Chapter VI. Spring of '76

by Andy Adams

　　The spring of '76 was eventful at Las Palomas. After the pigeon hunt,Uncle Lance went to San Antonio to sell cattle for spring delivery.Meanwhile, Father Norquin visited the ranch and spent a few days amonghis parishioners, Miss Jean acting the hostess in behalf of Las Palomas.The priest proved a congenial fellow of the cloth, and among us, withMiss Jean's countenance, it was decided not to delay Enrique's marriage;for there was no telling when Uncle Lance would return. All thearrangements were made by the padre and Miss Jean, the groom-to-beapparently playing a minor part in the preliminaries. Though none of thewhite element of the ranch were communicants of his church, the priestapparently enjoyed the visit. At parting, the mistress pressed a goldpiece into his chubby palm as the marriage fee for Enrique; and, afternaming a day for the ceremony, the padre mounted his horse and left usfor the Tarancalous, showering his blessings on Las Palomas and itspeople.During the intervening days before the wedding, we overhauled an unusedjacal and made it habitable for the bride and groom. The jacal is acrude structure of this semi-tropical country, containing but a singleroom with a shady, protecting stoop. It is constructed by standingpalisades on end in a trench. These constitute the walls. The floor isearthen, while the roof is thatched with the wild grass which grows rankin the overflow portions of the river valley. It forms a serviceableshelter for a warm country, the peculiar roofing equally defying rainand the sun's heat. Under the leadership of the mistress of the ranch,assisted by the Mexican women, the jacal was transformed into a rusticbower; for Enrique was not only a favorite among the whites, but alsoamong his own people. A few gaudy pictures of Saints and the Madonnaornamented the side walls, while in the rear hung the necessarycrucifix. At the time of its building the jacal had been blessed, aswas customary before occupancy, and to Enrique's reasoning the potencyof the former sprinkling still held good.Weddings were momentous occasions among the Mexican population at LasPalomas. In outfitting the party to attend Enrique's wedding at SantaMaria, the ranch came to a standstill. Not only the regular ambulancebut a second conveyance was required to transport the numerous femalerelatives of the groom, while the men, all in gala attire, were mountedon the best horses on the ranch. As none of the whites attended,Deweese charged Tiburcio with humanity to the stock, while the mistressadmonished every one to be on his good behavior. With greetings to SantaMaria, the wedding party set out. They were expected to return thefollowing evening, and the ranch was set in order to give the bride arousing reception on her arrival at Las Palomas. The largest place onthe ranch was a warehouse, and we shifted its contents in such a manneras to have quite a commodious ball-room. The most notable decorationof the room was an immense heart-shaped figure, in which was worked inlive-oak leaves the names of the two ranches, flanked on either sidewith the American and Mexican flags. Numerous other decorations,expressing welcome to the bride, were in evidence on every hand. Tallowwas plentiful at Las Palomas, and candles were fastened at everypossible projection.The mounted members of the wedding party returned near the middle ofthe afternoon. According to reports, Santa Maria had treated them mosthospitably. The marriage was simple, but the festivities following hadlasted until dawn. The returning guests sought their jacals to snatcha few hours' sleep before the revelry would be resumed at Las Palomas.An hour before sunset the four-mule ambulance bearing the bride andgroom drove into Las Palomas with a flourish. Before leaving the bridalcouple at their own jacal, Tiburcio halted the ambulance in front ofthe ranch-house for the formal welcome. In the absence of her brother,Miss Jean officiated in behalf of Las Palomas, tenderly caressing thebride. The boys monopolized her with their congratulations and welcome,which delighted Enrique. As for the bride, she seemed at home from thefirst, soon recognizing me as the padrino segundo at the time of herbetrothal.Quite a delegation of the bride's friends from Santa Maria accompaniedthe party on their return, from whom were chosen part of the musiciansfor the evening--violins and guitars in the hands of the native elementof the two ranches making up a pastoral orchestra. I volunteered myservices; but so much of the music was new to me that I frequentlyexcused myself for a dance with the senoritas. In the absence of UncleLance, our segundo, June Deweese, claimed the first dance of theevening with the bride. Miss Jean lent only the approval of herpresence, not participating, and withdrawing at an early hour. As allthe American element present spoke Spanish slightly, that became thelanguage of the evening. But, further than to countenance with ourpresence the festivities, we were out of place, and, ere midnight, allhad excused themselves with the exception of Aaron Scales and myself. Onthe pleadings of Enrique, I remained an hour or two longer, dancing withhis bride, or playing some favorite selection for the delighted groom.Several days after the wedding Uncle Lance returned. He had beensuccessful in contracting a trail herd of thirty-five hundred cattle,and a remuda of one hundred and twenty-five saddle horses with whichto handle them. The contract called for two thousand two-year-old steersand fifteen hundred threes. There was a difference of four dollars ahead in favor of the older cattle, and it was the ranchero's intentionto fill the latter class entirely from the Las Palomas brand. As to theyounger cattle, neighboring ranches would be invited to deliver twosin filling the contract, and if any were lacking, the home ranch wouldsupply the deficiency. Having ample range, the difference in price wasan inducement to hold the younger cattle. To keep a steer another yearcost nothing, while the ranchero returned convinced that the trail mightsoon furnish an outlet for all surplus cattle. In the matter of thehorses, too, rather than reduce our supply of saddle stock below theactual needs of the ranch, Uncle Lance concluded to buy fifty head inmaking up the remuda. There were several hundred geldings on the ranchold enough for saddle purposes, but they would be as good as useless inhandling cattle the first year after breaking.As this would be the first trail herd from Las Palomas, we naturallyfelt no small pride in the transaction. According to contract,everything was to be ready for final delivery on the twenty-fifth ofMarch. The contractors, Camp & Dupree, of Fort Worth, Texas, were tosend their foreman two weeks in advance to receive, classify, and passupon the cattle and saddle stock. They were exacting in their demands,yet humane and reasonable. In making up the herd no cattle were to becorralled at night, and no animal would be received which had beenroped. The saddle horses were to be treated likewise. These conditionswould put into the saddle every available man on the ranch as well as onthe ranchitas. But we looked eagerly forward to the putting up of theherd. Letters were written and dispatched to a dozen ranches withinstriking distance, inviting them to turn in two-year-old steers at thefull contract price. June Deweese was sent out to buy fifty saddlehorses, which would fill the required standard, "fourteen hands orbetter, serviceable and gentle broken." I was dispatched to Santa Maria,to invite Don Mateo Gonzales to participate in the contract. The rangeof every saddle horse on the ranch was located, so that we could gatherthem, when wanted, in a day. Less than a month's time now remainedbefore the delivery day, though we did not expect to go into camp foractual gathering until the arrival of the trail foreman.In going and returning from San Antonio my employer had traveled bystage. As it happened, the driver of the up-stage out of Oakville wasJack Martin, the son-in-law of Mrs. McLeod. He and Uncle Lance beingacquainted, the old ranchero's matchmaking instincts had, during theday's travel, again forged to the front. By roundabout inquiries he hadelicited the information that Mrs. McLeod had, immediately after theholidays, taken Esther to San Antonio and placed her in school. Byinnocent artful suggestions of his interest in the welfare of thefamily, he learned the name of the private school of which Esther was apupil. Furthermore, he cultivated the good will of the driver in variousways over good cigars, and at parting assured him on returning he wouldtake the stage so as to have the pleasure of his company on the returntrip--the highest compliment that could be paid a stage-driver.From several sources I had learned that Esther had left the ranch forthe city, but on Uncle Lance's return I got the full particulars. Asa neighboring ranchman, and bearing self-invented messages fromthe family, he had the assurance to call at the school. His honestcountenance was a passport anywhere, and he not only saw Esther butprevailed on her teachers to give the girl, some time during his visitin the city, a half holiday. The interest he manifested in the girl wonhis request, and the two had spent an afternoon visiting the parks andother points of interest. It is needless to add that he made hay in mybehalf during this half holiday. But the most encouraging fact that heunearthed was that Esther was disgusted with her school life and washomesick. She had declared that if she ever got away from school, nopower on earth could force her back again."Shucks, Tom," said he, the next morning after his return, as we weresitting in the shade of the corrals waiting for the remuda to come in,"that poor little country girl might as well be in a penitentiary as inthat school. She belongs on these prairies, and you can't make anythingelse out of her. I can read between the lines, and any one can see thather education is finished. When she told me how rudely her mother hadtreated you, her heart was an open book and easily read. Don't you loseany sleep on how you stand in her affections--that's all serene. She'llhe home on a spring vacation, and that'll be your chance. If I was yourage, I'd make it a point to see that she didn't go back to school.She'll run off with you rather than that. In the game of matrimony, son,you want to play your cards boldly and never hesitate to lead trumps."To further matters, when returning by stage my employer had ingratiatedhimself into the favor of the driver in many ways, and urged him to sendword to Mrs. McLeod to turn in her two-year-olds on his contract. A fewdays later her foreman and son-in-law, Tony Hunter, rode down to LasPalomas, anxious for the chance to turn in cattle. There had been littleopportunity for several years to sell steers, and when a chance likethis came, there would have been no trouble to fill half a dozencontracts, as supply far exceeded demand.Uncle Lance let Mrs. McLeod's foreman feel that in allotting her fivehundred of the younger cattle, he was actuated by old-time friendshipfor the family. As a mark of special consideration he promised to sendthe trail foreman to the San Miguel to pass on the cattle on their homerange, but advised the foreman to gather at least seven hundred steers,allowing for two hundred to be culled or cut back. Hunter remained overnight, departing the next morning, delighted over his allowance ofcattle and the liberal terms of the contract.It was understood that, in advance of his outfit, the trail foremanwould come down by stage, and I was sent into Oakville with an extrasaddle horse to meet him. He had arrived the day previous, and we lostno time in starting for Las Palomas. This trail foreman was about thirtyyears of age, a quiet red-headed fellow, giving the name of FrankNancrede, and before we had covered half the distance to the ranch I wassatisfied that he was a cowman. I always prided myself on possessing agood eye for brands, but he outclassed me, reading strange brands atover a hundred yards, and distinguishing cattle from horse stock at adistance of three miles.'We got fairly well acquainted before reaching the ranch, but it wasimpossible to start him on any subject save cattle. I was able to givehim a very good idea of the remuda, which was then under herd andwaiting his approval, and I saw the man brighten into a smile for thefirst time on my offering to help him pick out a good mount for his ownsaddle. I had a vague idea of what the trail was like, and felt theusual boyish attraction for it; but when I tried to draw him out inregard to it, he advised me, if I had a regular job on a ranch, to lettrail work alone.We reached the ranch late in the evening and I introduced Nancrede toUncle Lance, who took charge of him. We had established a horse camp forthe trail remuda, north of the river, and the next morning the trailforeman, my employer, and June Deweese, rode over to pass on thesaddle stock. The remuda pleased him, being fully up to the contractstandard, and he accepted it with but a single exception. This exceptiontickled Uncle Lance, as it gave him an opportunity to annoy his sisterabout Nancrede, as he did about every other cowman or drover who visitedthe ranch. That evening, as I was chatting with Miss Jean, who wassuperintending the Mexican help milking at the cow pen, Uncle Lancejoined us."Say, Sis," said he, "our man Nancrede is a cowman all right. I tried toring in a 'hipped' horse on him this morning,--one hip knocked down justthe least little bit,--but he noticed it and refused to accept him. Oh,he's got an eye in his head all right. So if you say so, I'll give himthe best horse on the ranch in old Hippy's place. You're always makingfun of slab-sided cowmen; he's pony-built enough to suit you, and I kindo' like the color of his hair myself. Did you notice his neck?--he'llnever tie it if it gets broken. I like a short man; if he stubs his toeand falls down he doesn't reach halfway home. Now, if he has as good cowsense in receiving the herd as he had on the remuda, I'd kind o' liketo have him for a brother-in-law. I'm getting a little too old foractive work and would like to retire, but June, the durn fool, won't getmarried, and about the only show I've got is to get a husband for you.I'd as lief live in Hades as on a ranch without a woman on it. What doyou think of him?""Why, I think he's an awful nice fellow, but he won't talk. And besides,I'm not baiting my hook for small fish like trail foremen; I was aimingto keep my smiles for the contractors. Aren't they coming down?""Well, they might come to look the herd over before it starts out. Now,Dupree is a good cowman, but he's got a wife already. And Camp, thefinancial man of the firm, made his money peddling Yankee clocks. Now,you don't suppose for a moment I'd let you marry him and carry you awayfrom Las Palomas. Marry an old clock peddler?--not if he had a million!The idea! If they come down here and I catch you smiling on old Camp,I'll set the hounds on you. What you want to do is to set your cap forNancrede. Of course, you're ten years the elder, but that needn't cutany figure. So just burn a few smiles on the red-headed trail foreman!You know you can count on your loving brother to help all he can."The conversation was interrupted by our segundo and the trail foremanriding up to the cow pen. The two had been up the river during theafternoon, looking over the cattle on the range, for as yet we hadnot commenced gathering. Nancrede was very reticent, discovering aconspicuous lack of words to express his opinion of what cattle Deweesehad shown him.The second day after the arrival of the trail foreman, we divided ourforces into two squads and started out to gather our three-year-olds. Bythe ranch records, there were over two thousand steers of that age inthe Las Palomas brand. Deweese took ten men and half of the ranch saddlehorses and went up above the mouth of the Ganso to begin gathering.Uncle Lance took the remainder of the men and horses and went down theriver nearly to Shepherd's, leaving Dan Happersett and three Mexicans tohold and night-herd the trail remuda. Nancrede declined to stay at theranch and so joined our outfit on the down-river trip. We had postponedthe gathering until the last hour, for every day improved the growinggrass on which our mounts must depend for subsistence, and once westarted, there would be little rest for men or horses.The younger cattle for the herd were made up within a week after theinvitations were sent to the neighboring ranches. Naturally they wouldbe the last cattle to be received and would come in for delivery betweenthe twentieth and the last of the month. With the plans thus outlined,we started our gathering. Counting Nancrede, we had twelve men in thesaddle in our down-river outfit. Taking nothing but three-year-olds, wedid not accumulate cattle fast; but it was continuous work, every man,with the exception of Uncle Lance, standing a guard on night-herd. Thefirst two days we only gathered about five hundred steers. This numberwas increased by about three hundred on the third day, and thatevening Dan Happersett with a vaquero rode into camp and reported thatNancrede's outfit had arrived from San Antonio. He had turned theremuda over to them on their arrival, sending the other two Mexicansto join Deweese above on the river.The fourth day finished the gathering. Nancrede remained with us to thelast, making a hand which left no doubt in any one's mind that he wasa cowman from the ground up. The last round-up on the afternoon of thefourth day, our outriders sighted the vaqueros from Deweese's outfit,circling and drifting in the cattle on their half of the circle. Thenext morning the two camps were thrown together on the river oppositethe ranch. Deweese had fully as many cattle as we had, and when the twocuts had been united and counted, we lacked but five head of nineteenhundred. Several of Nancrede's men joined us that morning, and within anhour, under the trail foreman's directions, we cut back the overplus,and the cattle were accepted.Under the contract we were to road-brand them, though Nancrede orderedhis men to assist us in the work. Under ordinary circumstances we shouldalso have vented the ranch brand, but owing to the fact that this herdwas to be trailed to Abilene, Kansas, and possibly sold beyond thatpoint, it was unnecessary and therefore omitted. We had a branding chuteon the ranch for grown cattle, and the following morning the herd wascorralled and the road-branding commenced. The cattle were uniform insize, and the stamping of the figure '4' over the holding "Lazy L"of Las Palomas, moved like clockwork. With a daybreak start and anabundance of help the last animal was ironed up before sundown. As afavor to Nancrede's outfit, their camp being nearly five miles distant,we held them the first night after branding.No sooner had the trail foreman accepted our three-year-olds than he andGlen Gallup set out for the McLeod ranch on the San Miguel. The day ourbranding was finished, the two returned near midnight, reported the SanMiguel cattle accepted and due the next evening at Las Palomas. By dawnNancrede and myself started for Santa Maria, the former being deficientin Spanish, the only weak point, if it was one, in his make-up as acowman. We were slightly disappointed in not finding the cattle ready topass upon at Santa Maria. That ranch was to deliver seven hundred, andon our arrival they had not even that number under herd. Don Mateo, aneasy-going ranchero, could not understand the necessity of such haste.What did it matter if the cattle were delivered on the twenty-fifth ortwenty-seventh? But I explained as delicately as I could that this wasa trail man, whose vocabulary did not contain manana. In interpretingfor Nancrede, I learned something of the trail myself: that a herdshould start with the grass and move with it, keeping the freshness ofspring, day after day and week after week, as they trailed northward.The trail foreman assured Don Mateo that had his employers known thatthis was to be such an early spring, the herd would have started a weeksooner.By impressing on the ranchero the importance of not delaying this trailman, we got him to inject a little action into his corporal. We askedDon Mateo for horses and, joining his outfit, made three rodeos thatafternoon, turning into the cattle under herd nearly two hundred andfifty head by dark that evening. Nancrede spent a restless night, and atdawn, as the cattle were leaving the bed ground, he and I got an easycount on them and culled them down to the required number beforebreakfasting. We had some little trouble explaining to Don Mateo thenecessity of giving the bill of sale to my employer, who, in turn, wouldreconvey the stock to the contractors. Once the matter was made clear,the accepted cattle were started for Las Palomas. When we overtook theman hour afterward, I instructed the corporal, at the instance of thered-headed foreman, to take a day and a half in reaching the ranch; thattardiness in gathering must not be made up by a hasty drive to the pointof delivery; that the animals must be treated humanely.On reaching the ranch we found that Mr. Booth and some of his neighborshad arrived from the Frio with their contingent. They had been allottedsix hundred head, and had brought down about two hundred extra cattlein order to allow some choice in accepting. These were the only mixedbrands that came in on the delivery, and after they had been culled downand accepted, my employer appointed Aaron Scales as clerk. There weresome five or six owners, and Scales must catch the brands as they werefreed from the branding chute. Several of the owners kept a privatetally, but not once did they have occasion to check up the Marylander'sdecisions. Before the branding of this hunch was finished, Wilson, fromRamirena, rode into the ranch and announced his cattle within five milesof Las Palomas. As these were the last two hundred to be passed upon,Nancrede asked to have them in sight of the ranch by sun-up in themorning.On the arrival of the trail outfit from San Antonio, they brought aletter from the contractors, asking that a conveyance meet them atOakville, as they wished to see the herd before it started. Tiburciowent in with the ambulance to meet them, and they reached the ranch lateat night. On their arrival twenty-six hundred of the cattle had alreadybeen passed upon, branded, and were then being held by Nancrede's outfitacross the river at their camp. Dupree, being a practical cowman,understood the situation; but Camp was restless and uneasy as if heexpected to find the cattle in the corrals at the ranch. Camp was yearsthe older of the two, a pudgy man with a florid complexion and nasaltwang, and kept the junior member busy answering his questions. UncleLance enjoyed the situation, jollying his sister about the eldercontractor and quietly inquiring of the red-haired foreman how and whereDupree had picked him up.The contractors had brought no saddles with them, so the ambulance wasthe only mode of travel. As we rode out to receive the Wilson cattlethe next morning, Uncle Lance took advantage of the occasion to jollyNancrede further about the senior member of the firm, the foremansmiling appreciatingly. "The way your old man talked last night," saidhe, "you'd think he expected to find the herd in the front yard. Toobad to disappoint him; for then he could have looked them over with alantern from the gallery of the house. Now, if they had been Yankeeclocks instead of cattle, why, he'd been right at home, and could havetaken them in the house and handled them easily. It certainly beats thedickens why some men want to break into the cattle business. It won'tsurprise me if he asks you to trail the herd past the ranch so he cansee them. Well, you and Dupree will have to make him some dinero thissummer or you will lose him for a partner. I can see that sticking out."We received and branded the two hundred Wilson cattle that forenoon,sending them to the main herd across the river. Mr. Wilson and UncleLance were great cronies, and as the latter was feeling in fine fettleover the successful fulfillment of his contract, he was tempted also tojolly his neighbor ranchero over his cattle, which, by the way, werefine. "Nate," said he to Mr. Wilson, "it looks like you'd quit breedinggoats and rear cattle instead. Honest, if I didn't know your brand, I'dswear some Mexican raised this bunch. These Fort Worth cowmen are aneasy lot, or yours would never have passed under the classification."An hour before noon, Tomas Martines, the corporal of Santa Maria, rodeup to inquire what time we wished his cattle at the corrals. They wereback several miles, and he could deliver them on an hour's notice. Oneo'clock was agreed upon, and, never dismounting, the corporal gallopedaway to his herd. "Quirk," said Nancrede to me, noticing the Mexican'sunaccustomed air of enterprise, "if we had that fellow under us awhilewe'd make a cow-hand out of him. See the wiggle he gets on himself now,will you?" Promptly at the hour, the herd were counted and corralled,Don Mateo Gonzales not troubling to appear, which was mystifying to theNorth Texas men, but Uncle Lance explained that a mere incident likeselling seven hundred cattle was not sufficient occasion to arouse theranchero of Santa Maria when his corporal could attend to the business.That evening saw the last of the cattle branded. The herd was completedand ready to start the following morning. The two contractors weredriven across the river during the afternoon to look over the herdand remuda. At the instance of my employer, I wrote a letter ofcongratulation to Don Mateo, handing it to his corporal, informing himthat in the course of ten days a check would he sent him in payment.Uncle Lance had fully investigated the financial standing of thecontractors, but it was necessary for him to return with them to SanAntonio for a final settlement.The ambulance made an early start for Oakville on the morning of thetwenty-sixth, carrying the contractors and my employer, and the restof us rode away to witness the start of the herd. Nancrede's outfitnumbered fifteen,--a cook, a horse wrangler, himself, and twelveoutriders. They comprised an odd mixture of men, several barely my age,while others were gray-haired and looked like veteran cow-hands. Onleaving the Nueces valley, the herd was strung out a mile in length, andafter riding with them until they reached the first hills, we bade themgood-by. As we started to return Frank Nancrede made a remark to JuneDeweese which I have often recalled: "You fellows may think this is asnap; but if I had a job on as good a ranch as Las Palomas, you'd nevercatch me on a cattle trail."