Espuela Land Cattle Co - Tapa dura

When the Texas plains country was opened to the advance of the first cattlemen, among the ranches that grew up along the advancing frontier were several large, foreign-owned enterprises. The activities and the orientation of such ranches differed in many respects from those of their locally owned neighbors. In this detailed study of all aspects of the operation of one such ranch, Dr. William Curry Holden adds to our knowledge both of the frontier and of the livestock industry. Expanding his examination far beyond the material covered in his earlier book, The Spur Ranch, he describes the geological conditions which made ranching possible along the Caprock and the problems and ingenuity involved in acquiring a large body of land for that purpose; business practices and techniques for caring for the animals and land; the personnel-their characteristics, their problems, their habits, and their social life; relations with neighbors; trail drives; predatory animals; and weather. Students of Texas history and those interested in ranching will find this book a helpful source of information. Business historians will also find its wealth of meticulous detail useful, particularly those historians who are interested in the wave of foreign speculation through which so many Europeans sought to make their fortunes during the latter part of the nineteenth century.