Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1884-06-27
How q Cowboy Accepted rynoAinr.


Although cowboys are not nearly 30
bad as eastern people try to make them
out, yet there are occasionally hard
characters among them-as there are
among all other classes of men. The
following from the Denver Republican
gives as true history of how a New
Mexico cowboy passed into the vast re-
motely: &
"Did you ever hear of the way Bob
Hale, one of Chisum's cowboys, the
one they called 'one-nail Bob, diedp
He got his nickname from his right
fore finger, on which he had o nail
nearly two inches long. He was des-
perate sort of character, always getting
into a quarrel with somebody, and Chis-
um used to tell him that he'd get killed
some day if he didn't behave himself.
But Bob got worse and worse |; got
drunk whenever he got q chance and
the other boys used to steer clear Of
him. He saw this aud began to think
everybody was afraid Of him. He was
rather fayorite of Chisum, in spite Of
his meanness, and although he finally
got SO he wouldn't take any orders from
the foreman, he couldn't be discharged.
The end had to come.
"The outfit was rounding up and
branding one day on the Rio Felix,
ten miles from Roosevelt, when Bob.
who had bought lot of whisky at Rose
well, and had been laying around camp
drinking it and doing no work, got an
CRY at one of the boys who said some
thing about his drinking, and:pulled his
gun and fired at him. The bullet miss
cd but it killed fine cowpony belong
ing to one of the boys. That was
enough. The man he had shot at
jumped on and disarmed him in min.
ute and shouted for the rest of the out
fit. They came riding and running in.
to camp, and pretty soon there were ten
OF them around, and the fellow that
told me this. said that they held o reg
ular trial on Bob, with Judge, lawyer
and jury. Bob said he'd plead his own
case, but he couldn't have done 1t very
well, for the jury decided after hearing
the argument of the prosecuting lawyer,
who brought up all previous misdeeds
that he had to be strung up for the good
of the community.
Bob accepted the verdict recklessly
and the outfit Immediately knocked of
all work and started with him to Cot
tonwood Springs. They got there in
the Afternoon, took Bob to cotton
wood which had limb abotit thirty feet
above the ground and put the loop of q
lariat around his neck. They started
to tie his hands.
Never mind that" he said. "I'll no
up that tree and tie that knot on the
limb myself"
"He took off his hat, climbed up the
tree with the rope around his neck and
all his clothes on, crawled out on the
end of the limb and tied the iariat
aro1nd it,"
Then he said, "boys guess you are
right in roping me. I'd have killed
some of you if you hadn't I guess, and
1 am not particularly sorry to die. But
there is one thing want you to do for
me-" he continued to the cowboys
standing around at the foot of the tree
and looking up at him, as he sat on the
limb swinging his legs backward and
forward easily. i've got no letters to
write and no prayers to say but want
you to take a message to q man for
me-"
go ahead" said the boys.
"While he was speaking Bob had
been working his boots off his feet un-
til they hung upon his toes by the up
per part of the legs. Now he said,
you've all heard old, Chisum say many
time that was going to die with my
boots on. / want you to go to him
and tell him that 1 say he was id
liar"
'He kicked his boots off to the ground
as he ended, and jumped off the limb.
! There was crack of his neck when the
rope Strengthened ont, and he didn't
move a muscle after he felt. He was
buried right at the foot of the tree"
"Did Chisum ever get the message. -
was asked.
"Yes, but he only laughed and said n
was good thing Bob was otit of the
way. He was too independent for one
of his cowboys"