if
he has enough money to enable him to buy a fancy bridle or a magnificent
saddle. These are about the beginning and the end of his ideas of
luxury; although he enjoys a good time, he looks upon it rather as
incidental and essential to pleasure. A steady position at a small
salary, a reasonable amount to do, and fairly good quarters, constitute
all he looks for or expects. He is perfectly honest with all his
indifference. He is often whole-souled and big-hearted, constantly
allows himself to be imposed upon, but has an inconvenient habit of
occasionally standing up for his rights and resenting too much
oppression. He is exceedingly good-natured, and will often drive some
stray cattle several miles for the convenience of a perfect stranger,
and a man to whom he owes no obligation whatever.

It is said that such a thing as distress among the relatives or
descendants of cowboys was impossible, because of the delightful
tenderheartedness of men with rough exterior and whose daily life makes
them appear hardened. The working cowboy is seldom rich, even in the
most generous acceptation of the term. The small wages he earns are
expended almost entirely on decorations for his horse or himself. Even
when he succeeds in saving a few dollars, the money seems to burn a hole
in his pocket, and he generally lends it to some one in greater need
than himself. But every man working on a ranch has something to spare
for the widow or children of a deceased brother, especially if he was
killed in the course of his duties. An instance of this generous-hearted
disposition might well be given, but it is sufficient to say that the
rule is invariable, and that a promise made to a dying man in this
respect is never forgotten.

Leaving for a moment the personal characteristics of the much-maligned
cowboy, who has been described as everything from a stage-robber to a
cutthroat, we may with profit devote a little space to a consideration
of his attire as it was, and as it is. In the picture of a cowboy in
this work the modern dress is shown very accurately. It will be seen
that the man is dressed conveniently for his work, and that he has none
of the extraordinary handicaps to progress, in the way of grotesque
decorations, which he had been thought to believe were, at least, part
and parcel of the cowboy's wardrobe and get up. Certainly at the present
time men engaged in feeding and raising cattle are almost indifferent as
to their attire, wear