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Range -lore
Nellie L. Cox
son iingelo, Texas.
RiNGE-LORE
Seaton Keith, (Englishman),
came to west Texas in 1881. He
was the owner of the Lipan Springs
Rentsh and his style of living was
befitting one to the manner born".
His large house was luxuriously
furnished and servants kept it in
perfect order. The meals were pre-
pared and served scoording to the
best of English tradition-aorrect
ohina, silver and napery, the carv-
ing of the immense beef roast by
Mr. Keith, and the passing of the
finger bowls was the every day
order. This was embarrassing to
many guests, espeeielly if they
were old ranchmen who for many
years had been served from a chuck
wagon end had eaten from e tin
plate. Mr. Keith drove a team of
the best horses to be had, to a
double buggy, on his frequent trips
to town. He kept English bird dogs
for hunting. Many guest. have en..
joyed the hospitality end pleasures
of the Lipan Springs Rama during
the years when Mr. Keith was owner.
Ile is now 81 years of age. He sold
his ranch and retired from the cattle
Page one
Page two
business about fifteen years ago.
He became a naturalised citizen
four years after coming to this
country but in many ways, appear
onset mannerisms, sceent and ex-
pression, he is typleally knglish.
Mr. Keith says: "Our family lost their titles in
the Stuart Rebellion in 1715. My father finished the
study of surgery in the -iohool of :Airgeons at Aberdeen.
This school has chanped names but same three hundred
years before my father's entrance to the school, it had
been endowed by a Faith of my father's family.
"Do you wish to hear the whole story? Very well,
I shall proceed. Ly father performed the first opera-
tion for the removal of ovarian tumor ever to be per-
formed. He became a noted surgeon and we lived in
quite good style in London. Father could speak many
languages and he wished my brother and me to learn to
speak at teazt the French and German languages so we
spent one year in France and one year in Germany. After
I came West, I wished devoutly that I had learned to
swear in 8panish. but to proceed with the story, later
I worked in London but when I was 21, I went to Burma.
I did not like it there. The coolest day was 84° and
that was in the winter, then my pay was only eiphty
pounds a year.
"Yy father having heard of the opportunities in
the 3tates, wrote ard asked if I shouldn't like the
cattle business. I cane in a round -a -bout may to lest
Texas and except for occasional trips to ngland, I
have been here since.
Page three
"I first bought a share in the cattle on the
Lipan Springs Ranch, then owned by Jefferson,
and 1-laskine. 'hen I first came, the only house on
the ranch was a picket house. It had been built by
i)eLong during Indian times. A very funny thing hap-
pened the first night I was at the mnch. The picket
house had only two rooms below and some kind of sleep
ix quarters in the attic. outside was a amall rook
room where lived 1111am 6cherz and his wife. :11:1.
Scherz 000ked for the ranch and the dining table was
in this rock room, along with other furniture. It
was so very crowded. Vie squeezed in to the table by
one path and passed out the same way. This night of
which I speak, quite a number were there to eat. Uncle
Joe Lilts finished his meal end went out first. I
went next and as I walked out into the dark, I fell
over the wheelbarrow. Ohl I fell all over the placel
When I got up, I reached down to pick up the wheel-
barrow end out of the dark, Uncle Joe grabbed me and
said, 'Leave the blasted thing alone. I fell over it,
then I saw you fall over it, now let's watch the
others fall over it.
,ar ranch neighbor was the .ecan Creek Ranch own-
ed by Frost and Leath. You do not object to a little
gossip, do you? Jack Leath kept a exioan woman and
that was not pleasing to all, so he left and went to
lege four
Lexico. Li's. Frost was a society lady and did not
cure for the west. Someone brought a turtle in one
day, just a common old hard -shelled turtle, and LI'134,
Frost was determined to make turtle soup but the last
I heard she had not succeeded in getting the turtle
tender. Irost always liked to drink and after he
left the ranch someone said that Frost was just as
near heaven as he wished to be, that his home was on
a hill in Louisville, Kantueky and surrounding him
were distilleries by the dozen.
“my first jury experience was really very funny.
Oh! It was great! A big negro was being tried for
criminal assault. At night, the jury was fed at the
Nimitz Hotel and were put in the bridal chamber for
the ni(rht. Lleven of us men voted to give the negro
a penitentiary sentence but one big, fat beezer held
out for letti47; him go with a fine. e were 'sitting
around in the room about eleven o'clock and this
fellow said, ,God -damn it,' (you don't mind a few
rough words, do you?), 'I'm going home where I can
get saue sleep. If you fellows have to send this man
to the pen, then 1,11 vote that way.' If I had been
the only one of twelve to think differently, I tell
you I would have sat there until boomsday.
"I was the poorest rider in the whole country.
A boy named henry, from Fredericksburg, would break
all my horses to ride, but a horse had to be per-
Page five
featly gentle for me. One time my horse fell with
me as I was riding in the pasture end I ley unoon-
seious for six hours in the sleeting weather. No
one found me. My pony was standing near when I
regained consciousness and I rode back to the ranch.
"Oh, yes: When I first ranched, I did not boss.
I worked as a hand. I listened to the cowboys talk
and got their opinion of this man and another. I
also learned to observe livestock closely.
"I bought most of my lend for :j.00 an acre.
There were five or more sections of lend on my ranch
mined by people in other states. One seotion was
owned by a Lmede, by the nene of ':elson who came all
the way from :innesota to sell me his lend. I bought
it for s,640.00 but he was satisfied. Another fellow
came from Manses. In dress and manner, he reminded
me very mush of a ,00ttimih vresbyterian tilde?. Oh,
botheration1 I cannot recall his name, but anyhow,
he had a stook of deeds to lands in Texas which
people had bought or traded for, be of the deeds
were no good and he had failed to even find some of
the lend. Most of it had been pictured as fine farm
lend, some with streams flowing through. He did have
a deed to a section in my south pasture but it was
very rough country.
"Lord Chetwynd who died a few months er.o, was
a good friend of mine. Chetwynd was the second son
Page six
Anson•
of a seaond son and was rreatly surprised rhen he
came into the title. He came here in '83 end was
the best land surveyor we ever had in the country.
I have seen him dig down to find old stumps where
trees had formerly stood to mark corners. Lord
Chetwynd possessed a rod uhioh he thought oould
point out hidden or buried treasure. I do not
think he ever found any. I visited him in his
home in Loudoq in 1913.
"Other knelishmen were Frank, Claude, and Billy
The head-of..the-iiiver Ranch which they bought
is still owned by Billy's daughter. Claude told me
that when he got to Abilene on his way out here, a
man said to him, 'Let's open a bank here,' Anson,
having been accustomed to the banks of Lngland with
scads of money did not think he had anything with
which to start a bank, sty,' the men said, 'we can
take in denosits and when we think we have enough,
we'll split and go our way.'
"I have had droughts on the ranch. One spring
when I had hod no rein for a year and half I killed
the calvec as they came, but r. Wallace didn't send
ins a check for them. They were a total loss.
"It is outrageous the way people will overstock
their pastures. It is said of one zan, that if he
goes out in his pasture and finds three,blades or
grass growing, that he becomes very much excited
1 -age seven
and says, 'Oh, my Godt I must get some more stock.
Just look at the grass,'
"Will earver used to work on my ranch. He was
a good, quiet, steady boy, but his wife and baby died
and he seemed to go all to pitmen. he joined Us -4A
Jack's gang of desperadoes and was shot in bonore.
"I know a good story of Tom Mitchum. Our boys
were working at a round -up on the Lien tieba River.
wagon was there and among the boys was a short, stocky
fellow named 6pringstun. e called him sDogie'. He
had been quite a wrestler. One evenine ar the boys
were sitting around waiting for supper, Tom r<etchum,
e tell, rawboned fellow, came by end sold, 'Dogie, I
think I'll just take you down end duck you in the
river.' .1.th that, he took Logie by the beck of the
collar end been dragging him to the river. Doeie
bided his time, chen a convenient time came, ,„oeie
grobed Tom by the legs and threv him over. Tom ley
there, limp and gespinr:. ,Jomeone said, 'Doric, you
have killed Tom."No, I reckon not,' replied Dogie,
nonchalantly. The next day Tom was able to laugh with
the others at himself. Ivor fellowl lie got off to
the bed and was hanged.
wi.ometimes I wonder if a different life would
not have been better. Now, I have no wife, no child-
ren, but possibly they would not have enjoyed my mode
of living and my friends, in the way t have. Oh, really,
my life has been very pleasant."
BIBLIOGRAPHY
uoston !ceith en Angelo, Texas, Interviewed,
February 8, 1938.