St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-01-03
RESIDENCE ON PIXIES PEAK.
Interesting Stories of Two of
Uncle Sans Mules.


You will remember. says the Gossip
in the Philadelphia News, that 1 told
you some time ago of wonderful cleo
trical storm which Sergt. Luther NJ.
Dey, of the signal Office in this city, wit
messed upon the lonely summit of Pixies
Peak. Col, and in that narrative 1 had
occasion to refer to the effects of the
storm upon ''Balaam' and Kit" the
two government mules in the Pixies
Peak signal station. They were not,
and are MOTOR they yet live on top of
the peak-Ordinary animals. Their in
telligence is greater than that of the
common run of mules, but perhaps they
have been made wise by experience, for
during their ten years residence on the
lofty mountain they have passed
through many queer vicisSitudes.
''Balaam" is gray and kit" bay
mule. ''Balaam's' side is scanned with
old sears, the results OF many falls dur
ing winter upon the rocky path that
leads to the little signal station far
above the clouds. Sergt. Dey has been
good enough to tell me few stories IL
Illustrative of the sagacity of these long
cared, four-footed, patient servants of
Uncle Sam.
Before Sergt. Dey went to Colorado
an Irish genius, named Sergt. O'Keefe,
headed the little band of signal service
observers upon Pixies Peak. One after
noon late in the autumn, when the
mountain was covered with snow and
ice from the timber line to the summit,
Sergt. O'Keefe started down the trail
on ''Balaam'S" back to repair break
in the telegraph line. Pixies Peak is
scanned in places with awful precipiceS
descending perpendicularly for over a
thousand feet, and the bridal path runs
for quarter of mile along one of
these CHASTITY jumping off places. Sergt.
O'Keefe got down TO the dangerous
part of the path, and when about half
way from where it began to hug the
precipice ''Balaam" slipped. He was
on sheet of smooth ice; ana with his
four hoOfs almost ''bunched." slid
slowly along. 1t didn't take O'Keefe
more than three seconds to get off the
mules back, and this dismounting act
was done in the
GENTLEST FASHION IMAGINABLE.
The signal observer grabbed a pro-
iecting rock ind watched ''Balaam."
On the frightened mule slipped. He
struggled and fell on his side near the
edge of the precipice. What was the
Sergeant'S amaZement to see the brute
stretch his neck as he lay On his side
and seize sapling with his teeth!
'Balaam'' was saved that time. For in
five minutes Sergt. O'Keefe had him
tied fast with rope always carried be-
hind the saddle. Assistance was pro-
cured from the summit, and the mule
was in his stable before shutdown.
One bitter cold day, in tie dead of
winter, Sergt. Luther NJ. Dey. who sue
ceeded Sergt. OKeefe, left the signal
station with "Balaam' and ''Kit'' to 90
to Colorado Springs. Ordinarily it was
pleasant ride, but the mountain was
ice-bOund at that time, and to prevent
accidents the mules were tied together
with long rope. Slowly and cautiously
white rabbits darted away when scared
from their snowy ''fOrms," and the
Rocky mountain eagle scared majesti-
cally overhead. The green fringe of
trees that marked the beginning Of the
timber line was still long way ahead
when the mules reached stretch near
an awful gorge, where the wat erS of
never-failing spring had frozen into
dangerous icc-stretch, exits" shoes
were rather smooth, unluckily. and she
slipped. As she fell, Sergt. Dey slidoff
"Balaam's'' back like creased pig off
a cellar door, and "Balaam" braced
himself kit" rolled the full
length Of the rope and stopped,
held back by the other mule, near
the canyons edge. A horse in Exits"
position would have struggled and
plunged until he went over the preci-
pice. The mule knew too much for
that. She realized her peril, and with
her heels in the air, lay mOtiOnless on
her back. She didn't wag an ear, and
Sergt. Dey thinks she held her breath.
hibition, so far as lack of motion was
concerned, on 'Kits'' part. And