The Shasta courier., 1871-06-17
SHASTA COURIER.
The OI.D- INE PONY EXP ESs Of,
TilE GKHAi PA.a.NS.
Prom Mark Twain's Forthcoming Book.

Prom Mark Twain's Forthcoming Book.
However, in a little viii e, all inter. Ut was
taken up in stretchi' our necks and
watching for the "pony ridel"-the feet
messenger who sped across the Continent
from st. Joe to Sacramento, carrying
letters nineteen hundred mile. in eight
days. Think of that for perishable horse
and human flesh and blood to do. The
pony rider was usually little bit of a
MAJ brim full Of spirit and endurance.
No matter what time of day or night his
watch clme on, and no matter whether it
WIS Winter or Summer, raining. showing.
hailing, or slee;ing. or whethe. his beat
was level straight road or crazy trail
tvr mountain crags and precipic,s, or
whether it led through peaceful regions or
regions that swarned with hostile Indians,
he must be always ready to leap int, the
saddle and lie off like the wind. There
was no idling ime for pony rider On duty.
He rode forty miles without stopping,
by daylight, moonlight. starlight. or
throught the blackncss OF darkness, just as
it happened. He rode speudid horse,
that was born for a racer and fed and
lodged Ikea gem leman. kept him atshis
utmost speed for ten miles, and then. as
he came crashing up to the station, where
stood two men holding fresh, impatient
steed, the transfer of rider aud mail bag
was made in the twinklng of an eye, and
away flew the eager pa r, and re out Of
ght before the spectators could get hardly
the ghost of look Both rider and
horse went flying light" The riders
dre>s was thin and fitted close he wore
"roundabIut" aud skull cip," and tuck.
ed his pantaloons into his boot-top like
race rider He carried no arms-he car
ried nothing that was not absolutely reces
sary, for even his postage on his literary
freie ebt was worth two dollars an ounce
He got but little frivolous correspondence
to carry; bis bag had business letters in
it mostly. His horse was stripped of all
unnecessary weight too. He wore little
wafer of a racing saddle, and no visible
blanket. He wore light shoes, or none at
all The little fiat mail pockets, strapped
under the riders thighs. woul1 each hold
about the bulk of IA chid's pr mer They
held many and many an important busI-
ness chapter and newspaper letter. But
these we're on paper as airy and THU as
gold leaf near.y, and lhus bulk and wei ght
were ecouomz,d. The stage coach travel
ed about a hundred to IL hundred and
twenty-five miles day (twen'y four hours !:
the pouy-rider ab,ut two hundred and fifty.
There were about eighty pony riders in
saddle all the time, night and day, stretch
ing in long, scattering procession from
Missouri to California-forty flying cast
ward and forty toward the west, and among
them, making Fur hundred gallant hors, S
earning a stirring livelihood, aud see
deal of scenery eve. y single day in the
year.
We had had consuming desire from
the beginning to see pony rider, but
somehow or other that passed u and all
that met US managed to streak BY rs in
the night, and 81 We heard ON, d VIII z
aud hail, and the swift phantom of the
desert was gone before we c1uld get our
heads out of the wind IS. But now We
were expecting one along every moment
and would see him in broad daylight
Presently the driver exclainls:
"lere he comes:
Every neck is stretched further. and
every eye strained wider Away across
the endless dead level Of the prairie "a black
speck against the sky, aud it is plain th..t
it moves. Well should think so! In "a
second or two it becomes horse aud rider,
rising and falling-sFeeping toward US
nearer and nearer-growIng more and more
sharply de6ned-Iearer and nearer, and
the futter of the hoofs comes family to the
ear-another instant whoop and hurrah
from our upper deck, a wave of the riders
hand, but no reply, and man and horse
burst past our excited faces, and 90 wing
ingaway like belated fragment of storm !.
So sudden is it all. aud so Ike a fash
Of unreal fancy, that, but for the fake of
white foam left quivering and peri. h ng
on m Ill sack, after the vision has dlsap-
peared, We mi ght have doubted wheth We
had seen any actual horse and man at all,
may be.