The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1936-06-19
By GLENDOLIN DAMON WAGNER

by OLENDOL1N
It. is a fact that the majority Of
from Texas. When I asked Dick"
Chandler why this was true he said:
I'VE heard q lot those days about the
rich range and cool climate in Mon
tana. We were offered good wages and
plenty of thrills following the trail.
Some Of US boys joined outfits hired
tana so well we just naturally stayed.
I had malaria fever in Texas and came
here for a change Of climate"
That was in '89. For 10 years Mr..
Chandler worked for the Ryan Broth
ers Cattle Co. There were lots of lear,
buffalo, white and black tailed LED "e sr
early morning, he shot a deer from
the door of his cabin and had deer
steak for breakfast. He saw many vii
lagos spring up on Montana plains,
struggle through the difficult stages
of infancy, and develop into important
towns. He remembers Billings when it
was an insignificant community of
shacks, uncertain as to its future ex-
istence, with Dark Horse Livery barn
and Boykin House the two outstanding
business establishments. In 81 he pur-
chased cattle at Laurel and drove
them across the prairie and along what
it now First avenue, n OF Billings
UuSlcSG 11O1OuB114dlCo IL . l 4AA. la
dler bought his " ranch, the Three
Crown, which he built up by .aborious
efforts, into one of Montana'S import
ant cattle industry centers.
Listening to Mr.. Chambers story Of
the early-day struggles we are con:
WINGED that there were many ups and
downs, waves Of prosperity, low Gibbs
failure, hard winters, summers Of poor
range, and plenty Of bard work. Dick
Chandler loaded and shipped to mar
ket from Custer. To get to Custer, he
had to swim the river with his cattle.
It is his theory that hard work brings
days. he says, look for an easy road to
prosperity, but if there is such a road,
Dick Chandler never discovered it. The
day of the pioneer cattleman wasn't a
six or eight-hour day. It began at sun
up and stretched on until 10 or II
O'Clock, and Mr.. Chandler Is O living
testimonial that hard work and long
GUS and, although his hair Is white, his
eyes are as bright as the eyes Of youth.
They twinkled as he told stories Of
h long ago. There were usually from
20 to IS men in an outfit, he says, with
a wagon boss over each outfit. But far
more important than the cowmen or
wagon boss was the cook, and he had
able meals out on the quiet plains of
fresh bread, coffee, hot beans and the
best of steer beef selected from the
herd. No fancy stuff, but all they could
eat of appetizing, n~ourishing food.
The early day round-ups, judging by
the twinkle in Dick Chambers eyes
as he reminisced, were exciting events;
outfits under their wagon bosses were
punched, with a herd boss yer them
all, directing the work. Out On the
vast, unfenced plains, during winter
grazing, perhaps q dozen different
brands got mixed. It was the business
brand, rope and brand calves, and Sc
1ect those intended for shipping. Those
were the times when man and horse
must work together, in intelligent har-
mony. Each cowboy was allotted a string
Of from eight to 10 horses and changed
mounts frequently, for no one horse
could stand the strain of hard riding
thought of riding a horse from the
string Of another.
Cowmen usually loved their horses,
Dick Chandler tells us. Spending so
much time alone together on the
plains, night and day, just a man and
his horse, the two were held close by
a bond of understanding that felt no
there was always a favorite, a top
horse" After almost so years Dick
Chandler still remembers "Old DAN"
That horse, he insists, possessed IN in
telligence that was more than human.
Out of a herd of 5000 cattle Old Dan
would unfailingly pick out the par,;cu-
lar COW you wanted to separate from the
rest and work patiently and persistent
ly until it was out of the bunch. But
Old Dan had one fault that kept him
from absolute perfection. He achieved
q reputation of being the greatest
bucker of all the wild horses of the
plains. It took a mighty good rider to
stick in the saddle at times, when
Dams youthful high spirits got the
best of his common sense. Eventually