Aside from the pay, the reason Texas cowboys re-upped for a cattle drive was for the adventure. Although the drive might be boring at times, with weeks and sometimes months on the trail with nothing to see but dust and flat lands, natural and man-made challenges occurred occasionally. One of the most frightening challenges encountered in a drive was crossing a river. A swift river could carry a man, a horse or a cow. A slow moving river might camouflage quicksand and deep holes both of which were dangerous also.
The lives of women changed dramatically during the American Civil War. ... On the home front, women for both sides had to manage the household while their husbands and sons were off fighting battles. On the battlefield, women helped to supply the soldiers, provide medical care, and worked as spies.
Today, Columbus has a controversial legacy—he is remembered as a daring and path-breaking explorer who transformed the New World, yet his actions also unleashed changes that would eventually devastate the native populations he and his fellow explorers encountered.
