ONWARD

The war ended and boredom set in. It was now a time for the ground troops to move in and quiet the “Insurectos” who remained rebellious and roamed the countryside. The Navy was quietly establishing a government capable of taking over the civil affairs of the Islands. In a word, it was time to move on.

From here n I shall refer to “Harry” as “Dad” or other appropriate names or titles. It seems that his third ambition was beginning to gnaw at his consciousness. He wanted to be a “Cattle King.” He and Jim Henry had long talked about this next venture and speculated as to how it would come about. Now they became specific.

However, when Admiral Dewey heard of the impending loss of two engineers, he tried to talk Dad out of the idea. The obvious advantages of a Navy life and the immediate need to build up the engineering capabilities of the Navy until the Academy could produce them in sufficient supply to need demands of the Navy.

Dad was not persuaded, and began the long trip back. He apparently took his discharge in Washington. Then the trip to the West began. There was a time that he as employed in a beet sugar factory in Colorado. Of this experience very little is known. Probably because it was uneventful. Logically, it could have been a holding period until Jim could catch up. When he did show up, they had to get horses for their crusade.

They were given directions to the “R Davis Ranch” Dad was looking for two riding horses and one pack animal. I do not know what Jim wanted. Since Dad was a “Greenhorn” from the East, he was fair game for pranks and tricks. Dad specified that the horses must be both “saddle broke” and “picket wise.”

Dad rode “Bob” out of the ranch toward the “Haygood” spread with Jim. That night they made camp on the trail, picketing their horses. In the morning Dad looked to the well being of the horses and found one of them on the ground tangled up in the picket line. His feet beating against his head, which was swollen and cut; the rope had cut his hocks raw. The horse was a tangled, painful creature lying in the dust.

Dad cleared the rope off of the animal, hereafter called “Smuggler” Dad stayed with his horse and comforted him while Jim Henry went into Cheyenne for medicants for “Smuggler.”

When Jim arrived that evening he rode in with a lemon pie dripping through his fingers. He knew Dad liked lemon pie, but apparently did not reckon the damage it would suffer being carried in his open hand on horse back for a day’s ride. Well, Dad doctored Smuggler the best he could. I have the impression that it took a day or so. But I have no recollection of being told.

Eventually, they arrived at the Haygood Ranch, where they were to go to work as ranch hands. Apparently, Smuggler did. his duty by Dad for some time when there was an opportunity for Dad to ride into Laramie. He was tying Smuggler to the hitching rail at Gantz’s Bar, when a stranger asked him if he had ridden that horse into town. Dad told him he had. The man said “I take my hat off to you, that is “Old Hippy” of the R Davis Ranch, A rodeo bucking horse that few could ride.”

It seems that Smuggler had been badly hurt in a rodeo, and in the process had chipped a bone in his hip. Hence, the name “Hippy”. The injury had left him with a mean attitude toward all human kind. The closeness that developed between the two of them during Smuggler’s convalescence Had mellowed Smuggler’ attitude toward Dad.

The two of them arrived at the Haygood Ranch together. Dad now had three horses of his own. One a pack horse, another whose name I believe was “Bob” the third was “Smuggler”. The last was his favorite animal. Large, I believe sixteen or seventeen hands, powerful and one of the fastest horses in the territory.

One day, a rider came racing in off of the range, his horse in a lather and the rider yelling unintelligible words into the wind. When he settled down, he said that the line fence had been cut and that sheep were being herded through, and that cattle had been shot and killed on the range.

Hagood called all of his men in, twenty-five or thirty of them. Then to the great dismay and over the protestations of Mrs. Hagood, a great box on the back porch of the house was opened and from it Hagood took rifles, six guns and ammunition, Each man was issued an extra hand gun and ammunition belt, and a Winchester Rifle with a bandolier of ammunition.

The men then rode out to find the sheep. When they did they killed them. Hundreds of sheep died that day and when it was overt Hagood ordered the men to disperse, and to await word from him.

Dad and Jim Henry went to Colorado, where they awaited word. When it came, they rode across the country to Cheyenne. When they rode into town they were covered with trail dust, they were armed with two side arms and a Winchester Rifle. It was thus that the Sheriff met them and asked where they were from. they told him “Colorado”. He then asked them if they had seen any sheep on their way. They told him that they did not know that there were sheep in this part of the country. The Sheriff then replied, “there aren’t any more”.
It was at this time that the “Cattle and Sheep Wars” broke out in that part of Wyoming.