I have frequently known a cowboy to rope a wild cow, throw her and milk her while his horse held her down at the other end of a forty foot rope. Such a horse is worth his weight in gold to a cattleman, and his kind-hearted and appreciative rider would go supperless to bed any night, if necessary, in order that his faithful steed should be well fed and made comfortable in every possible way.
The skill that some of these men attain in the use the lariat is also most marvelous. An expert will catch a steer by the horns, the neck, the right or left fore foot or hind foot, whichever he may choose--and while running at full speed--with almost unerring certainty. I have even seen them rope jack rabbits and coyotes after a long run, and there are well authenticated instances on record of even bears being choked to death by the fatal noose when wielded by a daring "knight of the plains."
At a "tournament" in a Black Hills town some months ago, a cowboy caught, threw, and securely tied a wild steer in fourteen minutes from the time he was let out of the corral. A similar exhibition of skill, but on a bronco instead of a steer, which lately took place in a New Mexico town, is thus described by an eye witness.
"After an hour of discussion and pleasant wrangling, the judge, himself a fine rider, called out the name of an Arizona cowboy, a champion puncher and rustler from Apache County; at the same moment, a wild-eyed bronco was released from the pen and went bounding and bucking over the miniature plain. According to the rule, the Apache County man had to saddle his own bronco, rope the fleeing horse, and tie him for branding in a certain time. Being a "rustler", he rustled around so lively that before the bronco was two hundred feet away, he had saddled and bridled his own animal, swung himself onto it, and was off, gathering up his lariat as he went. The other bronco, seeing the coming enemy, doubled his pace, dodging here and there, but at every turn he was met by his pursuer, who was evidently directed by his rider's legs, and in an incredibly short space of time the fugitive was overhauled; the rope whistled through the air, and dropped quickly over the bronco's head, notwithstanding the toss he had made. The instant it fell, the pursuing bronco rushed and headed off the other, winding the rope about his legs; then suddenly sitting back upon his haunches he waited, with ears back, for the shock. It came with a rush, and the little horse at the other end of the rope, as was the intention, went headlong onto the field, the cowboy's bronco holding him down by the continual strain that he kept up. The moment the horse went down the cowboy vaulted from the saddle, untying a rope from his waist as he ran, and was soon over the prostrate animal, lashing the hoofs with dextrous fingers, so that it could have been branded then and there. This accomplished, up went his hands as a signal to the judges, who now came galloping over the field, a roar of cheers and yells greeting the Apache County man, who had done the entire work in twelve minutes, thereby securing the prize of sundry dollars."