Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1939-05-05

have been a favorite subject for
the novelist and poet, but only in
frequently have cowboys them
selves written-in prose or verse
either-of their attitude toward
the horses with whom they've
shared adventures and-in many
cases hardships. Jim Fisher,
former Montana cowboy who rode
with the Two Bar outfit Of Oscar
boys who did write verse, but none Of
his friends ever saw any of it until
after his death.
A poem. entitled Horses" was then
found in trunk. Eventually the poem
got to Robert Leavens, Billings man
who, too, once rode for the Two Bar
Leavens IS now in the livestock and
realty business.
The Two Bar, one of the big ranch
ing outfits in central Montana between
1890 and 1910, was located at the foot
of Black butte at the east end of the
Judith mountains in what is now
Fergus county. The ranch and its en-
virons were in what is called the big
bend of the Musselshell river.
Leavens Joined the Two Bar as a
rep chat is, he represented another
outfit on the Musselshell at the Two
Bar roundup in 1892 and then in
1893 ran the Two Bar beef herd. Re-
stephens of Sidney, son of his old
boss on the Two Bar. Included was
the Fisher poem and this information:
Il read with much interest some time
ago an account Of the old cowhand
convention you fellows pulled up there
and someone was mushy enough to
the point Of this letter. I am sending
you copy Of some verses written by
Jim Fisher, who worked for the
Double Bar in 1868. He owned a
little ranch on the river IL miles below
Rocky point, went to the Spanish
American war and stayed in Cuba
ifornia Of late years but died there
last June and these verses were in
his trunk when he died; he never let
anyone know he had written them.
ARA Noble sent the copy to me and
I'm sending you copy hoping you
will enjoy reading it,"
Leavens believes that the poem ex-
presses what fellow himself thinks
about horse. I've read lot of COW
boy verse, but this strikes me as being
among the best The publication of
such material may help some of the
people who today are learning how to
ride to understand how the old cow
puncnerS felt.
Jim Fishers Horses" goes as fol-
lows:
Say, stranger. excuse me FIR buttin'
in but thought I heard you say
That horses are now plum outa date
an sorta in the way.
OUTLINED their usefulness you said,
an cost too much t keep
An you think they ought t. be all
killed off r 1paya mora fond
You say, Machines en- do their work
much better, an cheaper. too
An that'd sure cut lot of ice with a
dam cheap skate like you.
"Oh, you needn't swell UP an git on
the prod, I didn't mean no Of
tense,
But it riled me up some t. hear YOU
say that horses amt got no sense
You know hell T lot. I guess,
bout how t make things pay,
now. r you wouldn't talk that way.
These poor plugs draggin' peddlers'
carts, you've seen that kind. of
course,
But wouldn't mind bettin' you six
months pay that you never saw
horse.
acuttin' out spooky steers
You cd learn lot that you don't
know now jest watchin' that pony's
ears.
If you seen i'm matchin' em jump
1ir Jump, till he got 'em outside
With his rider lettin' the reins hang
loose, an never sayin' a word,
An come prancin' back atossin' his
head like he's havin heap O. fun,
An his a-sayin'. Pard, that's fine,
let's git another one
IF you seen him outfigger 'em every
time when they'd dodge r Jest
stop an balk,
You wouldn't say he didn't have
brains an sense enough t. talk.
Sure horses en- talk as well as men,
tho their language amt the same
An they don't run off at the face a
lot like some folks I cd name.
But they can tell you a lot O. things
If you savvy what they mean,
An wise little horse is a better pard
than a lot Of men I've seen.
When you are ridin' the range alone,