Characters

: City Dude and any number of cowboys. Cowboys wear chaps and neckerchiefs

Props:

Coil of Rope, branding iron (made from clothes hanger), corral fence (Fence can be painted on big pieces of cardboard and propped against step stools)

Setting:

Back in time a ways at a corral. Cowboys are sitting on or leaning on fence. City Dude enters looking at everything with great interest.

City Dude:

 This is my first trip to this marvelous west of yours. I do find everything so unusual. I'm so interested in everything. Do you suppose you fellows could explain a few things to me?

1st Cowboy:

What did you want to know?

City Dude:

What do you keep inside this fence?

2nd Cowboy:

Sometimes we keep steers and sometimes broncos.

City Dude:

(pointing to the branding iron) What do you do with this metal contraption?

3rd Cowboy:

That's for brandin' 'em so everybody'll know who they belong to.

City Dude:

Why do you wear those funny pants?

4th Cowboy:

Those aren't our pants! They're chaps! We wear them over our pants when we're ridin' the range to keep the rough bushes and cactus from scratchin' us up.

City Dude:

Why do you wear your handkerchief around you necks?

5th Cowboy:

That's what we call a neckerchief. In a dust storm or when we're movin' the herds, we put it up over our nose and mouth to help keep the dust out. (demonstrates)

City Dude:

What do you use that coil of rope for?

1st Cowboy:

That's what we use to catch steers and broncos.

City Dude:

That's all very interesting. I was just wondering about one more thing.  What kind of bait do you use? (Cowboys look at each other shaking their heads and roll with laughter.)