News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1916-08-02
Letter From Eagle Pass

INDIo RANCH, EAGLE PASS, TEXAS,
Tuesday 1890 a. M, July Is, 1916.
Dear Folks:-I have my potatoes on
for dinner, also a monstrous bean stew
on cooking. Besides the potatoes and
stew, l am having good beef gravy,
bread, blackberry jam and coffee. Some
dinner, ETC.. We have to have large
quantities because for two days Sunday,
Monday and today we have been feeding
about 100 men. 1 have another fellow
helping, SO there are three of us. He is
only helping for a few days until things
get settled down to my regular number.
AS told you our company was divided
Sunday at Eagle Pass, 80 going to Wind
mill Ranch, 43 miles out, the other 80
coming to Indio. We all came together
to Indio and because of the bad roads all
stayed here at Indio until this tuesday
morning, when at $50 they left for Wind
mill. So this noon we have only about
65 to feed. Indio is IS miles out of E agile
Pass in a southeast direction. We are |
about a mile from the Rio Grande and !,
the border. We have ~ of the III troop |
of the 14th Cavalry with us who do patrol |
work up and down the river. They eat
with us.
We are pretty we'll situated now. A
bunch of regulars had been here, before
we came, for a month. so we moved in
where they went out. Have good cook
shack and mess tent and the boys are
quartered in school house, so we are
we'll housed.
1t is some ranch Undio Ranch), 100000
of land, between $4,000 and 10000 head
of cattle, few thousand head more or
less don't make any difference. One hun
dred and twenty-five Mexicans work on
the place but it is an American owned
ranch, owned by New York people. I
have made the acquaintance of the ranch
boss and his II years old daughter. There
are 16 slos on the place, all cement and
go TT. high by 20 fit. in diameter. They
are just trying to fill them. There are
about 200 mules to do the work. Every
night we boys go to the ranch house and
get canteen of milk, bring it back, put
1T on the ice and have quart to drink
whenever we want it. We also get lots
of buttermilk to drink. Believe me, that
makes it much better when you can get
good milk to drink. They only milk
about 20 cows; the rest run wild. When
they get fat they ship them to Louis in
lots of 400 or 500 head.
This is pretty good place. 1t is very
hot in the day time, even hotter than at
Eagle Pass, but the nights are nice and
one can sleep WELL
Gordon Brooks and Mr.. Kelley are in
the Indio division.
We get provisions and ice twice week
and mail about as often but we can stand
that all right. Fresh beef is the hardest
to get. guess we will get it right here
On the ranch hereafter.
We are kept pretty busy here for we have
only "A privates and we have to have a
guard of eight men and three on patrol
luty all tie time night and day, so when
The boys are not working they are sleep
ing. We have few mosquitoes but quite
4 lot of flies here. The water for drink
ng all has to be boiled. That is quite
Job.
Gen. Sherman said that if he owned
Texas tsouthern) and He'll and could
rave his choice of either in which to live
ne W ould sell Texas and live in He'll. Co
:, ist Vt Inf, cordially agrees.
I can't see how a COW can get good
wing in any part of this part of this
country. We counted nine blades of
yrass in going is miles last Sunday. A
low would have to walk all day to find
nough to keep alive.
But after all this is pretty good place
When you have to be here. We are well
md happy and are having good time
nd getting some good training. If we
an get back to Vermont the first of
october we will all be jubilant, but if we
ont get home then we will just stay
ntil we can go home.
Well, / will write again soon and hope
on will write often.