192 A CALIFORNIA TRAMP. 



These are sometimes broken by the struggling victims, but 

 the expert " lassero " will pick up the severed end while at full 

 speed, and with a dexterous coil around the saddle-horn secure 

 his prey. The horses are trained young as well as their riders, 

 and as soon as the rope is thrown they will arrest their speed 

 in a moment, and, throwing themselves back on their haunches, 

 stand ready to resist the impending shock. 



The common answer of a Mexican to a question is " Quien 

 sabef" (who knows?). This saves trouble and is not mislead- 

 ing, for you at least know as much as you did before. So 

 when I questioned a Mexican, who was standing at the door 

 of the courtyard, ready for a mount and clad in semi-bandit 

 costume, broad-rimmed "sombrero," "serape," leather leggings, 

 jingling spurs and clumsy wooden stirrups, as to how far it 

 was to Los Angeles, and he said there were many leagues 

 'twixt here and there, I was not deceived. Leaving the lonely 

 ranch, my path still lay along the mountain-bounded plain, 

 w^hich extends perhaps one hundred miles north of San Ber- 

 nardino. Over this were scattered herds of wild-looking Span- 

 ish cattle and an occasional band of horses. The former were 

 quite annoying to me, particularly the patriarchs of the flock, 

 who pawed the ground and made eyes at me from positions 

 close to the trail. I several times got ready for a foot race, but 

 nothing serious occurred. The younger stock were less war- 

 like, and a well-emitted yell would scatter them. These cattle 

 are of a very different breed from the gentle animals pasturing 

 around our rural homes. They are smaller, generally of a 

 dun color, and with slender, sharp-pointed horns. 



On the whole of the sixty miles of road from San Bernar- 

 dino to Los Angeles I did not see a single vehicle in motion, 

 nor horsemen, except the " vaqueros " or herders we occasion- 

 ally met. The trail seemed to be monopolized by our scattered 

 party; yet it was the mainly traveled road from San Pedro to 

 San Bernardino and the southern route to Salt Lake, as well 

 as to New Mexico. 



