Our story comes from the real-life character Mason Henry Blue. First, let me say that I didn’t believe the name either until I had the pleasure to talk to Mason on the phone. He is about as real and down-home country as a man can get. He wanted to tell us a story. Mason said that he heard the podcast we had some time ago with author Alan Day. He loved Alan’s interview so much that he wanted to tell one of his tales to match. You can listen to that interview with Alan Day in RAS #166 – The Horse Lover. Mason’s Story can be heard on RAS #334 – Mason Henry Blue. He came back for another story and we told that one on RAS #422 – Billy The Donkey. Great Story!

-Ron

My name is Mason Henry Blue.  My friends just call me “Buckles”. I got the name during my rodeo years. I earned a few of them a time or two. My story comes from the late 1940’s. I was a young man just about 18 years old. My folks had just given me the get out and about or take over the farm speech. I chose to get out.

I began working at a place near Dallas called the South-Fork Ranch. My job those early years was to clean the bunkhouse, wash clothes and help the cook.  Later I became the handyman and protector. There were two predators there that had to be dealt with. Coyotes and Spiders. The spiders were recluse and black widows. The coyotes? Well, they were just trouble. 

One morning Beth, the owner’s wife, told me to get up in the hills to stop a pack that had been taking her chickens at night.  In those days there was a bounty on the critters, so I was pleased at the chance for some extra cash.  I loaded up with traps, my long gun, supplies and off I went.

I made camp along a creek in the nearby hills.  It was winter and I knew two things about coyotes. They need food and water.  Chickens for the food and creek for the water. That first day was all about setting up camp and fixing any broken traps. Day two was finding their trails and setting traps. That night I heard their howls so I knew I was in the right place.

The next day I checked my traps and most of them had been tripped and the meat was gone. I almost expected a note from the coyotes saying, “Thanks for the grub, lunk-head”. 

I decided these guys were going to require the night hunter. I found the trail most likely used to get to the chickens, built a sort of tree perch and set myself for the night. It wasn’t too long before I fell asleep. 
That is when the growls began. I grabbed my flashlight and sure enough right below me was a pack of hungry dogs all looking up at me like I was dinner. I reached for my rifle and was surprised when it was gone. I flashed the light around a bit and found it right down there leaning on the tree where I had left it. I slapped my forehead and was glad that Coyotes can’t climb trees.

It was a long, cold and dark night. I had nothing to do so I had me a conversation with them yelps.  We talked about the wrongs of eating chickens and where they could find a large barrow of rabbits. The pups arrived with their mamas and it got to be a big ole camp meeting. Except I was the preacher and they were my flock. I must have fallen asleep again, cuz when I woke up they were all gone.

I went back to camp and it came as no surprise it was torn to pieces. Every spec of food gone. I packed up, tucked my tail in-between my legs and headed home. When the misses asked about the trip I just said I had a long talk with them and they won’t be bothering us anymore. The funny thing was they never did. 

Mason Henry Blue – Dallas, Texas

This Week’s Podcast: On the show this week we have a western-based theme. This is something we have not done in a while. Our featured story starts out as a typical Range War but ends with a twist that you won’t see coming. We will also have a listener tale from New Mexico. It relates to the history and times of Black Jack Ketchum. You can listen to this podcast on Thursday at Ron’s Amazing Stories, download it from Apple Podcasts, stream it on Stitcher Radio or on the mobile version of Spotify. Do you prefer the radio? We are heard every Thursday at 10:00 pm and Sunday Night at 11:00 PM (EST) on AMFM247.COM. Check your local listing or find the station closest to you at this link

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This time on These Are Your Stories we have one that comes from the old west and was sent to us by Big Jimmy Calhoun. Big Jimmy lives in the great state of Arizona and is a real cowboy. In fact, he comes from the lineage of real cowboys. I spent some time on the phone with Jimmy and here is the story he told me about his great-grandpa Jerico. 

His great-grandpa was a bit of a legend in Arizona. You won’t find his name in any history books and Jimmy doesn’t even have a picture of him. What we do have is a journal of his stories. All of which he swore was true. Jimmy never got to meet Jerico, but he did get to meet his Chiricahua wife, Zi-Yeh. She was very old at the time and gave Jimmy his great grandpa’s journal. This story is one of the last in the book. The words were copied directly from the journal, so please don’t expect perfect English. Big Jimmy had this to say, “This is as true a story you find about the old west, well mostly true anyway.”

I was shot by my friend Sam waters.  If he had not done it, I would have been dead for sure. 

We had been sent out to collect strays in the north end of the ranch near Willow canyon. We made our campsite near a stream and enjoyed a hearty meal of beans and trout. It was our last night out and had collected 15 cows and a few calves.  We had an iron on the spit with plans to brand the calves after supper.

Sam had brought a bottle with him and we agreed that we would share it on our last night. We knew that we had to stay sharp, because the “REZ” was not too far away and there had been some jumpers over the last few weeks. Jumpers are what we call illegal Indian hunts. You had to be careful because the Indians were not always in the best of moods. Also, they had been known to shoot cattle rather than look for other game.

I had first watch. We had hobbled the horses but the cattle had been left to graze. Wolfs or Rouge Indians could easily run them off and have their pick of them. It was after midnight when I heard a rustling in the bushes. I threw a rock at Sam to wake him up. I pointed off into the bushes and he reached for his rifle.

It was quiet, too quiet and we both knew that there was going to be trouble. We didn’t know if it was going to be Indian or wolves. I had just turned my back when the first howl rose into the night. The cattle all raised their heads and were off.  Sam yelled, “Stampede!” and a pack of hungry wolves appeared nipping at cattles hooves.

All of this would have been fine, we would collect what was left, and in all likelihood the wolves would take the calves rather than bring down a 400 pound cow. The problem was that the cattle all were heading straight to me. I was turned around and didn’t see the danger until it was too late.

Sam took aim with this Winchester and shot me straight through and through in the shoulder. The impact knocked me sideways over a rock and cattle changed their direction. The herd missed me only a couple of feet. The bullet had gone right through me leaving a neat hole which Sam quickly closed with the whiskey and that hot branding iron. As it turned out I was branded that night and will carry a scar to prove it.

Jericho Calhoun

Well, there you have it straight from Big Jimmy Calhoun. My thanks to him for sharing with us. This was one of the best interviews I have ever done. It is my hope that we get more stories from that journal someday.

This Week’s Podcast:

On the show this week we are all about ghosts. A podcast full of them including a tale from the OTR series The Mysterious Traveler titled The Haunted Trailer. You can listen to this podcast on Thursday at Ron’s Amazing Stories, download it from Apple Podcasts, stream it on Stitcher Radio or on the mobile version of Spotify. Do you prefer the radio? We are heard every Thursday at 10:00 pm and Sunday Night at 11:00 PM (EST) on AMFM247.COM. Check your local listing or find the station closest to you at this link

Social Links:
Main Podcast Site by LibSyn
The Blog Site by WordPress
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Contact Links:
Email
Story Submissions
Contact Ron