Claude News (Claude, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 45, Ed. 1 Friday, July 4, 1941 Page: 6 of 12
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oing Up the Trail With a
viwa ■■■
By GARLAND R. FARMER
Henderson, Texas.
fCanrlflit, IMi. hy the Southwest Magazine Co.)
INK DALTON, age 93, of Kil-
gore, Texas, ex-Texas ranger and
deputy United States marshal,
told me a good story recently
about trail-driving days.
In 1873 the War Department bought
a herd of 2,000 longhorn cattle in South
T^ras to he distributed among various
tribes of Indians then on government
reservations. To in-
sure safe delivery
of the herd, the
government sent
Dalton with a dozen
U. S. army soldiers
to guard the cattle
while enroute to
destinations. Dalton
was in command of
the soldiers. I shall
let him tell his own
story.
"The cattle," said
Dalton, "two and
three-year-old long-
horned steers, were
rounded up in South
Texas and trail-
branded. On the
10th of May, 1873,
we bade goodbye to
our friends on the
King Ranch and
started up the long
trail to Kansas, a
trip that ended in November. The cat-
tle were rather wild at first and hard
to handle, but Dock Manahan. of
Fairfield, Texas, a veteran of the
trail and his hard-riding cowboys,
soon had them trail-broken and un-
der control. Our first stop to rest
and graze the cattle was at Willow City
in the edge of Blanco county. Willow
City at that time was a thriving fron-
tier town of 2,000 population, located
in a fine cattle country. I was back
there a few years ago but the town is
no more. The old Roberts ranch house
is now the only building left of a once
prosperous and wideawake community.
Buck Roberts runs the ranch. He and
T were Texas ranger pals back in the
TO's.
Cattle Rustlers
"Since grass was abundant around
Willow City, with plenty of water for
the stock, we laid over there 10 days.
Again taking the trail, we headed for
the little town of Llano on the Llano
river. Here we had an experience that
was common on the trail in those early
days, especially with small herds. On
the second morning in camp eight men
rode up and their leader, a villainous-
looking fellow, with two six-shooters
strapped around him, asked one of
my soldiers where he could find the
man in charge of
the herd. The sol-
dier pointed out
Dock Manahan, our
trail boss. Dock
stepped for ward
and asked the fel-
low what he want-
ed. 'You are hold-
ing these cattle on
my land,' the man
said, 'and 1 am here
to collect grazing
fees. The charge
will be 50c a day for
the horses and 25c a
day for the cattle,
and the sooner you
pay up and let me
go back to my work
the better I'll be
pleased, for I'm an
awful busy man.'
" 'Is that so,' said
Dock. 'I'll bet you
never did a day's
work in your life and I'll bet you don't
own a foot of this land. Sorry, mister,
this happens to be a government herd
and you'll have to collect grazing fees
from Uncle Sam.'
"This made the fellow mad and he
started cussing. When he got to calling
names Dock jerked him from his horse,
disarmed him and gave him a good
thrashing. Then he warned the rustler
to get out. 'If you ever show up again
around a herd I'm driving I'll blow
you in two with my six-gun,' Dock
shouted, as the rustler rode away with
his men. This was our first but not
last experience with cattle rustlers.
Red River on Rampage
"Our next stop was Doan's Crossing
on Red river.
heavv rains in
FRANK DALTON
Agp 93, hiljforc, Trias, uncle of Dalton gang.
There had been some
the Panhandle and Red
The Enchanted Rock
By HAZEL OATMAN BOWMAN
Llano, Texas.
C^pyristht, 1941, by the Southwest Masa^ine Co.)
' E Enchanted Rock is situated in
r the southern part of Llano cour.-
ty, Texas, near the Llano-Gilles-
pie county line, on the Holmes
Moss ranch. A bald, oval-shaped, red
granite mountain, covering 640 acres
and 500 feet high, it is said to be the
largest single granite formation within
the United States.
The old records and early maps of
Llano county designate this mountain
as the "Enchanted Rock" and although
the exact origin of the name is in
doubt, many legends have been handed
down through the years as to why it is
associated with enchantment.
The Texas Centennial Commission in
1936 placed a bronze plaque on top of
the mountain, identifying it with early
Texas history. The plaque bears this
inscription: "Enchanted Rock. From
its summit in the
fall of 1841 Captain
John C. Hays, while
surrounded by Co-
manche Indians
who cut him off
from his ranger
company, repulsed
the whole band and
inflicted upon them
such heavy loss that
they fled."
An historical
marker was also
placed on Highway
No. 16, between
Llano and Fred-
ericksburg, which
directs out-of-State
tourists and sight-
seeing Texans to
the mountain, nine miles from the main
highway.
Legends of Enchanted Rock
Many stories, linked with naming of
this unusual granite formation, have
been told by early settlers. According
to one popular legend a half-crazed
white woman, who had been captured
by the Indians and who later escaped,
lived on Enchanted Rock and nightly
her fries could be heard for miles
around. Her home was believed to be
in a cave or crevice near the mountain
top. An old Indian fighter in this sec-
tion in the early days, named Sullivan,
told of riding- upon tho wild woman
while he was scouting around the rock.
The late William S. Chesser, a Texas
scout and a well known Llano pioneer,
told this writer in an interview a few
years before his death that he had
heard the wild woman's cries.
Another legend says that an Indian
chief, to appease his gods, took his
I
beautiful daughter to the top of a high
mountain, presumably Enchanted Rock,
and there sacrificed her on an altar.
This act displeased the Great Spirit.
As a consequence, the Great Spirit con-
demned the Indian chief to wander
alone through eternity over a mountain
rock near the scene where he sacrificed
his daughter.
Weird Sounds
It is also believed that Indians nam-
ed the mountain Enchanted Rock be-
cause of strange sounds that come from
it. The sounds have been described as
'similar to those made while walking on
a thin crust over a cavern.
The sounds are said to be heard more
often at night after a hot day. Geolo-
gists ascribe this peculiarity to changes
in temperature. A cool night follow-
ing a hot day causes the granite to ex-
pand and contract, thus producing
weird sounds.
Section of Enchanted Kock, near Llano, Texas.
Persons who have camped overnight
near the massive rock dome are some-
times startled, they say, by flickering
lights at different points on the rock.
Even people living nearby declare they,
too, have seen these lights. A few old-
timers who are inclined to be supersti-
tious believe the rock is haunted and
will not go near it at night.
Mineralogists have attnouted the
strange lights to radium ores, known to
exist in the Llano mineral district and
which give out a form of illumination
after dark. Whatever the cause, there
hangs over Enchanted Rock a super-
natural glamour and a superstitious
fear.
Fine Huilding Materia!
This great natural wonder, located in
the heart of the granite section of Tex-
as, has caused much speculation. Pio-
neer granite dealers of Llano county,
who have made a close study of the
granite deposits of this section, predict
that Enchanted Rock will some day be
ml*
■
ilra8Ww> "WIPSSSW
A 1 : i , ■ • ■ .
.
river wea on a rampage. There was
nothing: to do but wait until the flood
went down. The crossing was danger-
ous even at low water. After waiting
until the fifth morning Dock thought
it would be safe to cross. At daylight
we put the herd-leaders in the water
and started them over. The river was
about a quarter of a mile wide at this
point with a strong current toward the
middle, where it was deep and
where the cattle had to swim for about
40 yards. Some of them drifted down
stream for a quite a ways and it was
2 o'clock in the afternoon before we
had them across. All hands were tired
and we went into camp for the rest of
the day. WTe were on the north bank
of Red river in Indian country, so the
night guard was doubled as a precau-
tion, not that we expected trouble from
the Indians—our escort was too strong
for that—but it was a good idea to be
prepared for trouble. Late in the af-
ternoon two U. S. marshals came into
our camp and told us that rustlers, two
weeks previously, had stampeded and
stolen an entire trail herd of 1,500 head
of cattle from the spot where we were
camping and had killed most of the
drivers. Thieving cattle rustlers were
a constant menace to small herds going
up the trail.
Next Adventure
"Our next adventure was when we
crossed Ouachita river. We stopped
for a few days to rest and graze the
cattle on the north bank of the river.
A bunch of about a dozen men rode up
and wanted to cut our herd, that is,
look through the herd for strays. This
often happened in the cattle country
and was necessary when range cattle
fell in with a trail herd, but now we
were in the Indian country, had passed
the last of the Texas cattle country af-
ter crossing Red river. Manahan told
the men his herd was clean, no strays,
but they insisted on cutting it anyway.
Now was the time to show authority.
" 'Look here, fellows,' said Dock,
'this herd belongs to the United States
Army Department and if you try to de-
lay or interfere with it in any way I'll
have all of you placed under arrest.
This military escort is here to see that
the herd is not molested. If any of
your cattle are mixed with our cattle
they will be tallied to your credit when
we get to our destination and you will
be paid for them. Now get out of our
camp and stay out.' The thieves took
the hint and rode away at a gallop.
"Rustlers pulled this trick of cutting
a herd by riding through it on pretense
of searching for strays. When in the
middle of the herd a rustler would fire
his pistol. This will usually stampede
longhorns, for they are wild and easily
frightened. The rustlers then followed
the stampeding herd and drove off all
they wanted. This was a favorite
trick; it could be pulled in daylight and
was more successful than stampeding a
herd from the bed-ground at night.
Crooked Indian Agent
"Our next stop was Fort Reno, where
we were to leave 250 head of cattle for
the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians,
who were camped there on the Big
Canadian river. We had already left
250 head at Fort Sill for tho Kiowas
and Comanches. At Fort Reno we were
met by Chief Whirlwind, of the Chey-
ennes, accompanied by Ben Clark, the
government interpreter. He complain-
ed that the Indian agent there was not
quarried and that it has unlimited pos-
sibilities for building material. It is
composed of good quality of red granite
that takes a smooth, beautiful polish.
During recent years the Enchanted
Rock has been commercialized to some
extent as a tourist resort and a recrea-
tional center. Many shady, attractive
campsites are available along a creek at
its base, and picnics and outdoor gath-
erings are enjoyed there continually
during the spring and summer season.
It is also visited by many tourists
traveling through the Hill Country.
E. H. Sellards, geologist of the Uni-
versity of Texas, says: "Enchanted
Rock is an exfoliation dome of granite
in which granite layers 20 feet or more
thick have broken loose, thus forming
the rounded dome. It is a novelty well
worth seeing and contains an enormous
amount of stone building grade similar
to other Texas granite. It is the kind
of pink granite that was used in build-
ing the State capitol at Austin and
which was quarried in Llano county.
"Granite is igneous rock. It forms
from molten lava which cools very slow-
ly deep in the earth. Under these con-
ditions the rock becomes well crvstaliz-
ed. The principal minerals in granite
are feldspar and quartz with various
other minerals in smaller quantities
such as mica and hornblende. The col-
or of granite is determined by the min-
erals that predominate. Pink granite
gets it's color chiefly from pink felds-
par, the most abundant mineral; same
with other granite. The color of a min-
eral is due to the way it reflects light.
"The Enchanted Rock granite, an up-
lift from the sea, is very old rock. It
belongs to the period known as pre-
Cambrian, this being the oldest of the
geologic periods."
—PAGE 2-—
issuing rations to the Indians as he
should, that he was 'holding out on
them.' There had been previous com-
plaints against this agent, so I deter-
mined to investigate. His books and
evidence I obtained from other reliable
sources showed that he had been rob-
bing the Cheyennes, selling rations giv-
en them by the government and pocket-
ing the money. I placed him under ar-
rest and appointed Ben Clark, the in-
terpreter, as his temporary successor.
He was tried and given a long term in
Federal prison.
"We went on to the Cimarron river
where we had the most harrowing ex-
perience of the entire trip. We crossed
the river and camped near the north
bank to rest and graze our cattle a few
days on the lush grass in the rich river
valley. Along toward sundown, on the
third day, a fierce rain-storm struck
with all its might and fury. Dock call-
ed all hands to saddle.
" 'Come on boys, hurry up or it will
be too late!' yelled Dock. 'We're in for
a stampede unless we surround the
herd.' It was already too late, for a
flash of lightning revealed that the
herd was in motion.
Three-Hour Stampede
"Before we could head them off,
1,500 fear-stricken animals bolted for
the wide open spaces at terrific speed.
By this time it was so dark you could
not see a thing except when lightning
flashed. We rode on behind the thun-
ed he had seen some dead cattle at
the foot of a high cliff about two miles
to the east of our camp. Manahan sent
three men with the Indian to investi-
gate. They came back two hours later
bringing the mangled bodies of Ser-
geant Fields and the cowhand. During
the storm in the darkness they had fol-
lowed the cattle over the cliff. We gave
them military burial, a trumpeter
sounded 'taps' and a squad fired a sa-
lute. They were both wrapped in U.
S. flags and laid to rest—two more lone
graves out on the lone prairie.
"Everything went along all right un-
til we reached the Kansas border, a
week after the stampede on the Cimar-
ron. Here we struck another snag. A
half dozen men rode up to our camp
and one of them introduced himself as
a quarantine officer, saying he would
have to inspect our herd for Texas
fever.
" 'If your cattle are free from ticks
you can proceed on your way; if not we
shall have to place them in quarantine.'
"I asked him if there was a State
law to that effect. He admitted there
was not, but that they were trying to
get one passed.
" 'Well, if there is no law to back you
up,' I replied, 'how'do you expect us to
submit to an inspection.' |
" 'We have plenty of backing, mister,'
said the leader, 'as you will find out if
you try to move this herd any farther
into Kansas without a permit from me.
Our inspection fees are only 25c a head.
"If you show up a<rain. aronnd a herd I'm driving I'll blow you in two with
Dock shouted.
my six-gun.
dering hoofs and cracking homs, try-
ing our best to turn the leaders. On
and on, mile after mile, we rode. Blind-
ing rain beat our faces, gusty winds al-
most lifted us from the saddle. But
we kept the herd in sight by the help
of lightning flashes.
"At last the storm passed—passed as
quickly as it came—and a bright moon
shone through the rifted clouds. The
cattle, exhausted after their long
run, were easily surrounded a n d
bedded down. A hasty check up show-
ed that we had but one-third of the
herd, which had split, up during- the
run. Some of the boys had followed
our bunch, some the other. Dock and
several men were absent; evidently
they had followed the other bunch. 1
looked at my watch; it was 10:30. The
stampede had lasted three hours.
" 'Well, men,' I said, 'the cattle will
stay where they are, so let's stay with
them. No use trying to go anywhere
tonight. I am a bit uneasy about Dock
and the boys, we don't know where they
are and can't find them until daylight.
"Next morning we had no trouble
following back trail to camp. Dock was
in camp with the rest of the men, ex-
cept Sergeant Fields aiid one of the
cowhands. After breakfast we tallied
the cattle and found 30 he<id short.
Two Lone Craves
Then an Indian rode up and report -
and you had better pay up to avoid
trouble.'
Another Attempted Hold-Up
"Looking the leader in the eye, I
said: 'Just another hold up! Well, this
happens to be a government herd and
if you want to inspect it take the mat-
ter up with the War Department at
Washington. We are going through,
and if I hear anything more out of you
crooks, I'll put all of you under arrest.'
"Our next stop was Diamond Springs,
on the Santa Fe trail, then on to Coun
cil Grove and the beautiful Neosho riv-
er. Council Grove was an important
fioint on the Santa Fe trail, the capitol
and trading point of the Kaw Indians.
" The next stop was Fort Riley, Kan-
sas, and there the long trail ended.
"Loing up the trail was no easy job.
^ ou had to fight your way through
trom start to finish. Longhorn cattle,
wild and quick to break trail, were not
ail the things that had to be overcome.
I here wasn't a bridge between South
lexas and the Kansas line. Not a road
even, just cattle trails. Cowboys rode
and ate and slept with the herd—on
duty " 1 hours. At night they got what
sleep they could between 'standing
guard. rhc pay was small. A good
cowhand's salary was about $30 a
month including board. Rut it was full
of adventure and that's why red-blood-
ed men liked to go up the trail.
Army Depends on Infantry
By DAVID A. STEIN
*fr^j'Ol'GH, well-trained, f'icient in-
1 fantry divisions still win wars,
United States Army experts are
convinced. Upon the hard-fight-
ing, hard-bitten infantry rests the win-
ning or losing of battles.
* The infantry is the largest arm of
the service, both in peace and in war-
time. The present training program
will develop 45 infantry-artillery divi-
sions, providing four infantrymen for
every soldier motorized or in the cav-
alry.
Most of the nation's selectees are be-
ing trained in infantry tactics and
techniques. During the first 13 weeks
of training, the selectee is taught to
march, to use his weapons, and to take
care of himself in action. At the same
time he is toughened up physically to
endure the exertion of battle.
The new triangular (streamlined) in-
fantry divisions contain three infantry
regiments, two regiments of supporting
field artillery, one battalion each of
engineer, medical, and quartermaster
troops, and a company of signal corps
troops. Total wartime strength is
about 12,500, of which about 7,200 are
infantrymen.
I he shoulder rifle with its bayonet,
the tank, and the machine gun are the
thief weapons of infantry. Constant
experiment is carried out with new and
improved weapons and the infantry
changes its methods and make-up to
keep at highest efficiency. Powerful
out light anti-tank guns have reccntlv
been introduced.
T he infantry is equipped with fast,
modern tanks, which carry substantial
armor and machine guns. Tanks are
organized into separate infantry units.
New training methods emphasize the
need for co-ordination of infantry ef-
torts with the supporting fire of avia-
tion and armored units.
cue from developments in
♦ T . ' th^ '11 fantry is changing
i s tactics to provide decentralization of
command, so that squad and platoon
eadrrs work independently to exploit
soft spots" in the enemy's position.
Meet success like a gentleman and
disaster like a man,—Urd Birkenhead.
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Waggoner, Thomas T. Claude News (Claude, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 45, Ed. 1 Friday, July 4, 1941, newspaper, July 4, 1941; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth348520/m1/6/?q=carry+nation: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Richard S. and Leah Morris Memorial Library.