The Portland daily press., 1899-04-01

| eli 'xsctly what 20 do. But this here Colo
rado at Lees Ferry IL bad place to
tackle, fer you're bound TO get out on the
other side afore you get into the box can
Won. or your names DenniA cause once
feller gete into the canyon he's got 10 60
on clean down about 100 miles sfore he
can strike level plsce big enuff TO crawl
out on.
"Soon as the cattle got well strung out
jackson began to undress hisself. He took
of all his clothes but his shirt, an thcn b.
buckled his six shooter belt around him
an pulled the saddle off'n his hoss
~ says, Bill, you amt a-goin to try 10
swim II, are yous' an he says No, nos
less have to; but IL thsy gets to millin
out thar wen lose the whole herd, an ths
only way to break II up Is TO ride out an
shoot among 'em an skeer EN- He know
ed it were risky, fer II anything went
wrong he was shore TO be carried into the
canyon an drowned. But Bill jackson
want the sort Of q wagon boss to stop at
anything to save the herd, an sure nun,
bout the time the leaders got fairly into
the middle of the river, long comes big
cottonwood tree a-driftin an whirlin down
stream right into em. That skeert 'em an
turned 'em, an fore we knowed 1t they
Wh4 uOuDleu pteCk OD tile Doihutc bu sW AL
min round an round, for all the world like
driftwood in big eddy In creek. This
was what jackson was afeerd OF, an he
pushed his hoss into the river an takes his
six shooter In his hand. He was ridin 1T
tie Pinto pony they called Blue Jay, one Of
the best all round COW ponies 1 ever see.
"Old Blue jay ne jist seemed to save
what was wanted Of him an swum long
without any fuss When jackson gits out
close to the millin steers he begins to holler
an shoot an he called to the fellers in the
boat to come back an try to stop 'em.
Now YOU all know what a risky thing IL
is to 60 near steer a-swimmin In the
water for he's sure 70 try to climb up on
you. jackson knowed this but he swum
Blue Jay right slapdab inter the bunch
an tried to scatter 'em an stop 'em from
millin.
".Just how it happened we couldn't tell,
but first thing we seen jackson was right
in the middle OF the millin critters, an in
minute they had crowded pore old Blue
Jay under, an all we seen of jackson was
his hands went up an then he was lost in
the whirlin mass of horns that was goin
round an round. A man had no chance at
all to swim, cause their hoofs KEEP him
under all the time, an they was packed 80
close Teller couldn't come up between
'em, anyway.
1.-THE boys in the boat tried to do some
thing, but twa mt no use, fer he never
come up, an when they got too close one
big steer throwed his head over the side OF
che boat an purity nigh upset EN-, 80 they
had to keep away to save themselves. But
they KEEP up a-shootin an a-holle-in till
the leaders finally struck out fer the shore,
an in a few minutes the whole herd was
strung out fer the opposite side, an sooner
than kin tell 1t they was all standin on
dry land an not a single one missin.
Meantime the boys In the boat had
watched everywhere fer pore jackson 3
body, but they never got sight of 1t,
though they went clean into the mouth Of
the box canyon. They was lots Of big
trees an drift a-runnin, an we guessed his
body had been caught In the branches OF
fioatin tree an carried down with it.
Pore old Blue Jay come floatin past 'em,
an they tried to catch him, but the cur
rent was so swift they couldn't do 1t. All
they wanted was to get Jackson's silver
mounted bride Off him, cause twas
easy huff to see that the pony was quite
dead
We'll, the rest of us crossed in the big
ferryboat an rounded up the steers, which
was grain up the canyon on the other side,
an moved em out a couple of miles to
camp. Shorty, bein the Oldest hand in
the outfit, took charge an sent two of us
back to the ferry to try an sec if .jacksons
body could be found, but the feller what
run the ferry said twa'n't no use lookin
fer him, cause the swift current would
carry him miles an miles down the can
yon without ever lodgin anywhere SO
we went back, an Shorty gave it up an
decided to push the herd on next day. We
was blue ole crowd that night around
the campfire, 1 tell you. All the boys
liked jackson, an besides they was think
In of his wife an two kids what was
a.waitin for him at the headquarters ranch
up in Utah.
Shorty sent a letter from the next set
tlement TO the olo man, a-tellin him what
had happened, an we come along up with
the cattle, arrivin safely at the ranch with
out any moro misfortunes
IAN didn't they never find Jackson's
body, Colly?" queried the Kid.
WAL" said Colly, "that's a singular
thing too. When we gets back to the ranch
the ole man he was orful cut up about 1t,
an hated to think that the body wasn't
canyon the summer afore with q lot of fell
lers, an he said he believed he could find
it bout 100 miles below the ferry, cause
thar were a place thar down in the canyon
whar the walls widen out fer some 30
miles, an thar was quite wide valley with
grassy meadows an trees. So he takes one
of the boys an pack outfit an goes off
down thar They had to leave everything
on top Of the canyon an climb down a-foot
an pack their stuff ON their backs. The
walls was 5000 feet high thar, an they had
hard time gettin down. Course 1t was
jist a scratch, but I'm blest if after four
or five days hunt they didn't find it lodged
in u pile of drift along the river. Twas
easy 'nuff to tell Jackson's body, fer he'd
had two fingers Of his left hand shot off in
fight once. So they takes it to place
in the valley whar it was safe from flood,
an buries it as well as they could, an the
next fall, when twas cold, he went back
an packed the remains out of the canyon
an took them clean to the ranch an buried
'em iist as if 1t was his own brother. tell
you, the boys was ady to swear by the
ole man after that