Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1884-01-23
lies Angeles Reoreaton.l
ROBBING THE STAGE.

The four-horse mud wagon, called by
common consent stage, which ran be-
tween Bookey's and Logtown, was crawl
ing up the long grade which corkscrew-
ed around to the summit of Pilot Knob.
1t was necessary to do this In order that
a good preparatory start might be had
for the succeeding rafting plunge down
the other corkscrew road which led to
Logtown.
BY the side of Black Pete, the driver,
sat an eastern importation of the genus
drummer. Pete rolled his tobacco
into his cheek, snapped fly off the ear
of his nigh leader and said:
$40, sir, don't gitno pay fer fghtin',
an don't do no fghtin' for Their COM
pany. If airy galoot stops this hyer
stage and perlitely like asks fer the cash
box, he's gwine ter git it. faint no
use, no ways, to fight them fellers, they
always hev Their drap on ye.
''But," said the drummer, "were you
ever robbed on this route?"
''Wal, no, I've seed fellers a Ioafn'
round heer ez [ thought mought do it
some time er other"
and if they did stop you, you would
give them the express box and drive
on, eh ?"
eyer bet /! If ther express company
wants to perfect Their box they must
send messenger along"
The stage crawled up slowly to the top
of the hill, and Black Pete settled his
foot firmly on the brake-strap, and with
q scat 'em boys the sweating horses
cfa cd To 70 &I,o r
the almost invisible road below them on
keen gallop.
Round and round the rapidly varying
road the stage and the passengers
WhIrled, sometimes losing sight of the
horses around The sharp turns and again
Slowing sharply outward toward the dan
gerous edge of the canon which yawned
below them.
The sun was down and the moon was
painting weird and restless shadows on
the powdered dust of the grade.
1t was just the time for the magma
ton to picture scenes of violence, rob-
berry ard blood. Suddenly the chapar-
raj bushes by the roadside slightly parted,
and long shining black object was
waved over them toward the stage. A
shadOwy figure rose in the moonlight
among the bushes and from behind a
black veil, which smothered the voice
somewhat, came the hoarse command of
FEstop, stopP' ##
Black Pete hurriedly pushed his foot
heavily down upon the brake, reached
down into the bottom of the stage. pull
ing out the express box and muttering,
''cuss yer, take it, " threw the box into
the road. The restless horses immedi-
a5ely plunged away into the shadows of
the forest.
'Wa-was that a highwayman 2"
gasped the drummer.
In course 1t was" answered Pete.
didn't yer see Their shootin' iron I? Thar
goes cool Thousand dollars as I knows
on. You bet ther boys IL be out arter
him tonight. shouldn't wonder if that
war old Bart himself He's a cool one,
he is. He always shoots his mouth off
IN some potry. Leaves it in the box
when he gets through with it. Didn't
yer notice how level he held that Their
shootin' iron right towards me 2"
The lights of Logtown now gIistened
below them, and a few turns of the
corkscrew brought the stage up to the
hotel porch, where it stopped with a
loud ''Whoa!'' from Black Pete. Not
many minutes elapsed before the
prophecy of Pete was realized, for as
soon as the story of the bold robbery of
Wells d FargO's box was related dozen
or SO ready miners volunteered to search
the woods for the road agent. After
half an hours swearing and drinking
over the matter they saddled their
horses and started for the scene of the
robbery.
It was little cramped-up, heller
SHELTER mining town among the Sierras.
One need not rise early In Scars Hole to
see the sun rise for he will not see it if
he does. Old Sol is never visible there
until ten in the morning. The rough,
picturesque cabins, looked for all the
world like dilapidated dice, thrown at
random from the box, and built deep
down IN hole between the surrounding
peaks. and yet they actually had a
telephone connecting them with the out
side world. The denizens of Scars
Hole were not given to an indulgence in
business communications with the great
commercial centers, but lheir telephone
was the means of preventing many of
the inhabitants from spending the re-
mainder of their earthly days at the in
sane asylum. Every day when the
echoing of the booming blasts and the
thud OF the pick had ceased in the half
dozen mining claims surrounding the
camp, the weary, lonely miners gathered
at the little cabin, in which was placed
the telephone, and gave vent to their
pent up feelings by, not free fight, but
by free interchange of gossip with the
residents of the camps above and below
them on the line of the wire.
Such was their Unborn detestation of
any men who followed any pursuit
which did not require active labor with
their hands, and such was their chivaI-
ric devotion to the fair sex, that the man
agement of their part of the telephone