The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-01-12
WONDERS WITH LARIAT.
WESTERNERS ARE SKILLED IA
 THE USE OF THE ROPE.

But the Art is Dying Out Among Cow
 boys-RODe Juggling and. Jumping
 Through the LOop-COntests Which
 Call for Unusual Skill With the
 Rawhides
 A slim young fellow in picturesque cowboy attire had been doing some diff ficult feats in horsemanship for the de- lectation of 8 small but critical crowd in the sprightly cow town of Gillette Wyo.
 Now show us a few stunts with the rope' shouted a capable looking COW puncher, who had not been slow to ex- press his admiration of the others skill
 The boy obligingly unfastened the pleated raWhide that hung looped at his saddle, and then began an exhibition that delighted the assembled cowmen and sheep herders, says the Denver correspondent of the New Orleans Times Democrat.
 First the lad. who was called Jim, roped dog that happened along at an tll-chosen moment. One delft twist of the slippery snake like leather, and the dog was free. One of the boys oblig ingly took his saddle off his horse and started the animal down the street, past Jim, at rattllng pace. Almost without perceptible effort Jim cast the rawhide and the obedient moose settled over the head of the broncho. Instead of being pulled tight at the neck, how ever, the moose was allowed to slip down over the horses front feet. An other instant and the broncho would have leaped through the moose, but just at the psychological moment Jim jerked the lariat, and the broncho was caught by both hind feet. Quickly and clever ly releasing the animal befor 1t fell, Jim coiled his rope and swung off his broncho. Standing in the middle of the street he made the rope describe the most astounding gyrations. 1t writhed and twisted like a live thing, always obedient to his hand and finally, mak- ing shining circle of the rope, Jim 1CelESd AlA tSAAN iAlt5 lll leap in and out of great hoop
 In spite of the fact that the cow boys sphere of influence is constantly narrowing, and there is less occasion for using the rope than in the days of the great herds, there are many skillful ropers in the West They appear at nearly all the broncho-busting enter t,av ;aI, tt1 the West, and their work is always one of the chief features of the day. There is something about the delft handling of the rope that fairly fascinates the aver age audience, and the cowboys them selves never tire of watching their champions And the boss roper of every roundup outfit always has his earnest partisans when he enters a contest.
 One of the s@.vorite tricks of the lari- at experts iE to make the lasso whirl about in a perfect circle and then leap in and out of the moose. Sometimes this Is done by two performers. One will leap into the center of the moose and will make the rope play about his waiste. Then the other roper will stoop and crawl inside the circle. The second man will reach up and take the rope from the first and the latter will then 1 stoop and make his way out of the circle. All the time the rope will be playing about the bodies of ropers In the form of a hoop. but not once will 1t { touch the clothing of either. This is a l feat that calls for great strength of | wrist, as we'll as accuracy of movement. l Probably the most spectacular game 1 is a sort of battle royal, which several skilled ropers enter. The cowboy who 1 gets his moose over the moose over the moose of another contestant scores a l lasso is thus roped retires from the con- test until finally only one is left. The men keep their nooses playing all the time, and the game is one hat calls for the greatest skill This Is a game that the cowboy spectators enjoy as thor oughly as the men who take part, and each champion is backed to win. 1 lassot sactmpao ntoperyul, otht,w. WIS
 The lariat is Spanish, thename be- ing derived from Ia reata," hence 1t is not surprising to find many of the best ropers in the Southwest where the l Spanisb-American element is large l These southwestern yaqueros almost invariably cling to the rawhide lariat while the cow-punchers of Wyoming and Montana usually go in for the less l expensive rope. A properly made raw hide Iariat will run more smoothly and is less liable to kinks, however, this may have something to do with the phenomenal skill shown by the South. western ropers.
 The average lariat is about forty feet long. If it is rawhide its braiding is a matter of extreme care and del icacy. The work of some of the COW. boys in this regard is something won. derful. Tom Horn, the noted scout who was hanged in Cheyenne few years ago for too free use of firearms 1T ridding tla range of ranchers ant sheepmen, was an expert at making ropes of rawhide and it is said no mar in the West ever surpassed him. After it is braided and thoroughly stretched the honda, or small loop formed ant the lariat is ready for use. If it k
 made of rope it stretched out betweer two trees, to free it from kinks. By the time it is cofled at. the cowboys saddle it is flexible and strong, and 1T
 the hands of a master it is truly a won derful weapon.
 | If does not always follow that tht