Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1940-12-13
By ELMO


Intiful. And herds of cattle
|rrd on a thousand hills. Ranch
|douartrrs throughout range
A hummed with industry. The
r. o, hammer on anvil sang
m the summer air. Cowboys
h A. went on their errands.
n ii, .a> were hives of activity.
h Ra. eastern Montana in 1885.
I'd cade the prairieS had be-
mans paradise. On the
IL d.. was prosperity and prog
Enc lppiness.
/ n. gly fangs of disaster were
4 Il. rady to strike! A few Of
|TL,rg anchmen we're aware OF
[npa Ing threat. but they were
Is Tay could only hope the
~ I'D pass. But they knew
IA hard winter or a dry summer
\ d.. nate the herds and bring
fDreai destruction. They were
[fuTv Navarro that both drouth
cold wUuld combine to write
/ 70 epoch.
/ Pour In ,
FD,a, grasses had attracted
[me. m all parts of the COM
since he ranges were first grazed
88O-8. The ranges were over
|e5 Va; herds continued coming
|hp Is. Sheepmen, too, were
Einr +. The number of sheep i'll
lana ,rbled in a single season.
4 lard md grass were free to
,itbot -cstriction of title or pre-
IoD Az man who would, might
the .rInc and take his chances
long profit.
! cattle market broke in 1885, and
IA s.. JmentS were light, Range
C;; .uk their 3-year-OldS, ana
bed oily those animals that had
Tn. left an abnormal carryover
he MY 4dy overgrazed ranges.
d St.. the herds came.
! sp-..L of 1886 came in dry. The
IA b.. mt a new threat Poison
Iar. .41re hardy than the grass.
Ink. ntly. The grass had not
ared I'D cattle, hungry Tor green
four. hem good to taste. Gait"
in c. lderable numbers.
dup Delayed ,,
4 snr,g roundup was delayed
Ma cause there WAS no graS
q D TO bounty OF feed from
YEA. b ore, and an easy winter.
We, y. good condition, and IN"
crOr l., large.
z d, Il continued into July. Inc
". oyt and dry and parch"I.
r II T.. disappeared. Lakes th1s
neyer b en- dry, even in the mem
Of ~. Indians. turned TO ilrIu'
KIN md. The heat was oppreS-
VITA 10 degrees in the shade
ng 10 he earth for days on end
Wind lcked away the scant molS-
and Uttered the bit OF grass
parsl,'cd in growing.
age .es started almost spon-
yuSly smoke and cinderS filled
air CuAboys left their herds to
fire l. st of the late summer.
N the drouth-stricken Oregon
Washington and Texas nerds
ID into Montana, croTding the
ranGt~
,ntaHa yanchmen rode the coun-
seekI.E pasture that might o1ief
;p!te l0m short rations until the
rains ,4me. Some of them moved
anada
rdS In he Judith basin and fur
sour. we're moved north OF the
1ul .Eer. Everything that could
l!pp,t come fall. was held back,
bulls we're herded home for feed
And -hipping time was weeks
Y vA'or in the streams made
lg C;ilc difficult. In August the
ms we're far below normal flow,
the water was heavily alkaline.
Is refused to drink. Men became
i IT," coffee brewed from the
:. NJ" and animals moved IN a
ant .aze of smoke and stlillng
E fall rains didn't come. Failure
raSS Tor late grazing intensified
.lready desperate situation.
Sets In
ID creatures started south early.
tina. normally wintered in the
Try disappeared. White Arctic
appeared in the Judith basin. The
!! Indians said they had not seen
since childhood. 1t would be
very cold. they said.
: cattle and horses acquired un-
ly heavy coats of hair. Stockmen
preparing for hard days.
'ember brought a severe three
storm, with temperatures below
December brought another storm
degrees below zero-and marrow.
ing winds. The snow blew and
q badly. Clear weather returned
Jan. 9, 1887, when a cold north
brought 16 inches of snow in 16
and sent the thermometer down
down until it reached As below
"a. IS. The world was Arctic
storm lasted 10 days. Cattle
d before the wind. Fat young
tro2e to death on the trail. DRIFT
caught the drifting herds. ana
ands persisted.
'boys everywhere worked in the
cold to do what they could In
ag animals away from the fences
ut Of open channels and air holes
E streams, and hazing them to
title shelter available in coulees
Under cutbanks. Half the Mon
herds was the toll of this storm.
'ther series of storms came in
ary, not so severe. but they
1 the remaining cattle in weak
The loss Of adult ami
was heavy, and a third of the