Knowing their habits, the mustangers would drive toward a band and start the animals to moving. At first the wild horses would dash away, running in fright. The mustangers did not pursue rapidly, but kept their horses at a slow pace. The object was to keep the animals continually moving. The first day or so the mustangs would run a great deal and tire themselves.
The mustangers prevented them from stopping long enough to feed, and herded them away from the customary watering place. At the end of a week the mustangs began to show signs of exhaustion. Eventually, thirst, starvation, and fatigue would do their work, when the horses could be driven in any direction.
When this much had been accomplished, nooses were concealed in the grass, with men hidden by them. The mustangs were driven over these nooses, which were jerked, securing the mustangs by the legs. One by one they were thus trapped, being driven time after time over the hidden nooses, until all fell victims to the cunning of the mustangers.
There were two hundred mustangs or more being driven that day upon the nooses concealed in the grass along the little stream where the mustangers had their camp; and Buffalo Bill and his friends, sitting their horses near by, watched with interest the work of the capture of these wild horses.
When a mustang was captured, a short chain was affixed to one foreleg, and he was then released. He could not run; when he tried it he invariably stepped on the chain with one of his hind feet and either threw himself or gave himself such a wrench that he soon gave up trying. Besides, the mustangs were now too tired to make much effort to get away.
When all had been captured they were to be driven into a high-fenced corral, and left to recuperate; after which there would be exciting times in “breaking” them, when such stunts of wild riding and bucking would be seen as could probably be witnessed nowhere else.
Twenty or thirty of the mustangs that were being crowded upon the hidden nooses broke away, and made a dash to escape.
Buffalo Bill and his companions were near the point where they broke out, and started in pursuit of them.
One of them, a handsome fellow, separated from the others; Pawnee Bill, whirling his lariat, started in chase.
The lariat flew out, and its noose circled the head of the mustang.