Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1903-05-05
As A COWBOY.
Presidents Present Trip Recalls
Many Experiences.
A TRUE FRONTIER STORY.

President Roosevelt was probably
never so happy as in the old cowboy
days when he ran a band OF cattle for
profit and hunted for fun. His present
trip to the west recalls many of the old
experiences Of which he speaks as fol-
lows:
ITO some men the sunny monotony
of the great plains is wearisome. Per-
sonally there are few things | have en-
joyed more thar journeying over them
where the game was at all plentiful.
Sometimes | have gone off for three or
four days alone on horseback with a
slicker or an oilskin coat behind the
saddle and some salt and hardtatck
as my sole provisions. hut for comfort
on a trip Of any length it was always
desirable to have a wason.
my regular outfit consisted of an
outfit and team driven by one man
who cooked. together with another
man and four riding ponies, two of
which we rode while the other two
were driven loose or led behind the
wagon. While it is eminently desir-
able that a hunter should he able to
rough II and should be entirely willing
to put up with the bare minimum of
necessities and undergo great fatigue
and hardship. it is yet not at all neces-
sary that he should refrain from CON-
fort of a wholesome sort when it is
obtainable. BY taking the wagon we
coult carry a tent to put up If there
wa foul weather.
81 usually had a change of clothes
to put on If | was wet, two or three
books to read-and nothing adds more
to the enjoyment of a hunting trip
as well as plenty of food; while hav-
ing two men made me entirely foot
loose as regards camp, so that | could
hunt whenever | pleased and if | came
in tired I simply rested instead of
spending two or three hours in pitch
ing camp, cooking. lettering horses
and doing the innumerable other
little things which in the aggregate
amount to so much. On such a trip
when we got into unknown country
1t was of course necessary to stay
near the wagon especially If we had
to hunt for water. But II we thew the
country at all we would decide in the
morning about where the camp was to
be made in the afternoon and then l
would lope off on my own account
while the wagon numbered slowly
across the rough prairie sward
straight toward it's destination.
Sometimes I took the spare man
with me mi sometimes not. 1t was
convenient to nave him for there are
continually small emergencies in
which it is well to be with a compan-
ion. For Instance If one jumps off
for a sudden shot there is always
a slight possibility that any hut a
thoroughly trained horse will brighten
n gallop away. On some of my
horses | could absolutely depend. but
there are others and good ones too
which would on rare occasions fail
me and few things are more disheart-
ening than a long stern chase after
ones steed under such circumstances
with the unpleasant possibility of see
ing ii leave the country entirely and
strike out for a ranch fifty or sixty
miles distant. If there is a companion
with one all danger of this is over.
Moreover in galloping at full speed
after the game it is impossible now
n then to avoid a tumble as the
horse may put his leg into a prairie
hole or badger burrow and on such
occasions a companion may come in
handily. On the other hand there is
SO great a charm in absolute solitude
In the wild lonely freedom of the great
plains that often | would make some
excuse and go off entirely by myself.
such rides had a fascination of
their own Hour after hour the why
pony shufied onward across the sea
OF shor matted grass. On every
side the plains stretched seemingly
limitless. Sometimes there would be
no object to break the horizon; some
dme across a score of miles there
would loom through the clear air the
fantastic outlines of a chain of buttes,
rising grim and barren. Occasionally
there might be a slightly marked
watercourse. every drop of moisture
long dried and usually there would
not be so much as the smallest sage
brush anywhere in sight. As the sun
rose higher and higher the shadows
of the horse and rider shortened and
the beams were reflected from the
short bleached blades until in the hot
air the landscape afar off seemed to
dance and waver. Often on such trips
days went by without coming across
another human being and the loneli-
ness and v%astness Of the country
seemed as unbroken as IL the old van
ished days had returned-the days of
wild wilderness wanderers and the
teeming myriads of game they fol-