Mr. Add was one of the cowboys who rode the Goodnight Loving Trail in New Mexico without getting into range feuds or getting his names in the newspaper. Add was a range boss of the LFD outfit and he usually headed a crew of south Texas black cowboys.
Howard Thorp, a cowboy songwriter and ballad
collector said, "Add was one of the best cowhands on the Pecos
River". Cowmen from Tozah, Texas, to Las Vegas, and New Mexico
knew Add and many of them at different times, had worked on roundups with
him."
Experience as a range boss made Add an expert. He became famous
among the cattlemen of the southwest and eventually became the subject of
a cowboy song. Howard Thorp said, "the song concerns a critter found
in one roundup and claimed by no one. Add was a dictionary on
earmarks and brands. However, he was puzzled on this one and he read
the tally of the brands: She's got O Block an' Lightnin' Rod, Nine
Forty-Six an' A Bar Eleven, Rafter Cross an' de double prod,
Terrapin an' Ninety-Seven; Half Circle A an' Three PZ; BWL, Bar xvv, Bar N
Cross an' ALC. Since none of the cow punchers claimed the critter, Add
said, "I'll just add my own band, cause one more brand or less won't
do no harm".
Mr. Add told a friend that he was going to get married on Christmas Day
and the news spread to all of the ranchers. They all knew and liked
Add. The ranchers and all of their wives decided to send presents,
and in their practicality, all decided on the same gift. When Mr. Add and
his bride rode on their wedding day to the Roswell Freight Depot, they
found 19 cook stoves waiting for them.