El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1901-02-27
OLD DAYS IN TEXAS.
The Extravagances of the Flush Cat
tlemen of Days Gone By.
dallas News.)


dallas News)
The old Judge was in a reminiscent
mood. That was plain by the manner
inv which he directed his fire at the
big cuspidor half way across the hotel
lobby.
"The papers tell u.s. he finally be-
gan, that the Texas. steer, that IA
nous animal with long horns and a
brand bigger than gridiron, is passing
away. His companion, the being
whose face is grizzled and whose boots
are of rawhide and whose profanity is
appalling. is also going over the
great divide. The first is being sue
cecded by grade Shorthorns, Here
| fords and others of the swell set in
cattledom. while the latter is giving
away to the cold-blooded business man
who has reduced cattle raising and
feeding to a science, and whofOllows
that avocation not because he knows
nothing else. but because he has found
it to be profitable.
well, sir, with the passing of these
| two. the great commonwealth of the
Southwest loses it's most picturesque
features. By those who have spent the
greater portion of their lives in this
country, by the cowboy, whose only
companion for weeks at a time have
been the longhorned boys and whose
only boss the picturesque man in raw
hide boots-by all who still possess a
little sentiment in spite of the CONNER
cial spirit of the age. this will be
noted with feelings of the deepest re-
greet. Much has been said against the
long horn and more against the cat
tlemen. but the former brouht many
a dollar into Texas and kept it here
and the latter was a most important
factor in the development of this state.
And speaking of development, am
reminded of the great cattle boom we
had here back in the sos. Almost any
thing that wore horns and hair was |
worth its weight in gold. Texas cat |
tlemen had more money then than they |
had ever possessed before, or as it was |
proved to the satisfaction
Of all, they would have for many a long
year to come. / don't know what |
caused the boom. Thoroughbred cat
tie didn't do it, for in those days the
longhorn was still king. But l do not
know that cattle raising and feeding
were, for time, very profitable indeed.
There We're many men who received in
profits more money than they knew
what to do with. Literally, and not
hguratively, they had money to burn.
for some of them actually showed Off
by lighting cigars with $40
bills.
1T was about the time this boom
struck Texas that cattlemen acquired
/ passion for diamonds. If one man
bought stone as big as the nail on ,
lis little finger his neighbor must have
,ne that was as big as his thumb nail
This brought into existence class
If peddlers, the like of whom was new I
# known before, and very probably {
lever will be known again. They did
lot handle tinware nor sell cement that ,
would even mend a broken heart Their
took in trade was diamonds-yes, sir. r
nd of the finest, too. Think Of it, will J
Oui The idea of a man trOtting along =
ver the plains of west Texas with i
200, 900 worth of diamonds in his grip T
nd selling them to the owners of q
anches just like other peddlers of the h
resent time sell suspenders and shoe
trings to the farmers who are too busy | h
, go to town. Yet 1 know it to be h
lct because l have seen such peddlers r.
nj witnessed the display of their II
ares made right out upon the open n
rairie. l have often wondered why a
ley were not robbed, but there is not Ii
case on record, SO far as l know of o.
here one of these fellows ever suffer v
loss at the hands Of a highwayman.
After the diamond craze came the A
axe for watches of fabulous value. h
S soon as it began the diamond
,ddlers changed stocks. Hand pt
tchelS that had heretofore been 81
lcked with precious stones now con- tr
ined watches and watch chains and tn
arms. have seen a cattleman pay kl
90 for a watch that he bought on his pr
nch from one of these peddlers. The :
nepiece was generally 1S-karat gold eli
tn steer head engraved on the front he
and a prairie scene on the back. 1t
Is not unusual for the steers eyes
be of small diamonds and maybe ed
ere would be a good sized stone in en-
e place where the brand ought to be. pa
lie biggest kind OF diamonds were In III
e watch charms. hi
so long as live 1 will never forget
incident witnessed in Panhandle uu
wn one day. A cattleman pulled IN,
I'm his pocket a watch of the kind l
We described.
ked a companion, who owned an adj
ming ranch. lal
Five hundred dollars was the re- Iii,
= MI
Pulling from his pocket watch tn
At was identical in every respect to ne
3 other, the questioner said that he SCI
one just as good which had cost Pr
n but $500. US
'Umph!,' said the man with the $500 ~
Itch, I'll bet 500 that I can throw &c
ne further down the street than you NV
n &C
The money was flashed in a minute IN
4 the watches were hurled through WI
2 air. Then these two men actually ON
liked leisurely down the street and US
.ked nm what was left of tbose So
tcheS The condition nj tho fiolyarc | TN