The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1909-11-26
IND OF THE COWBOY.
The West Finds That 1t No
Longer Needs Him. 80 -


On the second day matters looked a
little squally for the Indians, but Sui
livan was on the job and chased back
the first party who suggested going
over and paying night visit to the
redskins.
Seymour had admirable advantages
for a gathering Of this kind. The
road to the town, which then had
population Of 800, was wide and fiat,
and gave them a fine course for the
furious races between the cowboys on
their swift ranch horses.
On the second night of the reunion
Seymour saw the remarkable specta-
Gle Of 10000 cowboys riding back in
to town, at breakneck speed, each
man with his six-shcoter out, firing
into the air.
The bombardment lasted for more
than an hour, and the splitting Of the
flashes and the. defamation of the
shots made most thrilling effect.
Prohibition was another visitor
that had not yet made its way into
the Far West, and in order to take
care of the thirst needs of the guests,
thirty temporary saloons were insti-
tuted. These were crowded night
and day, and in spite of the amount
Of liquor consumed there was little
disorder.
Occasionally there were fights. Two
big cowboys battled furiously with
their fists for an hour before one
was forced to give up, but there was
no shooting in the affray, for each
man turned over his pistol to friends
before the combat started
Some of the men who took part
in the festivities had hundreds of
miles to ride to get back to their
ranches. In fact, there were some
who came from as far as New Mex
leo, Arizona, Colorado and Montana.
So great a success was the whole
affair that it was resolved to make
it an annual event, and it looked as
though the spirit of the Western life
had been saved by getting the COM
rades together once more.
Then came the war with Spain.
That helped the game of the cowboy,
for Theodore Roosevelt, remember
ing the valor Of some of the men who
had been his companions in the days
when he was recruiting his present
robust health by a life on the plains,
formed a regiment Of rough riders,
a most striking company, and the
plaudits Of the whole nation went out
to these men who went up San Juan
Hill with the gallant Colonel.
But the modern encroachments
were not to be stayed. Civilization
didn't feel just the same to the cow
boy as the nation did.
Real estate operators found that
lot of the land used for grazing could
under proper conditions be turned in
to the most fertile farm land and
yield a far greater profit.
The life of Texas underwent
change. The farmer began to take
the place of the cattlemen, and even
where the latter managed to main
tain his way be began to apply new
methods to the care of his herds.
The automobile began to be seen
in the West. At first the cowboy
laughed. What could the motorcar
do to push him out of his calling? 1t
couldn't tame a bronco, it couldn't
shoot and certainly was unable to
throw a lariat.
But the auto got over the road
fast. 1t could make a round Of the
ranch at far greater speed. 1t wasn't
like a horse. 1t never tired out, and
an automobile of fair size could take
around four men who could do the
work Of a dozen under the primitive
conditions Of the West.
And so the settlement of new Sec
tons and the application of modern
methods has had the gradual effect
of forcing the cowboy further and
further into the West and Southwest.