Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-11-23
DICK, THE DECOY STEER.
The End of a Famous BuncO Animal
in the Chicago stock Yards.

The End of a Famous BuncO Animal
in the Chicago Stock Yards.
From the Chicago Daily Tribune.
Dick" the bunco steer at Phil Armour's
yards got too lazy for his job and was led
to the slaughtering pen just like the animals
he had decoyed to death before. The de-
ceitful old beast is dressed beef now. Dick
was big, fat, brown steer that had winning
ways and cold, treacherous heart. Many
and many are the confiding country year
lings and heifers Dick has led up to the
butchers steel hammer.
Probably there never was a beef "critter"
that had so wide celebrity as Dick. Every
visitor who went to see how the packing
houses work had to have look at this steer.
Foreign princes and pretty summer girls
have marveled at the skill and diplomacy
with which he steered the unsuspicious
range cattle to the place of death. Dicks
picture has been printed in the papers many
a time, and columns have been written
about the beasts crafty tricks. Dick was
Just as much one of the sights of the town
as the Masonic Temple or the Lake Shore
Drive or Policeman Steve Rowan. This is
the way the creature got its notoriety:
When the long horns from Texas and the
short horns from Missouri come into the
stock yards and are unloaded they are nat
urally eXasperated over their rough trip and
are full of suspicion. The result is they are
rebellous. especially In the matter of going
into chutes. Now, unless a steer goes into
one of the chuteS in the packing house it
cannot have its threat cut, and throat cut
ting Is the aim and object of their coming to
Chicago. So it is necessary to have decoy
steer. crafty old beast, that can get the
confidence of the rural beasts and lure them
on to death and destruction.
Many years ago Dick arrived at the yards.
and, being beast of more than usually
sagacious appearance, was picked out for
the work. Dick was carefully trained in the
walking head
bunch Of cattle, and then quietly lodging to
one side. leaving the bunch to walk on to
the place where the hammers swing. After
years of pra ctice the big steer had grown
expert at his treacherous work. Dick would
saunter down into pen full of new and I'M
sophisticated cattle and scrape an acquaint
ance with two or three Of them. Then the
wicked brute would begin to look wise and
talk knowingly about the racy sights to be
seen in the big white house over beyond the
fence. When Dick offered to lead the way
there was a grand stampede to follow. Up
the gangway went Dick, and after him clat-
tered the greenhorns. But just before the
bunch got sight of the big butchers wait
ing inside Dick would unostentatiously shy
off through side passage and leave his vic
Tins to transact business with Mr.. Armour's
men.
So Dick grew famous. But, like many
other famous characters, he grew pulled up
with pride, got lazy, and began to LAY down
on the job" 1t got to be SO easy, this thing
of leading wide-eyed country cattle I'D into
the chute. that Dick didn't seem to care
whether he worked for his feed or not Mr.
Armour grew displeased with this apathy.
He does not like to have his employees loaf on
their jobs. So orders were issued concern
ing Dick. One day last week the wise old
rogue was leading the usual bunch up the
gargway, but when he got to the usual jump
irg-off place there was none there Dick had
to go on with the herd. Before long he had
been converted into dressed beef. Now that
Dick has suffered the same fate as his thous-
tic
former partner, known to the butchers as
Phil"