Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-01-01
trace of his fathers horse, which he said
had cast a shoe few days prior, and that
his father
HAD Tackled on A MULE SHOE

follow and oyertake the thief. hume an(
Meyers could see no reason for connecting
the stage robbery with the horse stealing
but arranged with Tommy Fountain tina
if he struck the trail he would i'm
mediately send word into Caliente, wher,
they expected to return at most any time
The officers on their return to Caliente tn,
next day ascertained that Tommy hat
struck the trail which led in direction
west and south of Bakersfield Tomm,
then had gone into the town of Bakersfield
and secured the services of Deputy Sheriff
Mahurin to assist in etfecting the capture
Hume and Meyers Immediately left Cali
ente for Bakersfield, twenty-five miles dis,
tant and upon their arrival met Dick III
charge of Tommy Fountain and Deputy
Sheriff Mahurin, who had with them the
stolen horse and Wells, Fargo & Co.'S treas
ure. When he was overtaken by Fountain
and Mahurin, searched and the money
found, he admitted stealing the horse and
offered 10 give them all the money, except
$50, if they would allow him to keep the
horse and go on his way. Mahurin in
formed him that lie was Il sworn officer OF
the law and was not doing that kind OF
business, and that in addition to horse
stealing, he believed him guilty of stage
robbery, and together the three started for
Bakersfield, reaching there about 10 o'clock
at night. He gave the name of Richard
Perkins, was taken to a room in the old
Town Hall and left in charge Of Tommy
until
DOCTOR AND JAILER COULD BE FOUND.
An hour later Mahurin turned over to
| Wells, Fargo Il Co. S agent S. J. Lansing
5000 gold coin, 800 silver and $595 currency
total, $l,294. The doctor found Dick S
! leg SO badly swollen that, in cutting off the
! boot, it tore the leather in advance of the
knife, and found the bones of the leg bro
ken, as before stated
Hume at once brought suit in the name
of the express company and attached the
money. The next morning Mahurin turned
/ in $13 more, which was also attached.
/ Hume and Meyers spent most OF the day
with Dick, endeavoring to get u confession
! of his guilt and the whereabouts of the
! missing $500. He was obdurate, however,
and stoutly insisted that he was innocent.
/ Before Hume left for San Francisco, Dick
remarked to him: Things are not work
/ ing just right, and | may send for you.
Hume replied that he would come at any
1 time, if he meant business, and left for the
! Bay on the Il P NJ. train. The next train
| bore letter from Dick asking Hume 10
return, and the latter did so on the next
! train for Bakersfield, reaching there two
hours before daylight. He made his way
to Wells Fargo 4 Co. office called up the
! agent, who built a file, making things COM
| Portable; then went TO the Jail and, by per-
mission of the guard, took Dick to the ex-
! press office. Dick at once admitted rob
bling the stage, and said that Mahurin took
| from him the 81, 500, and that on the way
to Bakersfield he and Mahurin had an i'm
! perfect understanding that Mahurin was to
/ use share of the money in securing the
! release or escape of Dick, and retain for
| himself whatever he chose. Dick said that
/ after Hume left for San Francisco, Mahurin
came into the jail and told him that he got
/ only about 81 800 from him. and that he
| had TUNED it all over to Wells, Fargo d
! Co.
! Mahurin was sent for at once and in the
! presence of Dick charged with Withholding
/ the $500
HE sToUTLY DENIED THE ACCUSATION,
! But remarked that it might have lost
/ out OF his pockets on the road coming in,
and proposed to and did 90 in search of it.
/ but returned unsuccessful. Afterwards he
! brought in 500 and claimed that he had
| found it on the route travelled while COM
! ing in on the night of the arrest Mahurin
was dismissed from the Sheiiff''s office
! Dick was indicted and on the Sth of June,
! 1876. pleaded guilty, made touching plea
| for mercy, said he had made every restitu-
ton in his power. and that if all the money
! taken from him had not been paid in 1t
was no fault of his, etc At the close of
| his appeal for the clemency Of the Court,
! which no doubt had its effect on the Judge,
! Dick was sentenced to serve term of eight
! Years in the State Prison. The coJmty-seat
I of Kern county had recently been changed
/ from Havilah to Bakersfield, and while
/ the Courthouse and Jail was being built
! they used as prison q plank building or
room about twelve feet square Dicks
/ broken leg had been fixed up in good
( shape and with nice pair Of crutches that
! had been furnished he managed to get
around quite lively. After sentence he
was returned to his quarters in the building
Just described, which was guarded on the
outside during the night by Jailer Reed
On the morning of the 9th Reed opened the
door To salute the prisoner and take his
order for breakfast, when to his utter as
constituent he found that his bird bad
flown. In the corner of the room Reed
FOUND HOLE THROUGH THE FLooE
Through which Dick had crawled, taking
with him his crutches. The alarm was at
once given. when W. r. Bower, the Sheriff,
promptly Offered a reward of $500 for his
arrest and return, to which Wells, Fargo &
CO. added 800 on the same terms. Dick
spent two days and nights in the swamps
of Kern river. The night before his cap.
| ture he stole a horse from a Chinaman' :
ranch. but iindingnO saddle he led the ami
NAL some distance until he came to Il farm
house He hitched the horse outside Of the
corral went into the barn, stole a saddle,
and took it to where the horse was hitched.
In endcavoring to saddle the animal it be-
came frightened and broke away from him.
| 1t was then nearly daylight, and he being
nearly famished with hunger, remained in
sight of the dwelling until he saw the
rancher hitch up his team and leave the
premises, and seemingly left at the house
only lady, presumably the wife. Dick
went up boldly, and represented that he
had lost his way. His style and language
entirely disarmed the fears of the lady. and
elected her sympathy. She went to work
Immediately and prepared him an elaborate
breakfast, of which he partook' literally
and to the delight OF the kind hearted
woman. The husband went to Bakersfield
that day, and there he learned for the
first time of the escape of the
crippled stage robber, and of the
liberal reward offered for his recapture
On his return in the evening his wife
told him of the unfortunate gentleman
VINO iltI tIhtll DitdhIuSl llltlt SOOii dllti
his departure in the morning, and of course
the husband at once concluded he must be
the escape. lie Immediately called to his
aid two or three of his neighbors, and next
day captured Dick and delivered him to
the Sheriff at Bakersfield, and on the 10th
of the same month he was transferred b.
Sheriff Bower to the Warden of the State
Prison at San Quentin.
After being settled at the prison Dick
! wrote to his friend Hume" as follows:
SAN QUENTIN, Cal, February ~, 1876.
Mr. j. B. Hune-DEAR SIR: | have heard that
eX-Deputy Sheriff Nahurin. of Kern county. has
intimated that he intends to sue your company
for the recovery of the reward offered for my
arrest or rather his share of it, and feel conf
dent that he intends doing no such thing, and
merely i'll the hope of being permitted 10 remain
in quiet possession of that he already has Of
your money, which amounts to about as much
as his reward would have been had he been
true 10 his office and friends. Without any
spirit of revenge | think it shame that this
doubly-dyed scouudrel, without even the
redeeming feature of that little honesty said
to exist among thieves, should not only go
unwhipped by justice, but retain what
doubtless seems to him handsome a reward
I for his treachery, and that after being detected
| 500 pretended to have been found on my trail
and which | know 10 have been money that
| turned over to him.
/ received precisely the same sentence III
: Kern that did i'll Los Angeles (eight years.
believe had the sympathy of many good men
in Kern county until that affair of Jail breaking
! i'll which only incurred needless expense to