The Nevada journal. [volume] (Nevada City, Calif.) 1851-18??, 1857-12-04
How to take a Robbery.

ludt some nay nave nceu 10 learn now
to take them philosophcally. Bayard
Taylor, in his Ell Dorado, recounts his
own experiencein crossing Mexico which
we give. BY the way, Edwin Bell, one
of the former editors of the Sacramento
Union, gives an account in a late num-
Der of that paper of an attempt to rob
himself, Col. Inge and Others, in nearly
the same locality, For coolness Tav-
Tor cannot be beat. Hetells his adven-
ture thus .
at was about ten in the forenoon
when | left Amatitlan. The road enter
ed on lonely range of hills. the pedes-
tai of an ahrHbt spur standing out from
the side of the volcano. The soil was
covered with stunted shrubs ard growth
of long yellow grass. [ could see the
way for halfa league before and behind;
there was no one in sight-not even a
boy -arriero, with his two or three DON
keys. | rode leisurely along, looking
down into deep ravine on my right
and thinking to myself; that is an ex-
cellent place for robbers to lie in wait !;
think | had better load my pistol
which | had fired off Just before reach
ing Tequila. Scarcely had this thought
passed through my mind, when a little
bush beside the road seemed to rise up :;
| turned suddenly, and, in breath, the
two barrels of a musket were before me
so near and surely aimed. that | could
almost see the bullets at the bottom
The weaT on was held by ferocious look
ing native, dressed in a pink calico shirt
and white pantaloons on the other side
of me stood a second, covering me with
another double barrelled musket, and a
little in the rear appeared Il third.
had walked like an uususpecting mouse,
into the very teeth Of the trap laid for
me.
Down with your pistols" cried the
first, in a hurried whisper. So silently
and suddenly had all this taken place,
that | sat still moment, hardly realiz-
ing my situation. Down with your pis-
tolls and dismount = was repeated and
this time the barrels came little nearer
my breast Thus solicited, threw down
my single pistol-the more readily be-
cause it was harmless-and cot off my
horse. Having secured the pistol, the
robbers went to the ear. never for mo-
ment losing their aim. They then or
dered me to lead my horse off the road,
by a direction which they pointed out
We went down the side of the ravine for
about quarter Of mile to patch Of
bushes and tall grass, out Of view from
the road, where they halted, one Of them
returning, apparently to keep watch
The others, deliberately lcvcling their
pieces at me, commanded me to lie down
on my face-Ia 52ca q tierra p | can
not say that | felt alarmcd ii had al
ways been part Of my belief that the
shadow of Death falls before him-thaj
the man doomed to die by violence feels
the chill before the blow has been struck.
As | never felt more positively alive
than at that moment, | judged my time
had not yet come. | pulled OIL my coat
and vest, at their command, and threw
them on the grass, saying: 'T1ke what
You want, but don't detain me long,
The fellow in pink calico shit, who
appeared to have some authority over
the other two, picked up my coat, and
one after the other, turned all the peck
cts inside out | felt a secret saiisfac-
ton at his blank look when lie opened
my purse and poured the few dollars ii
contained into a pouch he carried in his
belt. How is it, said he, that you
have no more moneyF 4 don't own
much | answered, but there is quite
enough for you l had, in fact barely
sufficient in coin for a ride to Mexico,
the most of my funds having been in
vested in draft oil that city. | believe
! did not lose more than twenty-five dol
lars by this attack. AT least l said to
the robbers, you'll not take the papers
among which was my draft. No.,
he replied, no me raien aada.' (They
are worth nothing to me-
Having searched my coat, he took
a hunting knife which carried, (belong-
ing, however, to Lieut. Bcale,) EXAMINE
ed the blaze and point, placed his piece
against a bush behind him and came up
to me, saying, as he held the knife above
| my nead: NOW put your AdHus DGhlhQ
| you, and don't move, or shall strike
| The other then laid down his musket,
and advanced to bind me. They were
evidently adopts in the art; all their
movements were SO carefully timed, that
any resistance would have been against
dangerous odds. | did not consider my
loss sufficient to justify any desperate
rlsk, and did as they commanded. With
the end of my horses lariat, they bound
my wrists firmly together, and having
me thus secure, sat down to finish their
inspection more leisurcly. Ny feelings
during this proceeding were oddly hete-
rogeneous-at one moment burning with
rage aud shame at having neglected the
proper means of defence, and the next,
ready to burst into laugh at the deci-
ded novelty of my situation. Nv blan-
ket having been spread on the grass,
everything was emptied into it. The
robbers had an eye for the curious and
incomprehensible, as well as the useful.
!