“The spring; that’s when the big herds are put up for the drive, and that’s the season too, when the yearly round-up takes place.”
“What’s that for?”
“To apportion the unmarked calves and yearlings among the owners of stock on the range, so they can be branded.”
“I should think there would be a confusion of brands.”
“No; that can never happen, for the law requires the brand to be recorded in the county clerk’s office. It is generally the initials of the owner’s name, with perhaps some device to help distinguish it. The county clerk sees to it that no two are the same. But,” added the Texan, “the law compels every cattle owner to record also with the county clerk the ear-marks, crops, half-crops, upper and under bits, upper and under slopes, splits, swallow-forks, and jingle-bobs. When all this is done, the ranchman can identify his property as easily as you could pick out your own father in a crowd.”
“Suppose a lot of branded cattle are sold?” asked Nick.
“That seller is compelled to counterbrand them, and in case they are driven from the State, the buyer is obliged to road-brand them with a device different from his regular brand, and must record it in every county through which he passes.”
“I should think some of the cattle would become pretty well covered with brands.”
“So they do; after a few shiftings about, I have seen them so thickly branded that there seemed no place for anything new in that line. It doesn’t require many transfers to do this when the burned letters, as I have seen them, are nearly a foot long.”
“How is the branding done?”