The Project Gutenberg EBook of Cattle Brands, by Andy Adams

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Title: Cattle Brands A Collection of Western Camp-fire Stories

Author: Andy Adams

Release Date: May 6, 2004 [EBook #12281]

Language: English

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CATTLE BRANDS ***

Produced by Leah Moser and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.

CATTLE BRANDS

A Collection of Western Camp-fire Stories

BY

ANDY ADAMS

1906

TO MR. AND MRS. HENRY RUSSELL WRAY

CONTENTS

I. DRIFTING NORTH

II. SEIGERMAN'S PER CENT

III. "BAD MEDICINE"

IV. A WINTER ROUND-UP

V. A COLLEGE VAGABOND

VI. THE DOUBLE TRAIL

VII. RANGERING

VIII. AT COMANCHE FORD

IX. AROUND THE SPADE WAGON

X. THE RANSOM OF DON RAMON MORA

XI. THE PASSING OF PEG-LEG

XII. IN THE HANDS OF HIS FRIENDS

XIII. A QUESTION OF POSSESSION

XIV. THE STORY OF A POKER STEER

"The Passing of Peg-Leg" and "A Question of Possession" appeared originally in Leslie's Monthly, and are here reprinted by permission of the publishers of that magazine.

BRANDS

[Illustration:] Bar X bar.

[Illustration:] Ohio.

[Illustration:] Barb wire.

[Illustration:] Hat.

[Illustration:] Apple.

[Illustration:] Diamond tail.

[Illustration:] Iowa.

[Illustration:] Johnson & Hosmer

[Illustration:] United States.[1]

[Illustration:] "Sold."[1]

[Illustration:] Dead tree.

[Illustration:] Tin cup.

[Illustration:] Snake.

[Illustration:] Bar Z bar.

[Illustration:] Running W.

[Illustration:] Three circle.

[Illustration:] Two bars.

[Illustration:] Broken arrow.

[Illustration:] Four D.

[Illustration:] Turkey track.

[Illustration:] Owned by "Barbecue" Campbell.

[Illustration:] L.X.

[Illustration:] "Inspected and condemned."[1]

[Illustration:] Spade.

[Illustration:] Flower pot.

[Illustration:] Frying pan.

[Illustration:] Laurel leaf.

[Illustration:] X bar two.

[Footnote 1: These three belong to the United States Government.]

CATTLE BRANDS

I

DRIFTING NORTH

It was a wet, bad year on the Old Western Trail. From Red River north and all along was herd after herd waterbound by high water in the rivers. Our outfit lay over nearly a week on the South Canadian, but we were not alone, for there were five other herds waiting for the river to go down. This river had tumbled over her banks for several days, and the driftwood that was coming down would have made it dangerous swimming for cattle.

We were expected to arrive in Dodge early in June, but when we reached the North Fork of the Canadian, we were two weeks behind time.

Old George Carter, the owner of the herd, was growing very impatient about us, for he had had no word from us after we had crossed Red River at Doan's crossing. Other cowmen lying around Dodge, who had herds on the trail, could hear nothing from their men, but in their experience and confidence in their outfits guessed the cause—it was water. Our surprise when we came opposite Camp Supply to have Carter and a stranger ride out to meet us was not to be measured. They had got impatient waiting, and had taken the mail buckboard to Supply, making inquiries along the route for the Hat herd, which had not passed up the trail, so they were assured. Carter was so impatient that he could not wait, as he had a prospective buyer on his hands, and the delay in the appearing of the herd was very annoying to him. Old George was as tickled as a little boy to meet us all.

The cattle were looking as fine as silk. The lay-overs had rested them. The horses were in good trim, considering the amount of wet weather we had had. Here and there was a nigger brand, but these saddle galls were unavoidable when using wet blankets. The cattle were twos and threes. We had left western Texas with a few over thirty-two hundred head and were none shy. We could have counted out more, but on some of them the Hat brand had possibly faded out. We went into a cosy camp early in the evening. Everything needful was at hand, wood, water, and grass. Cowmen in those days prided themselves on their outfits, and Carter was a trifle gone on his men.

With the cattle on hand, drinking was out of the question, so the only way to show us any regard was to bring us a box of cigars. He must have brought those cigars from Texas, for they were wrapped in a copy of the Fort Worth "Gazette." It was a month old and full of news. Every man in the outfit read and reread it. There were several train robberies reported in it, but that was common in those days. They had nominated for Governor "The Little Cavalryman," Sol Ross, and this paper estimated that his majority would be at least two hundred thousand. We were all anxious to get home in time to vote for him.

Theodore Baughman was foreman of our outfit. Baugh was a typical trail-boss. He had learned to take things as they came, play the cards as they fell, and not fret himself about little things that could not be helped. If we had been a month behind he would never have thought to explain the why or wherefore to old man Carter. Several years after this, when he was scouting for the army, he rode up to a herd over on the Chisholm trail and asked one of the tail men: "Son, have you seen anything of about three hundred nigger soldiers?" "No," said the cowboy. "Well," said Baugh, "I've lost about that many."

That night around camp the smoke was curling upward from those cigars in clouds. When supper was over and the guards arranged for the night, story-telling was in order. This cattle-buyer with us lived in Kansas City and gave us several good ones. He told us of an attempted robbery of a bank which had occurred a few days before in a western town. As a prelude to the tale, he gave us the history of the robbers.

"Cow Springs, Kansas," said he, "earned the reputation honestly of being a hard cow-town. When it became the terminus of one of the many eastern trails, it was at its