El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-04-20
TROOPS OF COWBOYS
The President and General Miles APP '
prove the Idea. J

Ia the prime mover In pan TO or i
ganize troops of cowboys. He writes |
his views as follows:
At the beginning of the last war the ,
zouave regiments which we're first or
ganized were received with great pop !,
ular enthusiasm and did much to )
arouse the martial spirit. Now that
war with Spain seems imminent, the |
military enthusiasm seems likely TO be
aroused for quite a different kind of
organization. and yet one which bids
fair to be equally picturesque. 1 refer
regiment of cowboys for service
against the Spaniards. I was present
ed by Senator Warren of Wyoming
the other day to the pre- sident, aud
asked authority to Immediately or
ganize twelve troops of cowboys, urg-
Ing their own loyalty and admitted
bravery rs q reason why they should
be called into service, and referred to
them as hardy men, perfect horsemen,
and able to cope with all difficulties,
and competent to provide for them
selves under all circumstances. The
president expressed his thanks, and
without making any promises, assured
both Senator Warren and myself that
in any case of necessity the cowboys
should be remembered.
We also called upon General Nelson
A. Miles, commanding the army and
canvassed the situatio1 and considered
at length the subject Of the organiza-
tion of the cowboy rangers. Upon the
subject Gen Miles sid: ''The SER
vices of such q regiment would prove
invaluable to the government. The
cowboys are able 10 q pre-eminent de-
gree to take care of tn emselves. They
are always at home and know where
they are; even Q blizzard is unavailinR
to loose one of them. Trey are the
best horsemen In the word, and do not
know what fear is.''
In reply to the inquiry as to what
might be done in a preliminary way
toward getting ready, he said: "Plck
out your subordinate officers and find
out where your men are in the event
they are required"
telegraphed Gov. Richards of Wy
ominR asking if he would approve the
organization of q regiment of cowboy
rangers, and the governor answered
It is not proposed, by the organiza-
tions of the new regiment, to interfere
in any way " it'll the Wyoming militia
for actual service in the event of war,
but to simply organize the additional
regiment 60 that there may be q dis
tinct COW boy organization for mounted
service wherever needed.
bEouSPlIco tu6t 6tcCld1 1SS1Sld.
ton is needed in order to provide for
the desired regiment have no doubt
it will be passed with the same una
nimity as the appropriation for fifty
millions Of dollars.
AS to the probable effect of such leg
islation, it will no doubt provide for the
election of the troop officers by the
men. They are all men OF indepen-
dent characters and would not consent
to be commanded by officers other
than those OF their own choice. The
field officers could be chosen by the
troop ofic= rs. In this way every Off
Ger would be the choice OF the men and
in consequence would be much nearer
to them than they would be if appoint
ed.
The usual newspaper cowboy" is
quite different from the real article.
When q rowdy puts on spurs and acts
in disgracefu way he is sometimes
improperly heralded in the newspapers
rs bad Cowboy" In this way
wrong impression is given out of the
true character of the genuine cowboy.
As a class they are fearless, ad-
venturous, absolutely truthful, and al
ways reliable. 1 never have known
class Of men who can be SO thoroughly
relied upon. When it is time to have
fun they have 1t, but when the time for
business arrives they attend to it
thoroughly and well.
Concerning the uniforms and equip
mepts Of the men, the plan is to have q
and ornamental and char
acteristic of them. They are men of
taste and appreciate good clothes. In
my judgment their equipment-that is,
saddles, brides, etc.-ara the best that
the world has ever seen, and have DO
doubt that they will be permitted to
retain them. As to arms, l shall en-
deavor to avoid everything that is
useless expect for ornament, including
sabres, aud have the men furnished,
II possible. each with a couple of six
shooters, and long range rifle. In
cloee quarters they can guide their
horses with their knees aud handle
six-shooter in each hand. In this way
they would be more effective than
if they were required to use a sabre
As to the time needed to get organ
lied L have air eady communicated with
good, true men in all parts OF Wyom-
getting the names of the boys ard
making ready 30 as to respond i'm
mediately If occasion shall require.
Regarding the horses likely to be
used, they would, of course, be native
Wyoming horses. Our boys would
not ride pillow horses. We have, be-
lieve, the best horses on earth. Last
year Q deputy sheriff summoned some
of our boys to 60 with him as posse.
They rode grass fed, bare-footed
horses and covered thirty miles in on .
hour and fifty minutes.
They would prove to be ideal fighters.
They have all had experience on the
frontier, and, first and last, most of
them have had experience in charging
and retreatinR under difficult CIR
umstances, and know all about Indian
fighting. II the method of warfare of
the Speniards In Cuba is q fair sample
Of their fighting capabilities they
would be able to secure q liberal edu-
cation by facing our boys.
ArizOnians as Soldiers.