Show fra ha AS ta 9 12 VIK O 0 f JJ T H en 10 BY A reminiscence OF AN FRANCIS EARLY BORDER experience RENO OF A NOTED DETECTIVE 11 L 1 A C K I 1 ll 11 ilk IL k ak IT coper 1909 by W G chapman copyright in great britain editor s note francis reno the author comes conies of a family of pi onders and fighters and Is related to maj reno of custer massacre fame 11 s earl er years were spent in the tur moll of frontier I 1 fe in arizona wl ere he was tor for some time deputy sher ff and later deputy united states marshal at tucson his ills efforts in enforcing the ch nese exalus on act on the mexican bor der have been highly commended by the 11 ashington authorities and zed by the High binders wl 0 placed a price of to on his head wh ch stands to day of late years he has held a highly re position ditl one of the largest bank protective associations in the un ted states and as superintendent of its se cret service has established estabi shed an enviable record of success in running down bank burglars these stories are confined to his earlier experiences in the west the scenes of which are laid in arizona and new mexico near the mexican border the last frontier wh ch until recent years was wild and lawless and where the cyp cal bad man of pioneer days made his last stand T WAS during a tempo tary sojourn in tal capital city of mexico that I 1 made the ac of jim clarkson or as he was better known to the inhabitants of both california and arizona black bart under the latter name for a period extending over four years this man the most devil may cars care rascal that ever sung out to a traveler t stand and deliver held up stage coaches plundered passengers and relieved the guards of the bullion in their care the products of the gold mines and set at def defiance lance all attempts on the part of the luthor author ties tc tr catch hi him at the time I 1 of the co r artry try around where B ack bart played I 1 is audacious w s settled and his ch chances nees ot 01 es cape from the posses that took the biall after him were as a matter of course much greater than they would be at the present day during the latter part of his ca reer while playing the game singh handed he robbed only the express messengers and took no chances with ane pas passengers engers his first b g venture in conjunction with his tl ree allies was executed in 1888 1886 and had fo for r its object the holding up of the stage running between angela angels camp cala cala veras county california and milton there were N ere five f ive passengers in the stage coach a huge solid affair lesem bling an immense box it rested on enormous leather straps that allowed it to swing with a diagonal mot on all five passengers were riding inside tor for it was a day in november and rather chilly military titles are fairly plentiful in the west and two of the inmates of the coach addressed each other as colonel and major of the remaining three one was a mine owner known to tame fame as cactus bill crosby a new england surgeon and a middle aged chicagoan the latter a keen faced business man who took an immense amount of interest in the glowing descriptions given by the burly crosby of the unlimited pos sibil aties of hidden wealth in the surround ing country on the coach was an express box said to contain 90 in bullion the product of the utica gold mine the largest in the state in a rack near the driver s feet hung two colt colts s re solvers and a winchester rifle the road was considered safe enough for no robbery had occurred there since the camp had been in existence still the stage company preferred to be on the alert and hence the weapons while fresh horses were being put to the coach the passengers alighted and stepped into the room that served as bar office and lounging apartment for sullivan s place was a hotel as well as a relay station there was but one beverage sold at sullivan s whisky though there hung upon the wall back of the rough bar an illuminated card betting forth in fly specked characters the superior merits of bund s jamaica g nger but as for the ginger there was none to be had nor were there any indications beyond dusty litho graphs nailed askew to the wooden partitions that soda water seltzer or extra dry champagne were procurable on demand therefore it was fortun ate that the systems of those gers who needed stimulation craved whisky only for that was positively all there was on the sticky bar stood a halt half dozen thick dirty glasses side by bide side with the long ed bottle half filled with an amber fluid and behind it stood proprietor sullivan himself smiling blandly under his thick red mustache at the assembled guests the passengers had not noticed at first in the dim light of the room the figure of a woman clad in deep black and nd wearing a heavy veil drawn over her face she sat in a dark corner ind seemed to shrink from observe lion tion but when prank frank clammons Sl ammons the driver entered after looking to his rattle tattle and had fortified his nerves with four fingers of the favorite cor dial sullivan took him aside and en caged min it tv conversation and mine host hosts s gestures then for the first time directed the attention of all to the woman the halt was necessarily short and the passengers were soon back in the coach the boises had been changed and all was ready for the start put but clammons Sl ammons lingered and when he at length appeared at the door seemed to be in no hurry he stood there sur bur beying the scene with a severely ariti cal eye in his mouth a cigar tipped up at such an angle that the glowing angle nearly touched the brim of his wide sombrero presently there appeared in the doorway the lady in black to whom clammons Sl ammons gallantly offered him arm and thus escorted to the coach surprise was depicted on each face when the coach door opened and clammons Sl ammons looking in remarked authoritatively sorry gents but I 1 shall have to trouble you here a a lady goin to milton and ashes she s goin ins de jump in marm and the young woman jumped with cemarka ble lightness and took the vacant seat in the forward corner colonel you 11 look after her said clammons Sl ammons at the door she s in my charge widow of thompson she Is him that was killed down to the blue moon mine last month but she don t savvy a word of english bein french you knowel thompson didn dian t ye colonel 9 yes I 1 knew him well enough but I 1 never knew that he had a widow growled the colonel III look after her in english the door slammed and the stage rolled ahead As the coach pulled out the clouds parted for an instant and a bright ray of sunlight lit up the interior ng full u on ae a apri veil of the new ar rival it r ade visible the outlines of her lace cd rd those who caught a g apse ol 01 ii il were convinced that the lady was handsome indeed cactus bill unable to repress his emotions leaned over to the doctor and voiced his admiration in a husky whisper to which the latter responded with an assenting nod of much vigor nowhere in the world is a lady more certain of respectful cons aeration de ration than in the wilder portions of the west she is invariably treated with chivalrous gallantry men hasten to do her horn hom age and are proud to be commanded by her still the presence of mrs thompson in the coach acted on the party as a little restraint which cac cae bill vainly endeavored to dispel A bad place to be held up along here remarked the major after an unusually long silence during which the stage had slowly pounded over a huge rock and then slid off with an unpleasant crunch I 1 should hate to fall into the hands of a road agent tor for I 1 have a little matter of twelve hun dred dollars about me which I 1 don t care to lose of course e re all friends here he added hastily there was a general assent and then it came out that each man was carrying various sums of money ranging from five hundred to tour four thousand dollars the last amount be ing the property of the colonel who described how he had concealed it in a package sewed in his clothing next to his body where it was quite inac ce sible to dishonest persons I 1 believe that it would take a pretty smart chap to find that he re marked complacently as he slapped his hand on the spot where the treas ure was concealed the truth of this statement was not to be denied and murmurs of admiration were heard at his shrewdness all this time in tact fact since leaving the relay station the mysterious mrs thompson had not moved or changed her position she still kept her veil down and in the slowly waning I 1 her black dress seemed to emphasize the shadows in the coach at length cactus B 11 having ered from his first rebuff touched the colonel on the arm colonel he said I 1 ive ve often heard as how you was strong on the foreign languages it must be sort of lonely for the lady there ridin alone with no one to say a blamed word to her why don t you try her with so methin civil in the french lingo it it s only to pa paa pas s the time of day civil like 9 she must think we re a fine bunch of mummies the colonel colonels s bronzed features took on a deeper shade of red and he coughed in an embarrassed manner when I 1 was in the army he respond ed I 1 could talk trench with anyone but I 1 in afraid that 1 I ve grown a beetle out of practice well have a whirl at it anyway persisted crosby there won t be no harm done even it if you can t make her savvy thus urged the colonel bent tor for ward and stammered a few words which might or might not have been u french at all events their sense did not seem to appeal to the fair ua known who made no reply cachu 4 bill grinned triumphantly at the dis dia comfit ed colonel and the latar frowned indignantly I 1 told you that I 1 was a trifle rusty in my french he gald said haughtily living among the ignorant set of asses that ate this part of the country its a wonder that I 1 kemem bei any of it at all but I 1 bet if I 1 had the advantage of this lady s society to myself for a short while I 1 id d manage to make her understand turning to the lady again be he smiled graciously and resorted to the lin ian guage of signs while cactus bill watched him with a cynical leer much to the surprise of the mine 0 aner however the lady appeared impressed by the warriors arriol s eloquent gestures nodded with vivacity and drawing a silver case from her pocket took a cigarette which after raising her veil a little she placed be tween her lips there was a general gasp of amazement but the colonel with that savoir vivre which had al ways distinguished him and made him so popular with the fair sex quickly recovered himself and gal bantly offered the lady a light which she graciously accepted then mur murs aurs of admiration were heard and cactus bill audibly expressed his opinion that the dame was sure L winner any way you liked to take her what I 1 admire in a beautiful worn wom an remarked the gratified colonel is the ability she possesses to adapt herself to circumstances as illus grated in the present case we are all friends here of course so we can be comfortable but I 1 dont don t mind saying that I 1 shall be glad to reach milton that little matter of four thousand dollars I 1 have sewed into my my in fact my shirt the lady can t under stand english gentlemen so I 1 may be pardoned for mentioning the garment is a tax on my mind and I 1 want to get it ot off outside the dusk of a winter s even ing was slowly deepening into dark ness high up on the slope that rose on our right stood a solitary pine tree that had pushed its way through the rocks and now stood by night and day keeping watch and ward over the valley the sun long since hidden to the occupants of the stage below shot a ray as a farewell message and for an instant the tree was ablaze then the light died out quickly and the were in semi darkness again the road wound its way around the face of a high cliff on one side towered a wall of rock sheer three hundred feet on ou the other sunk an chasm clammons Sl ammons sat on the box his two lamps lit and his tongue playing a rapid accompaniment to his whip in side the small reflector at the end of the coach only served to make the night without v seem darker than it was silently the passengers sat smoking the ends of their cigars alternately glowing and dimming in the dingy air an unusual volley of oaths from the box the crack of a revolver and then the stopping of the stage with a lurch started them from their quiet then a shout from clammons Sl ammons as he spoke to his cattle and a voice stern and determined detel mined rang from the rocks above come none 0 that make a straight strai lit haul for it d n you throw off at that box lively now put up your hands and get down everyone of you come out of that sadly the passengers obeyed A pair of six shooters held in the hands of a stalwart man whose face was partially concealed by a black mask hastened their descent and in another moment they were ranged in line with hande hands raised ablott a meek unhappy cowed group at one end of the line stood P p ammons swearing savagely at his hard luck at the other stood the colonel cool i impassive dignified con aident in the security of his concealed treasure the last to descend v as the widow but a widow no longer for out of the coach there sprang an ac tive yo ng fellon smooth shaven dark of slender but sinewy build dressed in the conventional garb of the western rider and carrying in his hand a nickel plated six shooter and this was mrs thompson who did not speak english the former mrs thompson pro ceedee to search the pockets of the luckless travelers and relieve them of their valuables his associate keeping guard meantime down the line he went doing his work quickly but care fully but before he was done the other began to grow impatient hurry up bart he said ain t you most were late all done but this one said bart the quondam widow as he halted be tore fore the colonel he s got four thou sand dollars sewed seved inside his shirt I 1 guess III have to pretty near rip the old buck o 0 open to get at it saying which he drew his knife and with vv ith a qu ck movement sa s1 sipped aped the point through the colonels clothing cut it wide open and withdrew the precious package I 1 am sorry to have inconvenienced you gentlemen said the highway man bowing politely but I 1 shan t de tain you much longer as I 1 know you are anxious to reach milton I 1 trust this old gentleman pointing to the rent in the colonel colonels s clothing wont won t take cold he must be careful gallant men are scarce nowadays now you will all kindly stand as you are until I 1 give the word there are a few friends of mine watching you from those rocks and I 1 really wouldn t move it if I 1 was you their guns have all hair triggers and are very liable to go off suddenly you wont won t move will youa the passengers would not wild horses could not have dragged them from that spot for up in the rocks they fancied they saw two shining barrels covering them and they were genuinely anxious to remain quiet the two road agents vanished in the dusk and an instant later a clear voice rang out in tones of stern corn com mand into the coach now and get away all of you the passengers obeyed with wonder tul ful promptitude outside they could hear clammons Sl ammons swearing strange and forcible oaths at himself the company the horses coach and road agents inside not a word was spoken until cactus bill stooping down lifted into view the black skirt and veil that the former widow had worn A weary smile lit up his features and he re marked plaintively boys the next time I 1 try to do the polite to any manner of female I 1 hopes my best friend shoots me plum through the head the colonel gazing upon the tat expanse of his shirtfront shirt front gave utterance to a mournful assent which was re echoed by his dejected compan ions in misfortune it lt was in 1890 that luck turned for the first time against this outlaw |