The Press., 1898-02-10
STAMPEDE GULLY.
tow 4 WELL KNOWN RAVINE IN
 T6~AS GCT ITS NAME.

iCN"o oS u , NAIVE.
 Herd of 15,OOO Cattle stampeded ae
 Flight. and Before They Were Stopped
 ",1OO of Them Were Killed-Costly
 Blunder Made by a Mexican Cowboy.
 One of the most desperate stampedes of cattle ever witnessed by Texas cow Tex, occurred ill 1876 on the prairie in the center of which now stands the town of McGregor. Fifteen thousand cattle and 25 cowboys participated in the exciting event. MT. Cranfill was not a participant, but he tells the story as he got it from an eyewitness in The Independent Late in the afternoon of July there had been lively thunder. storm that made the cattle nervous. At 10 o'clock at night, however, they seemed to be sleeping profoundly. Then the narrative proceeds as follows:
 ''The stars were all shining, and there was no cause at all for the arous- ing of the herd. They appeared to get up all at once, with a single purpose, and the roar that was heard seemed to come from a single throat. The Wilson brothers and their cowboys who were sleeping in their camp rushed to their ponies, who were grazing with the sad dles and bridles on, and as fast as the bits could be replaced in their mouths they mounted and galloped to the Hanks af the now disappearing mass, headed ill the direction of the Brazos river.
 A. to get in front of the herd-a risky piece of work-and start it to running in circle. Ibis attempt was made in this case.
 "SOme cattle can outrun others, and in this case there was bunch of about 30 fully 20 yards in advance, and to- ward this leading group the two rescu- CTS rode. Of the leading group, also, some were faster than others, and this group ran in diamond shape, with two immense steers leading all. When MT. Wilson and his companion reached the two leading steers, they began shooting their revolvers close to them, and in that way the bunch was made to oblique, and as the leading bunch of cattle obliqued the main stampede obliqued, and the first step in milling had been taken. By this time the cattle were get ting tired. Nearly five miles had been covered, and the breath of the leaders was coming short and painfully, but they were rushing on because the front cattle at this time knew as matter of fact their only safety was in keeping up the run. Those behind were coming, and they were in the majority, and the leaders were compelled to run. There was real danger for the forward mem. bers of the stampede.
 "In the invoice of articles contained in the regulation outfit there is always some kind of stimulants, and but fol the stimulants contained in MT. Will sons outfit it is possible that the stam pede wonld have been halted without disaster He had Mexican along, ons of the best cowboys in the southwest This Mexican and his horse always re minded those who saw him ride of the fabled Centaur. He rode far forward and bent over. so that he and his horse appeared to be one animal. No horse, however rugged, wild and woolly, had ever been able to unseat him. This Az. tee had been to the little brandy runle, too often and had filled and emptied hii tin cup with surreptitious intoxicants. so that his usual excellent judgment went awry. When he succeeded in get ting mounted, after having fumblec with his bridle good deal, he was fal in the rear, and the stampede had gons past him, so that when he overlook tht rear end he passed to the front on tht other side and rode on the wrong flank
 "When he reached the head of the herd, he was just in time to defeat the maneuver, then under execution, of bend ing the moving mass from 8 straigh line to a semicircle. Revolver in hand disregarding the other men, he began shooting in the faces of the wild steers and the effect of this was to straightel the run and bring the advance straigh toward precipice. This precipice wa B wash in the prairie, forming deel ravine fully 30 yards wide, and ill shorter time than it takes to tell of thi con tretemps the head of the column wa pouring over, a horrible cascade of beef plunging madly into destruction whil fleeing from an imaginary danger.
 "When MT. Wilson and his lieutenant saw that it was impossible to save thei
 cattle, they saved themselves by dexter ously turning at right angles at ful
 speed and riding out of the way. The
 next returned to the flank and held
 council of war. A few seconds decide
 them, and all hands commenced shoot
 ing into the herd, the object now bein
 to build breastwork of carcasses an
 save the rear end from the destructio
 that had overtaken the front. The gul
 ly was nearly full of cattle by thi time. They were snorting and below ing, crashing and tearing, and sti
 heaping up, and when the firing bega the wounded ones tumbled over on th others, and in short time the gully
 like the sunken road at Waterloo, ws bridged by carcasses. The herd surge up in pillows, like an ocean, and Der now because it could not do otherwis, The semicircle was formed, and Wi son and his men crossed the gully b, low and rode around the opposite sid
 and recrossed, and in a short time the had the cattle halted, forming an il complete letter O, and there they stoo( blowing, believing, shivering A : hands remained on watch all night, an in the morning, when count was mad' : it was ascertained that 9, 700 head wei : missing. There were afterward 2,7C pairs of horns taken from that gully . It was called Stampede gully for man years afterward, and perhaps will a ways with some people be remembere by that name.''
 Postage Due.
 Daisy-You cheating Uncle Sa ? out of postage.
 . Mazie-How so?
 l Daisy-By sending Jack "bushels s kisses'' ill that letter.
 t Mazie-Oh. we'll, Jack will put u = stamp of his approval on itl-New Yol