Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 1921.
THE MILLEDGEVILLE NEW*
MILLEIXJEVILLR, ^
TEXAS RINGERS
i REAE F18HTERS
Most Picturesque Body of Fight
ing Men the World Has
Ever Known.
FOUGHT TWO WARS AT ONCE
Organization Dates Back to Time
When the Lone Star State Was a
Separate Republic—Self-Reli
ant, Resourceful and Brave.
Dill Ins. Trxtls Is the only state
which has the distinction, not to say
privilege, of working out its own in-
stiiathass before becoming a member
of the I'nlnn, writes W. I*. Urbh of
the history department of tile Univer
sity nf Texas In the Dallas News.
This fact has given Texans a singular
feeling of Independence and has en
shrined the rate's Institutions with
a peculiar Interest for those within
and many without her borders. Her
flag, her presidents, her foreign am
bassadors. her army and navy, all liavo
come la for a share of the song and
story, the history and tradition of
the Lone Star republic.
Of nil her institutions, however,
Texas has none which has attracted
more attention at home and abroad
than that organization of lighting
men known as Texas Hangers.
Just what is the Texas Hanger?
The ipiestluu can be answered best
by finding out what he has been, dis
covering his oi'igin, trneing his devel
opment and examining his duties. The
exact date of the origin of the Hangers
Is Inst ill the obscurity of early Texas
history. Stephen F. Austin mentioned
/hem In his letters of 1 SL'd, nearly n
pentury ago; Haneroft ascribed their
beginning to 18S8, but in this he was
clearly wrong, for the Hangers had
not only come Into existence but had
acquired a legal status before that
time.
Rangers Date Back to 1835.
When Texas revolted, la 18H5, a
general council met, and, as a part of
Its work, authorized the lirst Hanger
force. Tills organization was to con
sist of three companies of 25 men
each, one to range east of the Trinity,
one between the Trinity and Hrazos
and the third between the Brazos and
the Colorado. The men were to serve
solely as protection against the In
dians, the remuneration being $ 1.25 a
day.
Thus was the Texas Hanger force
created in ihe midst of revolution, and
from that day to this it lias existed
almost constantly in some. form,
though under varying titles.
The first settlers from the United
(States were introduced into Texas by
Stephen F. Austin during the latter
part of 1821, now just one century
ago. Why did the Mexican govern
ment permit an alien race In come In V
There are several reasons well known
to llie historian, and it is said thut
one of them was Ihe desire to place
some strong arm between the timorous
Mexicans, like those of San Antonio,
and the wild Indians. The Comanche'*
horse might become loo hard to ladd.
QuU-n suite? However this may lie,
an examination of the land grants
made to Americans will show iliat
their holdings lend to form a tier ly
ing roughly between the timber belt
and the prairie region. In sliorl, the
Americans front, the United States
were to serve as a buffer between the
wild tribes ami me interior settle
molds, and on them was to devolve
the tusk of conquest at which imili
Spain and Mexico had failed
Mexico Unable to Close the Door.
Once Ihe door of Texas w.is open
the Americans pushed in with tlint
mighty surge which carried the \nglo-
American civilization from the Atlan
tic to I he Pacific during Ihe lirst half
of the last century. Mexico, becom
ing alarmed, undertook to close Un-
door, but It was too late. The Tex
aus for smli the immigrants bail he
roine- not only stood off the Indians,
but turned on the Mexicans and wrest
ed from them Texan independence in
1 Slid, just 15 years after they laid en
tered the slate.
This done, however, they found
themselves in a most precarious sit
nation. They were caught, as It were,
between the jaws of a great vise.
One frontier tin* Indian extended
tdong the edge of the great prairie
from (he Kio Oriiude to the lied river,
a distance of ,'Otl miles; the other
the Mexican stretched from some
point on the ltin (Iraiide to tin- mouth
of that stream, an approximate dis
tuner of :;ihi miles. The aeluitl smith
ern boundary of the settlements at
the time of the reptihllc really corrc
sponded with the Nueces.
l! should also be observed liial for
every mile that tIk- Indian frontier
was pushed back, the Mexican line
was lengthened by lust so much until
Hie two ntlnincd a combined length
of more than 1.000 miles; Surely no
stale was ever more desperately slut
nted than tile young reptihlle. Some
times she was at peace with one en
emy and sometimes with
but again she fought them both. War
was the rule, the eommonphice of
daily lif»‘. and death was tin- price
of defeat, for the enemies of Texas
knew lot mercy.
D*viring a Fighting Force.
Wlinl -Oft of lighting fmve w.mtd
Texas devise to meet this unit, ppy
SituationV l|ad tile stale been popu
lous and wealthy, as site Is today, the
febiwer would have been simple, in
those days her population was less than
that of Dallas, and her promise to pay
was worth about 18 cents on the dollar.
Hard money was a negligible quan
tity. These things made a standing
army Impossible. Whatever fighting
toree was provided must tie small and
Inexpensive in order to be maintained
at all. It must rise in time of need
and disperse when the danger had
passed s U ch are the circumstances
of our early history out of which
evolved this peculiar fighting force.
These early Hangers were semi-
mllitary in character, varied in forma
tion and organization, ununiformed
mid undrilled, and Irregular in opera
tions. They were, in a sense, indig
enous to Texas, having sprung from
I lie soil made fertile by the blood of
I heir kinsmen, and they soon became
the frontier fighting force par excel
lence of tlte world. They were the
forerunners of stielt organizations as
the Northwest Mounted Police of Can
ada, the (‘ape of Soiltli Africa and
the Pennsy lvania State, though unlike
any of them. They were the Anglo-
American solution of the problem of
the frontier. 'The true character of
the Hangers becomes clear only in the
light of that knowledge which comes
from an acquaintanceship with the
nature and disposition of their foes,
the Mexicans on the one hand and the
Indians on the other.
From long experience with the Mex
icans Die Texans had come to distrust
every word and deed of the race.
They doubted their honor, feared their
mercy and despised their valor—les
sons dearly learned at the Alamo,
Holtnd nml San Jacinto. From the In
dians. whose position on the West
lias already been indicated, they also
took hard lessons. Tlte Comanche
warrior was n terrible foe. courageous,
cunning and y-rut-l, an adept in all the
practices and subterfuges of partisan
warfare, and In order to meet him the
Hanger bad to adopt his tactics. For
example, (lie Comanches always came
suddenly, mounted on the fleet prairie
mustangs, which they managed with
consummate skill, and which boro
them away with tlte speed of tlte wind.
Faced Torture and Death.
Again, the Comanches never per
mitted themselves to he made captive
and to become their prisoner meant
torture and death. Here were tlte
ready-made rules by which the
Hangers had to light. They were of
necessity superb horsemen, using their
legs mostly for mounting and sticking
on. They were sure marksmen, show
ing great preference for the revolving
six-shooter. They were versed In wood
craft and possessed an uncanny sense
of direction, and they knew tlte lore
of Hie forest ns well as Hint of the
plain. Co). John S. Ford, himself a
Hanger, soldier and new simper man
summed up their qualities In these
words:
“The Texas Hanger can ride like a
Mexican, trail like an Indian, shoot
like a Tennesseean and fight, like a
very devil." Above a'l, these frontiers
men were Hie embodiment of individ
ualism. It was their outstanding trait
their chief characteristic. They were
self-reliant ttnd resourceful, frequently
extricating themselves from difficul
ties, not by fighting but by quick
thinking. Only one thing In warfare
they had forgotten in their long strug
gle with a dtinl foe, and that was ti
surrender. They gave quarter—some
times Imt never asked and never ex
peete > fi.
Tlu-ir leaders were natural loaders
men who possessed In a high degree
the qualities they admired In others
and found essential to themselves. A
few of these men were John C. llays,
lieu McCulloch, Joint S. Ford and 1 lie
two Itosses. The ranks werh tilled
with those courageous ones who loved
action and udventure better than ense |
and gain.
INDIANS MEND SKULLS
Prehistoric Medicine Men of
South America Were Skillful.
Scraped the Bone With Knives of
Stone or Obsidian and Covered
Hole With Gourd.
New York. Prehistoric Indians of
Sent it Amcriiu had crude medicine
men who removed splinters of arrow
heads and stone bludgeons from
wounded warriors by cutting through
the skull with knives of stone or ob
sidian end other simple Instrument:;
wrought l rein nipper and bronze
Sometimes the patient lived; frequent
ij li-- went to the happy hunting
.'rounds. *
There uneowfi noble treatments o!
;erious casualties front tribal skirm
ishes >till continue ill remote ureas of
Bolivia. Evidence of Hits bus been
gathered by field workers front Un-
American Museum of Natural History.
Of nearly 1,200 skulls collected in
South America by the late Dr. Adolph
Bandolier for exhibition in the mu
seum, about 5 per cent hits been oper
ated upon. To surgeons the practice
is known as trephining. It consists
of removing a disk or button' of bone
from tin- skull with u saw culled a
trephine.
Complex fracture of tlte skull with
depression of ttie bony plates must
have been common occurrences dur
ing the ancient tribal wars when clubs
headed wit It stone and copper along
with slings, the “boltt" and tlte “lllul”
were offensive weapons, said the re
ports of the museum's invest! go tors.
A natural procedure, they opined,
with victims who survived skull frac
tures must have hern attempts to re
move the splinters of bone that
pricked the brain, or to cut out frag
ments pressing upon it.
Warlike elans fight Intermittently
even today in the wilds of Bolivia and
skull fractures are common. Other
heads are perforated now and then In
the bacchanals and festivals whooped
up occasionally with great quanti
ties of Intoxicants, the investigators
reported.
When tlte laughter and the free-for-
uils quiet down, Ihe medicine men
get out their sharp pocket knives and
•make incisions into the Injured skulls
of the sufferers, frequently covering
the apperture with gourd. During the
operation they scrape around the
wound with a chisel.
Modern anesthetics are unknown to
tlte medicine men. They put their pa
tient into insensibility by constant
use of tlte "coca" plant. This also is
employed for healing purposes and is
commonly applied to wounds, bruises
and contusions.
A TONIC
Orove’s Tasteless chill Tonic restores
Energy and Vitality by Purifying and
Enriching the Blood. When you feel its
strengthening, invigorating effect, see ho>-;
it brings color to the cheeks and ho'-
it improves the appetite, you will then
appreciate its true tonic value.
Grove's Tasteless chill Tonic is simply
Iron and Quinine suspended in syrup. So
pleasant even children like it. The blood
needs QUININE to Purify it and IRON to
Enriclt it. Destroys Malarial germs and
Grip germs by its Strengthening, Invigor
ating Effect. 60c.
To Cure a Cold in One Day
Tekf LAXATIVE BROMO QUININE (Tablets.! It
bti-i-s the (ViU-th and K-.-adeehe amt v-ori.3 eff the
Cold. E. W. PROVE S signature cu each box. 30c.
Tvoewriter Ribbons and Car
bon oaoer Tor sale bv The Mil'
ledpeviile Nev/s.
When next in need of type'
writer or pencil carbon pa
Ders, Phone 312. We have
them.
Excursion
Fares via
C entral of Georgia Railway
The News Job Department is Equip
ped for the Best Printing
r
Did Valiant Service.
In IN-15 Texas joined the Union. The
Mexican war followed Immediately
during which the Hungers performed
such viilitiul service ns scouts urn-
guerilla fighters with the armies of
Taylor and Scott lltiil they were her
aided ns heroes ttfloiighout Hie nation
In TNf | the Klingers were reorgau
ized, six companies of 75 melt each
But an important change was made h
their status and duties. They were ti
protect the frontier and light Indians
ns before, tun, in addition, they wen-'
given the pouer of peace officers, tin |
the northern border they fought l.nm i
Wolfe. Little Bull ttnd other <'uinatiela-j
warriors; on tlte southwest t lu-\
guarded tin- Texas side of tin- Uie
Hrunde against Cortina and Ids hand
of rattle tliieies; in tlte interior they!
pursued and killed Sam Hass, Iq-oki i
up the Sullen-Taylor feud and drove!
tin- tend agents under cover.
\\ ln*n not more actively engaged, j
they guarded prisoners, protected
courts ami dispersed lynching parties |
I'hi* Hangers ivi-re busy men In those i
days! In their double eapaeity of sol
diet's and pi-uee officers they presented!
u tun el experiment in government, and |
one which did not escape criticism
In fact, nil Hu- criticism that has evet ,
been brought against Hie Texas
Hungers has been brought against j
them in their capacity as peace ntfi
eers. He that ns It may. during tin ,
ten \ ears following this reorgnntza
Hon the Hangers pushed tin* Indians j
to the very limits nf Texas, and
at the same time tendered tin- interim'
a safe and docent place to live In '
The success of Hu-ir work was due-
largely to the high personal eotiragi
and lud-mtllalde spirit of the .iflbvr-i
and men.
"•hi. tile pas.It.g of the Indian raids.|
the Hungers were relieved of furtha 1
purely military responsibility, and]
front lhv.5 to the present they huv< ■
deio.'ed Ihomselvea largely to ti-< I
maintenance .,f law and order within
the state.
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His opposite is the hard-
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year in and year out to a
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Many will remember the scarcity
of U. S. Tires last year.
A hardship at the time, but a bene
fit now. There are no U. S. Tires to be
worked off—no accumulations—no
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There is a broad, constant, even dis
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