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The Same Old Cowboys

(originally appeared in the NY Times May 13, 1888) Miles City, May 3– The ordinary cowboy of the West, and particularly of the Northwest, is the most thoroughly misunderstood man on the face of the earth. Eastern people imagine that all cowboys carry one or more...

A Cowboy and His Horse

After the wild creature is broken and learns his business, he is exactly the horse wanted: The horse learned to follow the herds of cattle with a vast touch of superiority in its tone. It would plunge to the mill of a round up and follow like a bird each turn of a...

The Stampede

But there are other scenes, and terrible ones. The cattle have been herded. The sky is fairly clear. The stars are shining, and yet in the distance there are some few black clouds just rising over the horizon. The experienced foreman believes that a sudden storm is...

The Skill of a Cowboy With His Rope

The skill of the genuine cowboy in handling a rope cannot be questioned. Marvelous stories get abroad through the Eastern press, reciting most astonishing feats of prowess, in which the “lads of the plain” get credit for performances that would seem to be...

Cowboy Life: The Chuck Wagon

The cook has prepared abundance of food for these hard-working men, whose constant exercise in the fresh air gives them good appetites. In the menu of the round up fresh beef is sure to figure, and beef of the best sort running in the herd. It makes no difference...

The 1876 Texas Cattle Drive

Wyatt Earp was appointed assistant marshal in Dodge City, in 1876. Early that spring, this article was published in the NY Times about the then annual “Spring Cattle Drive.” The livestock trade of the South West has become a matter of millions. The herd is...