River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-01-06

not seen for years, but whose identity
flashed upon him almost instantly.
Jesse confessed to having recognized
the gentleman as n native of his former
home, and mad employed his abrupt
approach nm inquiry simply rs a ruse
to attract his attention and obtain
recognition Jesse immediately in
quired, With visible emotion, after the
Welf,{re OF his old mother, Mrs. Sam
uels, FOR whose happiness and comfort
his soliciiudo has gained for him the
admiration and sympathy of hundreds
of noble hearts throughout the west,
and ia / native county his name has
almost become a synonym for tilial af-
fection. His mother, it will be remem-
hered, lost her arm at the time of the
raid ON her house hv the "kansas Jay
hawkers. in OSceola. Kan. In recall
ing this terrible misfortune to his moth
er, jesse was affected to tears, and in
dulgcd in some threats against the
perpetrators Of the outrage. which
coming from man of his known de
termination, were not without certain
amount Of terror He said he had
come to this country with the hope of
escaping detection by the authorities.
and Of being able to gain an honest sub
sistenre aud competence for his moth
er in her Old age.
Ii has been IN open secret in Lead
Vile for the past two or three months
that the James boys and two or three
more of the gang have been mining
in the vicinity Of Leadville, and have
visited tlUs city numbers of times for
supplies, etc A number of detectives
have visited Leadville ON information
furnished them of the presence of Jesse
James, during the past six months, but
somehow have, without exception, left
without attempting to effect the cap
ture If any of the gang. The writer
of this article had the good fortune of
making the acquaintance of Jesse
James and some of his gang" L.
Charles Loves beer-cclar, in the early
part of llst June, where a pleasant
evening was passed in cornwall pleas
ures and where the reporter gained
considerable information concerning
the James boys, their exploits and bits
of inside history regarding the gang"
and It's government, which has been of
immense service to him III his duties
of dishing up news for the public, The
party was seated in a prominent posi-
ton AT the head of the hall III plain
view of every occupant of the room,
but ii is safe to say that not one of the
hundreds IF the people who passed il
and ont Of the hail that evening recog-
ni1ed in that party one of the most re-
markable men of the times.
! Il l.. I.
three other men, who have been asso-
ciated with him in many Of his ad-
ventures were working on a prospect
lode on tie other side of the Arkansas
valley. in the vicinity Of Soda Springs,
but it is only Just to state, for the bene-
fit of the horde Of ambitious detectives
in Leadvill", that they left this imme-
diate part of the country some time
since.
The reporter has been approached
numbers Of times 10y detectives mostly
foreigul on the Whereabouts IF Jesse
James or any Of his gang but Lav-
ingobtained his information concerning
them IN manner to compromise his
secret, and not being DESTROYS Of as
sisting in the capture of men of whose
guilt he knew nothing, but much of
the prejudice existing against them,
always refused to impart any of the
information IN his possession concern
ing their whereabouts.
There Is one thing in connection with
this subject which is pertinent at this
time, and that is the great sympathy
and interest existing in the minds of
most Of the people of every class and
condition in Missouri and Kansas to-
ward the James boys Although this
seems remar Fable to people living in
other sections Of the country, who are
unacQua'Htcd with the history of the
boys pI ev:ouS to the date when their
names became associated with stories
OF robbers, rapIne, and murder, but
there are many reasons and facts
known to tile people in thos9 'wo
states sufficient to warrant the enter
! tainment Of kindly feelings toward the
two boys, Frank and Jesse James
\ better idca of this feeling existing
among the people Of Missouri will be
had by quotlng a remark of promin-
ent gentleman Of Kansas city, who
said to a Democrat reporter the other
day. in the course Of a conversation on
the subject of the James boys: II
firmly believe that nine out of ten of
the old residents of Kansas city would
shield and protect the James boys in
an hour Of need, to the last extremity"
q