The ranchero of Sudcalifornia has its origins in the 18th century. However, it was not until the end of the 20th century that his figure was consolidated. Exploring the values, lifestyle, identity, and culture is part of the anecdotes that are woven around different legends.
During the first decades of the last century, there were rumours of a peculiar story about a rancher who lived near the Mission San Francisco Javier de Viaggé-Biaundo.
A certain Juan was presumed to be a mature and skilled muleteer with animals, owner of a large herd of cattle. His skills in handling beasts were well known. Some people believed that he was a devil. It was also said that he had made a pact with Lucifer himself to obtain his cattle-handling skills. It was also rumoured that the pact had a time limit and that, when it ended, the enemy himself would come looking for him. And so it was!
One morning, a large, robust, black bull appeared among the cows in the corral. The neighbours, seeing such a species, knocked on the door of the aforementioned.
Seeing that the man was not responding to his neighbours’ calls, they entered his house and found him lying in bed. They warned him about an animal that had entered his property and advised him to hunt it and put it in another pen. However, he chose to ignore the advice of his neighbours.
According to legend, the black bull was believed to be the incarnation of the devil, and on that day, he sought out the rancher to collect the debt. That’s why he was reluctant to get out of bed.
But as he prepared to stand up on the mattress to change his clothes and walk to the corral where the beast was, a gust of wind blew over the cows, making the rancher disappear.
He was never heard from again, nor was the huge black bull.
