The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-10-25
A Dangerous Milking.
By HERBERT COOLIDGE.
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The camp was at Oak Grove III Cal
ifornia; my companion was veteran
prOspector. The conversation had
turned to the undesirable occupations.
Anything for me you can mention,
declared Waters, but the life of pro-
fessional mixer The average COW
brute is as fussy and as Eighty as
captive blue jay.
Furthermore, you must bend like
a broken reed before the varying
moods, for the COW that can be re-
formed at all will be reformed through
kindness When one milks in an open
corral, and has string of twenty
five or thirty range cattle, as is the
case on many of these California but
ter dairies, the wear and tear on the
disposition is something appalling.
81 suffered many things from all
sorts of cows in my dairying days, but
the toughest treatment came a good
many years after I had solemnly vowed
to quit the business forever.
ST was prospecting far back among
the San Bernardino Mountains when
my partner fell sick, and could eat
nothing Said he one morning:
"Tt's not that I'm throwing off on
your cooking Dan, but day and night
and night and day my yitals howl for
milk, and nothing else will they con-
slider for moment
:" Then milk you shall have said |,
for | am an ex-milker, and Friend
Jackson's range cattle have just come
up from the desert. My term expired
in IA, but to save your life I'll again
expose myself to the indignities which
the COW brutes of California seldom
fail to heap upon whoever mill1s them
with this word, took an ak and
some baling wire, and in an hours
quick work built pole corral that was
calf-tight and cow-high Then, taking
a pack rope, went down the canyon
to meadow where range cattle were
feeding.
They sighted NE the moment |
broke cover, and they struck for the
high timber with horns and tails fly
ing. After some time of bawling and
brush breaking on the mountain above
me, they pulled out for another mea-
dow.
Later in the day I approached them
so carefully that they suspected moth
ing. AS the afternoon wind came up,
the youngest calves lay down on the
sunny side Of ledge of granite that
iutted up near the edge Of the forest.
When the cows had wandered off about
hundred yards, made good use Of a
golden opportunity.
Cutting off u couple Of short
lengths from my pack rope, | put them
between my teeth, and crawled like
snake to the granite ledge, keeping
behind trees where / could, and hitch
ing across the open spaces in the brief
interval when the grazing COWS were
all heads down
every softly I tipt0ed round the base
of the rock pile and with a flying
leap landed astride a sleeping calf.
B-a-a-a-an he called. 'Baw-a-a-a-
a-aw!'
"All his little mates scrambled up
and away. BL4 every cow in the bunch
lowered her horns, and with angry,
startled believing. charged to the res
cue of the bawing yOungster.
"The sight of that phalanx of horns
scared me so badly that nothing but
the thought Of Pete held me to my
purpose.
'Baw-a-a-a-aw. yelled the calf,
again. 'B-a-a-a-aw. and he wiggled
and kicked as he bleated
"FIe was a vigorous lad, but although
my hurry made me tumble beyond
reason I stayed with him until he was
firmly hog-tied The foremost COW
was not ten yards distant when