Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1927-10-21
Story of Range Is
Fraught With
Romance
BY MRS. M. E. PLAsSMANN

HE STORY Of the western range Is
' fraught with romance, in which is
A strange admixture of tragedy and
- comedy 1t is chiefly associated In
the minds of most persons with the
picturesque figure, the cowboy, so famil-
lar to us in the pages Of fiction and on
the film. In both places he appears
glorified n idealized in a manner which
prefigures his future appearance as a
myth.
Before the coming of the cowboy the
range existed, stretching It's vast expanse
from the Missouri river to the Pacific.
with It's manifold diversity Of landscape
and climate There were wide -%spreading
plains, rolling foothills, mountains and
desert, all of which constituted the range.
Antedating the white man, over 1t
roamed wild animals in their search Cor
food. The buffalo in countless numbers
b~lackening the surface of the plains and
the foothills; deer, elk, and moose there
and in the mountains; goats and noun
tain sheep in the highlands. and many
other animals throughout its extent de-
pending upon the range for their exist
ence.
man, who lived there by the chase when
both the COW and the cowboy were n
known in this region. We owe much to
the Spaniards-far more than we realize
for 1t was they h first brought cat
tie n other stock animals onto the
range in the southwest, where the in
crease was rapid and they eventually be-
came a source OF wealth to their owners,
Cattle Wild as Deer
1t was then open range for the most
part, as it had been from the beginning,
and the cattle were almost as wild as
the deer that preceded them there. Those
long-horns bore little resemblance to
our domestic breeds in either looks or
disposition, but they were cattle and
the pioneers OF their kind. I have been
told that when the l~ong-horns held sway
on the range, 1T was extremely dangerous
for an unmOunted person to go near
them. They were strange looking crea-
lures, long and gaunt, with great spread
ing horns which gave them a formidable
appearance that was true to character.
Cattle raisers soon discovered the range
OF the northwest possessed advantages
the year round over hat farther south.
The grasses OF the north region, because
OF the climate possibly. were not only
nutritious but had he added peculiarly
OF curing without having to be cut, and
remained in. good condition without de-
teriorating.
Then great cattle companies were
formed, with members both here and
abroad. who conceived the idea of turn
ing these southern cattle onto northern
ranges. BY starting droves early in the
spring and driving them slowly, giving
the animals time to Craze as they went,
they gained, instead of losing flesh on
the road. and already, through breeding,
their type had been improved.
1t was soon found to be more profit
able to keep steers on the southern
range until they were two years old, as
they were then stronger and better able
to ndure their first northern winter
They were loaded on cars and sent to
the shipping point, the principal one
being Cheyenne, Wyo, and later, Grin
Junction. There they were unloaded,
much the worse for their railroad Jour
ney, and started northward. If the
weather proved favorable they went on
their way rejoicing, gaining flesh with
every mile, thus reaching their destina-
ton in good condition.
Many Trail Losses
I have said 1t was early spring when
they left their southern range. On their
arrival in Wyoming, or shortly afterward,
1T sometimes CHANGED that there was
stormy weather, almost always accom-
panied by cold In that region. The cat
tie, weakened by their journey, and Ill
prepared to endure such a trying expert