Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1894-08-30
AERALDRY ON lTHE PLAINS.
The Social Bearings Of Cattle Branding In
the Western states.

the Western states.
Alice MacGowen in McClure's
Magazine: The suble It OF the brand
dis overs itself sooner or later. In one
way or another. in most OF the affairs
OF cattle-cOuntry life. The unac-
companied children Of lonely and
remote ranches play at roping and
branding each other. The wife of
the kindly, liberal-hearted cattle man
will early be given her own brand;
often lis little girls az well.
These brands may begin in little
| bunch OF cows o. few brood mares;
but with no demands upon the "in-
crease" they soon grow to very re.
spectacle herds of cattle or punches
| OF horses.
1t So lnds wonderfully picture sque
| and Western to hear a daiuty little
ninety-pound woman, speaking of
some tcmine or artistic luxury re-
mark: "Well, ! can have it IL can
sell otf some beef this fall" or to
have bright girl, discussing the
lfciaCfvc desirabiifty OF a course at an
art school or an Eastern pleasure
trip, assure YOU that she can easily
meet the expense OF whichever she
decides upon by selling her 1890 crop
of colts, which are now years old
aud Just broken.
You would not suppose that the
small, blind, insutiiciently-clad deity
Of the bow and culver would ever
neglect his classic weapon to concern
himself with SO gross and barbarous
utensil as a branding iron. Yet such
things have been.
| have heard the tale how that,
away back in the'7O's, there appaa ed
(alOng with the rest OF her family,
In one of the far-out plain counties
OF the Texas cattle country, a fair
one by the romantic and me lflous
name OF Lilybei Plunkett
For the capriciCus and uncertain
favor of this, the only marriageable
young lady in the district, all the
susceptible and unattached cowboys
:of which class the population almost
wholly c0nsisted) stroye together
eagerly and without ceasing, maver.
licking right and left everything they
could lay their hands on, with run.
ming brand l.. l. L. until, when the
tenderfoot she had all along been en-
gagged to came out and married her,
she brought him great herds of l.. !.
L. cattle, with which they gayly set
up a ranch beneath the noses OF the
forlorn celibate community
Also there was Buck Redmond,
who, when he had quarreled with his
sweetheart tod brakes daughter,
known 1acetiously as 1.-THE duck"',
proceeded to SINCE upon the hide of
an incidental maverick his burning
resentment OF the s. orns, gihes and
indignities she had heaped upon him
In the heat of her anger and the i'm
munity of her SEX
1t was delicate example of cow
boy repartee, the retort bu olic, to
catch up this un ortunate third
party, brand it q over its helpless
bovine side in great sprawling let.
ters, ID u G X, and turn the ipering
bon mot loose where it could not fail
OF meeting the eyes of the uel fair
one.
The performance served its purpose
OF deadly affront, the Drake boys
holding for some time that the obli.
cation was upon them to kill some.
body about it, as no fluid less expen.
sive than hearts blood could properly
wash out such an insult And ]
think they did shoot to death-be-
fore anything like q reconciliation
could be brought about-the calf.