Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1941-08-01

Joining an outfit at Omaha he drove
800 hogs across the plains to Denver
The journey was long and irksome,
speed Of 6. 8 or 10 miles a day,
depending upon the heat or lack OF
heat. being the usual routine Denver
offered no market for the swine and
they were driven so miles farther to
Georgetown. Failing to find buyers at
the latter place. the caravan began to
retrace its steps, when a sale was
consummated. Young Mcguire took his
wages and headed for Denver, where
he got his first real insight into the
lives of the men who made up the
population of the district.
llO-ROund Prize Fight
The big event. joining the ranks Of
stage drivers, was preceded by prize
fight between Conoran and Davis.
which went ITO rounds before Conoran
won. Although the population of Den
yer was less than 1000 at the time
Of the fight, more than 5000 men wit
messed the battle fought with bare
fists under London prize ring rules.
The spectators came from all nearby
mining camps, and some trekked it
across the plains for hundreds of miles.
During there stay in Denver the town
presented a scene of the widest aban-
don. Mcguire was among the throng
that saw the men maui each other
around the ring for hours.
Joins Freighting Outfit
Taking up his duties with the
freighting company operated by Ma
jors, Russell and Wallace, the youth
soon became one of the best men in
an outfit which at that time en-
ployed more men than all their COM
petitors combined. Stationed first at
Box Elder he soon swung into the
routine, hauling wood. then driving
stage to Julesburg, the other end of
the route, later hunting meat for the
outfit, and finally taking charge Of
the cattle herds.
1t was while employed as a hunter
that he met Buffalo Bill. who was of
the same age as Mcguire then was.
10 years. Both hunted together at
times, and the man who won inter-
national fame for his deeds was al
ready known for his fearlessness.
Mcguire before his death often told
friends of his adventures.
when I came in contact with Buff
falo Bill he was hunting for the gov
eminent at Fort kearney," said Ma
guire, when he described their first
meeting. He was a nice, bright young
man, had good education and was
not one of those fellows who wanted
! to kill everyone. He would not kill I'M
| less he had to. He was one of the
greatest buffalo hunters that ever
| lived. They brought men from all over
the country to try and beat him.
Killed From in Front
when Duke Alexis of Russia was
out there he buffalo Bid killed 600
buffaloes at one time. He was an
awful shot on horse. He would get
in ahead of a herd, pick his buffalo
and shoot. Every time he shot buff
falo went down, and when a man is
riding that way he is going pretty
fast. Most hunters went into the herd
from behind.
we went out hunting together al
though he was far superior to me. He
was a great horseman and had a
lot to learn. The first time I went
out my horse turned quickly-you
know how those western ponies were
trained to turn in their tracks-and
I was thrown off. An Indian saw
what happened and came up and
killed the buffalo that was coming
for me. After that it did not take me
long to learn the habits of my horse
and I got along all right I shot for
the division between Fort Kearney and
JuleSburg and generally only had to
get over or 10 in day, and most
of the killing was done in the winter
or spring"
Bison Roamed Plains
/ During this period great herds of
bison roamed the plains, and herds
of antelope were no exception. The
latter were hard to get up on, taking
fright at the first intimation of dan
ger and fleeing with the speed of the
wind, according to Mcguire.
/ Between times as a buffalo hunter
he acted as & stage driver or pony
express rider. The pony express was
only in operation one year but Ma
guire did his trick with the rest.
Drivers and riders along the line were
too prone to spend their earnings in
bacchanalian carnivals, a feature of
the life which did not appeal to the
youngster, so. in 1868, he quit driving
and riding and took charge of the
cattle herd at Sand Hill. During the
winter at the station, one of the cold
est he ever experienced, cattle died
by the thousands. He tells of one
herd of 800 head which sought refuge
behind a windfall and which persisted
because he did not have even a single
| tree to pull them apart.
! His brother came to the west that
year to prevail upon the herd tender