The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1879-08-15
BORDER ROMANCE.
THE LIFE AND DEATITOF AN OLD FROM
TIERSMAN-A MAN WHO MIGHT
HAVE BEEN \ HERO.

\ correspondent of the Boston Herald
writes as follows from Denver, Col: Il
read in the Denver Tribune, the other
morning, the announcement of the kill
ing of YardmaSter Jack Finehart. of the
Denver and Rio Grand Railroad. Fine
hart had held his appointment only three
days, having received it from the Atchi-
son, Topeka and Santa Fe railroad, on
the occasion of the transfer of the Den
yer and Rio Grande, in accordance with
the order of the federal court. The
paragraph startled me exceedingly.
Jack Finehart's s was a figure familiar in
certain circles of society all over this
Western country. In most of the States
and territories his deeds have made him
almost an outlaw Jim Currie, who
shot Porter, the actor. in Texas, drew
his first pistol under the tutorship of
Finehart. Jack Finehart has left trail
easy to follow him by wherever he has
been. lie was no vulgar ruffian. He
was as nearly the ideal of a frontier
character as | have ever heard of one
mans becoming. Imagine a man six
feet tall or over, with not an ounce of
SuperfluOuS flesh upon him. possessed of
a handsome. determined face, stern as
the cOuntenance of justice a man whose
immense strength is hidden in the finish
of his proportions. He walked with
graceful military erectneSS and saluted
his acquaintances with great courtesy.
His large mOustache and broad white
hat set him oft to peculiar advantage.
As any one who might haveseen Buffalo
Bill III his wild days would have set him
down as an uncommon man, SO any one
meeting Jack Fmehart would have won
dered what sort of a record the man had.
Jack is a Texan by birth and bringing
up a Texan in his instincts; ; typical
Texan in his manners a Texan in his
dOingS a Texan in his method of
carrying his revolver fully cooked and
hanging from Il belt behind) a Texan
in his record thorough Texan son
Of-a-gun. The earliest days of the
mans life were probably the most ex-
citing. Blood was spilled as freely as
water twenty years agOall over the West.
Deeds that history shudders to relate
were on the town annals of every ham,
let The frightful moral abandon of
border life in Texas now is scarcely
worthy of notice in comparison with the
life of Il score of years ago, when Jack
Finehart was a lad. lie had fine field
to study in, and he was well bred. y
man started his cemetery before crossing
the Threshold of manhood and before
the down had left his cheek murder was
no novelty to him. Finehart was often
a leader of desperate people, and death
came to him a hundred times hovered
about him; fiirted with him; all but
took him, and then departed. | am
telling the story of this mans life to
show you an inside picture of border
man. a little redeemed from the despera-
do. in all his moods. He did not rob
railroad trains, coaches, horSemen, foot
travellers, nor anybody else, with his
bands, but ne quarreled, and drank, and
killed. and lived along the frontier towns.
Finally the war broke out. He had by
this time acquired that perfect fearless
ness and indifference to death that i'm
some men accustomed to facing it be-
comes an absolute passion. urging them
madly on to wherever a prospect of
death exists. Finehart selected for his
posts in the war the most foolhardv.
dangerous and death-tempting there
were to be Lad. He ran powder trains
made journeys of exploration to see if
the railroads had heen torn up, at the
rate of 40 miles an hour he entered the
Union camps at all points, led forlorn
hopes, was always in front in a Slirmish
secuted and Spied until the business
palled on him, and he mixed himself np
in railroad affairs until no undertaking
/ was too hazardous. Once he started to
/ cross a river over which the bridge tot
tered and appeared about to fall. having
been burned by the Union troops Every
body left the engine. and Jack plung,
over the bridge alone. The bridge went
down. but Finehart jumped and swan
ashore. They were escaping from a
4 Union neighborhOOd. and were under
pursuit Finehart's companions were
captured. On one occasion there was
a great bully in the army. and his PROV
ess was not limited in any direction.
lie had frequently killed his man in
fact he enjoyed killing his man it was
a very appetiZing thing to do. In those
DAYS in Texas (he was a Texan) you
could serve your time at this trade with
out anv, annoyance from the Justice OF
the peace. Yes, he had beautiful
cemetery in Texas. and was going bach
presently to continue the work of pop
ulating it. One day Jack Finehart. who
watched his colleague in the graveyard
business a good deal. happened to be il
a saloon with him. The stranger had
hardly ceased relating some wonderful
adventures, when Jack drew an enOr
nous revolver, cooked it, and laid it OF
the bar beside the man. The lattel
stared at the pistol and then at Jack
Fmehart filled a glass with whisky, and
retiring few steps, tasted it. Then IN
said facing the stranger:
''They call this good whisky. Smei
of it, and give me your opinion. " Ant
he dashed the tumbleTful into the stran
gers face.
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