LET 'ER BUCK 



This road that leads past the Round-Up grounds, 

 was a part of The Great Trail of the Indians of these 

 latitudes; the great Amerindian highway — the first 

 recorded highway to cross the divide which separates 

 the Eastern and Western oceans, over which traveled 

 Pawnee and Black foot, Bannock and Shoshone. In- 

 stinctively the white pioneer followed these primal 

 trails which searched the best passes, the smoothest 

 ground and easiest fords. 



Thus this, The Great Trail of the Amerind, became 

 the ox-team road of the emigrant, the stage and the 

 freight route of the pioneer, the modern highway of 

 present travel. The Old Emigrant Road through Ore- 

 gon, known later as The Oregon Trail, reached the Co- 

 lumbia River at The Dalles, but some contend that it 

 actually terminated at Oregon City where the emigrants 

 "called the journey over and separated to find homes." 

 The main ford, hereabouts, was like the stage station 

 and first settlement, about two miles below Pendleton 

 at a place called Marshall, and the road we now turned 

 off from into the arena, is the old Oregon Trail. So 

 history rides into the very gates of The Round-Up. 



To one to whom the smell of sagebrush, the feel of 

 the stirrup and the whole gamut of the life of range 

 and cow-camp are endeared through associations, the 

 morning "tryouts," which occur on the days just pre- 

 ceding the great show, and the elimination contests on 

 the second morning of it, make an inherent appeal. The 

 elimination contests are just what the name implies — 

 contests to eliminate the many newcomers who cannot 

 class with the greatest riders of the world, or as "Buff" 

 Vernon would express it, "ter cut out the mavericks 

 and strays." At the tryouts old friends from British 

 Columbia to the Mexican border meet again. There 



60 



