TOLD by the PIONEERS - Washington Secretary of State

Told by the Pioneers
FRED W. BUDING
Mason Countv •
In 1896 things were getting tight here, and many a settler was deserting
his farm. There was, as a result, a surplus of cattle on the
market, and we bought quite a lot of them for but a few dollars. We
started raising cattle, with two of us boys as cowboys. I was twelve
years old and my brother was ten. Raising cattle was no snap in those
days, as the beasts were really wild, so it was up to us boys to tame
them down. \Ve did a pretty good job of it; and got so good at it that
we could ride any of them after just a few hours of tail pulling and
twisting. On a Fourth of July, one year, I won $10.00 riding what
was supposed to be a wild bull. Dad gave us $1.00 apiece for red
lemonade out of my $10.00. In those days children did not get the
pennies and dimes as freely as they do now. \Ve worked eight yean;
on the ranch, and in clearing' the land, we found later, that we had
burned away timber valued at $2,000 and all we got out of the farm
was $1,100.
CORA CLARK
\Valla Walla Countv •
The cattle trail went past our farm, and the cowboys always bedded
down on some vacant land near us, so they would be Ileal' water. They
would come to the house and get milk and other provisions. One of
the most wonderful sights of my childhood was 10,000 cattle being
driven to Chevenne.
•
.JOHN HUELSDONK
Jefferson County
As the land in the vicinity of Spruce did not lend itself well to general
agriculture, I, like most other settlers, turned to the raising of
cattle and sheep, as the best means of obtaining a living from the soil.
The first cattle were brought in by raft. Beef cattle were raised
principally, there being no considerable market for milk. A great
deal of trouble was experienced in the early days through the depredations
of wolves, which often killed the young stock, and by bear,
which would attack calves and sheep and make a meal upon them,
without first killing their prey. :Many of the animals attacked by
hear, died from their injuries, although some recovered. \Vhen herd::;
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