The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1876-05-11

And let us keep this truth in view
Where'er our steps may lead; l.-.
man may be millionaire
| And yet he poor indeed ''--
ELACK HILLS SKETCHES.
The Eirst Hanging Episode Under the Aus
.ifI pieces of Judge Lynch. IS ll s
/ usiffgv Kansas City Times. -.tHtJ
There were four of us seated togeth
er around cheerful pitch-pine fire
upon the side OF grassy knoll among
the foothills, about forty miles, iron
Cnstar. One of the party was :
mountaineer; the rest were memberi
of a large, well-armed train of Black
Killers, then toiling and working its
way through a wilderness of sage.
brush, endeavoring to reach the trail
our party had selected a spot for a
/ rest, where the wind or the sun, or
perhaps both, had cleared away the
snow from about u huge pine-knot, al
most petrified by age. The grass, too,
was quite luXuriant, and offered an in
ducement for us to halt and rest until
the train came up. The fire lighted
and the knot in a blaze, we brought
forth our pipes to smoke and watch
the misty curtain rise. Twas a glori-
Gus scene on that crisp frosty morn
ing, and the man who died there that
Il ct hov al - L.:
magnificent death chamber. Nature
seems to have lavished unlimited
wealth of beauty upon the Black Hills,
and fate seems to have led Dick Bur-
nett to the most beautiful spot in the
Hills in which to die. While we were
calmly smoking around the fire, watch
ing the misty canopy rise like a feath-
cry veil from the valley beneath us;
while we silently admired the magni-
ficent background of glistening snow
and bright green pines, which III the
morning sun appeared more beautiful
than ever before; while we were thus
quietly admiring the beautiful. blood
red iron-tinctured valley below us,
now plainly visible beneath the slow
ly rising curtain of mist, admiring the
winding creek i'm its center, which,
with its broad fringe of orange. color
ell kinnikinlc yellow, appeared Ii Ike
hinge yellow snake in basin OF blood,
Il man rode suddenly upon us.
Each sprang to his feet, rifle in hand.
The stranger turned his horse away
in alarm and rode quickly away. He
was white man, and we conld not
and had no reason to halt him. He
rode out to the side of the road and
dismeunted. Then he proceeded to
and to write upon some paper,
which he placed in his bosom, and af-
ter some hesitation led his horse to-
ward our surprised party and halted
about thirty PAGES distant, rifle and
pistol in hand.
"Hallo there!"
"Hallo yoarselfl"
SIS this the Custar road ?v
"Don't know I've been lost all
night. Who are you ~
.C"Pilgrims from Cheyenne. Been
lost on 'Jenney's trail two days"
Then the lonely stranger rode up
and stood restlessly awaiting interro-
CATION. lie said he had left Custar
two days before that he was drunk
when he left, and did not know what
he had done or how he had got lost.
He received a lot of letters from our
party, and soon afterward bade us
adieu. He said he was going to the
States, and we babe him look out for
his scalp, and said good-by. Poor fell
low unfortunate drunk 1t cost him
his life. 1t was late in the afternoon
when we met him again. We were
in dry camp, Il camp in which snow
must be melted for water for man and
beast. The boys were busy at work
shoveling snow into camp kettles and
melting it for the horses. S Supper was
over, and the guards were out. A |
shot awoke the reverberatiag echoes
of the hills, and minute afterw ard |
every man of the fifty-tive "pilgrims"
were prepared for duty. A party of
digilantes rode into camp; they had |
como upon the guards suddenly, and
had been fired upon. They were
h-looking men, but all quite civil. |
They inquired for a lawyer. We had
one, and he came forward. They ask
ed for a Judge; we had none, so they
elected one. They asked for preach
er, but found none. a clerk was found |
in the reporter. They had brought
back the strange man of the morning.
He was prisoner, and seemed to rea-
lie his position. lie called the re-
porter, and handed him back his mine |
and requested him to write
few shor; letters for him. This was /
done, and he signed them while Court |
was being held-the Judge seated on
a pile of harness, the jury on wagon |
tongue.
"Dick Barnett!" shouted one of
those strange, cruel men. Dick turn
ed TO the reporter and, handing him
his papers and two or three pictures,