The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1898-09-10
THE GRAY STEER.

hues which stands out from the wall
of the canon of the Grand river.
The opposite precipice serves the
cowboys as gnomon or index to the
hours of day, for its shadow sweeps
over the stupendous, variegated face
and marks the course of the sun
through o sky that is always I'M
clouded. A ledge of porphyry, fifty
feet deep, crowns the dial; often it
looks like strip of pink ribbon to
the men below by the stream. But it
was a glorious coronal, kindling in the
first rays from the east, when Holden
hailed it with uplifted eye and hand
as he quirted his horse through the
barway of the corral.
"6unupr' cried Holden, the young
foreman, filled with the Joy Of the
morning. He is the son of the presi-
dent of the cattle company; he had
come straight from college to the cow
camp, and the old stroke Of the var
sity eight set hot pace in saddle for
the Lazy riders.
He rode that morning q big-boned,
Roman-nosed, blue-rOan "outlaw q
horse pronounced irreclaimable by the
boys; he had tied o bucking roll
across the shoulders of his saddle to
supplement the grip of his knees, and
on top of that lay the big, loose coil
Of his ffty-foot cable line, for he was
still young enough to disdain lariat
of lesser length and caliber.
Behind Holden Navajo Jim lifted q
light left foot to the stirrup; then his
spurred right tripped clinking to the
evasive dance of his young horse, and
he slipped inimitably into his saddle.
To its right shoulder hung the trim
coiled ring of his rope of braided raw
hide, which, to that of the foreman,
was as steel to iron and would hold
anything on hoofs.
Foreman and follower struck out
through the crossword over ground
without grass; the grazing range lay
high on the mesa, fenced by the lofty
wall of the canon. It's seemingly in
accessible height was scaled by the
sure-footed. agile range cattle at 6
break in the porphyry ledge not fal
up the canon, and presently they took
to the dizzy trail.
With slack cinches the blowing
horses clawed up the loose footing a
the top of the break and moved out or
narrow projecting tongue Of thu
mesa. Still higher the mesa broad
ened and was set with squat cedar:
and pinons. Here the riders saw cat
tic already chewing their cuds in thu
shade.
"We're too low down. There's
nothing here" said the young fore
man, his eyes rowing over the stock
cts beef I'm after. I've got t.
get traiu-road off by the first and no
a hundred steers gathered yeti"
"Quaking-asp putty good place
for steer now," said Navajo Jim
"Water sweet there and stampin'
ground close"
eyes, I know" Holden returned
impatiently. "The boys started
twenty head down yesterday and hac
them pointed for the corral, whel
that blamed gray steer scattered tn
bunch, anl they broke back for til,
hills"
"That gray steer like bull elk. Bet
ter corral him with six-shooter," sale
Jim. zone steer not much worth"
"Six-shooter nothingl What's oul
ropes for?" cried Holden. "That biz
grizzly brute will fetch up a Who'll,
carload to the top notch in the stock
pens. He goes on hoof to Omaha.
told the boys I'd give $5O-dolla
saddle to the first man that 'twined
him and stayed with him."
II already got putty good saddle
Mr.. Holden" said Jim, with a grin
''That steer seven, eight year old now
and all time run wild. Horns SO Ions
stick clean through horse"
"Well, beefs up in the air; horse
are down." returned the foreman
"Quirt up, Jim. Well strike u
higher"
On the loftier grazing ground the,
found the cattle still at feed. Through
thickening hosts of deer-fies an,
horse-fies their horses strained up tn
steep oakbrush slopes. In bande,
resistance to like winged attacks, tn
cattle of the higher range were begin
ming to "bunch" on each open stamp
ing-ground. Toward these trample,
circles the scattered steers were on
by one making their way.
"The boys can run in all thes
steers tomorrow" said Holden. "Yo,
and I, Jim, are going to Irvine tina
gray steer today"
HE got big scare yesterday; to
sharp to Stow up on stampin' -groun
today" jim suggested
Like enough" Holden assented
SHUT we'll rustic him out. The boy
lost him late yesterday in the lon
| nnakino-asn match in thot oulnb u