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Titat. -4:411/
Phipps, loody
Rangslore
Torrent co., Dist. 47
Mrs. Elvin Ilobbs Law, 55,„ wies born on
her father's stook farm in Franklin Co.,
Tenn. Her father, W.I. Hobbes moved the
family to Dallas Co.* Tex., in 1890. In
1896* she married a cowboy, R.J. Laworho
later became the foreman of the Ben Rusk
Ranch in Red River Co., Tex. John Hobbs,
her brother, later become a horse trainer
after their arrival in Texas, and wee
employed yearly on the Upeburth Ranch,
the Rusk Ranch* and others to train their
wild horses as they needed them for their
work. A bad business deal forced Ben Rusk
into bankruptcy In 1900, rhieh caused Law's
dismissal as foreman. Believing the range
undependable for a future, hi moved his
family to Ft. Worth, where he later died.
itIvira now lives at 917 Hemphill with her
father and children. Fer story:
70
e
well, sir. I've alwys loveJ to handle horses, but never
was around too many at once 'til after I married R.J. Law in
Dallas co. Tlhile my dad ran a sort of a stock farm back in
FeranklIn oo, Tenn., where I was born on Aug. 29, 1880, he never
run many heed of horses. I don't recall just how maw head of
cows he run either, but he never did run over 50 head at a time.
That I know.
I don't recall too much about Tenn., because we moved
away from there in the *90s, to come to Dallas so. Nothing much
ever happened to me 'til after I met and married law, and he got
to be foreman on the Ben Rusk Ranch on Shawnee Prairie in lied
River co., Per. While I'm not too sure about it, I think there
was around 2,000 head of oattle on the reach with the BR brand.
I do know it sits pretty 4,100e grazing for thee' settle on 2,000
cores but the Rusk poopt0-04:isy band leaned close by for winter
0004400.
Phipps, ;moody
Rangelore
Dist. 'fi7 Tarrant c:o.,
page 12
Yap, Dee. 15, 1896, was the start of 217 ranch life.
while Law run the ranch, I ran the big commissary on the place.
I didn't only sell to the cowboys who boarded with me, but to
other ranches around there too. Rusk himself was a beef contractor
who got out and hustbed business. He tried to sell four -or 500
head of three-year- steers every year, in addition to other s11
beef contracts.
My br)ther„ John Hobbs, had the sem love of horses
did, and got a job on the Upchurch in the. Sulphur RiyerBsittoma,.
The Upehurch Ranch ran 8,000 heed of cattle on about 12,000 acres.
His brand was an 8 on the right hip. John liked to work with
horses, and got Upchurch to let him .wrangle the horse herd. He
done just that, and that was Where John got his training to be a
brono buster. One season with that herd, end he never dome anything
else but bust horses as long as he worked around ranches. Ho used
to go to the different ranches and take contracts for busting their
hosses.
One time Knewt Dillard, who sold the Rusk lanoh to Ben
Rusk in the first place, sold Ban 70 wild horses he'd trapped and
bought in west Texas. :That was Knewt's business, handling wild
horses. He didn't break them stall, but just sold them to ranchers.
"fell, John took a contract to bust all then horses. Many's the
time I've seen him get thrown from a horse after he'd rode so long
he had the nose bleed That looked to as like the hardest my
in the world to make 6 lila*, but John seemed to get along at it.
It 11/0317 AGM blat, ult la VW 4000 thosib, biomes ,lovery stop be
Phipps, %loody Page 3
Bangelore
Tarrant Co., Dist. 47 Fe
There were two horses be never did plum break. Him nor
nobody else ever broke them plum good. '"hey were both on, the Puck
Ranch, and one of them's name was Blase,' bemuse she'd be off
like a streak of lightning once a man mounted her that'd never rode
her to a show -down before. nyt, how that horse would tear around
is somothing.I could never maim you fully realise, because she'd
sure pitch and book.
'lie other horse was named Star,' bemuse she had a
white spot in her forehead just like a stmt. ster seemed to sense
whether a man could ride her to a show -down or not, and If she felt
she might be able to throw the many he was in for a reel ride. I
never saw a grfAmer stay on her. She could pitch Just as bad, or
worse, than Blaze, but wouldn't pitch if her rider could rosily ride.
"John broke both them horses from wild horses, but there was
another horse he broke for himself. She was a race mare he Domed
Daisy,' because she wasesnoh s pretty thing. He won plenty
money on her too, because she could really run.
There's another thing I don't guess many folks thought
shout, but John never rode a pitching horse with his chaps on. He
said be couldn't stay on because he bed to clamp his knees too
tight, and the leether'd give on him. oly number of times after.
he'd rode a horse, I've seen him pull his pents legs up, and the
bllod'd be as -streaming down from his ineaa where he'd held on so
tight, the skirt'd give 'way.
My brother trained 4 horse for no to ride around on. He
a *Opantadti bora% and we nomad Min Cateetairt,f which we later
-snalog rids-jaalt eo pretty, and not
Phipps, body
Rangelore
Tarrant Co., fist. #9
PC
Page 14
pitching. Be didn't do but a very little of that, or I wouldn't
have had him. However, one time after our second child bed came
to us, be sfarted pitobing when I had one On the saddle in front
of me, and one in behind mt. Be pitched us both off into the sand.
rhere was a time when he started pitching with me by myself, and
after he saw be wasn't going to pitch mural' this time, he started
reuning. Re run to the creek, then stopped all of a sudden. I
didn't know he intended to step, so I never stopped tout went on
into the creek.
It seemed like the cowboys didn't like the Rusk Ra oh,
or were drifters, because they kept drifting in and than out.
Among the best riders that ever came there were Tfarvey Rawlings,
John Lewis, and Bob Roden.
Bob Rodense riding days were finished on that plece.
One day, his horse shied at a sand rattler, end started pitching.
Bob was pitohed off, hat his loft foot hang in the stirrup. His
horse ran round and r)und a slump of seders, and drug Bob all
4
the way. some nigger cow punchers that worked for another ranch,
happened to see whet was going on, and they roped the horse. Bob
lay between death and life for a long time before he rallied, then
he left the range a broken man.
You can't hardly realize just how dangerous a cowboy's
work is 'til you've seen the Jaime escapes they have. Besides
riding brooms end wild horses, there's stampodes,to put up with.
stempaeing herd is ices thing to he woolly reokomod with, because
rtial "or irairthisig it sort knock down if, it doom* t_ look too
Phipps. ffoody page 15
Rangelore
Tarrant Co. Dist. $7 rc
A neighbor's boy just walked out to a herd once when a Norther was
hon, and just because he had his coat over his head, the herd ran
over two barb wire fences on its way toward the house. me had
an unusually big log corral on the other side of the barn, and
this corral had two big gates which swung outward. It just happened
thet these gates were open, and the leaders of the herd led the herd
right into the corral* re watched for the walls to fall, but they
circled after they got in, and started to milling. Well, that's
the only may to stop a stampede, is to start the herd willing.
Then it rtus in a circle 'til it gets tired, then a cow will bola,
others will take it up, and the first thing you know, the whole
herd is stopped and some of it is laying down, getting it's wind
beck. 'Fop, that's the soy it is. Other things that causes
stampedes are rains, lightning and thunder storms, ooyottee,
wolves, and any kind of a wild animal. After a herd has got sort
of skittish, any kind of a sadden noise will start it off like an
airplane. Just roaring along with the noise of a freight train at
full speed.
That's about Fill I know the cowboy's life because I stayed
so cl)se to the commissary that I didn't have much time to be run-
ning around over the ranch. I don't know what kind of a deal, but
se kind of a bad business deal broke Ben Rusk, and he had to let
his cowboys go along in the 1900's. Law and I decided we'd better
get in a business that was more dependable, no we eons to Fort
-fforth,oste I's "wpm fop interest butidlai *ostrastore.
1000 novicoistdid am* live