The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1885-03-27
OVERLAND ANECDOTES.

Journey .ng westward on the AtchiSOn,
Topeka & Santa Fe the other day two old
westerners sat together smokinCand chat
ting Presently the conductor came along,
bit the end of a cigar, lighted it, and join
ed them. One of the men vas a miner
and the other cattle raiser. They were
full of anecGote, and after both had told
several stories the conductor took his turn.
The miner first got his feet upon the back
Of the seat ahead of him and remarked,
slowly "Seven years ago this winter was
a mighty duh season in our camp. The
weather was coldcr'n usual there wasn't
any water, we were short Of grub, and the
Indians were very Troublesome. We had
about fifteen or sixteen in the camp, I be-
Heve, and we had to 60 pretty easy on our
eat3h'es, so as to make them last. l had
been keeping several men there, thinking
every day that we'd strike something rich,
and when they gotmore and more dissatis-
fed promised them bigger and bigger
shares. Icould see that the men were get
ting about ready 10 Jump me, and that
they had begun to look upon me as some
thing Of luuatic They would hold long
conferences together, speaking in low
tones and when l came around they
would pretend TO be talking about the
weather or something Of that kind l had
used them all pretty well, and they hated
TO leave me, but they were getting un-
EASY.
cone day toward suudown, when I was
about ready to give up myself young
Mexican couple, who were bound for
Sonora, struggled into our diggings good
deal the worse for wear. They had been
up in Colorado, and had started for home
with team and driver, but the Indians
had got on their trail. killed the driver,
and stolen the horses and wagon. The
travellers managed to get away while the
driver was holding the savages at bay, and,
lying in hiding until nightfal, they had
worked their way on foot into our camp.
Tie Young woman was one Of the prettieSt
girls ever saw. She was about sick abed
when She arrived, but the next day she
was around as chippcr MS anybody, and
the boys were making themselves very
agreeable. Says I 70 myself This is a
special dispeusatiou of Providence IF can
keep the girl here for awhile there viii be
no trouble about the boys they'll stay
too 7 never heard a word Of Rrumbling
from them that day or the next.
90 was a little afraid the greaser would
get jealous and knife somebody: but then
1
win finish him, and then we will have the
girl anyway. The Mexican seemed
anxious TO get away, but made one ex-
Cuse and another for not helping him right
away, and one morning he was missing
He had sloped during the night, leaving
the girl TO us. Well she was pretty well
cast down for awhile, but | explained to
her that probably her husband had gone
on TO get horses and an escort, and that
he bad taken this course because he
knew she would have objected to his
going alone. This faint hope seemed to
give her some comfort, and the rest of the
boys fell in with me, and it became the
settled conviction about the camp that
he would be back presently. She livened
up some, and the boys made themselves
very agreeable. When two weeks had
gone by and nothing had been heard of
her husband she insisted on being taken
home, and offered us Usanyamount Of money,
which she said her father would pay, If
we would escort her over the border. |
began TO fear that her husband was never
coming back, snd, to tell the truth had
a still strOn ger suspicion OF something
else 50 l agreed To start with her the
next morning ct sunrise, and told the
bows 60 be in readiness. That afternoon
We heard uRearthly screams up one of the
gulches a ways, and several of the boys,
running up with blanched faces to see
what the matter was, found the little
woman beside a new-made and very shall
low grave, into which she had dug far
enough to discover the body OF her hus-
band As the boys stood there aghast
she sDrang up quickly, and. drawing a
revolver, shot two of them dead before
any of us could find voice. ! threw up
my hands and begged of her 10 desist,
and when some of the boys grabbed their
guns / pulled mine and made them put
them up. Then I got her back to the
cabin disarmed her, set one trusty fellow
to watch her, and called the others up
into the gulch. We uncovered the dead
man and found two bullet-holes in his
back
g. Who put them there > said sternly
to the men.
"' The two men whom she shot, they
answered" "
'ImpossibleP says T. How could
she know ~
She didn't know She just hit them
by chance said one of the party We
knew when they did IL. but we didn't
want TO say anything about IT,. They
thought to rob him and run off with her,
but she seemed TO be afraid of them more
than of the others.
Well ! got kind of tired of that place
after that, and when | got things ready
to take her home I packed up my own
things also and rs we set ont / says to
the boys Good by, old men. You can
work the claim or not, just as you please.
1t amt likely that I'll ever be here again
And / never did go back They skunk
that nobody has ever worked there since
/ took the girl home to her father and left
her there She's there now Yes, see
her occasionally. In fact, / don't mind
telling Won she's my wife. and has been
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