Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1884-01-09
Terrible Outrage.


"Yes," said the stage-coach driver,
lighting his cigar with an expression
of savage evaporation. "You are
right. OF all the mean and brutal
road agents | ever met since | have
been in the business, the ones that
stopped our stage on the Dutch Flat
road were the worst"
Exactly" said the delighted re-
porter who had come up on the first
train to get the particulars. "Just
wait until | get these other two pen
ellis sharpened. Now then"
1--WE been in many stand con-
tinued the driver, retrospectively,
during the sixteen years I've handled
the ribbons on the high trails, but
this lets me plum out Why, that
time in 70 when Reddy Weasel and
his gang showed both leaders over the
cliff, and made the Wells. Fargo mes
senger swallow his cigar whole, wasn't
marker to it,"
Don't say!" replied the newspaper
man, growing more excited. "Give
me full details, please" E"
81 remember once up on the Hogs
Back, in Amador," went on the six
in-hander, after gloomingly ordering
another hot Scotch, "that l was driv-
ing a whole stage full of legislators
down toward Sacramento. There
were five senator's and nine members,
b'lieve; when Black Bill-used to
be the right-hand man of Vasquez,
you know-jumped us right on top of
the grade with his gang. They un-
hitched the traces and stood the pas
sengers up in row to go through
them. Pretty soon the fellows as
were searching us began to swear"
"Well, I'll be darned,' says one of
them, if l ever see such an Internal
lot of paupers in my life. I'm id
if there is the price Of square meal
among them
"'You're dead right, boys, says
one of the passengers, with a grin.
You've made a little mistake in rob-
bing us just now. You should have
waited until the session was over, and
then we'll be well fixed. We are all
new members, you see, and haven't
had time yet to get in
"'Do you mean to say you're all
members of the Legislature P said
Black Bill.
"'The same
"'Then,' said Bill, Il apologize
Give 'em back everything at once,
boys. Honor among thieves and he
let them all go.'
"Yes, yes" said the reporter, inn
patiently, 81 remember all about that.
We published the occurrence at the
time. But how about last nights af-
fair ?"
81 was only going to show how
square and decent some of the high
waymen are, and how ALFRED mean
and cruel others can act. Why these
fellows we struck last night were the
most Internally outrageous, blood
but | can't even now bear to think of
it," and the stalwart frame of the
driver shuddered with emotion.
"Try and brace up long enough to
give me the facts" pleaded the jour
nalist. "a lot of reporters from the
other papers will be here on the next
train, and l want to wire the full ac-
count before we go to press. Let's
see, it was about 1 o'clock this morn
ing, wasn't p"
YES" said the driver, in husky
voice; "it was, and about sixteen
miles from here just where the road
turns into Big Bear Bottom. There
wasn't any moon, and the first thing |
knew six masked men jumped out of
the chaparral and covered the stage
with shotguns. | knew they wasn't
regular road agents; they acted too
rough and savage for that. There
were just fourteen passengers all told,
and the scoundrels stood them in
row-women and all. Then couple
of them took lamp, and went down
the line, with their revolvers, and"
Cleaned 'em out ?" said the repor-
ter, snatching up another pencil.
"Worse than that" groaned the
driver; "they held their cooked pis-
tolls to the passengers head, and"
"And blew their brains out ?" gasp
ed the writer.
"Worse than that, worse than that"
sobbed the driver: "They compelled
every mothers son Of them to sub
scribe for the Organ me tool"
And with dull, sickening thud the
poor man fell senseless to the floor