Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-04-21
COWBOY MET TRAGIC FATE.
Attempted to Prevent Stampede Of
Cattle and Goes Over Cliff.

from the old sod, instead Of Walla
Walla, but the chances are that he
had never known any other than the
range country. Otherwise he would
not have had time to learn all he
knows of cattle and bronchos, or to
have so thoroughly forgotten whatever
he might have known Of fear of eau
ton in softer and safer surround
ings.
Not yet 21, tall, slender and 1.-the
as rawhide, he was the cowpuncher
from his hatband to heavy spurs, the
widest rider from the Snake to the
northern border. Rarely was there
anything missing from his makeup,
Especially when Jack had arrived in
town.
That roundup he Joined at the
ferry was the last on a vast scale held
In eastern Washington. Beef cattle
by the tens Of thousands roamed the
range then from the Cascade to the
Occur dAlenes, but settlers shacks
had begun to dot the sage and the
terrible winter Of 1S90-91 was coming
to thin the herds down to scattered,
bony bands. But in 1888 the inland
empire was as alive with cowboy ro-
nance and action as the John Day
Valley, the country around old Tue
son or the endless ranches Of Texas.
The gathering camp at Texas ferry
brought together the best of the
punchers that were left on the range
They came in from Montana, Idaho
and Oregon, bringing with them Scupe
Lloyd and Bill Ireland, afterward to
become famed the country over as the
crack broncho buster" Of Buffalo
Bilps show. Bill Lewis, champion
roper Of the west, bossed the outfit
Their fires cleaned around the ferry
for few nights and then they pulled
out into the sage. Ten "chuck" wag-
ons rolled along in the rear with food
and bedding. The horse wranglers
had 500 ponies to bring along. 1t
was cowland at its best, just before
cowland became a vivid memory.
| Naturally, in bunch like that, Jack
reckless riding and in the horse work
around the big camp he found all the
competition of that kind that could
be brought together. They had a
bunch Of wild horses to break before
they started. When they got the worst
fighter Of the lot sorted out Jack got
on him with only halter and ran
him over trail nobody cared to try
except on a wise and seasoned COW
pony. AS finishing touch he jump
ed the crazed animal over q six-foot
II hnV L. tN1k@ lN IL. T. Il 4. q. Il
rect and brought him into camp meek
and uninjured.
| From Texas ferry the roundup work.
ed down the Snake to old Ainsworth,
on the Columbia, and turned north.
| Pasco happened to be in their way
Unlike the Pasco Of today, the town
then consisted principally of saloons.
In the absence Of grand opera and IL
braries these attracted the cowboys
curiosity. They arrived In town on the
| jump, creating noisy and smoky sit
uation with their uplifted sixshooters.
This preliminary failed to satisfy
Jack and after q seasonable period ct
the bar he undertook to amplify Il.
Drifting gayly into q saloon frequented
by railroad men he encouraged q gen.
eral Jig by shooting neatly at the feet
displayed about the floor. The barten-
der, being new to the country, caught
Jack from behind and the Jig was con-
| tinued largely on Jacks anatomy, ev-
erybody joining in. Eventually they
jigged him into the street handily and
remarked upon the circumstances
| happily-for about a minute.
Then Jack returned and the cowboy
population of the town seemed to be
with him. They all wanted to get ac-
quainted with the bartender and his
friends retired through the back door.
The cowboys went into the saloon bus
mess on a common benefit basis.
When they got ready to start for camp
the building formerly occupied by the
saloon remained In a fragmentary con-
dition. The bartender never did return.
The roundup went on up the river
until 1t reached Mudhen Lake, the main
beef gather" The place was known
all through cowland for its favorable
location on the roundup. It offered
plenty Of water and a corral rock that
would hold thousands Of cattle. A cor
raj rock is one Of the stone projections
that shoot up in the Inland Empire to
a height of 100 feet or more. They
are fat on top, the sides are perpen-
dicular and bunch Of cattle gathered
on the rock with a man to guard the
one trail they were driven up couldn't
get away without wings. The big
roundup put several thousand head Of
beef on the rock at Mudhen Lake.
Jack had the watch from dark till
midnight the first night there. He sad
died a young mule for the work. A
mule is more surefooted than even a
range pony and possesses keener after
dark wisdom than most humans. They
saw Jack standing by brush fire In
the trail when the camp turned In.
Zrfifr$Oq poWwl ese aaUulktc
1t was a hard watch, for the outfit
had ridden hard all day and Jack
couldn't move around far enough away
from the trail to keep his senses alert.
The herd rested easily, however, un-
til nearly midnight, the hour Of the
first relief, when Jack could go to his
blankets. He had snapped his watch
on 11.3O and almost dropped into nap
when a rumble up on the cliff brought
him up on the jump.
| On the highest point Of the cliff
above he could see the swaying horns
and heads of frightened cattle. 1t may
have been a wolf or the mysterious
electric impulse in the air that sends
cattle stampeding blindly over any
thing in their path. Jack recognized
the symptoms and the danger to the
cattle, but nothing else.
| To turn the herd back from the rim
Of the rock would have Deen ticklish
job I'm daylight. Any movement be-
hind them would start the rear lOT-
ward and the front would have to go
over. 1t remained for the rider to
work along between the cattle and the
edge Of the rock. Jack ought to have
called the whole camp into the saddle.
Instead of that he jumped the mule up
the trail and jammed him along the
edge.
The herd was milling and tossing by
this time and they crowded the mule
close on the rock. An unaccustomed
noise would have sent rider and mules
over in a cataract of living beef to be-
some hamburger at the bottom. Jack
swung along there, but quieting a wild
herd at midnight, $50 feet above level
ground, by a tight-rope ride on mule
was the sort Of amusement he most
craved. He pushed hard for the crag
where the herd had pointed and where
1t could be most readily turned along
the cliff and circled back to safety.
The line of the cliff curved before
1t reached the point. Jack. with his
eyes anxiously on the cattle ahead.
didn't see II. The mule did and stop
ped to feel his way. If prudence had
| = he