PACKING

The outfit needed for packing camp equipment is, for each horse, a

pack saddle, woolen blankets, pack cinch, 35 or 40 feet of one-half

inch manila rope, another rope of the same size, 20 feet long, a pair

of alforjas, a pair of hobbles, and a bell to put on the horse when

it is turned out for the night.

A pack saddle consists of two crosses of hardwood, fastened to two

flat, round-end pieces of wood, and to this is attached breeching,

breast straps and one or two cinches, with the other necessary strap

work.

A good pack saddle is strong and well made, of good materials. The

leather is a peculiar kind that will not tighten when tied into

knots, for the cinch adjustments are usually tied instead of fastened

with buckles. When selecting a pack saddle be sure that the breeching

and breast straps are long enough for any horse on which the saddle

may be used, for the makers frequently try to economize by skimping

the rigging, so that they may sell at a lower price.

Be sure also that the saddle fits the horse reasonably well, or it

will cause trouble. Most of the pack horses used in the mountains are

more or less hollow backed, and the saddle base should not be too

long or it will rest on the ends only. On the other hand, if too

short it will not be so stable and will also hurt the horse. The

double cinch saddle, such as shown in the illustration, is by far the

best.

Alforjas are sacks to hang on the sides of the saddle, in which to

place all of the small articles of the outfit. They are made of very

heavy duck, leather bound, and have straps or loops of rope with

which to suspend them from the saddle forks. The proper size is about

24 inches wide, 18 inches high, and when opened out, nine inches

deep.

When packing an outfit the horse should be tied and the blanket

should be folded and placed on the horse's back. It should not be

less than four folds thick and should extend a little ahead and a

little behind the saddle base. It must also come down far enough on

the sides to form a pad for the alforjas and keep them from rubbing

and chafing the animal.

The saddle should then be placed on the folded blanket. Now, at this

point, if you want to be kind to the poor horse, grasp the blanket

between the two pieces of the saddle base and pull it up a little, so

that it is loose over the horse's back. This will allow the saddle to

settle down under the weight of the pack and not bind, which it is

sure to do if the blanket is not loosened a little as advised. Then

both cinches should be tightened, and the breeching and breast straps

properly adjusted.

The alforjas are then filled with the small articles of the camp

equipment and hung on the forks of the saddle. If the packer is at

all conscientious, as he should be, he will see that each sack is of

the same weight and that there are no hard or sharp objects so placed

that they will injure the animal. Articles which are too big to go

into the sacks are then placed on top, where they will rest firmly

and not hurt the horse, and the blankets and tent are folded and

spread over the top of saddle and alforjas.

[Illustration: DOUBLE CINCH PACK SADDLE.]

At this stage commences what is generally considered the trick of

packing, tying the pack to the horse. There are many forms of pack

hitch in use and any of them may be learned quite easily by an

observing person, nevertheless tying a pack properly can scarcely be

done at the first attempt. The most popular of pack ties is what is

known as the diamond hitch and all things considered it is probably

the best on the list.

[Illustration: PACK TIES.]

To throw the diamond hitch, proceed as follows: Having tied one end

of the long rope to the ring of the pack cinch, go to the near side

(left) of the horse and throw the cinch over the pack and horse, then

reach under the horse and pick up the cinch. The hooked end of the

cinch is now toward you. Draw back on the rope until you have all of

the slack and pull the rope down on the near side to the hook of the

cinch; double it here and give it a twist, as shown in Fig. 1, then

hook the loop to the cinch. Now double the free portion of the rope

and shove it through under the part marked by the arrow, from the

back, forming loop A, as shown in Fig. 2. Now give this loop a twist

as shown in Fig. 3, to bring the free portion of the rope down

farther towards the near side. Next grasp this rope at the place

marked by the arrow in Fig. 3, and draw up a part of the free rope

forming loop B, as shown in Fig. 4. All of this time you have been

keeping the rope that crosses the pack fairly tight. You now go to

the off side and pull loop A down over and under the pack, then come

back and put loop B under the pack on the near side. This will leave

the hitch as in Fig. 5 and it is ready for tightening. Commence first

by pulling the rope at A, then at B, C, D, E, F, G and H,

successively. The end of the rope H is then tied to the ring in the

pack cinch at the off side, and the diamond hitch is completed. The

ropes should all be quite tight, and if they grow loose after awhile

they should be tightened again.

[Illustration: TYING A DIAMOND HITCH.]

There is another very simple way of tying a diamond hitch, which

though not quite like the one described in detail, is the same in

principle. It is shown very plainly in the three diagrams reproduced

here. As in the first method the rope and cinch are thrown across the

pack to the off side and the cinch is picked up from beneath the

horse, then the rope is drawn up and hooked to the cinch, but the

little twist is not put in the rope as in the first method. The free

portion of the rope is then thrown across the pack to the off side so

that it is parallel with and behind the first rope. Then double this

rope on the top of the pack and push it under the first rope from the

rear, as shown in Fig. 8. Now bring this loop back over and push it

through again, as in Fig. 9, forming the small loop A. Now take the

free end of the rope down under the pack on the near side, back and

up at the rear, through the loop A again. This is illustrated in Fig.

10. The free end of the rope then goes down under the pack from the

rear on the off side and fastens to the cinch ring. The rope is

tightened the same as in the other method. This hitch is as good as

the other and is more easily remembered, although not as easily tied

as the one first described.

Either of these pack ties may be managed easily by one man, but they

are tied more rapidly by two men, one standing on the off side and

the other on the near side, so that neither need walk around the

horse. Then there is the additional advantage in that the rope may be

drawn up tight and there is no danger that it will slip, as one or

the other of the men can be holding the rope all the time the pack is

being tied.

In addition to the pack ties described there is another hitch that

should be learned as it is useful for securing packages to the pack

saddle when alforjas are not used, also for holding packs to the

sides of the saddle while tying the diamond hitch. There are several

methods of fixing a sling rope and the mode I am going to describe is

illustrated in Fig. 7.

For this purpose the shorter length of rope is brought into use. It

is doubled in the middle and looped around the front forks of the

pack saddle, then one-half of the rope is taken to the near side and

the other is dropped on the off side. Taking either half of the rope,

you allow sufficient slack to hold the pack at the proper height then

bring the rope around the rear forks, then down to the centre of the

slack portion, where it is tied. The pack is then fixed in this loop

and the other side is arranged the same way. After both packs are

properly slung the ends of the rope are brought up on top and tied

together.

There are many forms of pack hitches other than those described,

although the diamond hitch is most used and more popular than any of

the others.

A pack horse should never be overloaded, and the animal cannot carry

as great a load as many people expect. Two hundred pounds is the

limit for any pack, and 150 is a more reasonable load. For long

journeys the pack, per horse, should not weigh this much. A hundred

or a 125 is all that should be allotted to any animal.

A pack train may consist of any number of pack animals, and if there

are enough riders in the party one man rides between each two pack

horses. I mean by that, one rider goes ahead leading a horse behind

him. That horse is followed by another rider, then another pack

horse, etc. If there are not enough men in the party for this, two

pack animals are placed between two riders. The men may lead the

horses if they are inclined to wander from the route, but ordinarily

this is not necessary, as the animals will keep in line. But if you

lead a pack horse do not grow tired of holding the rope and tie it to

the horn of the saddle. This is a dangerous practice and may result

in serious injury to the one who is so thoughtless, for the pack

horse may become frightened and bolt or may swing around, wrapping

the rope around the rider.

Pack horses are always more or less troublesome, and the man who uses

them should have a bountiful supply of patience. At night the animals

are hobbled, which means that their front feet are fastened together

with hobbles, so that they cannot travel fast or far. Too much

dependence should not be placed on these retarders, for Western

horses soon learn to travel quite rapidly when thus impeded, and will

sometimes set out for home while the master sleeps. A good practice

is to picket one or two horses in the best spots of pasture to be

found, and hobble the remaining animals. They are not so likely to

leave if this is done, and if they do, the picketed horses must

remain behind, which insures at least a mount with which to follow

the runaways. Also put a bell on each horse, as this will aid in

locating the animals in the morning.

Horse feed cannot be carried, and Western horses seldom get any food

except what they can find at night or while they are not in use, and

on the plains or in the mountains where vegetation is scanty they

sometimes do not get as much as they require. Under such

circumstances they should not be loaded too heavily, or traveled too

far in a day, and it may even be necessary, on a long journey to take

an occasional day of rest to allow the horses to recuperate.

[Illustration: ANIMAL TRACKS]