The National tribune., 1899-07-27
ROUGHING 1T IN IS.
ReeoIIeeons Of Trip From Fcrt Leayenwcrh to Fort
Kearny, Through q Wild coua:ry.

EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: In the
Spring of IS the writer was at White Cloud
City, Kan, about 80 miles up the Missouri
from st. Joseph, Mo. Being somewhat out
of health, consulted doctor, who informed
me that a trip across the plains would be
beneficial if | could stand 10 rough it
In the Spring of 81 Col. Albert Sidney
Johnston had headed an expedition for a
campaign against the Mo-monS at Salt
Lake City, Utah. / now saw Il notice Of
the reinforcing of Johnsten's army i'll Utah
by the War Department, and the ordering
out of the 9Th u. $. and detachment Of the
I'd Dragons, with provisions and muni-
tions of war TO last ii year, and my mind
was made up at once.
AS Fort Leavenworth was the starting
point, proceeded in that direction. stop
| ping at st. Joseph en- route. | met a man
| at that place who had a contract 10 drive
| 500 head OF beef catt.e for the army, and |
at once struck a bargain with him as n
night -herder. There were 20 be six of us
| for this duty, each to be furnished with a
| horse or mule and equipments. Our place
| of rendezvous was at Fort Leavenworth.
| 1t took a week or more for the outfit to get
ready, and during that time we had rare
sport watching raw teamSterS breaking
wild Texas muej. The army wagon
masters required six mules for n team,
| driven with single line, and by teamSter
| with an oId-faShionGd b!ackSnakc whip.
| We boys when off duty would naturally
| gravitate toward the Government corral,
where the Wagon-maSter was making up
| teams and assigning them to raw teamsters,
| who had bat seldom seen n tame mule,
much less n wild one. The moduS operandi
Of making up the teams was 10 take near
| leader and saddle mule that had seen
some service and four wild mules that had
never been bridled. That would leave the
off-leader and the two SWiag-mlIeS and Off
wheeler wild, as it required six mules for
each team. In the center of the corral was
post set soidly in the ground. called a
snubbng post, and to which, after being
lassoad, ali the wild mules were fastened,
their heads drawn to the post and a blind
| thrown over their heads before the bride
could be put on. -->-
| When the mules were harnessed they
were tied or held by some OF the men until
| the full number for a team was ready, when
they were hitched to a Government wagon
in the order named, andi a raw teamster
selected for this particular team mounted
| into the saddle
The gate was then thrown open and the
team let out OH the open prairie. bucking
and kicking as only Texas wild mules can.
! About all the poor teamster could do was tC
| hold on as a deputy wagOn-lnaSter rode
alongside with. a blacksnake whip en-
deavoring to keep the team straight. The
| ground WAS level. and therewas no danger
i ol uI'Setllng, unless tie wagon was cralnpcd
| too much.
The young men who had hired out as
! teamsters were mostly from the Eastern
States; many of them had been counter
jumpers or bOokkeepers i'll mercantile eS-
tabishments in the large cities. and in fact
they were from almost all the different
walks of life, and it was very amusing TO see
the clerks, especially, tackle one of those
teams when made up as described. They
| had been seized with laudab!e desire tc
see the country west Of the Missouri, and
took this opportunity. Many of them had
| been reared in homes OF luxury, and at this
time some had become financially stranded
and had not the price Of square meal; but
all seemed to adapt themselves TO circum-
stances with a good grace.
The teams after having been driven or
! the prairies around the fort for three or four
days became somewhat gentle. IL required
a great many teams TO transport the sup
plies; train load after train load of six-oX
teams had gone ahead Of this command
heavily laden with supplies, for Fort Kearny,