Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1884-03-31
THE STAGE COACH ROBBERS.

might have been mine inspectors in
the stage when it drew up at Burt
Hill to take another passenger.
"Houdy,' said the new passenger
as he crowded in.
AS he stood for moment in the
light of the station lamp, all saw
that his left eye was gone. He wore
no shade or patch to conceal the
loss, and those who gave him sec
ond look felt that the fire in his re-
naming eye was bright enough to
answer for two. Dark as it was in
the stage he seemed to have sssized
up" every man inside of a minute,
and seeming to de satisfied regarding
the crowd, he settled back in his seat,
and had no remarks to make.
By and by the army officer men,
toned something about road agents,
and directly the conversation became
interesting. Coaches had been stop
ped at various points on the line
within a week, and it was pretty gen.
orally believed that gang had de-
scended on the route and were still
ripe for businesss. The man with
one eye had nothing TO say, once or
twice he raised his head and that sin
gle eye blazed 10 the darkness like a
lone star, but not word escaped his
mouth. The captain had said what
he would do in case the coach was
halted, and this brought out the 9TH
ers. 1t was firmly decided to fight.
The passengers had money to fight
to fight for and weapons to fight
with.
The man with one eye said moth
ing. At such a time, and under such
circumstances there could be but one
interpretation of such conduct.
GA coward has no business travel
ing this route, >" said the captain in a
voice that every man could hear.
The stranger started up, and that
eye of his seemed to shower sparks
pf fire, but after a moment he fell
back again without having replied.
If he wasn't chicken hearted, why
did not he show his colors? If he
intended TO fight where were his
weapons? He had no Winchester,
and so far as any one had seen as he
entered the coach he was without re-
volvers. Everybody felt contempt
for man who calculated to hold up
his hands at the order, and permit
himself to be quietly despoiled.
''Pop? pop! halt"
The passengers were doing as the
salute of the road-agents reached
their ears. The coach was hszlft M
a way to tumble everybody toe Il
and legs and bodies still tanzIzl
when voice at the door
coach called out.
mo nonsense, now! You gentle
men climb right down here and up
with your hands The first man
who kicks on me will get a bullet
through his head!
We had agreed to fight The cap
tain had agreed to lead us. We
were listening for his yell of defiance
and the click Of his revolver when he
stepped down and out as humbly as
you please. The sutler had been
aching to chew up a dozen road
agents, and uow he was the second
man out. The surveyor intimated
that he never passed over the route
without killing at least three high
waymen, but this occasion was an
exception. In three minutes the five
of us were down and in line, with
hands up, and the road-agent had
said:
Straight matter of business First
one who drops his hands won't know
what hurt him %
Where was the man with one eye?
The robber appeared to believe that
we were all out, and he was just ap-
preaching the head of the linz to be-
gin work when dark form dropped
out of the coach, there was yell as
if from wounded tiger, and a re-
volver began to crack. The robber
went down at the first pop. His
partner was just coming around the
rear of the coach. He was game
man. He knew what had happened,
but he was coming to the rescue.
Pop! pop! pop! went the revolvers,
their flashes lighting up the night un-
til we could see the driver in his
seat.
, 1t didn't take twenty seconds. One
of the robbers lay dead in front of
us-the other under the coach, while
he man with one eye had lock cut
/ from his head and the Craze of the
bullet across his cheek. Not one OF
, us had moved finger. We were
five fools in a row. There was 6
' painful lull after the last shot, and il
+ lasted a full minute before the
: stranger turned to us and remarked
in quiet cutting manner:
f ssGentlemen, ye kin drop ye
e hands y
t We dropped. We undertook tt
n thank him, and we wanted to shak
s hands, and somebody suggested
shake purse for his benefit, but h
e motioned us into the coach, banged
o the door after us, and climbed up t,
r seat beside the driver. His con
q temnt for such a crowd could not b