The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1888-02-04

MS purSuerS, ana those who kneI
him the best could not be made t.
believe in his death, especially a
he had only a few weeks ago es
capped from a canyon of the Sierr
Madres, into which he had beer
driven and from which escape wa
thought to be impossible, hemmet
in as he was on all sides by tn
soldiers. But during the forenoon
all was set at rest by a telegram re
ceived by w. Loaiza from Genera
Francisco Canoda, the Governor o
Sinaloa.
THE NEWS CONFIRMED.
The telegram, which is in Span
ish, is dated Conlaicon, January
9th, and translated reads as follows
Night before last, at the mine Of Nues
ira Sonora, three leagues from Casala, th'
bandit, Eraclio Bcrnal, was killed. Hi
woman and another bandit were takel
prisoners.
The receipt of this dispatch soon
became generally known, and con
gratulations were then the order OF
the day among all having any in
terestsin that part of Mexico reisned
over by Bernal.
No bandit who ever lived in Mex
leo, in fact in any part of the North
American continent, enjoyed the
reputation gained by Bernal, and
the particulars of his life, if fully
known, would in themselves form
a romance without the assistance OF
an imaginative mind on the part OF
his biographer.
The stories told of his exploits
are legion, and these accounts vary
in accordance with the experience
of the parties who narrate them.
By some he is described as a human
fiend, who robbed for a living and
murdered out of pure wantonness,
and by others as second Fra
Diavolo, who, while relieving the
rich of their surplus wealth, never
shed blood except from necessity,
and freely gave aims to the needy.
He was, however, in all probability,
neither the one nor the other ex-
actly, but there is good authority
for the statement that he was capa-
b e, at times at least, of displaying
great magnanimity and generosity
to those who fell into his hands.
BERNAL's EARLY LIFE.
He was a native of the State of
Sinaloa and the son of parents of
but limited means. He received
fair education. But little is known
in this city of his early life, and the
first time he came into prominence
was during the revolution of 1877,
when Colonel Ramirez captured
Mazatlan and held the city for
several days, when he was overpow-
cred and shot by the government
roops. Bernal was lieutenant In
Ramirez's regiment at that time,
out escaped when his chief fell, and
vas lost sight of until about eight
years ago, when he was recognized
is the leader of band of robbers
operating in the mountains of ST.
laloa, east and north of Rosario.
from that time on he and his band
lave terrorized an extensive terri
ory lying in the states OF Slnaloa,
Durango, Zacatecas and Jallsco.
Amid the Businesses of the Sierra
dadres he had his strongholds. and
moving every trail through the
lmost impenetrable forests, he
7ould descend upon town or
aine, secure his plunder and return
0 cover with the same immunity
rom danger that he would stop
tage or rob a solitary traveller.
His followers were picked men,
xpert rihemen and thoroughly de-
old of fear. With such band OF
,en at his command and in such
ountry, he could defy ten times
is number, and, lying in ambush
! the thick brush, send death and
estruction among them as they
anne marching along the public
ighway.
DIFFICULTY OF CAPTURE.
The only means to capture him
as to surround him, and in order
!, do so a large force was necessary
n he would skip away through
,me trail known only to himself, E
nd fanking his pureuers, appear
gain among the villages or miners
xty or hundred miles away
lpply himself with provisions,
nmunition and money and then
e himself to some place of safety {
an equally remote point.
So frequently would he appear,
rst in one place and then next day
another, that it was believed ne {
i'd at least FIVE hundred men with
m, and that different robberies
ere committed by separate COM
anies, but in point of fact he never {
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