Edwards County, TX - Bios:  "Blue John" and Pony by Mrs. Letitia Charlton

TX BIOS  "Blue John" and "Pony"  Edwards Co. TX

   Selected and converted.American Memory, Library of Congress.
   
   Washington, 1994.
   
   Preceding element provides place and date of transcription only.
   
   This transcription intended to be 99.95% accurate.
   
   For more information about this text and this American Memory
   collection, refer to accompanying matter.
   
   U.S. Work Projects Administration, Federal Writers' Project (Folklore
   Project, Life Histories, 1936-39); Manuscript Division, Library of
   Congress.Copyright status not determined.
   
   00011
   
   [??]
   
   Words [?]
   
   EDITORIAL FIELD COPY
   
   by
   
   Mrs. Florence Angermiller, P. W.
   
   Page 1
   
   232
   
   From F. C. by Mrs. Letitia Charlton, V. A.
   
   Pioneer Experiences of Side Saddle Days EDWARD COUNTY, DIST. #10
   
   "BLUE JOHN" and PONY.
   
   He was a buckskin with black points. He was medium size, beautifully
   formed and very graceful. He was so gentle he seemed a deadhead when
   wandering about the ranch. Who had trained him, I dont know. My
   brother bought him when the animal was three years old. He could
   singlefoot, pace or trot.
   
   His one great passion was running cattle. Every cattleman near him
   knew him to be the best horse in that section. When on a round-up and
   each man was separating his cattle from the others, Pony would work
   tirelessly whirling, turning and tossing his head at everyone disposed
   of.
   
   My sisters and I rode him everywhere. But later on, he developed a
   quality, arising from his being high strung, that made him exceedingly
   hard headed. At times, becoming excited, he would take the bit in his
   teeth and do as he pleased unless he was ridden by a man and sometimes
   then he would give the fellow quite a ride before he could pull the
   horse down.
   
   The country was all open then. There were no pasture fences. My
   father's ranch at this time was fifteen miles north of Barksdale in
   Edwards County, on Cedar Creek. It was the roughest, country
   imaginable. There were thick groves of cedar trees every few hundred
   yards. A winding road ran through the creek around immense boulders
   and then cedars with now and then, a tiny, grassy plot and then more
   cedars.
   
   00022
   
   Into this section had wandered a large, blue, steer. He belonged to
   some ranchman futher west. He was a longhorn, rather heavy and an
   utter outlaw when it came to putting him into a corral.
   
   My sisters and I had named him "Blue John." He showed no disposition
   to fight. On the contrary, he always ran at sight of mankind.
   
   One morning my father, pressed for help, told me to saddle Pony and go
   to town for some important mail he was expecting. Hurriedly, he warned
   me to go around all cattle on the first part of the trip -- that was,
   until Pony became too tired to be "peppy."
   
   I started off riding one of those foolish oldtime side saddles. It was
   held in place by a girth and a circingle.
   
   I watched for cattle. Pony kept tossing his head impatiently.
   Suddenly, it happened. There was Blue John about twenty feet away.
   
   The steer snorted and turned to run. Then began for me a gruelling
   experience. Pony took the bridle bit in his teeth and in high glee,
   followed Blue John in spite of all I could do. The first leap he made
   caused the saddle blanket to start slipping. Remember, I was riding a
   side saddle.
   
   Blue John took to the cedar brake. Pony enthusiastically followed. A
   short time after, the blanket went and thereafter, it required all my
   wits to keep the saddle from slipping. I knew not what direction we
   were taking. All my time was taken up in keeping the saddle on the
   horse's back. In fact, I did not ride the horse, I rode the saddle.
   Sometimes it was on Pony's withers and sometimes on his hips. I saw
   notheing and knew nothing but trying to hold that saddle in place.
   Still, there was no abating of the chase. Down hills, over mountain
   points, across slippery rocks we went. I was growing exhausted. My
   long hair became unbraided and whipped around projecting limbs of
   trees but I jerked it loose, losing many strands.
   
   Down a hill through dangerous limbs of cedars we went. At last, we
   came to a road. I was too exhausted to recognize it. And then we
   reached my father's 00033field fence. Dimly, I seemed to remember it
   but I was too tired and uncertai of the outcome of this impromtu
   chase. As we went over the last rise and down it I saw father hurry to
   open the corral gate. He knew the danger beyond the corral. The
   country above was too wild for swift riding.
   
   Blue John went into the corral. I had penned him!
   
   Father helped me from the horse and the saddle came off with me.
   
   "I should not have sent you on that horse," he said, regretfully. I
   didn't answer. My hair was full of cedar sprigs, my dress was torn to
   shreds. Mother bound up my wounds and fed me.
   
   "Say, young lady," said my father presently, "did you know you penned
   Blue John?"
   
   "Penned nothing!" I said disgustedly. "It was that horse. He could pen
   an antelope!" Dear little Pony.

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