to range, he will cer tainly never have an opportunity to learn by observation any of the pe- cuhar and notable facts connected with this remarkable phenomenon of the range.
 A cattle funeral, then, Is nothing more or less than the words seem to indicate--a ceremony of mour T. ing over the untimely fate of a de- parted herdmate, in which every in dividual member of the band that is within long range ear or nose shot Is bound to participate. In detail this ceremony consists of a sort of walk-around accompanied with the most doleful, ear piercing and heart rending moans, shrieks and below ings and varied by ponderous paw ings in the ground and the most singularly dexterous hingings of the resultant dust upon the backs of the l four-footed mourners.
 To observe or participate in a cattle funeral let the curious minded go out upon the range, se lect some spot which is open and affords 10 obstruction to the view and from which no 'critter" is in sight.
 Having selected such a spot, let one of the ''crittersn be brought quietly and secretly from a distance, and without undue ostentation, as becomes poachers upon another mans range, let him be done to death. Let the offal be secreted where even the coyotes cannot find it, and let the hide and flesh be carried carefully away. Then let earth be thrown on tue blood stains to hide all traces of disturbance, and let this all be done so well that even the human eye can detect nothing that would reveal what had been done.
 THE LEADER sNIFFS THE WIND.
 Then let the twenty four hours, or even less, pass, unless indeed there be cattle within a mile or less at the time of the slaughter. But for the purpose of illustration sup pose that twenty-four hours have elapsed
 Then suppose lot of one or two hundred head of cattle come drifting down over the range to the leeward of the spot where the slaughter of the day previous occurred. The leader of the herd may be two or three miles, perhaps farther, from the scene of blood Suddenly he commences to show signs of uneasi. ness. Though the grass be deep and luxuriant he only feeds few mo- ments, continuously lifting his head and tossing his horns as if an enemy was near.
 Suddenly there is strong puff of wind, and as the nostrils of the leader inhale the air a transformation occurs like flash of lightning. He halts, throws his muzzle into the air and then emits a most unearthly, prolonged, weird, moaning shriek or below. It is like none of the various noises made upon other occasions, but has a tone that is all it's own and which is evidently well understood by the entire herd.
 With another shriek, which can be heard for mile and even fur ther, the leader breaks into a run with his tail in the air and with his head shaking angrily from side to side, followed by all the members of the heard, each adding to the vol ume of sound that now fills the air. As other animals feeding quietly at a distance hear the peculiar sounds they, too, prick up their ears, then with answering shrieks they gallop wildly toward the excited band and join it in pursuit of the leader.
 A TERRIFIC SCENE.
 That animal quickly arrives at the tell-tale spot. He snuffs at the ground, meanwhile lashing his sides with his tail and believing contin- ually in a manner that suggests the height of rage. His eyes flash wildly, the froth drops from his jaws and fecks his neck and body. He paws the ground angrily with his hoofs, and by dexterous twisting manages to cast great masses of the earth into the air and upon his back.
 The others come racing up and crowd closely about the spot where their mate was slain An inner circle is formed by the excited ami mals, with their beads all pointing to a common center, and these bel low and paw the ground and race around and around until exhausted.