The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1903-07-02


succeeding train is scarcely out OF
sight OF thu smoke OF the train ahead.
Tail. angular Texans. wearing white
slouoh hat and big checked California
trousers tucked into their boots go
from car TO car whenever the train
stops ana examine the cars. Often
steer lies down, and II not put on his
feet Ia soon trampled to death by his
companions. When one steer goes
down there Is danger of others STUN
bling over his body and falling, and II
not closely watched, FIVE or six steers
soon will be piled in a heap and killed
by trampling and suffocation Every
dead steer means a loss Of money.
The COW punchers seize their "prods,"
which are simply strong oaken poles
with a spiked end and the steer that
lis down learns that he is in trouble.
The steel spike is jammed into him
with savage persistency that quick
ly brings him TO mis- feet If he has
strength enough to get up. Often the
steer is too weak, and the puncher Is
compelled 10 enter the car. climb ov-
er the frigt tened cattle, dodging their
rattling hotns, drop down among theDt
seize the iecumbent steer by the tail
and yank him to his feet. This is
called "tailing up" One puncher
worked for two hours one night last
week in a car that was bouncing along
at the rate of fifty miles an hour and,
to use his own language, he could
hardly ayigate" when he got cat.
Cattle seldom go down when the train
is running the jerking and jostling
when the train stops is what throws
them from their feet A steer is al
most certain to go to the bottom If
he lowers fis horns far enough for an
other steer to push down upon them
with his kody
Wners Herds are Bunched.
The heaviest shipments have come
from Brady and San Angelo, Tex,
where the herds are punched from the
country further west. From twenty.
five to thirty head are put into car
and train load is from twenty-five
TO thirty cars. Once under way. the
engineer pulls the throttle open and
burns the air" The fire-box becomes
red. roaring furnace the smoke
stack pours out clouds of black smoke
the cars sway and lurch from side to
side, threatening to plunge into riv
ers and leap from high embankments
end chains and drawbars pound and
ljangle, but the man in the cab never
loses his nerve A train Of thirty cars
that left Brady, Tex. at o'clock p
m. reached here at midnig, 4. the fol
lowing day.
Back in the caboose the COW punch
ers sit and "chew the rag" with the
Icsnductor When a cattleman loads
his cattle the first thing he does is to
hitch up his trousers, roll a cigarette
or cut off slice of plug. harden both
his muscles and his heart and resolve
to make the railroad company dc
business according 10 Hoyle" He in
sistsupon watering his cattle, and
kicks for time to punch up fallen
steers The conductor begrudges ev
cry minute of delay. The train dis
patcher has his eye on him, and con
trolls his chances Of promotion. He
dare not delay his own train, except
for the best of reasons, and to stanC
in the wa, of those In the rear that
are burning tons of coal to overtakt
him would be as foolish as to gel
drunk and walk into the superintend
ent's office and demand a raise IL
salary. Despite the seeming dtscord
both the trainmen and the cattlemer
know that much of what the othel
says simply what each calls "hot air.
and both shake hands at the end o.
the run I'D wish each other all kind:
of good luck
Trainmen Are Like Sailors.
In running cattle train, the con
ductor and his brakemen now live IL
the cabooss, as sailor lives aboarS
his ship. Instead OF stopping at wa,
stations for their meals, which thel
have ordered In advance by telegraph
they build a fire in their cook stove
boil their coffee and fry their eggs an'
steak. with the train running as fas
as the locomotive can pull it. TIT
COW punchers growl at this innovation
IThnr have long hnan accnstnnn.ad Il