The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-02-08
SHOD WITH SNOWSHOES.
Horses Of the Sierras That VICAR
Strange FOOtgear.
They Arc Compelled To Pull Heavy Lonts
Across tic Mountal"s-A Travellers
Interesting, Description of
iii' Trip.


their work with thea on just as we'll rs
if they didn't have them on, or nearly
SO" said u gentleman from California
the other evening toa New York Herald
man.
'This is the way it was: About the
middle OF April IL year ago, | had busi-
ness up in plumas county, California.
and went by stage running from Orc
willie to Quincy, the central point in
Plumas county. We left Orovillc at
seven in the morning in a four-horse
jcrly.' n sort of stage wagon specially
built for rough mountain work. For
the first six hours the road was as dry
as Il board, but after the noon change
of teams we struck patches of snow
which soon merged into solid and deep
snow going. Tom, our driver, had
called my attention to the new team as
1T was being hitchcd up, saving:
'Thcm's our snow horses. We'll soon
have to leave the wheel ard take the
'sleddcrs' when we get further ND the
road
Though l had ridden behind and
upon many kinds of horses in the west,
yet had never been introduced to the
snow breed before, and | looked at
them very closely.
"They were all four white or gray,
whether from age or natural disposition
l couldn't tell, but l was much i'm
pressed by their tremendous sclf-con-
seriousness, their extremely slow mo-
tions, the deliberate way in which they
stepped straddling their legs rs far
apart as possible, and their reluctance
to raise more than one hoof off the
4 ground at Il time. Every one of the lot
was old enough to vote, and ut IL rough
estimate twenty dollars head would
4 have been about fifteen dollars over
their value. At the end of the trip [
! thought twenty dollars apiece was fully
nine hundred and eighty dollars less
than they were really worth.
"'Don't think much of 'cm, do you?'
7 asked the driver of me as he started
a them UP with Il click. No, lie contin-
Aucd, they're not much to look at, them
four old hide packers, but the company
4 wouldn't trade that lot for the best
Height flyers in the cracllcst livery stable
q in sacramento. But for those invalua-
8blc critters the mails wouldn't get
athrouGh six months i'll the year on this
Mrontc. They're snow horses, they are,
& and when they strike the snow higher UP
3athey'll put their snow moccasins on and
D1show you valley people how they earn
3thcir oats
81 THAT old gray quartcttc ploddcd and
|Hworkcd its way along very wcarily to
Nus until we got into the deeper snow
land drew up TO 4 large sleigh standing
s3alongsidc the road.
81 "'Change cars called out the driver,
'&4'and gents will please shift their own
Wraps or they'll get left Unhtching
sahis team from the 'jcrlly,' Tom lined up
sffhis horses in pairs in front of the
"a sleigh and then took out of it IL couple
3fpf gunny sacks, from which he pro-
&fluccd sixteen pieces Of wood having the
S5aippcarancc of flat dishes, which he said
&awcrc the snowshocs used by the four
sSflorscs. | examined the shoes with
}nuch curiosity
# ''Thc shoe was made Of Il stout. sea-
28soned, onc-nch plank of tough hickory
3.sfvood fourteen inches square, strength
R&ncd on one side by covering of oil
&:loth and two onc-inch wide strips of
3#4lickory wood screwed on to the main
$sPlatc. So situated that when adjust
SD horses foot would be right in the
&tcntcr of the shoe were three holes
4l lcar through the wood and o;lcloth
underneath. One of the holes was
Szlargc enough to let the heavy and very
s3&iigh toe calll of the horses shoe pass
50 Trough, while the two other holes as
permitted the two hind callis of
IA he shoe to enter and come out as did
III he toe calk Then wrought iron
ESSPand, separated in the center, swung
}Hpn hook and eye on either side Of the
orcn'c hnnf nf Il
.yf4vith the snowshoc, by passing the
58 alks through, was brought together in
sSaront of the hoof an inch below the cor
III met, and then tightly joined by screw
53A nd nut passed through holes bored in
3ssS38Ahc projecting ends of the band. Ev-
]4$ rything fitted rs snug as possible, and
When the screw was frightened up no
81 mount Of scraping or kicking could
oosen it from horses foot The snow
3cam understood the business perfectly
nd took 1T as a matter of course that
tMhey should be thus decorated.
s. "They actually seemed to know a
'5 3 tile more about it even than Tom did.
indeed, one old plug held up his off hind
~ pot and knocked Tom on the arm with
} lis shoe A Il hint to have the nut
z S3 crewcd little tighter on the iron
M and. Though l never before saw
orscs so qucerly shod and apparently
S nchored with these strange gcarings.
he animals seemed to consider it ouite
384lc proper thing to have the shoes on.
@ The passengers having by this time
8A lied all their traps into the sleigh we
aiadc another start for Quincy, but at
M snals pace as far as speed was con-
a,rned. After we got under way we
Ss& ,und The snow getting deeper every