The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1896-04-09

tossed and whirled in the air, just as
little clouds of dust rise and curl when
q glancing bullet strikes the dry ground.
Another moment of dead calm followed
by a cold blast of wind more general
and far-reaching than what has pre-
ceded, which whitens the air with
snow, chills the cowboy and his pony,
and causes the cattle on the edge of the
herd to shiver as they crowd closer
together.
Presently there comes low moan
ing sound from the north; it grows
shriller until it resembles wall; ii
rises and swells into howl and then
a shrek, as the great currents of air
from natures cold storage sweep with
cyclonic fury over the treeless plain.
The air is thick with fine, COLD snow;
the cowboy and his pony are obliter-
ated from the vision and the herd is but
a mass Of incomplete and shadowy
forms. The blizzard has begun. The
buffalo coat of the cowboy does not
seem to afford him any better protec-
ton than If it were of linen; the icy
wind finds its way into every opening
and penetrates the thick material as
though it were a sieve. His eyes are
mOmentarily blinded by the fine cold
snow, and there is singing sensation
in his face as if mass of chilled nee
dies were being hurled into it each in
slant. His first thought is for shelter,
but whittier will he go? There are no
longer any cardinal points Of the COM
pass. North, east, south and west are
all one now. There is nothing but
whirling, swirling, binding mass of
snow and the shrek Of the tempest. He
cannot trust to his pony to carry him
to place of refuge or to the home
ranch. For the pony in blizzard is
ruled absolutely by the instinct of self
preservation, which means that if left
to choose his own route he will travel
in the same direction as the storm.
Only by persistent urging can he be
made te facGa il and it must be AN, an eX X
any direction but the one which gives
him the best protection from the ele-
ments.
There will come momentary lulls
when the rider may take his bearings,
but before he can make much Roadway
in what he thinks is the right direction
the blizzard is again upon him and
often the skillful guiding of his pony
will result in travelling in circle.
The herd, with the same instinct I'D
permost in the pony, turns tail to the
storm and drifts with it. The bodies
of those on the outer side of the herd
are soon coated thick with snow and
there is constant struggle for a place
near the center of the bunch, where
the surrounding animals impart
warmth and serve to break the DOW
erful force Of the wind. 1t is a contest
in which the strongest are the surviv-
ors and the weakest perish.
If the blizzard lasts but few hours
all may escape; if for days, then only
the hardy animals will be left. Fol-
lowing in the path of the blizzard the
rider will come upon the dead carcass
es of the animals singly, in twos, and
sometimes as many as a dozen will
fall and perish together.
The heavy thaW that so often follows
fast upon the blizzard frequently
causes as heavy losses in cattle as the
blizzard itself. The cattle seek the low
lands for water. There they find that
the terrific wind has swept away the
snow. The grass there is mpre luxu-
RANT than on the range, but with each
hour of sunshine their footing becomes
more and more insecure and they sink
deeper and deeper into the soft mire
OF the marshy ground. Those that
have been weakened either through
fasting or the rigors of the storm are
held fast. In the spring every marshy
waterhole is closely watched by the cat
tlemen and thousands of cattle are res
cued. Those places that are not watch
ed are thickly strewn with carcasses.
and in the summer and fall look like
boneyards.
Not painted in water colors-a toper's