Document text
Range -lore
Elizabeth Doyle
Lien An7elo, Texas.
RAVGE-LRE
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when about 1? years of age
J. h. Yardley of Mertzon, Texas,
came from Grayson County, Texas,
and settled near Colorado City,
Texas. he was about 18 years
old when he joined up with the
late Fayette Tankersley's out-
fit near Tankersley, Texas. (Mr.
Tankersley died two days after
this interview).
"We never had a cross word or the slightest misund-
erstanding, believe it or not, the whole 45 years I worked
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for him," related r. Yardley. "Moat of that time I was
foreman and handled millions of dollars for Mr. Tankersley.
placed his money in the bank, paid off the hands, end
kept out my own. We just happened to be two square shoot
era who got together, whish proves further that doing the
right thing pays best in the long run.
"I'm just knookint around my bachelor's quarters
here nor,. tryin" to kill a little time. Guess I lived in
the saddle too long. Anyway, I havn't been able to even
get on a horse in a year now, since that serious operation
had last year.
nur Tankersley and I stayed with it too close and
too long I guess, for they took him to the Temple hospital,
too, a few days ago and I'm afraid he ain't a-comie back
Like I did. I was over to sea him yesterday and the nurse
told me he just needed rest. Rest& Maybe that's what all
us old boys are needino; anyway, I'm a feelinl those cold
rainy nights in my bones now, when we use to spread our
bed roll out over a bumph of eat -claws, Aryin' to keep off
the wet ground. Sometimes we had a tarp over us and some-
times we didn't and we would be in one place one night and
another the next.
"The bed roll offered a favorite means of carrying
out our Kangaroo Court sentences. When a tenderfoot com-
mitted the usual and unusual errors he was bent down a-
cross a bed roll and given the leggin's. we poured it
Pegs three
on one smart sleek once and he started raisin' a rough
house with us all, so we just up's with him and takes
him down to the river and pitched him in, clothes and
'all, and told him to swim or drown. boot of the time
we tried to be civil even to new earners but when a
fellow kicked book too much he just got a double dose.
"A oowboy's outfit oonsiated of his bed roll,
his saddle which usually goat around 50.00, chaps,
spurs, end a good stetson hat. The hat was never sup-
posed to cost under 40.00.
"we were going up the trail to Kansas once with
about 1,000 head and thought we were going to make the
entire trip without a stampede but on our fourth night
out a severe thunderstorm with lots of lightning came
up. We watched the settle as they began to stir and
mill. That was where I sew a sight that lots of people
7ive the lie,and that was lightning playing up and down
the cows' horns, then running up and dropping off the
end of the horns in big balls of fire. This didn't
happen a great many times before the cattle broke away
in nad fright. We ran them two days and nights and
that is one of the few times that I rubbed tobaeco
spit in my eyes to keep awake.
"I don't think I eould ever have made it on that
trip if I hadn't been riding my big brown horse I willed
I. X. He was more like a human than a horse, and wasn't
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resembled a Moccasin snake. His boots were always run
down, his hat flopped and his clothes and flesh dirty,
but when it come to riding he got the job done.
"He was just as good at shooting too. I've seen
him throw up a couple of eggs and burst them both with
a six-shooter as they came down.
"I've been run over, knocked down, and tramped on
by the herd more than once and often wonder yet why and
how I am here. I was just thinking this morning here
by myself about an old wild bull I was a -worming once.
he was fighting ma right along and I was holding my
hand with him fine 'til he knocked me down, I crawled
into a bunch of brush as best I Gould and thought I
was out of his reach. I lay there half stunned as he
would rage and paw and sniff and snort at me. All at
once he just seemed to go into a fit of rage and back-
ed off about ten feet, roared out a big bellow and seem-
ed to just make a leap right over into the middle of that
brush and almost on top of me. All I could think of was
to try to put his eyes out. As he would horn dawn at me
I would dig him in the eyes with my thumbs and I really
think that slowed him down a little, but not enough to
keep him from ramming his horn in my side, lifting me
clear of the brush and tossing me about ten feet over
the brush pile. I just flattened out on the ground and
lay as limp as I could, as I was getting weak anyway
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from loss of blood. He rushed after me but seemed to
think I was dead or something as he only nosed and snif-
fed over my body and walked away, slobbering like a mad
dog. That was one of my narrowest escapes and I was
pretty weak by the time I pulled myself up and made it
back to the camps. *hen I got beak end the boys dressed
my side they told me that will Carver had been shot down,
in a feed store in Sonora, as he was buying feed for the
six Ranch where he had worked since he quit the Ketchum
boys. He had made one of the best hands I ever saw and
we all liked him and was sorry to hear of his death.
te learned that the sheriff had a warrant for him and
didn't take any chances, Just walked in and shot him
down. This must have worn on his conscience though,
as he soon resigned and we heard no more of him. Will
was lie a lot it the others, his name got worse than
his ways and everything they diu then wis exagrerated
and many misdeeds of which they were not guilty were
blamed on them. Like Lr. Tankersley told ma yesterday
though, we're all just waitino now for the final big
round -up, where it will all be straightened out better
than we can ever figure it out here,I hope. If he
comes book and I ever get able to ride again, I wouldn't
mind going all over the same road again, as in my ex-
periences the good has always out -weighed the bad."
Benge-lore
tlizabeth Doyle
San Anpelot Texas.
BIBLIUGRAPHY
J. 11. Yardley, Iiiertzon, Texas, interviewed,
Novembered 17, 1937.