RANCHING, SPORT AND TRAVEL
BY THOMAS CARSON



RANCHING, SPORT AND TRAVEL

BY

THOMAS CARSON, F.R.G.S.


WITH SIXTEEN ILLUSTRATIONS





T. FISHER UNWIN

LONDON             LEIPSIC
Adelphi Terrace    Inselstrasse 20

1911

[_All Rights Reserved_]




INTRODUCTORY NOTE


This book is somewhat in the nature of an autobiography, covering as it
does almost the whole of the Author's life. The main portion of the
volume is devoted to cattle ranching in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
The Author has also included a record of his travels abroad, which he
hopes will prove to be not uninteresting; and a chapter devoted to a
description of tea planting in India.




CONTENTS


  CHAP.                                                             PAGE

  I. TEA PLANTING                                                     13

  In Cachar--Apprenticeship--Tea Planting described--Polo
  --In Sylhet--Pilgrims at Sacred Pool--Wild
  Game--Amusements--Rainfall--Return to Cachar--Scottpore
  --Snakes--A Haunted Tree--Hill Tribes--Selecting
  a Location--Return to England.

  II. CATTLE RANCHING IN ARIZONA                                      42

  Leave for United States of America--Iowa--New
  Mexico--Real Estate Speculation--Gambling--Billy
  the Kid--Start Ranching in Arizona--Description of
  Country--Apache and other Indians--Fauna--Branding
  Cattle--Ranch Notes--Mexicans--Politics--Summer
  Camp--Winter Camp--Fishing and
  Shooting--Indian Troubles.

  III. CATTLE RANCHING IN ARIZONA (_continued_)                       81

  The Cowboy--Accoutrements and Weapons--Desert
  Plants--Politics and Perjury--Mavericks--Mormons--Bog
  Riding.

  IV. ODDS AND ENDS                                                  103

  Scent and Instinct--Mules--Roping Contests--Antelopes
  --The Skunk--Garnets--Leave Arizona.

  V. RANCHING IN NEW MEXICO                                          117

  The Scottish Company--My Difficulties and Dangers--Mustang
  Hunting--Round-up described--Shipping
  Cattle--Railroad Accidents--Close out Scotch Company's
  Interests.

  VI. ODDS AND ENDS                                                  152

  Summer Round-up Notes--Night Guarding--Stampedes--Bronco
  Busting--Cattle Branding, etc.

  VII. ON MY OWN RANCH                                               170

  Locating--Plans--Prairie Fires and Guards--Bulls--Trading
  --Successful Methods--Loco-weed--Sale of Ranch.

  VIII. ODDS AND ENDS                                                198

  The "Staked Plains"--High Winds--Lobo Wolves--Branding
  --Cows--Black Jack--Lightning and Hail--Classing
  Cattle--Conventions--"Cutting" versus
  Polo--Bull-Fight--Prize-Fights--River and Sea
  Fishing--Sharks.

  IX. IN AMARILLO                                                    226

  Purchase of Lots--Building--Boosting a Town.

  X. FIRST TOUR ABROAD                                               234

  Mexico--Guatemala--Salvador--Panama--Colombia--Venezuela
  --Jamaica--Cuba--Fire in Amarillo--Rebuilding.

  XI. SECOND TOUR ABROAD                                             250

  Bermudas--Switzerland--Italy--Monte Carlo--Algiers
  --Morocco--Spain--Biarritz and Pau.

  XII. THIRD TOUR ABROAD                                             256

  Salt Lake City--Canada--Vancouver--Hawaii--Fiji
  --Australia--New   Zealand--Tasmania--Summer at Home.

  XIII. FOURTH TOUR ABROAD                                           270

  Yucatan--Honduras--Costa Rica--Panama--Equador--Peru
  --Chile--Argentina--Brazil--Teneriffe.

  XIV. FIFTH TOUR ABROAD                                             287

  California--Honolulu--Japan--China--Singapore--Burmah
  --India--Ceylon--The End.

  APPENDIX                                                           317




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS


  ONE OF THE "BOYS" (_see_ page 125)                       _Frontispiece_

  PLUCKING TEA LEAF                                                   20

  NAGAS                                                               37

  ROPING A GRIZZLY                                                    70

  A SHOOTING SCRAPE                                                   76

  ONE OF OUR MEN, TO SHOW HANG OF SIX-SHOOTER                         78

  1883 IN ARIZONA, AUTHOR AND PARTY                                   80

  WOUND UP, HORSE TANGLED IN ROPE                                    106

  WATERING A HERD                                                    116

  HERD ON TRAIL, SHOWING LEAD STEER                                  137

  CHANGING HORSES                                                    153

  A REAL BAD ONE                                                     164

  BREAKING THE PRAIRIE                                               230

  FIRST CROP--MILO MAIZE                                             230

  LLAMAS AS PACK ANIMALS                                             279

  DRIFTING SAND DUNE, ONE OF THOUSANDS                               279

  PERUVIAN RUINS. NOTE DIMENSIONS OF STONES AND LOCKING SYSTEM       281

  PALACE OF MAHARANA OF UDAIPUR                                      310




RANCHING, SPORT AND TRAVEL




CHAPTER I

TEA PLANTING

     In Cachar--Apprenticeship--Tea Planting described--Polo--In
     Sylhet--Pilgrims at Sacred Pool--Wild
     Game--Amusements--Rainfall--Return to Cachar--Scottpore--Snakes--A
     Haunted Tree--Hill Tribes--Selecting a Location--Return to England.


Having no inclination for the seclusion and drudgery of office work,
determined to lead a country life of some kind or other, and even then
having a longing desire to roam the world and see foreign countries, I
had arranged to accompany a friend to the Comoro Islands, north of
Madagascar; but changing my mind and accepting the better advice of
friends, my start was made, not to the Comoro Islands, but to India and
the tea district of Cachar. Accordingly the age of twenty-two and the
year 1876 saw me on board a steamer bound for Calcutta.

Steamers were slow sailers in those days, and it was a long trip via
Gibraltar, Suez, Malta, the Canal and Point de Galle; but it was all
very interesting to me.

Near Point de Galle we witnessed from the steamer a remarkable sight, a
desperate fight, it seemed to be a fight and not play, between a
sea-serpent, which seemed to be about fifteen feet long, and a huge ray.
The battle was fought on the surface of the water and even out of it, as
the ray several times threw himself into the air. How it ended we could
not see. Anyway we had seen the sea-serpent, though not the fabulous
monster so often written about, and yet whose existence cannot be
disproved. The sea-serpent's tail is flattened.

At Calcutta I visited a tea firm, who sent me up to Cachar to help at
one of the gardens till a vacancy should occur. Calcutta, by the way, is
or was overrun by jackals at night. They are the scavengers of the town
and hunt in packs through the streets, their wolfish yelling being a
little disconcerting to a stranger.

It was a long twelve days, but again a very interesting journey, in a
native river boat, four rowers (or towers), to my destination. I had a
servant with me, who proved a good, efficient cook and attendant. It was
rather trying to the "griffin" to notice, floating in the river, corpses
of natives, frequently perched upon by hungry vultures.

The tea-garden selected for me was Narainpore, successfully managed by a
fellow-countryman, who proved to be a capital chap and who made my stay
with him very pleasant. Narainpore was one of the oldest gardens, on
teelah (hilly) land and quite healthy. There I gave what little help I
could, picked up some of the lingo, and learned a good deal about the
planting, growth and manufacture of tea. Neighbours were plentiful and
life quite sociable. Twice a week in the cold weather we played polo,
sometimes with Munipoories, a hill tribe whose national game it is, and
who were then the undoubted champions. The Regent Senaputti was a keen
player, and very picturesque in his costume of green velvet zouave
jacket, salmon-pink silk dhotee and pink silk turban. In Munipoor even
the children have their weekly polo matches. They breed ponies specially
for the game, and use them for nothing else, nor would they sell their
best. Still, we rode Munipoor "tats" costing us from 50 rupees to 100.
They were exceedingly small, averaging not eleven hands high, but wiry,
active, speedy, full of grit, and seemed to love the game. As the game
was there played, seven formed a side, the field was twice as large as
now and there were no goals. The ball had to be simply driven over the
end line to count a score.

It may be remarked here that the great Akbar was so fond of polo, but
otherwise so busy, that he played the game at night with luminous balls.

These Munipoories were a very fine race of people, much lighter of
colour than their neighbouring tribes, very stately and dignified in
their bearing, and thorough sportsmen. Many of their women were really
handsome, and the girls, with red hibiscus blossoms stuck in their
jet-black hair, and their merry, laughing faces and graceful figures,
were altogether quite attractive to the Sahib Log.

But to return to tea. Our bungalow was of the usual type, consisting of
cement floor, roof of crossed bamboos and two feet of sun-grass thatch,
supported by immense teak posts, hard as iron and bidding defiance to
the white ants. The walls were of mats. Tea-gardens usually had a
surface of 300 to 1000 acres; some were on comparatively level ground,
some on hilly (teelah) land. These teelahs were always carefully
terraced to prevent the wash of soil and permit cultivation. The plants
were spaced about three to six feet apart, according to whether they
were of the Chinese, the hybrid, or the pure indigenous breed, the last
being the largest, in its native state developing to the dimensions of a
small tree.

I may as well here at once give a short sketch of the principal features
of tea planting and manufacture, which will show what the duties of a
planter are, and how various are the occupations and operations
embraced. One must necessarily first have labour (coolies). These are
recruited in certain districts of India, usually by sending good
reliable men, already in your employ, to their home country, under a
contract to pay them so much a head for every coolie they can persuade
(by lies or otherwise) to come to your garden. The coolies must then
bind themselves to work for you for, say, three to four years. They are
paid for their work, not much it is true, but enough to support them
with comfort; the men about three annas (or fourpence) a day, the women
two annas (or threepence). As they get to know their work and become
expert, the good men will earn as much as six annas a day, and some of
the women, when plucking leaf, about the same. This is more than
abundant for these people. They not only have every comfort, but they
become rich, so that in a few years they are able to rest on their
earnings, and work only at their convenience and when they feel like it.
They are supplied with nothing, neither food nor clothing; medicine
alone is free to them. The native staff of a garden consists of, say,
two baboos, or book-keepers and clerks, a doctor baboo, sirdars or
overseers, and chowkidars or line watchmen. A sirdar accompanies and has
charge of each gang of coolies on whatever branch of work. One is also
in charge of the factory or tea-house.

Plant growth ceases about the end of October. Then cold-weather work
begins, including the great and important operation of pruning, which
requires a large force and will occupy most of the winter. Also
charcoal-burning for next season's supply; road-making, building and
repairing, jungle-cutting, bridge-building, and nursery-making: that is,
preparing with great care beds in which the seed will be planted early
in spring. Cultivation is also, of course, carried on; it can never be
overdone. In the factory, some men are