The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1927-03-18
TEHE SANTA FE TRAIL

CONTINUED from Feature PaRe).
Santa Fe dates from 1922, but one of the
outstanding events in the history of the
trail was the first attempt to introduce
wagon in the expeditions of 1924. This
was made by a company Of so traders, who
supplemented the usual train of pack-mules
with % wheeled vehicles, of. which two
were stout road wagons, two carts and the
rest light Dearborn wagons, the whole car
rying merchandise valued at $4,000. This
caravan reached Santa Fe in safety, eX-
periencing much less difficulty with the
wagons than had been anticipated.
The organization Of a train for crossing
the plains consisted usually Of from % to
80 large wagons that would carry from
three to three and One-half tons each. The
merchandise in each wagon was protected
by three sheets of thin ducking of the
weight used for army tents. Six pairs of
oxen pulled each wagon, and a wagon train
usually had from 20 to 30 extra oxen for
emergencies. The train Of cattle, there
fore, numbered from 800 to $50, with half a
dozen mules for riding. The force of men
consisted of a wagon boss and his assistant,
a teamster for each wagon, and half a
dozen extra hands for various purposes, in
Guiding herderS.
The average distance travelled was from
II to 10 miles per day, although as many
as 20 miles were sometimes covered. Oxen
proved to be the cheapest and most reliable
teams for long trips where grass was de-
and handled they were good for from 1900
to 2,4OO miles in the season between April
and November.
Corral for Defense
In camping or stopping to Craze OF
camp, a corral of OblOng shape was formed
by the wagons for defensive purposes in
case of attack by Indians. When this was
done the tongues were turned out and g
log chain extended from the hind wheel Of
each wagon to the fore wheel of the mex
one behind, making a solid corral except
ing for a wide gap at each end, through
which the oxen were driven.
With a good wagon train perfect dis
lcipline was maintained among the men, tn
commands of wagon boss being implicit!
lObeyed, This was necessary because of tn
danger of indian attacks and the need o
instant and concerted action at such a time
The average salary paid the men was S
a day and expenses A good bullwhacke
sometimes got more and earned it. An eX
perienced man could yoke six pairs o
bulls, as the cattle were invariably called
in 16 minutes, could curse in half a dozel
languages for a couple of hours withou
q repeating himself, and could knock a Fl.
) off a bulls ear at 10 feet without hurting
the bull.
Excessive Tariff Charged
Under Mexican rule in New Mexico, ex
~cessive tariff charges we're instituted
!, amounting to as much as 100 per cent upOl
! goods brought from the United States, an
2 for some years an arbitrary duty was de
2 manded of 5000 for every wagon.load o
: merchandise brought into the province, re
. gardless Of it's size or intrinsic worth. a
gold and silver were paid for the article
q sold by American traders, they were ais
! ! ciOus metals which they took out of tn
= country. Yankee ingenuity, however
evaded much of such unjust taxes. Whe
the wagon train approached Santa Fe, th
e one and the empty vehicles destroyed b
/ fire. To avoid paying taxes on gold an
/ silver taken back to the United States, I'll
freighters had large, false axletrees place