Griggs courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., Dak. [N.D.]) 1885-1902, 1899-03-23
the leaders got fairly into the middle


the leaders got fairly into the middle
of the river ,'long comes big cotton
wood tree a-driftin' en- whirlin' down
stream right into 'em. That skeert 'em
an turned 'em. an fore we knowed it
they was doubled back on the balance
an swimmin' round an round, for all
the world like driftwood in q big eddy
in creek. This was what jackson
was afeerd of, an he pushed his boss
into the river an takes his six-shooter
in his hand. He was ridin' a little Pinto
pony they called Blue JAY one of the
best all-round COW ponies ever see.
"Old Blue Jay he jist seemed to
swan long without any fuss. When
Jackson gifts out close to the
millin' steers he begin 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 it is to get near steera-swimmin'
in the water, for he's sure to try
to climb up on you. jackson knowed
this, but he swan Blue Jay right slap
dab inter the bunch an tried to scatter
'em am 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 crowd
ed 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 un-
der all the time, an they was packed so
close a Teller couldn't come up between
'em, any way. The boys in the boat
tried to do something, but It want no
use, fer he never come up, an when
they got too close one big steer throwed
his head over the side of the boat an
purity nigh upset 'em, so they had to
keep away to save themselves. But
they KEEP up a-shootin' an a-hollerin'
till the leaders finally struck out for
the sh2re, an in q few minutes the
whole herd was strung out for the op-
posite side, an sooner than kin tell
it they was all standin' on dry land, an
not single one missin'.
Meantime, the boys in the boat had
watched everywhere for pore Jackson's
body, but they never got sight of it,
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 foatin' tree an carried
down with it., Pore old Blue Jay come
aoatin' past 'em, an they tried to catch
him, but the current was so swift they
couldn't do it. All they wanted was to
get Jackson's silver-mouthed bride
off n him, cause twas easy huff to see
that the pony was quite dead.
"Well, the rest of us crossed in the
big ferry-boat 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 see eff Jackson's body could be
found, but the Teller what run the ferry
said It want no use lookin' fer him,
cause the swift current would carry
him miles and miles down the canyon
without ever lodgin' anywhere. So we
went back, an Shorty gave it up an de-
cided to push the herd on next day.
We was blue ole crowd that night
around the campfire, tell you. All
the boys liked Jackson, an besides,
they was a-thinkin' of his wife an two
kids what was a-waitin' for him at the
head-quarter ranch up in Utah.
Shorty sent letter from the next
settlement to the ole man, a-tellin' him
what had happened, an we come along
up with the cattle, arrivin' safely at the
ranch without any more misfortunes."
can didn't they never find Jackson's
body, Colly?" queried the Kid.
"Wal," said Colly, ''that's singular
thing, too. When we gets back to the
ranch the ole man helwas orful cut up
about it, an hated to think that the
body wasn't found. He'd been down in
the Grand Canyon the summer afore
with lot of fellers, an he said he be-
lieved he could find it bout hundred
miles below the ferry, cause thar were
place thar down in the canyon whar
the walls widened out fer, some 20
miles, an thar was quite a 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 it was jist
scratch, but I'm blest if after four or
five days huntthey didn't find it lodged
in pile of drift along the river. Twas
easy huff to tell Jackson's BODY. fer