e rope, never
forgetting its power and effect experienced during the breaking process.
Thus, in roping a broken horse on the open or in a corral, if your rope
simply lies _over_ his neck, and yet not be round it, he will probably
stop running and resign himself to capture. Even the commonly-used
single rope corral, held up by men at the corners, they will not try to
break through. Bronco-busters only last a few years, the hard jarring
affects their lungs and other organs so disastrously.

One of our men, with the kindest consideration, much appreciated,
confidentially showed me a simple method of tying up a bronco's head
with a piece of thin rope, adjusted in a particular way, which made
pitching or bucking almost, but not always, an impossibility. He was
perhaps a little shamefaced in doing so, but such sensibility was not
for me; anything to save one from the horrible shaking up and jarring of
a pitching horse! And yet there was always the inclination to fix the
string surreptitiously. Much better that the boys should _not_ see it.

[Illustration: A REAL BAD ONE.]

It may be said here that a horse has a lightning knowledge as to
whether his rider be afraid of him or not, and acts accordingly. In
branding my method was to simply tie up one forefoot and blindfold the
colt, when a small and properly-hot stamp-iron can be quickly and
effectively applied before he quite knows what is hurting him.

In early days we used only Spanish Mexican broncos for cow-ponies. They
were broken bridle-wise, and perhaps had been ridden a few times. Bands
of them were driven north to our country, and for about fifteen dollars
apiece you might make a selection of the number wanted, say twenty to
fifty head. Some of these ponies would turn out very well, some of
little use. You took your chances, and in distributing them amongst the
men very critical eyes were cast over them, you may be sure, as the boys
had to ride them no matter what their natures might turn out to be. Such
ponies were hardy, intelligent, active, and stood a tremendous amount of
work. Later a larger stamp of cow-horse came into use, even horses with
perhaps a distant and minute drop of Diomede's blood in them--Diomede,
who won the first Derby stakes, run for in the Isle of Man by the way,
and who was sold to America to become the father of United States
thoroughbreds and progenitor of the great Lexington. But such "improved"
horses could never do the cow work so well as