El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-04-09
THE TEXAS RANGERS.
A Body of man who Would be Invjnc
ible in war


The Texas RANGERS believe the,
could settl, this little con roversy wit
Spain without any aid from the rest o
the country, a ID really, in the event O
war and the invasion of Cuba, Uncle
Sam could get together no mory
formi } a BILE body o. men than the eun
Drowned, danger-iried heroes of the
8 uthwest. Few people oat ide of Tex
| as know that there is such a thing as
an organ zed body of rangers in ex.
istence today. They are IN the serv &c
| of the state COVE nment, amenable to
call by Adjt. Gen. Mabry, and under
direct control of Gov. Gu berson.
Their wages, with the exception of
the officers, average $40 per month.
They furnish their own horses and
arms. 1t is prObable.t hat there are not
more than 1000 active rangers in Tex
as today. Only as ssmall fraction of
these are in the states employ. The
remainder do service for ranch owners
and stockmeo. But one bugle blast
from the national capital could assem-
ole in a twiukling 10000 armed men
who wou truthfu,ly term themselves
"Texas Rangers" The immense
pasture lands on the Rio Grande and
the ranges of West Central Texas
would pour forth their hosts of cow
boys, while from hundred different
trades and occupations in the little
cities of the state wo I'D come an even
greater number of rough riders who
have turned from the adventu esome
tasks If 'stock punching" to the more
lucrat We pursuits of urban life. Ard
no. one of them but whose revnlve-
hot would be effective from the back
of galloping mustsng a. SO yards.
while all would resent with healo
indi ynation a'quest on of their ability
t, ''hi5 the bull's-eye" with Vic
chester as far as it could bedisti nguish-
ed. Accustomed 10 sleep in the open
air, with their saddles for pillows and
earth's garniture for their mattress S,
no ha der class of men can be found
coffee ands hunk of half-roa- ted
beef have formed for months at q time
their midday Chs nquets." They have
thrived on such fare, and could endure
unfiinchingly on much less. Exposure
is ,mmnnplace for Them. It is, in
deed, their mode of living.
At San Auto 10 is Capt.. S McNie.
as hardy ranger as ever woe buck
skin. For several yeas he has b en-
in the service of the United States
marshal for the we-tern district of
Texas When Catari o CARA and
General Francisco Ruiz Sandoval led
heir famous filibust ring exr di' o..
across the Rio Graude into Mexico.
seven years ago, he was in mmsn1
of a squad of rangers that did more
than the entire federal soldiery in tn
depar meut Of Texas to disper:e al d
ca pture the flibustarers. He was
given personal credit by Mexican au-
thorities for the maneuvers that re
suit d in the apprehension of General
Sandoval.
Captain McNiel is inclined to tact
turnity, but recently be was persuaded
to discuss the possibility of organizing
a brigade of rangers. ''If the govern
ment would authorize the form stiou of
say, 10000 T xas rangers or cowboys"
he j. quoted a. having said, 1.-THE task
of occupying Cuba would require little
or no additional attention from the ar
my. OF cour-e, the m alter of trans
porting the men and their horses to
Cuba would bave to be taken care of
by the naval authorities. But with
that the Texas boys would have no
coccern. Several army men have talk
ed along this line with me, and most of
them Insisted that it would be nece:-
sary for the rangers to have an auxil-
larry force of artillery with few de-
tachments of infantry. OF course, they
may know more than 1 about tactical
warfare with the disciplined troops of