On Sun, 18 Nov 2007 23:01:30 -0800, "P. Roehling"
wrote:


"Don Pearce" wrote

He's typical of his type, I'm afraid. I'm always amused at American
cowboy films, with their virile white men doing brave things. The huge
majority of cowboys were black or Chinese - and what they actually did
was herd cattle. But I guess that won't put backsides on seats in
movie theatres.

My goodness, little boy, what strange history books *you've* been reading!

There *were* black cowboys in the old west, and a fair number of Hispanics
as well, but they weren't a majority, and so far as recorded history goes
there were no Chinese cowboys worth mentioning unless you count the
occasional chuck-wagon cook, Etc.

Ah, I see you studied your history from such authoritative works as
Rawhide and Wagon Train. Certainly in the northern reaches there were
considerable numbers of white cowboys, but further south there were
countless operations staffed almost entirely by black labour even
after abolition. It is true that most of these men did their work on
foot rather than mounted - maybe you think this means they don't count
as real cowboys?

d

--
Pearce Consulting
http://www.pearce.uk.com