The crime scene was horrific -- 24 dead -- and the sheriff's commander called out last Saturday to lead the investigation said that during his 18 years in the business he's never seen such carnage.
Now city folks -- people who like their beef neatly wrapped and packaged or served on a sizzling plate at an upscale restaurant -- may consider the victims to be "just cows."
But that's like coming upon a crash and calling a Ferrari "just a car."
What happened in an isolated area about 24 miles north of Klamath Falls last weekend offers a glimpse into the obscure world of high-end cattle ranching involving a special breed of cow called Salers, considered nature's first wild cow. Images of Salers have been discovered painted on cave walls dating back more than 7,000 years in France.
It's also the first round in what will be a battle between a stubborn, old-time cattle rancher who uses a battered hat to fight sunburn and the suit-and-tie crowd working in air-conditioned offices at Amtrak and the mighty Union Pacific Railroad.
An investigation into how the cattle got onto the track is underway. Rancher Bruce Topham believes the cows left their grazing area through a fence that fell over.
"This is a big loss," grumbled 69-year-old Bruce Topham. "Damn right."
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