, 1888-12-20
ROBBER AND POET.
"Black Bart" the Terror of the
Pacific Coast. D.,
The Story Of His Crime Reads
Like q Romance.

Black Bart, the lone ighwayman
known to every resident OF the Golden
Coast as one OF the most daring and des-
perate men on the road, has since his re.
lease from San Quentin prison. on the 18th
OF last January. taken to his evil courses,
and committed some daring robberies
coaches. His career has been one OF ro'
nance and Uoliness, and his fame rivals
that OF bick Turpin and Sixteen String
Jack. He is known as the
LONE HIGHwAYMAN
For the reason that he has no companions
or pals, and always committed his depre-
dations single-handed and alone, and in
such quick succession as to paralyze the
entire community. and with such
dispatch and judgment as to
battle the best detectives. He
robbed twenty.eight stages before he was
caught, and since his release from prison
several robberies have been committed in
which his peculiar methods are recognized.
On the 9th of last July a stage going
from Balber, Modoc county, to Redding,
Shasta county, was stopped in a lonely
piece of road. Suddenly from
piece of copse out stepped man
armed with six-shooter, in front of the
| lead horses, who covered the driver and
ordered hun to hand over the mailbag
and Wells. Fargo x Co. 8 treasure'box.
He secured between $500 and SiOQ. Not
until the Sth of November last was he
heard of again, when he cropped up in
front of the Downieville and and Nevada
City stage, near Niger Tent Here he
secured some coin and gold bar valued
at S2200, six and three-quarteI inches
long and marked III. Scammon." A
week passed by, when the lone robbers
pistol was pointed at the driver OF the
stage running from Eureka to Ukiah,
where S17O0 was secured.
now HE LOOKS.
or a tall and commanding figure, Black
Bart is so years of age. He wears heavy.
dropping, lron-gray mustache, with u
heavy imperial. He has been finely edu.
Gated, uses chaste aud elegant language,
never induleing in profanity, and while
| he made his headquarters in San Francisco
| he made but few acquaintances, and those
| only of the best He dees not use lntoXi-
eating liquors or tobacco in any form, nor
| is he addicted to the use of opium. His
character is an anomaly, made up OF all
that goes to make respectability and gen.
| tility, combined with the nerve, dash and
daring of the highway robber. His dress
| is always neat and proper, and his man
| ners those Of a cultivated gentleman.
The most remarkable pecuiarity about
Black Bart is his fondness for writing
poetical epistles, which he leaves on the
| ransacked treasure boxes tnat he has pill
fered. While these do not show a high
order of literary talent. yet they bear the
unmistakable ear.marks of originality.
THE FIRST CLUE.
Black Bart began robbiug California
stages IN 1875 and continued in II series OF
daring solitary attacks upon stages until
June 90, 1888. Detectives secured the
country for him. and for long time could
secure even no description of him. They
knew that he was no ordinary criminal.
The robberies occurred always in unfre-
quented parts of the mountains and the
robber was generally able to conceal his
identity. The first clew was finally, after
the roOberies in Mendocino county, Octo-
Der, 2 aud 3. 1878. furnished by woman.
She was a Mrs. McCreary and lived with
her family on lovely farm. Detective
Hume was told by her that a gentleman
tourist had passed that way the day before.
One of the woman's daughters had seen
and waited upon him for luncn. They
were positive that he was not u highway
man From this woman the detective
secured tolerably accurate description
which was sent all over California. Still
the robberies continued, but as the pitcher
that often goes to the we'll and the erowler
that is often rushed finally gets broken, so
Black Bart robbed one stage too many and
was at last caught.
The detectives, from what they could
learn OF the man. were convinced that he
did not live in any of the small towns in
California, but must when at leasure re-
side in San Francisco, and was probably q
| respectable appearing man. On the 3rd OF
November, 1888. the stage OF Wells Fargo
d Co. was robbed three miles above Cop.
peropolis. r. r. Mcconnell, the stage
driver was compelled to unhitch his
horses while Black Bart was digging out
the iron box from under the drivers seat
with sledge.hammer. By chance a
hunter came along where Mcconnell was
standing with his horses. He borrowed
his rifle and opened fire on the robber Just
making for the brush with the plnnder,
some IS 900 in gold amalgam. The at
tack was 80 sudden and unex-
pected that Black Bart was discon-
certed, and he flew, leaving behind a pair
| of opera glasses and a handkerchief, on
which was the laundry mark, IF OF"
! The articles were at once sent co San Fran
cisco, and all the laundries Of the city were
searched. Nine days after the robbery the
laundry was located. and 1t was learned
that the handkerchief belonged to gen.
Mrs. Webb's lodginR-house at No. "a
Second street. II was learned that Mr..
Bolton had the day before returned from
his mines. He was called upon by the
detective, J. B. Hume, who, on pretsnse
of mininy business. induced him to go to
an office, where he was arrested.
He was tried convicted and sentenced
to the penitentiary, and served his term OF
four years and two months, having been