A RANCHMAN'S RECOLLECTIONS 



S. M. S. Ranch twenty years later, and from them I 

 formed my early ideals of great cow ponies. 



The Arabian sire, regardless of what he really was, 

 illustrates what has probably saved the cow pony — 

 "the law of selection." Some man with good horse 

 sense had picked the right sort of sire. 



For years the S. M. S. Ranch ramuda could be 

 identified at a great distance by the predominance of 

 white horses in it, and even today, when some spe- 

 cial occasion demands, the entire outfit will come out 

 mounted on white horses. 



Several Missouri saddle horses were crossed on 

 the daughters of Arab ; also a high-strung Standard- 

 bred horse. A good Thoroughbred followed. In 

 1 901 pure Spanish-bred stallions from the King 

 Ranch were put in, followed by some grade Per- 

 cheron and Clydesdale strains from native mares. 

 Many of the best horses in the ramuda are from these 

 latter stallions, crossed on mares which represented 

 Spanish, Standard-bred, Arabian, Thoroughbred and 

 Missouri saddle stock, mixed beyond all hope of ac- 

 curate classification. Then followed more Missouri 

 saddle stock and Standard-breds, and a race horse 

 from a Standard-bred and pure Thoroughbred cross, 

 which had a mark of 2:14 in his first year, but went 

 lame and came to us at a bargain. 



A German Coacher, bred from the halter to mares 

 selected for their fitness to mate with him for driv- 

 ers, for work horses, and some experiments with cow 



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