Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1880-06-19

I through the uFlttSs
| When / got into the sleigh
again, / began to feel for the mail
! bag with my feet. I found il
where had left It,; but when /
attempted to withdraw my foot ]
discovered 1t had become fast ia
something's thought it was the
buffalo, and tried TO Eick it clear ;
but the more / kicked the more
closely 1t held / reached down
my hand, and after feel.ng about
few moments, / founu that my
foot was in the mail bag. ] felt
again, and found my hand in
among the packages of letters and
| papers. l ran my fingers over the
edges of the opening, and became
assured that tie stort leather had
been cut with k life
/ Here was q discovery. / began
to wish had taken a little more
forethought before leaving Dam
bury; but as I knew making such
wishes was OILY waste of time,
/ quickly gave it'up, and began. to
consider what / had better do un-
der existing circumstances. /
wasn't long in making up my mind
upon a few essential points. First,
the man behin1 me was q villain /;
second, he had cut open the mail
bag and robJed 1t of some valua-
bic maiter-he must have known
the money letters by their size and
shape third, he meant to leave
the stage on first opportunity and
fourlhiy, he was prepared 70 shoot
1 me If l attempted to arrest or de-
tain him.
revolved these thingsin my
mind, and pretty soon Thought of
a course to pursue. / knew that
to get my hands safely upon the
rascal / must take him wholly
unawares, and this / could not do
while he was behind nae, for his
eyes were upon me all the time
so / mus: resort to stratagem. On
| ~ little distance ahead was
house, and an old farmer ns med
Lougee lived there; and directly
before it a huge snow bank
stretched across the road, through
which a tract had been cleared
| with shOvels. 8
AS we approached the cot, saw
| a light in the front room, as felt
confident 1 should, for the old
man generally sat up until the
stage went by. / drove on, and
| when nearly opposite tle dwell
ing, stood up, as 1 had frequently
done when approaching difficult
places. / saw the snow bank
ahead, and could distinguish the
deep cut which had been shOveled
through it. / urged my horses to
a good speed, and when near the
bank forced them into it. One of
the runners mounted the edge of
the bank, after which the other
ran into the cut, thus throwing
the sleigh over about as quick as
though lightning had struck 1t.
My passenger had not calculated
on any such movement.and wasn't
prepared for it.; but 1 had cal
culated, and was prepared. He
rolled out into the deep snow
with a heavy buffalo robe
about him.. while ] alighted
directedly on top of him.
punched his head into the snow,
and sung out for old Lougee. /
din not have to call a second time,
for the farmer had come to the
window to see me pass, and as
soon as he saw my sleigh over
turned. he had lighted his lam
| tern and hurried out.
"What's to pay 2" asked the old
| man, as he came up.
LEAD the horses into the track,
and then come here,' / said.
AS spoke ] partially loosened
my hold upon the villains throat,
and he drew a pistol from his boz
som but saw it in season and
jammed his head into the snow
again, and got it away from him.
BY this time Lougee had led the
horses out and came back, and /
explained the matter to him in as
few words as possible.
We hauled the rascal out into
the road, and, upon examination,
we found about twenty packages
of letters which he had stolen
from the mailbag and slowed
away in his pockets. ~
/ He swore, threatened and pray
ed, but we paid no attention to
his barney. b
Lougee got some stout cord. and
when we had securely bound the
villain we tumbled him into the
pung. / asked the old man if he
would accompany me to Littleton,
and he said "Of course.n
So he got bis overcoat and muf-
fer, and ere long we started on.
/ reached the end of my route
/ with nv mail all aafn fhouph moi