Document text
P;=1 Words
ti h /lc,' a.
lenge Lore and
Uarly Experiences
Wore end After 1875
n
XDITOHI
Mrs. Floren
AL CO
FIELD COPY Page 1
by 232
Angermiller,
TI? -1) _ no
MHS. MM LSAKILY MILES
co
Mary Leakey Mlles, daughter or Jahn LeakeY (L.7)-pioneor settler
of the Frio Canyon and founder of ihe torn of Leakey, is 70 years old
end lived the life of the pioneer *omen of that day. She was born in
188? at Leakey,Texas, and grew up n the saddle, helping her father
with the stook and rxding the side saddle on horses scarcely broke.
Her father, a tall, blue eye red -complexioned man, faared nothing
and lived &alb by his brawn. Ole timers remember his use of profane
langunkpo and tell how he pointed a empty revolver at Indians and cursed
them till they fled. He ruled hisfllousehold with a firm and 'imperious
hand. Ten childran of his own 1.4usd to ride, rope and shoot under his
expert guidance, nor were they spated the hard -fisted rule of their father.
In s ite of thieving Indians, the lid man prospered and his children bad
their individual brands for their took.
&Ary Leakey was the second &lighter of the family. She was a tall,
blonde girl whose horseback riding was unexeslled and who remembers her
horses with fondnese that is ft mar of those who depended on a horse,
much of the time, for safety as we as toil.
She married Virgle Ales in 1 and is the mother of 11 children.
Her husband used her brand, ML for numMer of years, 'as she already
had stook running under her own br d.
Mrs. Miles resides in Uvalde North Getty strest. Her husbanifdied
about twelve years ago and since tilea, she has sold her ranch holdings
£'he following erisades of her life
and in spending her old age in tow*.
are told in her won woras:
Itnnp;e Lore .Mary Leakey Miles
Olt
The town of Leekey was named for ny tether, •node the firot wagon
trail ever up in thnt country end he was one or the first settlers ever
to .7o uo there, Two All boys end n engle follow by the neme of Steflford
went ;re zath him..
"Our fir.TA house in isekey wee built by my tether Pad us help. It
u two -room house •:zede of cypress boards cut from native *wiliest; trees.
'There wee n large flreplsoe in one end of the house end we cooed over the
fire in this flrellec.e. e had a hook ngin, from the 01:n:flay the.% we
hang iron note on end we used e ALUM oven end other sPillots. o
good meel of fine venicon steaks end hot icults as well no beef wee cooked
Ln that old flrelleoe.
fotheirun stock end him oldest boy was ridir.g with him wnen
was so little my fether hod to tie hfn -n the Lorne. Le did tali's, e
lot, on the eecount of Indians.
whole
"Treftwe *eon inalens on the nountelns around our 'Ione. ince ny brother
end my sister jUct older then ms started it on the mountoin one evenInG,
My brother wee nhean of as ond pretty soon he ,4histled end we knowed to
sto, so we did. .4,:y brother broke to run end then we knee there were Indians.
gdt beck tons safe but the Indinns took 's. lot or stock thst nt.
"rciy fother nes taot to please by the:.indinns once when he MAIS 'letting
r nelitle folks over in !tetanal. 'fie end ay :lather hod gone to 6:0,nd the
dey over there. The Indiana htd eone to the corral to ateol'horsee end
"foie rin at's* r.y tether and six or seven nen went ppon the T:,otntelh to,
troll them end he, 4,Tt to the to end .,:eve beck for the others to come on
up when the frolione shot him. fie jutApti ort'ot s hl,th bluff when -he sew
they had him, end he foil from bush to bush, ootehing his way es he went
down. They thought he you deed, of courseond the Lndinns were slipping
ap on him to siollp him wuen heEitreibhed his sixshooter end begun cursing then.
Lore .....e Mary Leaks;
is an awful lerson-to nurse and that's how the white men knew where
ha was end eot to him; they hoard him %%trains. The IndianaHrun but
they didnt know the gun w's empty. kt least. my fnther thought it was.
$4 h1P4 another shell and didn't know it.
",.e've entertained nem, An °Utley in our home. ve didn't know who
they *ere, for they *ewe under different names of e4urse. FLmen named
tonglay stryed tor awhile. He was a went desnerado and at one time he
wPs to ba hinle but the dootor fixed' it so his nook wouldn't break, nO4
he not out of his eoffin-olive. There were enloc-ams there nad sone lively
tt-les in %hove dive. any a tnino, hellOened %het won't evnr told.
"4. ut;e4 t ride am thn rvirm:e but I ewidn t room, li‘re my slater cuAild.
That was one tuing 1 never lePrned to do no well. re had brothers to do
ihot but 4 sister was ne-Irlyme gOod, I never helrled with the round-uPle-
OS :-.uatt I worked with the stook about the plane. tly frther used to
send oPtile )ut north A* there; 1 dont know where ti ay went to but
.guess sore buyer same in and taken them north.
_ "I've had horses run eway with me and throw me too. I went on
rs4
erutehrre a who eifrom a horse throwing no and another one stenline,
me. It broke s_sme iieintu loose in y Onkle sumeway. uivt horse run
narait nil, ones and I couldn't atm) hl but my brother heeded hlvt off
and caught
t.
At was ny favorite h4rait. vms a red roan. I thought he was
awfnl smart but of (toupee he helonged to no. He saved ne from the_
Indiana one tine. It hennened between the Frio River aid what we will
the r‘nring vtraneh, r wasn't for tram my sister when the Ladle:is run
aerost us. .y °lulu! bawd the ornekinir or the horses' hoofs_and-
hollered to meg 'Better go haws:* .'nd we broke and run. he want one
way and I went the other bee* I .sse stzstd th.yd mit me off from the
crossing. They wore net mooting en alarm g wen; they Would have Gough*
and oarried us off rather than have um give an alaan,.. They more arta
horses. They run us about two miles but we were riding geed herrn and
we outrun "em.
"My brother had oho horse that was awful mean and every shammy we
had, we would swipe him end ride 'is to see what we oould do with 'in.
"my ststerAattle, Just older than Am, _could ride, rope 'and shoot
ew good as anybody I ever saw.* I've seen her on some pretty mean
horses,riding her side saddle but she *Quid sure handle ,tam, She did
la.ost of her roaing when she was helping in the pens. She'd take after
a yearling anywhere end run it down and sate); it too.. She oould talk
Uexisan as good as any Mexican. She sould break horses and was suooessful
in way. She never got hurt but 'I got tart %wise.
"I was trying to lead horse behtud the horse I was riding and
and pot jerked off lily hoes.and it *rippled me in the ankle again,
though not so bad se when the horse stepped on me.
"The boys used to help the girls up on their horses when they rode
the aide saddles. You put your foot in his hand and give a spring. It _
was easy to spring up, le rode to church hoisobaek. We went in ',alone
too but we traveled, more by horsebook in the early days. I have carried
my_ohildren with me horseback when I rode the side saddle. I never
wolald ride a mails saddle till my boy was sent to Frame. And then I
never could face to go through town the-% way.
*my second. brother, ?an Leakey, was the beat rifle and pistol shot
ever sew. I hove seen him whirl his pistol with his finger in the
guard and shoot ever' time the sun °ems over, He never missed his mark.
n. Gould throw things up and hit than before they mould some down. He was
a fine rifle shot too. He Nas always out on the range and onoe he *aught a
buffalo self and brought IS in alive.' He sought it at ,the head of the
canyon about 10 milieu above our plea*. It didn't live very long; he
thOught he must have injured it someway when he 'ought it.
"I easittOmy whisk of my three brothers wee the beat roper; but we
had a wan working for us by the name of tili wall that was the best
roper on the range or in the pone I believe I ever saw. I have seen
him rope many a wild sow. (We are writing cimarienees from Uncle Dill WaU
at present).
"I have had a few run-ins with bad settle myself. There was a
,N
range bull one Sitio that was pretty bad. We sure had to keen on the watch
for him. Pi's seen some real ball fights in my day. They'd gore each
other till their entrails fell out. About the worst bull fight I ever
saw was between a black end white spotted one, Ohil the other was a red
We. W s heard 'an *suing. They were beillerino'n long ways off and when
they -run together; they ueht baisnese. They fought till on. of 416 killed
the other. one. He ripped him (v)en nnd his entrails fell out. They had
awful keen horns and when they were -4id, they'd gore nearly anything
that oroseed their path.
ieto had moittly rail fences around our plase,(lost of the rail fzEnsee
in this emotion are cedar ogles.) We had one piece of rook fence. 4, had
to work then.- ',le carried water, washed clothes, made amp; milked lots
of 00= end Looked for big outfits all the time. Matins a *swoon iloPP04
and hadn't had anything to eat, it had to he got for him.
That was a wild and unsettled *gantry in those days. The thick
seder brakes and dense %Labor was a fine hide-out for !%in and wild animals.
too. Oh I've heard panthers ser.sa.aorose those eanyous,"ny goodness!
anatte-\Lore
You'd think it semis woman soreeming unloss.you knomed• My oldest
boy killed u* o at the heed ad the Dr4-7rio 'het cos the biggest ono
I ever sec. lie lid it thralls norms his horse and its nose wee tomph-
lug the. ground Wpne side and his toil on the other side* _Elbert
laughed end said j. cos-the'biggirst panther he ever killed ,I told him,
%Of course itimit your :Usti"
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