22 MANUAL OF PACK TEANSPOETATION. 



the Spanish- American war (1898). The leather was very heavy, a 

 requisite to hold the hay or padding in position, and there were no 

 facings on back or belly piece; a strip 12 inches long and from 3 to 

 6 inches wide was attached to the outside along the front edge, the 

 inner edge provided with holes to lace the crupper; at rear a strip of 

 leather about 3 by 6 inches was attached as a carrier piece and pro- 

 vided with holes to support the crupper by means of a short lace 

 string, all sewing being done by whang and needle. 



The crupper was made in sections termed "panels" — hence the 

 name "panel crupper" — the center panel being usually provided with 

 a surface covering of morocco or other fancy colored leather on 

 which various designs or legends were stitched with silken threads 

 of various colors, corresponding figures being provided on the corona 

 or saddle pad. 



The aparejos made by Main & Winchester were of light stock and 

 in time became baggy. To overcome this defect, facings (reenfor- 

 cings) of leather were employed on the "boots," back, and belly 

 pieces of the aparejo, the backpiece having an additional reenforcing 

 at its center, termed the "center facing." With all this reenforcing, 

 the belly or body piece was too light and in short time became baggy, 

 i. e., the belly piece stood away from the hay or padding, permitting 

 the hay to fall from its proper position, a very serious defect. 



The establishment of J. C. Johnson & Co., of San Francisco, turned 

 out the best aparejos ever made for the United States Government. 

 In the eighties some very good aparejos were supplied by a firm in 

 Chicago. The initials stamped on the aparejos were, if I am not 

 mistaken, "0. H. & Co." The Collins Saddlery Company, of 

 Omaha, Nebr., also furnished some good aparejos in the eighties. 

 Since that time St. Louis, Mo., controls the trade in pack equipment. 



During the Geronimo campaign (1885) the Cheyenne packtrains, 

 under charge of Mr. Thomas Moore, chief packer, were ordered to 

 Fort Bowie, Ariz., and additional pack trains organized. Mr. Moore, 

 in order to hasten the ribbing or setting up" of the aparejos had a 

 quantity of hickory slats or ribs made, about 1 inch wide and three- 

 eighths of an inch thick throughout their entire length. No taper 

 being provided on any of the sticks, necessarily the sticks bearing 

 over the swell of the body received practically all of the pressure, 

 causing terrible misery to the animal, and when loaded and turned 

 loose the animal would immediately throw itself on the ground, when 

 the snapping of the ribs (breaking) could be plainly heard, with a 

 wail from the pack master of "There goes another one." 



After the Geronimo campaign I was ordered to Cheyenne Depot 

 (Camp Carlin), Cheyenne, Wyo., for station, under Capt. C. F. 

 Humphrey, quartermaster, afterwards Quartermaster-Gensral of the 

 Army. Two pack trains were there organized, one under Pack 

 Master Edward Delaney and one imder myself, with Mr. Moore 

 chief packer. 



In January, 1887, while setting up the aparejos, Mr. Moore had 

 provided a quantity of those hickory slats. for ribbing purposes; on 

 my urging the necessity of their being tapered and tested before 

 insertion, Mr. Moore stated why not use two or three slats and then 

 two or three willow sticks, and alternate that way, with a view to 

 weakening the ribbing, forgetting the fact tliat the slats would be 



