FOLK COLLECTION 11: The Skaggs Foundation Cowboy Poetry Collection

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

85

S. Omar Barker

Courtin' Cowboy

He can view a horse remuda - may be fourty in a bunch.

love, women, roping ponies, town gals, qualities, behavior, chica, marrying, romance, food, gravy, Jo Ann, nectar, boarding school, girlfriends, heart, stomach, excitement, Kitty Davis ,Rosabelle, blue eyes, blond, cooking, love, wife, remuda, town gals, goop, rejection, fear, nester, nester's daughter, nesters

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

106

S. Omar Barker

Well Grounded

I asked an old-time cowhand for his secret of success.

man, human hairpin, mount a horse, riders, riding, wise, wisdom, legs,

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

105

S. Omar Barker

Ol' Sancho

In Atascosa County where the thickets run to thorn.

longhorn, wide land, brasadas, brush country, pinto calf, gray wolves, Rancher Kerr's wife, dogie, bottle-feeding, naming, Sancho, steer, Esperanza Creek, mild and meek steer, pet steer, woman's tears, 7 Z, dragmen, lonesome, leaving the herd, runaway, Wyoming, Washita, Cimarron, Arkansas, Kansas, Sandhills, Olalla, Platte, trail, brand, 7Z, CR, C R, brand, Teton Mountains, autumn, snow, spring, returning home, Mexkin woman, Mexican woman, starvedsteer, tears, bony hips, homesick

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

98

S. Omar Barker

Some Call Him Brave

Old Fort Kearny, long ago.

siege, blizzard, winter, snow, cold, Sioux, Indians, arrows, fight, trail, Laramie, Carrington, Portuguese, Phillips, trapper, hunter, scout, night, darkness, frost, horse, bareback, saddle, dawn, daybreak ,hiding, escape, avoiding daylight, pemmican, dried meat, Christmas, celebration, ball, dance, Horseshoe Station, telegraph, Fort Laramie, ice, phantom, music, bugles, troopers, grave, gravestone, Big Horn Mountains, litanies, bravery

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

104

S. Omar Barker

Rawhide Sons

The old-time cowboy ridin' underneath the western sky.

hard work, low wages, sweat, swallow dust, broncos, busting broncos, long working days, cattle, responsibility, outfit, pride, boss, bossing, self-confidence, brand, Big Auger, freedom, independence, lasso, liberty, horseback man, energy, power, hog-skinning, work, play, fight, stubbornness, free-mindedness, outspokenness, western sky, frank, straightforward, direct, bronc busting

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

103

S. Omar Barker

Agreement In Principle

When a bronco gives way to his man-throwin' itch.

Texas, pitching, bucking, Wyoming, bronc peelers, definition of beingthrown ,wordplay, endless argument, exploding broncos, cowhand, horses, strength of horses, unpredictable horses, argue

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

102

S. Omar Barker

Cattle King

The nesters came, and barbed wire grew.

trails, fenceless trails, plow, cattlemen, Old Frosty Sims, sweat, hard work, cattle range, gun, trump card, God, drouth, drought, nesters, homesteaders, dry land, contemptuous, scornful, womenfolk, misery, hunger ,children, starving children, starvation, defeat, making room, supplying food, goodness, cattle trail, fences

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

101

S. Omar Barker

Uneducated Leather

They asked me: "What is rawhide?"

bovine, frontier, oldtimers, usefulness of leather, practicality, serviceable, handy, functional, cows, critter, cradles, coffins, lumber, frontier family, slumber, cabin door, trunk, women's stuff, trade rats, bullets, money, California deals, thongs, feed bags, morrals, nosebag, cowboy's life, tough, rough, long-lasting, enduring, Texas saddle, thief, hanging, roper, pride, braided leather rope, church bells, rawhide strands, Mormon Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Cuero, Mexkin iron, Mexican iron, western pioneer, tough as rawhide

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

100

S. Omar Barker

Cow Country Clue

Old cowboys claim they could tell for shore.

nester, homesteader, homestead, settler, marriage, cabin, cabin door, homestead, problems, difficulties, marital discord, leave in a hurry, escape problems, married man, unmarried man, wedded worry, frontier, nesters

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

97

S. Omar Barker

The Ol' Bandanna

It might be silk it might be cotton.

handkerchief, bandana, fashion, pride, cowboy implement, device, appearance, blue, red, half-dressed, sweat, swipe off sweat, branding work, cold, weather, frostbite, ear muff, mask, bank robbery, snoot, hand courtin some, gal, woman

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

096

S. Omar Barker

Grave Error

Boot Hill was the pay-off, them oldtimers claim.

gun, shooting, trigger, cemetery, graveyard, pulling the trigger, not aiming, mistake, dying, death, burial

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

106

S. Omar Barker

Well Grounded

I asked an old-time cowhand for his secret of success.

human hairpin, mount a horse, legs, forked end, wisdom, knowledge, realistic, pragmatic, down-to-earth, practical, rational

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

107

S. Omar Barker

The Deputy's Star

When you've rode to town for sparkin', but the sheriff calls you in.

observe, seriousness, anger, dander, speak out, opinion about the law, ruckus, row, uproar, disturbance, jail, squawking, thoughtfulness, girlfriend, marriage, responsibility, stick together, cussing, shiny star, strength, danger, authority, woman, law, controversy, response, pride, acceptance, honor, duty

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

108

S. Omar Barker

Rangeland Smellin'

Now scent is more important on the range than you might think.

smells, animals, horses, cows, cowboys, stink, instinct, smell water, longhorn ,beeline, smell a storm, ability, coyotes, howl, smell of blood, bawl, death, smell the wind, danger, smell danger, smell sheep, fragrance of freedom, western breeze, city smells, sense of smell, freight-train, western hay, sagebrush, smell of sage, homesick, longing for the west, nature

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

114

S. Omar Barker

Cow Country Saying

The fewer the words a man uses.

rebut, fend off, bigmouth, big talk, fool, shut mouth, stupidity, talk nonsense, talking too much, babble, chatter, gibberish, silent, calm, thoughtfulness

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

113

S. Omar Barker

Charlie Bowdre

Over a hut near Stinking Springs.

gunfight, shooting, battle, Billy the Kid, outlaw, gang, adobe hut, adobe clay, posse, lawbreakers, lead, Garrett, Sheriff Garrett, men hunting, riding for help, death, getting shot, courage, blood, guts, hero, song, story, glory, glorify, praise, untold story, unknown hero, glorification

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

112

S. Omar Barker

The Unpardonable Sin

There's things that make a cowboy mad.

outgoing, spirited, good mood, happy, trivial matters, convivial, mad, angry, heated, bad temper, upset ,enraged, infuriated, maddened, sore, borrowed saddle, stirrup, changing, altering, saddle

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

111

S. Omar Barker

A Page from the Old Frontier

They say that Billy the Kid shot straight, though he rode a crooked.

courage, bravery, gunman, curse, greenhorn, Frank Page, tenderfoot, Puerto deLuna, clerk, store, gun, Colts, Colt, .41's, new-style gun,.45's, Old West's guns, stolen gun, bucktoothed, thief, unscarred, unharmed, cuss, shooting, grit, old-age, honor, respect, outlaw, law, peaceable man

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

109

S. Omar Barker

The Tie-Fast Men

This is the way of the tie-fast men.

hard work, strength, dust, rope, roping, sweat, whims, open range, wide range, nature, blue quail, birds, pronghorn, animals, night, darkness, blizzard, wind, sun, coyote, mesa, cattle, heat, cold, Caprock's rim, dutiful, loop, tie-fast crew, steer, rawhide school, cinches, saddlehorn, pride, vanishing breed, stout heart, freedom

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

115

S. Omar Barker

The Silent Master

Range cattle drifted seeking grass 'cross plains and desert sand.

dust, drought, drouth, barren land, roundup, thirst, hunger, dry mouth, importance of grass, nourishment, nature, loyalty, obligation, devotion, death, range wars, ranch wars, six-gun battles, sheep camp raiding, Old West's feuds, fights, quarrels, need for grass, shooting, killing, Lincoln County, the Kid, tragedy, romance, horseback men, courage, blades of grass, crickets, rain

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

116

S. Omar Barker

The Great Seizer

They asked me "What's a sheriff?" I thought everybody knowed.

West, horney toad, important person, law and order, outlaw, thief, duty, responsibility, arrest people, avoid shooting, fair chances, sheriff occupation, shoot without warning, guts, courage, fearlessness, elected sheriff, trigger, fast reaction, friends, foes, warrant, trouble, solving problems, taw, uphold the law, Great Caesar, nickname, difficult job

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

117

S. Omar Barker

Vocal Rawhide

You ask me "What's a cowboy yell?" I've heard a few, of course.

outburst, liveliness, vitality, excitement, bawl, holler, mellow, hoarse, mood, feeling, tonsils, sound, Yippee, Wa-Hoo, bellow, squall, roar, tough throat, whooping, cactus, western land, yodel, mating song, ring-tailed wowser music, lonesome, coyote howls, prairie owl, soprano, longhorn bull, April, moon, whiskey-tenor, eardrums, wild sounds, train whistle, human sounds, animal sounds, description of sounds

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

118

S. Omar Barker

His First Shave

"Too young to straddle broncs, my lad!

young boy, beardless, mean horses, sprout, snout, Bar L, boss, youth, unscared boy, cattle, six gun trigger, too young, Cap McNally, Texas Ranger, King Fisher, posse, rustler's trail, shooting, saving lives, lead, puberty, bearcat, sixteen, coming of age, courage, courageous boy, rustling

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

119

S. Omar Barker

Cowboy Saying

With these two rules to live by.

wisdom, whittle, spit, wind, figure things out, common sense, conclusions, understanding, realization, knowledge, wit, humor

Rawhide Rhymes

FC 11 B-05

120

S. Omar Barker

Granger's Daughter

I spied a granger's daughter as the herd come up the trail.

falling in love, courting, longing, emotions, dreams, women, small girl, dugout, dugout door, lonesome land, dust, excitement, ragged clothes, wave, blue eyes, yellow hair, golden hair, yaller-golden hair, poor farmer, Abilene, fancy gals, buxom gals, plains, alkali, coyotes, pay, waiting woman, courtship, poverty