The Coolidge examiner., 1930-12-05
CHAPTER discontinued

IF you want il in one word, short
an sweet, that word is COWS.
Worrall said. Cows are the cause
of all the trouble in this mans
town. Goes clear back to the war.
Down in Texas them days cattle
ran wild. unbranded All the men
folks in the Confederate army
Well. when they come home, licked
an ragged. cows sure dotted the
landscape. In way of speakin'
they belonged TO the fellow who
threw the widest loop. Many a
herd got its start in the next few
months by real industrious brandin'
of mavericks. Lots of cows. but
no marker for em. Last few years
a market has been developing
Texas got crowded. The boys an
their herds began To emigrate. Some
guShed into the San Marcos valley.
The one with the biggest herd was
Yves Steelman. Right now. today,
he don't begin TO know how many
COWS are carryin' the HaShknife
brand"
brand. Didn't they use TO call Steel
man the king of the San Marcos"
'DO set" WOrralI nodded. "The
Lord sure blessed his herds an
they multiplied. If that's the way
you want TO look at il. Some folks
didn't see ii jest thataway. Other
folks came into the San Marcos,
mostly in the upper end of ii an in
the hills above the valley. They
were small cattle men, what they
call neSierS. The small cattle men
drew together under the leader
ship oi Dave Ingram. Dave owned
the Diamond Tail. a right numerous
brand II you listen 10 his enemies
Dave uSta be one of that kind of
COW man that il would hurt his
health TO eat critter with his own
brand on il. You don't need TO take
that nj par value. They say the
same about every one who has got
ahead. Dave can see dollar far
as anyone. He started a store at
Cnnclo an a freight outfit He got
- with the government officials an
secured fat beef contracts to sup
plS the reservations. Small-fry
ne sters came to him an he staked
them. Dave got 20 he about the
King pin up here in the mountains.
WHAT he said went.
We'll. Yves Steelman wasn't any
w3ys pleased at the way things
wece shapin'. He had to go farther
fOI markets. His range began to
gef crowded Every which way he
turned some hester had squatted,
an on top of that was Dave
Ingram hornin' in on his markets.
Time for him to get busy, he
thought. So he started a store in
Concho with Patrick Mccarthy as
his pardner Then he bought out
a fellow on Dead Horse creek and
stocked a ranch of his own in the
hills seventy miles above the main
oge in the valley Both Dave an
W'es are what you might call arhi-
trary an hullheaded There's no
compromise in either one of 'em. an
each thinks he ought to be chief.
Consequence is. trouble. 1t grew
to head after fellow called Shat
Brown was killed Shat was one of
the liz hill ranchers up Jim VIII
son creek an he was lined up with
Ingram. You've got to understand
that while Ingram an Steelman are
maior-domoS. as you might say, of
their factions. they can't ride herd
on every OrEery waddy that trails
with them"
Il think see." O'Hara said
dryly. They reap the benefit Of
murder without being responsible
for ii. A convenient arrangement"
"That's no word to use. not in
this country" Worrall told him Sc
verely IF you aim to live long in
the land you'll have to get educated.
When folks have trouble out here
they may have a difficulty resultin'
in shooting. I've been present at
some killings. but that word of
yours ain't either discreet or po-
lite. There are some skunks it ap.
plies tO. but we most generally hang
them 70 the end of propped-up
wagon pole or a cottonwood"
"rll have TO learn the technical
Inference in homicides." the lawyer
said.
WOrrall detected faint flavor
If irony in this remark. He dropped
MS. feet from the table and rested
an~arm upon it. leaning forward
oward his guest.
See here. young fellow. I'll offer
'ou advice free gratis. seeing as
Hiss Steelman sent you to me an
eein as | kinda cotton to you any
OW Keep yOre mouth padlocked.
'Olks fight here at the drop of the
at. Maybe you got sand in yore
raw. amt sayin' no. Worse for
-Ou if you have. for you wouldn't last
a split second when some lOw-dOwn
birg smokes up. Where was | at?
ktSr Shat Brown got killed Ingram
an his store pardner Tom Harvey
began to bring in Texas warriors.
80 did Steelman an Mccarthy, I'm
not tellin any secret when | say
thar right now some one is gonna