Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1904-10-10
THE GREAT COW COUNTRY
Some Incidents In the Careers Of President
# Roosevelt and Marquis De Mores I'm
pressi0ns of Practical Stock Man.

Guilty is, II suppose, that when the sup
ply of fat beef gives out there is no
source ofsfed beef and nothing for the
packers workmen to do. The near
est city is st. Paul, though one would
think that all Dakota and part Of
Montana would buy the beef. sf,sA s.
s*s =
4 Medora's. fame rests now on the
fact that Teddy Roosevelt, once
ranched there. I found liveryman
at Medora who volunteered to drive
me to the ranch. He was good fell
low, this man. but not man who
talked too much. We drove up the
Little Missouri under patriarchal
cottonwoods, now and then taking
cutoff and going up over the hills.
The road was good. I pictured to
myself the log cabin Of OUT great
presidents younger days, , placed be
side the road. a rippling mountain
stream in front OF It, rustic porch,
huge rock chimney, group Of cow
boys with a woman Or two and. some
children, all proud to be living in
"Roosevet's cabin and !, all having
stories to tell Of him!s imagine, now,
my dismay to learn that no one at all
lived there nor had for years, that no
ranch was operated from there any
more and that part Of the cabin itself
had been torn down and taken to ST.
Louis. We were within half a mile
Of the spot when the wise driver con
fided these facts to me. was en-
ragged However, we went on and \
got aSclear enough idea Of what: the
place must, have been like "a wide,
Fiat, grassy, back ofSitsa lot Of trees, q
stable dug in the sandy bank, then
walled up with logs. Most Of the
cabin yet remains and from the rear
It is no doubt of much the same aspect.
Astdead cow lay within the one-time
kitchen, melancholy reminder that
winters are hard, even as when Teddy
ranched on the Little Missouri and lost
SO heavily himself in those dismal days
| Of s''86 and 81. s~s4 y
z There was q horseshoe half buried
beside the cabin; it, may have been
from one Of Teddy's horses, so 8
brought It along to hang over the
door of the new home at Woodland
Farm ana We came away. On the
wide fat cattle were quietly feeding
good Angus cattle. better no doubt
and quieter than Teddy's were and
photographed them. Whatever may
4 be- thought of our president in Other
places he Is heartily liked out here
yet it is astonishing how few men are
| left at Medora who knew him when be
lived: here His old foreman lives
here. but he is away in hospital;
nevertheless there have been told
enough tales of the doings of Theodore
i
make himself conspicuous here, mind
ing his own business. not mixing witt
, the drinking carousing crowd, al
aristocrat" one man complained to me
1 d As we logged home WEI passed thu
1 Cluster Trail" a horse ranch wher'
Ionce Gen. Custer camped. Here W
were hailed with demands to know
j why we did not stop for dinner Moth
ling loath we tied up. A mighty goo,
d dinner we had, too. Then we wen
out to the corral and watched tn
I branding OF colts and saw som
! bronchos ridden They are goo
j horses, George Donaldson owns then
and the ranch. He has around 100
4 horses here AMI tells me that. the
Il thrive Ii the Bad Lands better thai
q cattle, that they always come ont "a
]. lin spring, even though cattle may far
. pretty hard some years. y Mr.. ;Dor
\ aldson 10 breeding two classes 2
I horses, one Of them a saddle type an
!. mighty good ones he IS producing q
that sort too. with dash Of Thorough
{ Ibred and q good deal Of STANDARD
i bred blood In them. He uses IN pal
j Percheron sires. 54
j The Custer Trail ranch IS we
!, known for its hospitality Every sun
mer and fall = good many peo3''
j young and old come out from HE cas-
I ern cities To rough II there, AZ, Dol
4 aldson tills them mp with the fresh q
1 ana the ravenous appetites Of the Ba
! Islands, then on good ranch fa;e an
I turns them lfso ~ II they want tc I; rig
there ara horses grave y gray. q
/. they want ~ tsar,3, there are Ipae
y animals and tents, There as niarve
i Qua water Id these hills that rivals 4 z
. springs for which Ponce De L ~
|. searched. That explained q uyster.