The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1881-05-26
Across The Plains.

st. Joseph tMo.) News. --+-
In 1859 st. Joseph was the western
terminus of railroad communication
Beyond the stage coach, the saddle
horse and the OK trains were the only
means of commerce and communication
with the Rocky Mountains and the
Pacific Slope. In the winter of 1860
there was a Wall street lobby at Wash
ington trying to get $4, 600, 900 for car
| rying the mail overland one year be-
tween New York and San Francisco.
The propositionwasextrem ''cheeky," :"
and William II. Russell, backed bv
Secretary of War Floyd, resolved to
give the lobby cold shower bath. He
therefore offered to bet 100000 that
he could put on mail line from Sac
ramento to st. Joseph that should make
the distance-1, $50 miles-in ten days.
The bet was taken and the Sth of April
fixed upon rs the day for starting. Mr..
| Russell told his partner and general
manager of business upon the plains,
! Mr.. A. b. Miller, what he had done,
] and asked if he could perform the feat.
i Mr., Miller replied: '.Yes, sir, l will do
it by pony express" To accomplish
this Mr.. Miller purchased 800 of the
fleetest horses he could find in the West
and employed 125 men. Eighty of
those men were To be post riders.
These he selected with reference to
their light weight and their known
daring and courage. 1t was very es-
sential that some parts of the route
should be run at the rate of twenty
miles an hour. The horses were sta
toned from ten to twenty miles apart,
and each rider would be required 10
ride sixty miles. For the change of
l., MI h, 81, ..f
two minutes were allowed. Where
there were no stage stations at proper,
distances tents sufficient to hold one
man and two horses were provided.
Indians would sometimes give chase,
but their cayuse ponies made but sorry
show in their stern chase after Miller's
thoroughbreds, many of which could
make single mile in a minute and
fifty seconds.
Arrangements being completed n sig
nal gun on the steamer mt Sacramento
proclaimed the meridian of April 8,
1860, the hour for starting, when Bor-
der Ruilian, Mr.. Miller's private saddle
horse, with Billy Baker in the saddle,
bounded away toward the foothills of
the Sierra Nevadas, and made his ride
of twenty miles in forty-nine minutes.
The SHOWS We're deep in the mountains,
and one rider was lost for several hours
in snow storm; and after the Salt
Lake Valley was reached additional
speed became necessary to reach st.
Joseph on time. From here on all
went well until the Platte was to be
crossed at Julesburg. The river was
up and running rapidly, but the rider
plunged his horse into the flood, only,
however, TO mire in the quicksand and
1,.0tvr Tho l,I Oh,
ing the shore, with mailbag in hand, |
and travelled ten miles on foot to reach |
the next relay. johnny Fry, a popular |
rider of his day, was to make the finish. |
He had sixty miles to ride, with six |
horses to do it. When the last courier
arrived Mt the sixty-mile post, out from
st. Joseph, he was one hour behind |
time, heavy rain had set in and the
roads were slippery. Two hundred |
thousand dollars might turn upon
single minute. Fry had just three hours
and thirty minutes in which to win.
This was the finish of the longest race,
for the largest stakes, ever run in |
America. When the time for his arrival /
was nearly up, at least five thousand
people stood upon the river bank, with
eyes turned toward the woods from
which the horse and its rider should
emerge into the open country in the
rear of Elwood, one mile from the finish.
Tick, tick, went thousands of watches!
The time was nearly up! But seven
minutes remained! Hark! shout goes
up from the assembled multitude. s.He
come! he comesp' The noble little
mare, Sylph, the daughter of Little
Arthur, darts like an arrow from tho
DOW and makes the run of the last mile
IN one minute and fifty seconds, land
ng upon the ferryboat with five minutes
Ind fraction TO spare.