Barbour County index., 1910-03-16

lzatlonS ever known-invited his
special attention to their herds
and contributed a monthly ac-
knowledgment of $3.50, which, with his nnmer.
GUS fees, made his income an annie one
often as large as $500 a month-some+iroao
double this amount
among the members of the association was
Sam Lazarus. Soon after McDonald's ar
rangement with the cattlemen Lazarus was
sending a herd of perhaps a thousand head
into Kansas, driving them across the Terri
tory. Pat Wolforth was In charge of this herd
and when Just beyond the Territory line in
very lonely district, met with misfortune
one evening near nightfaIl the cattle sud-
denly became frightened, doubtless by some
oeVlce OF the outlaws, and Wolforth and his
men found 1t impossible to control them
general stampede followed and Lazarus cattle
were scattered over the prairies and through
the Businesses Of the Strip-a prey to the
spoilers lying in wait every hand 1t was
a heavy disaster and there seemed little hone
OF much in the way of recovery
BIZ Mcdonald took no such view of the
situation With Pat Wolforth he Immediately
visited the scene of the stampede and began
looking for cattle with the "Diamond-taiI"
such being the trademark of the Lazarus herd
1t was ticklish undertaking. Some of the
catue mad been butchered and they of course
were lost. Others had been absorbed by the
herds Of the men. who. though not regularly
engaged In COW stealing were in nowise par
ucular as to whose cows they got and well
coined anything that browsed unguarded on
the range
Mcdonald began by prevailing upon the
honest ranchmen in that section to Join at
once IN general roundup, by which means a
great number Of cattle could be collected and
distributed to their rightful owners
1t mattered little to Mcdonald and VOL
1orth where they found the Diamond-tail brand
they took the cattle: peaceably if possible.
forctbly II necessary 1t was a sudden and
energetic procedure and resulted in the recov-
cry OF the greater number of the lost drove of
Lazarus.
1t resulted further in a definite plan by Bill
Mcdonald for the disbursement of cattle
stealing in the Territory and for the canture
or those most actively engaged in that in
oustry. The back country was very sparsely
settled and the Indians and half-breed whites
ana negroes were not especially interested in
law and order, even where they were not di.
rectly concerned In opposing these things
Nearly all. however, made a pretense of
agricultural employments. There were towns
OF considerable size, and railroads-the latter
affording liberal returns now and then when
some train was waited upon in a lonely place
and the express messengers, mail agents and
passengers were invited at the point of six
shooters to contribute to highway deyelop-
ment fund.
Bill Mcdonald decided to break up this sort
OF thing and set about 1t in way suggested
by his own peculiar genius. Investigation
must be conducted openly and yet in a way
to avoid suspicion.
Returning to Quanah and Wanderers creek
Mcdonald allowed his beard to grow mutton
chop fashion. bought paint horse" IA snot
ted pony, an old tenderfoot saddle such as a
plainsman would never use-and a book with
pretty pictures OF fruit in it-a nurseryman's
plate book, the kind fruit tree statesmen
always carry. Then. dressed as unlike an off,
Ger or a cowman or a Texan as possible, with
these properties he set out, to all appearances
a genial, garrulous. easy going tree man. will
ing to sit around all day and whittle and swan
knives and yarns and to express any kind of
interest or sympathy necessary to encourage
a man to tell his business ventures and those
of his neighbors
It was pleasant excursion enough No
fruit tree man had been through that section
before-none had dared, or perhaps
thought 1t worth while to CO. McDonald's ex
cursion proved that profit awaited the SELLER
OF trees who should first make that wilderness
his territory. Most of those bad men had
been fairly good boys at home at some time
in the past and the sight of those luminous
plates, presenting fruit OF extravagant size
and coloring, made their mouths fairly water
at the thought of its cultivation by the door
way of their own dugout sod house or log
cabin. They turned the pages lovingly and
fingered over the wonderful plums and pears
and peaches As they turned they talked and