Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1888-03-02
A MILE A MINUTE.
THE STORY A STRANGER TOLD
At A DENVER HOTEL.

A Feat to which the Records Of Eoues-
trianism Afford No ParaIlei-Involun-
sary Toboggsning on Bronco-A
Miraculous Escape from Death.
The grizzled stranger removed section
OF tobacco from his mouth and began:
This happened five years ago last fall.
! was living in Leadville at the time, but
had mining interests that took me fire.
quently into the outlying districts, for a
radius OF perhaps dozen miles. These
Trips l nearly always made on horseback,
on tough little bronco, hard mouthed,
trained TO mountain roads, and capable Of
keeping up jog trot at pinch for twen-
W hours on o stretch. On the occasion in
question started very early one clear,
cold morning for claim owned on the
other side OF the divide, on the slope of
what Is called Gold Mountain-you can
md 1t by looking on any map.
i took things easy, and it was about
noon when reached the claim. had a
couple OF men at work there, ate dinner
at their cabin, and then went over to look
at the shaft. One has no idea how rapidly
time passes underground, where every
thing is dark, and when came up was
surprised to find that 1t was nearly a
O'Clock, and the shadows OF pinons a
hundred yards off had crawled up to the
windlass. was annoyed, too, for there
was suggestion of snow in the air. and
the ride across Tennessee park in q storm
is-well, the less said about it the better.
So lost no time in getting into the sad
die, and pushed rapidly ahead toward the
pass. had to go quite a little distance
before reached it, and all the time the
sky grew grayer and grayer, and presently
a few fakes began to fall urged the
bronco, and finally began the descent.
1.-The road beyond the pass led down a
long straight incline for about a quarter
OF mile. This took it to the fringes of
timber pine, and then it made q detour OF
nearly two miles to get around q spur OF
the range. At that point paused. The
idea occurred to me that l could make q
short cut by going directly over the spur
and striking the trail on the other side.
The range was not particularly steep at
this place, but rather succession OF
rough eminences, and the undertaking did
not seem to be accompanied by danger.
sudden, raw wind decided me- / turned
the bronco off the road and started.
1.-The plan appeared the more feasible az
! advanced. What looked like steer
ascents at distance proved to be gentle
ones, and was soon pretty nearly across.
The spur was well wooded with old pine
trees. / remember yet how, between the
tree tops, caught glimpse of the park
with the Arkansas river winding through
it, and the whole thing looking like some
map In my old geography. That was the
last thing that impressed itself on my
mind before my horse staggered, tumbled
plunged little, and then came down with
a crash, first on his fore legs and then fiat
on his belly his head down hill. 1 CAM
readily describe it, but he fell in such 9
way that my right leg, without being
crushed or even much bruised, was twisted
in the stirrup strap and caught fast.
Right here let me stop to explain cir
cumstance that will enable you to under
stand the situation. Down in the valley
at the base of Gold mountain, was a saw
mill owned by George Lacy, of Leadville
and extending up from its yard, almost t.
timber line, was what is called log shoot
This is simply V shaped trough, larg,
enough to hold a good sized pine trunk
and built solidly against the face of tn,
mountain. OF course, it has to be straight
or nearly so, to permit the logs to slid
down without obstruction, and use sool
makes the inside as smooth as glass Sucl
a contrivance saves a great deal of haul
ing, for as the trees are cut they ar,
dragged over and dumped into the trough
and go down into the yard like streak O
lightning. In the course of time the pres
sure will drive the trough in pretty nearl,
to the level of the earth. This was tn
case with the Lacy shoot. l was wei
enough acquainted with the mountains t
know, the instant my bronco fell, tina
he had walked into the old log shoot.
s'It takes moment for the coolies
head to clear itself in times of unlooke,
for peril, and long before that momen
had elapsed the bronco and l were Oh
our way to the valley, going faster a
every breath, nothing to stop US, dealt
ahead, and the devils own railroad under
meath. ! was sitting almost erect in tn
saddle. The leather flaps had twiste,
around and kept my legs from rubbing
against the sides of the trough, but he'll
me like bands of iron. did not faint an,
did not get dizzy; there was a hideou
roaring in my ears, a furious wind scenes
to all of sudden tear up the mountain
and suck the breath out of my mouth
but everything was deadly clear and dis
tinct. l could see black spots grow sud
denly into big pines and then shoot pas
me. could even see the snow caught il
| their needles as they came whizzing up
Every instant, through some clearing,
| could see the valley, in a flash, and over
all was sickening feeling as though tn
mountain was sinking away from me, an
l was plunging out into immeasurabl
1 -, 8 H.
standing on the solid marble floor, l ca
recall the qualm and nausea as all SUP
port seemed to give away, the earth ii
up and let me fall, fall, fall-it felt as
forever A mass of rock as large as thi
hotel was beneath me. AS l looked
seemed to leap into the air like balloon
There was black line of forest below.
shst through it, as through a tunnel, an
| out into the light again. 1 tried to shu
| my eyes 1t was impossible. l tried I
scream. The trees and rocks were indis
| tinguishable, when all of sudden blac
mass flew up into my face. felt that
was being beaten bruised, and hurle
over and over, and then everything wa
still.
'.When the moon was well up came
myself. l was lying in a snowdrift, rul
bling at my head and moaning. After
long time crawled little ways, and the
fell down and cried for my very helples.
ness. must have been little flight,
| and heaven knows how l found my wa
to Lacy's mill, quarter of mile beyond
but did somehow, and they carried n
in and sert for help. You see, the Of
timber shoot had fallen into decay, an
some distance above the yard was broke
place that saved my life. When W
reached it the dead bronco jumped Il
trough and the two of us went sailing an
turning and cavorting over field of fires