Our Footprints articles are written by local historians who are also volunteer members of the Fayette County Historical Commission. In the previous article, it was mentioned that the Fayette County Record had been printing the Footprints articles for over 20 years. We’d just like to mention that the articles have also appeared in many other local papers, including The Banner Press, Flatonia Argus, Schulenburg Sticker, and Weimar Mercury, and even occasionally mentioned on the local radio stations. Not only do all of your local papers support us by publishing these articles, they are also always willing to include news articles and public service announcements for the Historical Commission as well as others to help keep our Fayette County history alive.
This week’s Footprints story will be a continuation of short stories of the “footprints” left by the animals, domestic or wild, in Fayette County history. These stories were deemed important enough to appear in our local newspapers and made for some talk/gossip among the local citizens. As man and animal interact, some great stories can develop. This week, we will deal with some large animals.
“Stubborn as a Mule” A short clip in the October 20, 1910, La Grange Journal stated that “a pair of mules belonging to a vis- iting farmer, finding themselves in sole possession of the wagon, made a mad dash down Colorado Street, but failed to damage themselves or the wagon. They were stopped in front of Brown and Lane’s of- fice." While local newspapers ran many stories of this type of mule mayhem in society, the importance of the mule to the Fayette County residents at that time could not be overstated. In data provided by an article in the La Grange Journal in June 1913, the value of agricultural property in Fayette County in that year was over $15 million (roughly $460 million in today’s money).
With that number in mind, the article further stated there were then 5,348 mules in Fayette County.
According to the data provided, the population of the County in the 1910 census was 29 796 people.
With a little algebraic/geometrical math, one can determine that there was 1 mule for every 6 people in the county at that time, making the mule a highly valuable member of the family unit.
“Cattle are Creatures of Habit” As cattle production has begun to dominate Fayette County agriculture, a good cow story is necessary. In a story from June 1950, Mr. Rudolph Tydlacka, in the southeastern section of the county, had just received a five-inch rain at his farm, which caused a creek on
his property to get filled up with water. Since it was milking time at the farm, he proceeded over to the creek to look over the situation. The story states that “upon his arrival, he soon found that the cattle were on the opposite side of the creek, (with) water bank to bank. Mr. Tydlacka decided that he would call the cattle and then wait for them to come on home. His call brought results: the cattle went into the water, half swimming and half jumping, but they came home when milkin’ time was there”. It was stated that it was the first time in 36 years that Mr. and Mrs. Tydlacka resided at their farm that the cattle were unable to cross the creek on account of high water.
“Mad About Getting Junk Mail” In another account in a January 1924 La Grange Journal, Mr.
Gilbert Eck, a substitute mail carrier had an experience with a bull while en route with the rural mail.
Traveling on muddy roads, driving a horse attached to his buggy, he came upon a bunch of cattle being driven down a road. A bull in the midst of the herd took exception to the flopping curtains on his buggy and made a run for them. The writer says that “the bull made good, all right, he went in with his head and one of his horns passed under the armpit of Mr. Eck. Luckily, the damage was minor.”
“A Rare Deer Sighting” In a February 1930 article in the La Grange Journal, a story appeared that would seem almost unbelievable to the current residents of Fayette County. The article stated: “You can believe this story or not, it is true just the same.
Hermann Zoch and Walter Matthijetteje (sic), who live on the farm of F. Reinsch on the Colorado River, a few miles from Winchester, saw a real live buck—a deer with six prongs-and saw him in the field near the home they occupy. It was a surprise, of course, and when they first espied it the animal gazed at them and then suddenly made a run for the hill… Seeing a deer in these parts is unusual.”
With the number of deer sightings, deer hunters, and auto/deer collisions in our present-day county, this story does indeed seem to be unbelievable. However, there are still some old-timers around who can still recall that the deer population wasn’t always what it currently is. The reason for this is the screwworm. Until the U.S. Department of Agriculture undertook an eradication program for this deadly parasite in the 1950s, the screwworm was the cause of death for many animals, wild or domestic. This parasite is the name of the larvae of several North American blowfly species, which feed on the carcasses of dead animals and can infest open wounds on living ani- mals. The female blowfly will lay eggs into the wounds of animals or after the birth of an animal, then the larvae hatch will feed on this open wound, and if left untreated can lead to the death of the animal. Hence, the statement “seeing a deer in these parts is unusual.”
What this means is that a lot of small, wild animals, after being born, with a little blood left after the birth, would not survive this parasite, unless they were born in the cold of winter.
More Fayette County animal “footprint” stories in the coming wee …
Sources: The La Grange Journal, Portal to Texas History, TAMU Agrilife Extension, USDA.
