Document text
5684 -words
EDITORIAL FIELD COPY Page 1
by
Lars. Florenee Angermiller, P.W. 552
Range Lore and Negro
Cowboy Reminisoeneos
before and after 1875
UVALDE COUNTY, DIST415
REFLRENCE:
A. Ben Kinchlow, age 91, Mulatto
who was cowboy and horsobreaker
of the Rio Grande country in
early days. Uvalde, Texas
"You know my mother was a slave an' was give her freedom
an* sent to Mexico when I was about a year old. We stayed in
Mexico all of ten years befog we mime back to this side. I went
to school with a French family over there in Mexico. My mother
was half -white an' my father was a eh/to man. But, she went to
work over there an' sent no to sohool some, but after I got to
ridins, I forgot all I ever 'mowed about school. I don't care
how rough a hose is, if he can stand me, I mire can stand him.
I can get my hose saddled in the morning an' when I throw my leg
over his back, I never move my legs, but ride all day like that,
sitting straight.
"I oommenced working far McNelly (Capt. MoNelly of the Rangers)
in '72 an' worked about eighteen laonths. I was about nineteen
years old when I Joined with him an' I couldn't draw State pay be-
cause I was under age. Then when I was about twenty-one, I began
punching cattle. For my first riding, I broke a mule an' rode gin
bareback. I didn't care nothing about a saddle. About the year of
'75 was the time when I was into my work good. I 8)ne all kinds
Page 2
252
of cow en' hoes work, but of °Ws*, after I got to dein' real
cattle punehint, I had to have a saddle. My first job was break-
in' hosses an' when I got hard down to breakin' 'em, I broke sixty-
two head on one ranch for dim Merryman. He give the "21" brand
an' the Widow Burk give the c/R6 brand. I don't know where they
got the idea for the brands but they always rigger up a brand that
wont blot; separate letters, you see. Now, Meikin brands, them's
the awfullest brands you ever seen. Hero, now, if I can draw
some of 'en is the we they look:
qC
8.
"I oaint remember who all the brands belonged to but Number
2. was the brand Tull.= Canti give. Number 5 belonged to Balerio
Solis an' Antonio Cano run Number 8. Wheneverlkey wanted to des-
cribe a brand, they couldn't call it a ileitis; they had to get down
an' nark it on the ground. If a man rode up in them days to ask
you if you seen sech an' seeh a brand, he would have to Other get
down an' mark on the ground or mark on the saddle skirts.
"I used to get four -bits a head for every Maverick I roped
out an' branded. You know people couldn't get out to brand up
all their stock an' after the calves were a year old, they were
considered Mavericks. They had quit their mother, then. Yes,
instead of brandint 'ea up for ,myself, I got four -bits a head to
make the other man rich. Well, I didn't want othine them days
but a pair of boots, a six-shooter an, a big hat. AB for saddles,
they was rigged with the pure old rawhide. Nearly everfthing them
days was made of rawhide. Our riatas were made of rawhide an'
Range Lore Ben Kincholow
Page 3
232
we had another rope we used for ropint that was called
'cabresto.' It was made out of hose tails ani manes. The first
outfit I ever had they furnished it to me. You see, we made
most of it ourselves, all 'oept the old saddle tree ant we rigged
it up with rawhide. We would jest kill a big yearlin' an out it
half in two an' make our loggias. In rainy weather, we would have
to commence takin, up our rawhide stirrups an' in dry weather, we'd
have to begin lettin' 'es out. That's because when rawhide gets
wet it stretches so bad. Anyhow, we had a pretty good outfit.
We could rope any bit bull or cow that come along. I wore these
regglar old MeXkin spurs with a sort of short shank but a big
rowel. I carried a .45 six-chooter. We had to year our guns all
the time an' we tucked 'em down in our belts under our leggin..
We carried guns mostly for the Indians, but lots of tines they was
dirt done that the Indians didn't do.
"I've been pretty *lose to outlaws, but I always tried to keep
out of their sight if I knowed they was near. I seen Wes Hardin at
Stockdale once but he was a presrier then. He was an outlaw beta'
he began preaohint. Now, them Staffords ant Townsends, they was
sure bad men. They would kill you right now, but they didn't make
a practice of goint aroun' an' kill's' people like Billy the Kid did.
But they'd sure kill you if they had a cause. About the worst killin°
I ever seen in my roun's happened over is Mexico across from Browns-
ville. I seen a Mexkin an' Nigger run together right on the plaza
ant the Nigger out the Mexkin nearly in two with a kind of knife
you call a tranehete. It had a foldin' blade with two sections an'
made a kind of hook when it opened out like this: When the
Range Lore Hen Kinehlow Page 4
252
Nigger cone 'round with it in his hand, he out the Mexkin wide
open an' the Mexkin's bowels fell out. He held 'an up with his hands
an' walked a whole block beta' he fell. Than was mean knives.
You know the Mexkin women used to use 'em when they follered the
soldiers into battle. when the troops made an attack an a town,
the soldiers went ahead an' these women they was the soldiers'
wives mostly they ease right behind 'omen' durin0 the gun -fire
when the trope were fightini, the wean ransacked the houses. They
were as dangerous as the men ant they used these transhetes a lot.
"I don't believe I ever sold a hoes of my own raisin' for
less than a hundred dollars. had a 'steel...dust' hoes named
Hondo. He was a steel color. I worked cattle on him an' roped
on vim too. He was one of these single-foot hosses en' could tray
el seven mile an hour. He could catch a cow or hose better'n any
other animal I ever had. He we kind of bred up, part race stock.
I never did start after anything I couldn't ketch on 'im. Jen' any-
thing that stayed on the green.
"I remember one awful fast ,)ony I had. I guess he was the
fastest hose I ever rode as a cowboy. I could ketoh a Cow in
hundred yards easy unless it wns dense an' brushy, then it took
longer. Sone hoses was good after cattle an' 843M0 wesn't. I
rode so many mean ones, it was all fun to me. About the nsanest
hose I ever rode was when I went up the trail with Old Man Sol
West. That hose was a little bit of a black an' airs in my
mount. Ever' time I saddled 'in an' vent to put my foot In the
stirrup, he'd rear un an' fall beektards. One day at noon when
we was changin' hosses, mr, Jim King was settinl down, up -side the
Range Lore Ben Kinchlow
Page
wagon wheel esAinl a paper. I was right out in front of him
foolin' with that hose an/ I had e loaded quirt an iron -handled
one an' I put my foot in the stirrup en' I had in kind of caught
in the bit with my left hand any my right hand on the manta.. He
reared up ant fell over an' when he got straight, I aimed to hit
'itt over the head with the quirt an' he dodged. Well, sir, that bea-
dle of the quirt come down glancin, ant I hit 'in in the aye an'
knocked it out. The eye flew away out there close to Mr. Xing. He
0 never saw whet took place an' I said, 'Mr. King, look hors at that
hoes' eyes' An' he said, 'Whet done it?' So I said, /Well, I
knocked it off with the rope when had the rope in my hand an'
it caught over his eye somehow.' Mr. King never did know the
differ/nee, but he said, 'what become of the eye?' An' I showed it
to 'in layin• over there by tim. That hose was so mean, Jr.
King wouldn't have eared much if he'd seen me knock his eye out.
Of co'se hated it, but you now, that broke 'in. he never did try
no more tricks with me.
"I had a dun hose in the same outfit an' it happened in the
same year. We was goin' up the trail. It looked like over' time
it coma that hoe' time to be rode, the wind was blowino. I would
have a time gettint my saddle on 'in. There was a big lake called
'Bad Water' ant it was Jun' a plum lob -lolly on top. 70 was *camped
there. Filly, I got the dun hose sadeled an' got on 'in ant he got
his head turned toward that lob -lolly an' ”itched right into it.
He got in that stuff ant couldn't get out or he couldn't pitch to
do no good an' I jus' whipped 'in an' rode /W. Sometimes he was
belly -deep, up to the saddle skirt. Under the soft stuff on top
tsas Lore Ben Unable,
the bottom vas fir.. After that you euvidn't ride 'Ink near a
dark..lookin' ra.aee that looked like mud hole. 'Met broke 'in free
-itotilal an' he woe olvmh gentle.- Maddy Viva me an' timt hose
oome out of that lake, you wAtldn't *ell what wa waf;. Put this
boys then days didn't Pind frtything like that.:
In that same trial they Wwqa r bleak 'arc in vlir remade (re-
moo=t)n, moenino the herd of boron taken along with the dattle
on a low drive to serve as fresh mounts tor the bonds) that
brQuoht a colt as' that little scoundrel Apt to Where he would
leave the remade *ben the hoesee eoms to emnp an' he womid run to
the wagon sal got comethin' to eat. He'd eat outything they give
in, like bacon rinds, blakete, +sugar or anything. Ines our
wrangler (the nap in 'Marge of the horses) took sick an' I teak
his largos. is drivin' the hoagies, I noticed that little colt
would trail behind the remudn, so I mOt to hiding beside the trail
right Wham I ',mowed he'd be *amine along an' I'd lay my rope
down on the around 040% nerves the trail an' imp' When he c?Alt
to it pus' wao abliAst to step over it, I would jerk it up en' you
never oaw a little rain jump so Nigh. I wire w uld 4.),Avo tun out
of 'iv. You clan tomb thines like that to 'lay with you an'
they vilk have as muleh tun as yl.,A do. I raised a v$1d nig onee
an' you atm, when I sot it fat, I used to 'lay 'kith it we it
would jirlo orates' an' run en' hunt rm like a dog..
oThoy unn one thing I wits nut in this lorld for vas to Indite
a hoca. I can toil When I 1.4okfat 'in Whether he is any eeeount
or it. In the same outfit that I knoskod the hoes' eye out, we
left a relish in Victoria County RR' I bet you they would be two-
blindrad-aait-fitty Makin home to evil out, ant I bat they rpm
throe iiffselat bards whoa we ma alassiat out Usk hosses*
Rang* Lore Hes KinehloW Page V
rode thaw. for about anoixth. They was an °penis' out in frost
of the pens one weed pen them homlos.in that corral, an' I &Duet
ear* what hose you royal', you had elie to ride. You'd saddle eta
in the (sorrel an' get on 'is an' they would open the gate for you
en' there would be several line riders away out from the pens in
thet °penis' to sateh the boss*. that got amity with the saddles
on. I we shoe,lusky. I never had one of than has**. to throw as.
1 don't say it booms* it's myself, but the 'mover vas hoes that
ever throwed as out of my saddle. I don't mind tem pitehiscno
moreen nothine, A hoes sould outland as now but it it wasn't for
that, no hoes soul d throw me. I used to have vied enough to stay
with the meanest an' toughost, but of so's* I saint do it
"Out on on the Sol west roma, the we. a ranch head there, a
colored man or yollow nigger, by the name of Armload Baskhead.,
We wee gettine omr bosses out of thivpon an' hi roped e hose for
we to ride. Mr. Met said, eArmstoed„ sinss you roped that hoss,
you bettor rid* 'is: an' se Armstead got on eta ant the hosivmedo
two or three jumps ant off Armstead went. RA tried it again any off
he vent. yiVly, mr. Nest asked fin if he wanted to try it agate,
but Armsteed said, elNoto I osint ride that hoes!' 194 been *Unita'
arouse wet0hine it, so I said, *Take your saddle off an' let me
show you how to ride that hose, Armstoatile An' he did. ad that
hoes piteh, my goodness! But rode elm down. rio was headed for
Nebraska that trip, I believe, an' we turned the outfit over to
another bunoh up on the south Platte River.
"It's the,prottiest sight on earth when you have a big herd
of settle on the trail any gat 'am to greets' if a person knows
how to shape letup. You san rid, along sue watch fen go up a
Range Lore .1.- Ben Kinshlow
Page
low hill an* it looks like every steer is %akin* the same step
an, a mouthful of grass at the same time. You (wouldn't know
how pretty that sight is unless you saw it. If it was $o I
could, I'd go back to a oattle ranch now where I could see the
work go on. OD, °ogee they flint no more trail driving, but I like
.to be aroun, stock.
"I'll tell you something funny haprArned on that trip whore
we left the herd on the South Platte River. We was waiting for
the other outfit en" had to erase our herd on the river. That
South Platte was a hundred miles long. Mr. Tom Pulls* was first
boss ant mr, Bob Rise was second boss an' one day Mr. Pulliam 4
says to Bob Rise. 'Bob, believe go on an' hunt some rang,
for the cattle. They've been her. lOng enovighog an' mr. Rice
says, 'All 1'14,4.0 Alang in the evening U. Pulliam hadn't got in
yet an* mr. Bob says, 'in, don't you feel like satin* some
good range meat?' Of eofse I said yes an' he says, 'Well, we'll
ride out an, get one this evening!, So we saddled up an rode
out an, pretty soon we found a nice fat range heifer an' he took
his rifle an' shot 'sr. He told me to get down an* bleed ger
en' I did, but when straightened up an" looked, I saw a rider
coming across the hill an' I sure got restless for thought it
was a range rider. I said to Mr. Rise, 'Look yonder, that sure
is a range rider an' kegs °min* right here4, Mr. Ries says, "Well,
we'll jus" have to put him, hoss an' all in the river. *ill you
help se?' 1 was afraid to sai no because he was a kind of desper-
ado himself an' if it was a range rider rode up there, I knows*
Bob Bice would kill tin ant put him, hose an' all in that river.
NNW Lore •ND. Kinehlot Page 9
SO it %trust out to be Mr. Pulliam. He'd come bask to oamp
Me Mewed about where we were. He jus* rodo on out to where
we was gottin* the most. I shoo was soared for mails.
wane* vs took a herd up to Dakota an* that trip was the
first 'chip rases* I over saw. Thom girls up thore Would run
row to ass who eould piek up the most buffalo ohips. They waiatt
11.,101004 up there to burn so they used buffalo Chips instead of
1006, IVS sookod with many a ship. Them big old girls eould
*Oro oath*, "on on thou raw. They'd hays lots 0 tun, too.
malsa thou people -up there *gramgors.-* Wo call 'en
inestors* town her.. They didn't have no tenses arms' their
forms an* eon day wo throwed our herd off to grass. It was OR
Sumilay as' the old gringos' that owned a certain little *me there
was sows to Omsk en* the plea. was all left alone. The old mon
had his harness hangAn* in a shed an* our cattle was growing all
moue* his plass, so one old steer got in the shed an' got one of
the bridles of the harness hung on his head an* gravid oft with it
en* About that time, the old grangsr an* his family some home an*
he Widowed us off his place. Wo had a big, black Niggly with the
berg an' after *while, the granger seem up to him a** wanted to
know who was the boss of the outfit an' the Nigger pointed to me
an* tOld him I was the boss. Ns oome to me en' wanted to know if I
was the boss an* I told him no am* pointed to another man close
to ms an' he wont to hia. That man told him no, he wasn't the boss
am* pointed bask to the big, black Nigger an* told 'in that Nigger
was the boss. The grangsr wont bask to the bigot and said, *Are
rya the bass here* Am* the Niggler said, Mo.* The granger was
gatia, pretty mad oat says, *Well, where in the hell the boss?*
Range Lore -0. Ben lanahlaw Page 10
Then he looked ever at he steer an' said, *low,' yonder*s
steer with one of my bridles on his head an* I want it taken off
an* you go do Ili* About then, he went to the house an* sone out
with a great long gum an* that Ago, he was Paul Bogging
he hat to rope that steer to get the bridle.sa* when he got it
off an* brought it bask, the granger said, *Nowt I'll give you
ten minutes to got these settle oft this land. This land is mia.
an* I want /ten off, so you a•tter Bet 'en off to tee eizeteer
vs shot got *en off toe. We never thought that was, half as funny
as the old steer eulkin* arm** vith his bridle on.
“YOU know when we'd take a herd up the trail, weld sell out
bosses, settle an' all. Than when we went bask next spring, you
wouldn't know *en. Looked like they'd grow so mush bigger, bosses
or settle .14her. Btu& Ale natehly (naturally) grow bigger
up there.
"1 fell in love with a Senkin girl masa. They was two of
them girls an* they lived on a rah owned by Ed Deughtery on
the Rye Grand (Rio Grande) an* the !Amoral (heed man) was %War
father* They. was heavy -set, stout girls an* they would help on the
general round -ups ever* year. It 'would be hoes stook an* I reekin
they would be a hundred or a hundred an* fifty mares. They would
round up au* trim *en up an* than big, old girls would get in there
with a.esbresto (hair rope) an' put it aroma* their waist In a kind
of loose loop they held with their loft head so they could turn it
loose quick if anything happened. Then they tore -footed than we.
with their right hand. Sometimes they'd throw under an* semolinas
overhand an* when one of them mares some 'by t they never felled to
Haag. Lore Bea Kinehlow Page 11
throw that mars. They oho" was ropers. They *ono dove to the
pone meetly to lamp in practise because they didn't have, to work
in the pens if thew), didn't want to but they libretto do the work
an' they foreslooted a ears every tine they -Shrew Shear loop out.
It aint 'bother a man is stout or not, but it's lam trick of it,
or the sleight of knewin, when to put your weight on the rope at
the right *Lout*.
*They called that **sash Laguna Ssoo an' I believer it was la
Hildalgo County. The girls was nem& Juanita and Autunite Floro.
Antonita was the one I fell in love with. There was one or two more
boys used to rider over there an' east their eyes at 'ea, but the old
folks watehed an too sloe, to allow nush operas'. But I was ?saran*
on the raneh am" the, old folks got to Wean' lots of as. Of setae
had abeam to talluto her sone. Both of 'en had long blink hair
an* they wore blask-eyed ant ride/ Wit.er1 Then girls could sho' rids.
They was good at Medlin' any kind of sleek. They wore drogue just
above, the. ankles. Oh, yes, they rod. in their drosses. They were
plain shoes an' sever we a hat if they was saran' in the peas. I
used to go by Antoni*a an* sal* ant pass her a sign an' she always
answered. I would have married her if I had stayed on there but I
was young an* hadn't *von joined up with Welly yet ,a* When I left
there, I drifted farthsi away an* *seer did go bask. But Antenita
,stayed in my awry a long tine. She was good an' kind an' as pretty
as a rose. I thought lots of her ea" I knowod she thought lots of as
We used to rid. together but moot or the tine the old nun was vith us.
Sometimes I got to talk to her an' I could *Lip in a nig. word while we
were off together. She ant her sister, both, were good cooks am' goo(
Range Lore Ban Kinchlow Page 11
housekeepers. They used to bring um cookies an' coffee to the
pone when we was workin' an' I tell you, that's sho' fine when
you're hot an' tired. They was always neat an' tidy about ever'thing
an' they wasn't much for 'merino guns buckled Growl' lam like some
I've seen. Well, they didn't have to. They was plenty of men
to do that an' plenty of men to do the ropin' an' brandins unless
they wanted to help out to keep in practise-.
"I knew one woman they said went up the trail. Zack Stookley
told me she went up the trail with her husband beiiind a bunch of
cattle an' she went in a hack (a two -seated buggy working two horses)
She was the Widow Burk when I first seen her in '76. She was big
rioh, then. I broke homes for her while I was breakie houses for
Jim Merryman on the panwota Ranch. Her hoes range reached from
Fort Ewing to Corpus. She had worlds of hose range. I don't know
how many hosses she had an' she didn't know herself. Merryman
didn't know how many he had either. I tell you, when we'd start
on a hoes hunt them days, or start the general round -44 as far as
you could see there would be bunches of mares an' eometimes mixed
hosses, naybe some gentle ones in with 'elm an' maybe all wild ones.
They wasn't no two or three hundred either; it was up into the thou-
sands. After we got through brandintym4 'we'd turn tom out on the
range again. We would be out six weeks or two months sometimes.
Th' was a pretty good demand for houses them days on acoount of this
trail drivinl. The Widow Burk had lots of gem to sell. She was a
tol'ably young an' portly-look/no lady but she never did ride after
her stock like lots of women did. I think she had s nephew that
stayed with her, but no children of her own, an' the nephew looked
after the ranch a lot.
Range Lore Ben Kinchlow
Page 13
"Sally Scull was a woman horns -trader I never saw anything like
her. She wore short skirts we called it a'britch-clout, but
the skirt came below her knees an' her boots reached up to the skirt.
She wore a round, beaver-lookin° hat with a throat -latch under the
chin, MeZkin spurs an' leather gloves. Then, she had two six-shooters
buckled on ter, one on each side, an' let me tell you, she could sho'
use tem. I've seen ler put her finger through the trigger -guard ant
whirl the pistol aroun' an' aroun' an' then.ketch it an' fire at
some object ant she never missed. She could shoot as well with her
left hand as she could with her right. She was strictly business
too, an' everebody knowed she'd shoot an* they knowed she wouldn't
miss.
"It seems to me that she wore a buckskin outfit. It had that
color an' in them days they wore lots of buckskin anyway. I know I
had a buckskin jacket myself. She was a right niee..lookint woman,
sort of sandy -haired an, pretty sunburned. Sho had a pleasin' smile
an' she was quiet ant smooth-talkin'. If anything went funny about
the hosses ant riders, she always laughed. She didn't weigh moro'n
125 Pounds, an' them two big old six-shooters didn't seem to bother
her a bit.
'She had five or six Mexkin hands with her an' they went into
Mexico an' bought hosses ant crossed 'em over the Ryo Grand an' ped-
dled 'em out. As long as she had any hosses on hand, she'd keep
a-goint. She always carried two pack hosses with ler, one for the b
beddin' an' one for the catkin' outfit. The hands don* the cookin!
but as for that, she always made a hand herself. She carried her money
with her, ant I reek'n she carried it in a morre4 (nose bag to feed
horses in) like other people did then, for she bought up big herds
of hosses over in Mexico. She'd generally cross the Rye Grand between
Range Lore rien Kinchlow Page 14
Brownsville an' Bagdad an' she'd have from a hundred an' fifty
to two -hundred an, fifty 'losses in a caviyerd*(cavellard). They
has been as many 'as e hundred an' fifty that I know of. She had
home, mules, mares ant ever'thing that was salable. I don't
know what she got for top prices, but I think top prices for hoeses
about then was twenty -live dollars. Ur. Merryman got that for
top price, but Sally Scull was tradin' in houses before that. I
guess you could gel hossas over in Lexico :tem days for vbaut five
or six dollars. Them Watkins were a big help to htir in tredin' over
there. he iireated 'em good an' they thought lots of her. They would
have fought for her right now.
I heard her say that she had a daughter, but that she sent
her away to school. She didn't want the girl to oome up tt; that
sort of rough lifts. I never did see her daughter, but I guess she
hid one all right for ahe mentioned her several times. I never did
hear her mention her husband so A. &nit know whether he was dead or
not. she was a character, that woman. rver'body respected ter an'
I toll you, she wasn't afraid of nothin'.
"Goin UP the trail aint all fun, you boteha. Sometimes they'd
come e freeze in late wring ant ketch us an' I tell you we had fun
then. '41 went up the trail generally in the spring, you see, an'
I remember one spring we was gain' up with the ileat cattle an' had
a good open spring an' about the middle of April was when we received
our herd an' we moved off the ranch to Victoria Prairie. We was gain'
to brand out our cattle at the pens an' then the bad weather cam-
menoed. We had about ono -hundred head of hosses in our remude an'
••••11•111••••••••••••••
it commenced minim' an' freesia'. had to herd them (wattle an*
Range Lore -.E.A3eU Ainchlow Page 15
You'd go out to see where your old hose was an* eadtae 'in up, an'
it would be so dark you couldn't see 'in but you could hear 'is
snort. The wind wGuld be blowin' an' you'd have to drag that old
stiff saddle an' blanket up to the old hoes an* the rain would
be freezin'almost when it hit. We'd put a bunch of cattle in the
pens en' put the road brand on 'am an' it would be burnino an'
hurtin' 'em when we turned lam out, so they'd take to the river
an' swim eoross an' we had to get across the beet way we could to
bring 'em back. ell, we'd get that bunch back about the time they
turned another bunch out an' the mane thing would take place. Our
cook on that trip wan Poncho Bilgaro, an' I tell you he was a cook
too. I reok'n he thought we wasn't havin' trouble enough so he
an, Mr. 'A.126 went to town after supplies one day. When they got
all loaded up, the mules stampeded right in town an' run off with
the on an' scattered provisions all over Victoria. They had
flour,. molasses, beans, baeon an' all kinds of stuff mixed up an'
scattered for a mile. They fin*ly got most of it gathered up -an,
°me on out to camp.
"On that trail drivin*, we'd start with about twenty-four
hands an' they wouldn't have nothint but expert hands, either.
They didn't want no sleepy -heads a -tall. By the time we got to
Austin or Gonzales, ever' hand would be tried out, an' it you wasn't
pretty good, they'd turn you loose an' hunt some others. We always
left the ranch with a double set' of hands an' when we got to Austin
or Gonzales, twelve of the men would turn book to the raneh an' the
other twelve would go on with the herd. They'd be six on *nob relief
an' six on the other relief at nights, but if the cattle got along
Range Lore Ben Kinchlow Page 16
all right, it would soon be to where two man could handle 'em at
night an' let the others rest.
"Some evenin's you could se, a little cloud rue/no away up in
the north an' about dark you could see a little lightnin' danglin°
an' then you better look out 'cause that night you would sure hate
trouble. On stormy nights like that, I've seen balls of lightnin'
danglin' all over the steers' horns an' on them nights, they would
almost be sure to run. We always kept ODMO of the cattle stirred
up or awake at night 'cause a big herd of cattle will run all
night if they're tired an, get to aleepin' too sound. The least
racket will stampede tom. You better never let 'em lay down ant
go to sleep ant get quiet; you'll have trouble sure as the world.
The boys always sang ea they rode round the herd. That was the
main thing, to keep a noise goin' so that no sudden raoket would
stampede 'sm. I used to 'odd' (yodel) aroun' the cattle, but I
never was much of a hand to sing. I could whistle ant make all
kindi of funny rackets. I c.uld aing 'Sam Bass' an' 'Bury te Not
on the Lone Prairie,' but when all the hands could yodel' it shot
was pretty singin'.
"The worst thing you got to watch in a stampede is to keep
out of the middle of the herd when you get 'am to millin'. When
you get a herd turned an' millino you can handle 'ea then, but
you (taint hardly stay out of the middle of the herd to save your life.
One night after a stampede, fr. Pulliam rode up on me in the middle of
the herd an, he satd,'Whols that?' I said, 'It's Boni' An' he said,
'hat in the hell are you doin' here?' An' I said, 'What are ea
dotal here!' Then he said, 'where are we at?' Ant when I told him
we was in the middle of the herd, he wanted to know how we got there.
Range Lore Ben Kinehlow Page 17
I told 'in how it was when we got to ridin' rount the herd ant
singin' to turn 'am an' how some of 'am fell in behind um an'
got to follerin' us, so we fintly got in the middle of 'em.
"Another peculiar thing about herdin' at night in case of
stampedes is that you leant to always build your bed down with
your head away from the cattle. Always sleep with your feet
toward the herd. If you don't, an' they stampede, you will get up an'
run away from 'am instead of toward *am ever' time. The thing is
to get to your hose an* get on 'Ia. Your hoes is always at camp right
at the wagon, saddled ant ready to go. The herd was always bedded
down about fifty or seventy-five yards sway from the wagon. No, you
don't never want to run from the herd, but toward *em when a stampede
starts. Pshaw2 I never did see a stampede run over a man. I don't
know how they ever 801 that started. }tut* if you got right square
in front of 'am before they saw you an' they couldn't turn, they
would knock you down ant run over you, but I never did see it, an'
I reok'n I've seen as many stamedes as any man ever saw.
"I vent up the Chisola Trail five or six times. Charley Word,
Blocker, George west, W.G.B. Grimes, Able an' John Pierce was all
big trail drivers then. Going up the trail you never was out of
sight of a herd. The trail was so worn, that the dust would be kneem-
deep to the cattle. You could ride right up to the rear of the cattle
an' you couldn't see the cattle for the dust. It shot was slow
goint, but whenever we struck good range where there was grass an'
water, we always grazed tem. If the cattle was strung out good on
the trail, the lead cattle would be at least four mile ahead of
the rear cattle an* sometimes futther.
"'Another thing that don't sound reasonable: Now, when the
Range Lore
Ben Kinoblow Page 18
cattle was on the trail, the steers always had a travelin' partner.
They always had another steer they run with an' when a steer lost
his partner, he always bawled for 'in till he found 'Sm. They would
always hang together unless there was a stampede then they would get
back together when they got straightened out. Whenever they would be
hunting, one another, you would see gem raise their heads an' try to
get the wind of their partner.
"On long drives without water, I've noticed that cattle can
scent water five miles away. I have aeon it when we was five or
six miles away from water, them old lead steers would start out an' hold
their heads up soonisint an' we knoved they smelt water. Them scoundrels
would shot travel. They do some peculiar things. Whenever you see am
old cow raise her foot up an' kick back like she was slingin' mud off
her foot, it's shot a good indication of rain. You know one thing
1 aint no hand to guess on rains much, but we aint going to have no rain
to maount to anything till about January (1938). It's just ay idea
from the way these Gulf clouds are traveling north. It's a good
sign of dry weather when you see then white thunderheads going over.
I don't look for no rain soon. Yes, they keep gain' over, these white
clouds, but they don't bring rain. They'll probably come back full
of sand.
"You know, all them trips we went up the trail, we never did have
no trouble with Indians. Most all other outfits had a terrible tine eith
the Indians. We always give tea something to eat when they come to our
wagon. le'd give lea a crippled or a road -foundered steer an' let *ea
have it to kill. Them scoundrels, whenever they'd come to the wagon
at meal time, you couldn't hand the pan of grub to an Indian to help
himself like they do in a coweamp. If you handed him a pan of meat,
Range Lore .0- Ben Kinehlow
Pigs lt
he'd take tke whole pan an' keep it an' wouldn't give the others
none of it, either. What he couldn't eat, he'd fix it up an' take
it along with 'in. You had to help each one's plate an' pass it to
*La. 'An* another thing: If one of gem had anything you wanted to
look at, like a bow or arrow, an' you asked 'in to let you see it,
then after you examined it an* passed it back to 'in, ever' one of
the Indians with 'in would have to examine it an* pass it back to
vim just like you did. He'd pass it to ever' one of tea. I don't
know why they done that, but they done that ever' time. Ant did
you ever knew how they ate their beef when they got a steer or
cow to kill, or a buffalo either? An quick an they skin tat
they take tkon entrails an' run their thumb an* forefinger down
the outside of the entrail to press it clean an' then they begin
eatin' it *kilo it's hot. Shy' they at. it raw.
ninny a thing could happen out on the trail, or out on the
ranch gatherin' cattle. I've had worlds of rattlesnake experiences.'
One time doin here on the Irvin ranch, I seen the biggest snake layin
right by the trail, an' befog I could turn my hose, he struck. He
missed my hems, but he was so sho' he got 'in, he flopped over on
his back befog he knowed he missed. Whenever they strike anything
an' hang their fangs in it, they always flop on their backs to tear
their fangs leise. This shot wss a big one. I had a hose bit later
on at the Anderson ranch. The snake hung his fang in my hose' log
ant he couldn't get loose. His fangs hung an* my hose reared an*
plunged till he stopped on the snake with his hind foot an* pulled
the snake loose. I took him home an' took my pocket -knits an' scar-
ified the place an' then packed salt petre in the cut an, bound it up
Then I put kerosene on -the place an* it never did smell. I've saved