Faith Steed Howarth

[Memories of Horses]

Well, the men, you see, were very often away at the ranch for days at a time. The horses, the only place that they could water them was at this big canal that the men had built. They had one place where it tapered down so that the horses could get down to it. But, you had to drive the horses, maybe - I don't know eight to ten horses, maybe six to ten horses into the canal. One of them would have a saddle already on it and a bridle. The bridle was in its mouth. I was to go at a certain time out and I had to take a hoop off the gate - unfasten the hoop, over the pole and I had to lean over it and take that - the horse took advantage of it. He was a nasty little beggar, but it didn't bother me the least bit.

I would just get on him and go over to the gate and I'd take the horses all along to the water, then bring them all back and put them there and lock the gate up. [Mom was only 6 at this time].

I have a faint memory of a rather frightening trip that we took in Canada at the time that I was a very small child. We were going in a wagon out to my father, who had a home out at what we called the ranch. He had property out there and he were coming out from the town to join him. He had given his brother, who had come up to look the situation up there over in Canada and see if he wanted to join in that. But, this youngish man had a young lady he was very interested in and they were in a small vehicle. The first thing we knew, they had gone far ahead and left us alone on the prairie.

Now, mother would have had only a young child. Her older boys were already out there. She wouldn't have anything but young children with her. We got lost. We didn't know where we were. The sand was up too much on the wheels of the wagon for us to go on in the darkness, so, of course, the only thing that we could do was stop. We spent that night and heard the wolves wailing and all this sort of thing. But, the next day at daylight, we were able to come tottering to the ranch house. Poor father was in a very, very upset state. When he found out what had happened, he was really very put out with his brother. In fact, I think it was the final thing in their going together in some project or other that they had in mind because he never did appear again. But, we got there all right, but it was a long way out to the ranch.

I had a horse of my own, a beautiful little black mare. She saved my life once. I came dashing down the street and they had moved it curved like this around the bend. I cut out into it and there was a car. She jumped up before I could even think what to do [laughs]. Oh, I loved her. She was mine and Alta's, but Alta didn't like her so much so didn't ride her so much. Also, she [Alta] liked boys. I hated boys. I didn't hate them, I just had all I wanted of them. You know, I just had enough boys. I had to take care of them.

When I was a young girl after we had moved in to America from Canada, I had my own little black mare. A pretty little horse. This is one that to my children will be very interesting - to have your own horse. Well, she was really Alta's and mine. But Alta didn't like her as well as I did. So, I nearly always could ride her. So, I was riding her one day going down toward town. It was by the hotel and they had moved the road. As we went to go around, a car was right there. I couldn't have done anything, but the horse jumped me clear off to the side. She save my life. The mare did, because I did nothing but sit on the horse and she took care of us. I have never forgotten that.