Why I never roped a Lion?

[come-hunt]

In re. A good hunting read. Google up " High Chin Bob " In answer to my question, I never had the opportunity and I got too soon old and too late smart.

[Mike Leonard]

Don,
I really like that old song and the first time I heard it I was by a campfire in Tonto Basin, and the fella doing the singing named Smith knows a thing or two about lions. LOL!

Old Ken Kiggens who was a Govt. Hunter for Utah and later on the White Mountain Apaches when he told me that the main thing in roping lions is you better have a tail man you can trust. I have some great old black and white film of him and his brother in law Buddy Hutchings capturing lots of lions. I will say if you had guys like that doing the work there wasn't too much to worry about cuz they were all top hands.

[Emily]

from http://www.bartleby.com/300/1026.html


Harriet Monroe, ed. (1860–1936). Poetry: A Magazine of Verse. 1912–22.

High Chin Bob
Anonymous

Cowboy Song

WAY high up in the Mokiones, among the mountain tops,
A lion cleaned a yearlin’s bones and licked his thankful chops,
When who upon the scene should ride a trippin’ down the slope,
But High Chin Bob of sinful pride and maverick-hungry rope.

“Oh, glory be to me!” says he, “and fame’s unfadin’ flowers; 5
I ride my good top hoss today and I’m top hand of Lazy-J,
So, Kitty-cat, you’re ours!”

The lion licked his paws so brown and dreamed soft dreams of veal,
As High Chin’s loop come circlin’ down and roped him round his meal.
He yowled quick fury to the world and all the hills yelled back; 10
That top hoss give a snort and whirled, and Bob caught up the slack;

“Oh, glory be to me,” says he, “we’ll hit the glory trail.
No man has looped a lion’s head and lived to drag the bugger dead,
Till I shall tell the tale.”
’Way high up in the Mokiones that top hoss done his best, 15
’Mid whippin’ brush and rattlin’ stones from cañon-floor to crest;
Up and down and round and cross, Bob pounded weak and wan,
But pride still glued him to his hoss and glory drove him on.

“Oh, glory be to me,” says he, “this glory trail is rough!
I’ll keep this dally round the horn until the toot of judgment morn, 20
Before I’ll holler ’nough!”

Three suns had rode their circle home beyond the desert rim,
And turned their star-herds loose to roam the ranges high and dim;
And whenever Bob turned and hoped the limp remains to find,
A red-eyed lion, belly-roped, but healthy, loped behind! 25

“Oh, glory be to me,” says Bob, “he kaint be drug to death!
These heroes that I’ve read about were only fools that stuck it out,
To the end of mortal breath.”

’Way high up in the Mokiones, if you ever come there at night,
You’ll hear a ruckus amongst the stones that will lift your hair with fright; 30
You’ll see a cow hoss thunder by and a lion trail along,
And the rider bold, with chin on high sings forth his glory song:

“Oh, glory be to me,” says he, “and to my mighty noose;
Oh, pardner, tell my friends below, I took a ragin’ dream in tow,
And though I never laid him low—I never turned him loose!” 35

[Coyote]

I believe the lyrics are supposed to read Mogollons, pronounced muggy-own.

[Dan V]

Emily, thanks for posting that.

You know the mis-spelling of Mogollon by the author reminds me of a couple of other places that the mis-spelling stuck.

I was told the Owyhee mountains were named that by miners and prospectors who trying to say and spell Hawaii after some Hawaiian mine workers or slaves were killed by Indians.

I also heard the town of Chicken Alaska got its name after first being named Ptarmigan, Ak. The ptarmigan is a native bird kind of like a grouse and is pronounced tarm-again. I guess none of the locals could spell Ptarmigan, so they changed the name of the town to Chicken.

I know without spell check, I'd be in big trouble!

[rockytrails]

Owyhee is a Shoshone Indian word.

[Mike Leonard]

Like so many of our Native American names for tribes. clans and such there has been plenty of slang used over the years amongst the lionhunters and ranchers in those areas.
The Huachuca Mountaisn deriving from an Apache term for Thunders is usually called. Whaa-chukas.

The Chiricahua Mountains named by those Apache's for their wild turkey hunters, is usually referred to as the cherry-cows.

The Jicarilla Reservation named by those Apaches for the ornate small baskets made by this tribe is ofter referred to as hicoryeeeah.

Many others out there just thought of those places I have hunted.

[twist]

An old gentleman by the name of Gordon Pace roped his fair share of lions sold them to zoos years ago. Listened to his stories and seen his pics of it pretty interesting. Andy

[Coyote]

I just finished reading Zane Grey's book, "Roping Lions in Grand Canyon". Excellent reading & according to Mr. Grey, all true.

[jobyman]

Cool book , some of us still hunt the rough, on good ranch horses and I've made a few, Glen Jennings of blood basin years ago, where I started to learn to trail the rope tails , with him and Justin Marks from the Blue, back to what Glen said, If you want to see some rough country, and the old cow trails , just put a pack of lion and bear dogs out in front of you, they will show it to you. I miss my old mentors, the old days have passed, some of us are just in it for the chase, and show some good pups the end of a race. Its all about the breed, and I don't mean dog