Mules

Plodding Along: the humble horsepower of transportation

Mules deserve to be remembered for the important roles they played in the history of transportation.

A Mule is a non-reproducing crossbreed; half horse, half donkey. Donkeys are also called asses or burros (burro is Spanish), and are known for having long ears and a strong sense of self preservation.

Mules have ears almost as long, and strength and stamina, they can carry up to their own weight, but the smart mule skinner loads them with about half their own weight. A mule skinner is a professional mule driver, he is armed with a leather whip which can literally take the hair off of (skin) a mule without doing permanent harm to the animal. He also understands how to balance loads on a mule’s back, and find the leader of a team, the bell mule. If a good bell mule is selected all the mules will follow the bell in a straight line and not wander off or stop to graze. This line is called a mule train.

Mule trains were the primary cargo movers in parts of Mexico until the 1950's, and were important on rough terrain throughout the old west. They are excellent on narrow trails or mountain terrain, and the 20 mule team hauling borax out of canyons like the Grand Canyon remains a famous image. The mule train consists of individual mules with loads tied to their backs, they can move a surprising amount. The old way was to tie what is called a “diamond hitch” across the load over the animals back. This makes a sort of net over the load and can be tightened by pulling just one rope. The modern way is to have load saddles that loads can be attached to.

Mules are hardier than horses and can live on less food and water, a mule can live on pasture where a horse would starve; they also have stronger resistances to heat and cold than horses. These traits made them very useful in dessert terrain. Mules were also used in the deepest Mexican mines, and some were underground so long that they could not see in daylight when finally brought out.

Besides all these tasks, Mules are also excellent for working a farm. Mules are good plough and wagon pullers and were very popular as work animals throughout the U.S. George Washington is said to have bred the first mules in America from a burro sent to him by the King of Spain. It is known that he kept over 40 mules at his Mount Vernon plantation. Mules are stubborn if treated badly, but will generally work without complaint for someone they trust. The famous old western movie line, “What is it Bessy”, also has some basis, a good mule that refuses to do what is asked often senses some danger the human has not yet noticed. Mules can, however, be permanently “ruint” (i.e. ruined) by mistreatment. The mule's main liability is its inability to reproduce, but this peculiarity does not inhibit the sex drive, and male mules are generally castrated to make them somewhat more manageable.

Like the farmers and skinners that worked them, Mules quietly made a very large impact on history and transportation in America, Mexico, South America, and a lot of old world countries as well. Mules were still used on rough terrain by the U.S. Army Quartermasters Corps as late as WWII, long after the glory days of the cavalry horse were over. I guess there may be something to be said for plodding along, rather than charging forward, after all.

Source: John Crandall. http://suite101.com