The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1889-09-26
bnt II was argued that nursuit must be

\
covered with thickets, and at the end of
another mile we had TO leave our horses
and follow the trail on foot. II was
quite evident that the fellows did not
fear pursuit, for they had gone at a
leisurely pace, and the men best &C
quainted with the country predicted that
the gang had headed for rocky ravine
in the midst of heavy growth, about
six miles from the cabin. The predio-
ton was soon verified, and we went
| forward with greater caution, hoping the
fellows would be sound asleep after
their nights carnival. They had taken
two gallons of whisky from the cabin,
and the chances were that they would be
stupidity drunk,
When within about two miles of the
ravine we suddenly ran into an ambush
and received volley One white man
was killed and another wounded, and
one black man was stretched dead.
Shaw was acting as Captain of our troops,
and he ordered us to deploy and advance
in open order The rangers were in a
| thicket, and we soon drove them out and
killed one. In pressing on after the
others we became more and more sepa-
| rated, and after bit I found myself
alone to the right of the others. / kept
advancing toward the ravine, supposing
the others to be doing the same, and
had advanced mile or more beyond the
point where we had been ambushed when
it suddenly occurred to me that l was
acting very rashly in separating myself
by such distance. l at once bore to
! the left to join forces, but, unknown to
me, all the others had halted half mile
in the rear, held brief council, and then
decided to retreat | was still bearing
to the left, aud wondering why l did not
discover any of the troop, when the
whole gang of rangers suddenly rose up
from the earth around me, and was
prisoner. There were six of the wicked
est-looking villains an honest man ever
clapped eyes on. They were roughly
dressed, their hair and whiskers long
and unkempt, and their clothing was
mostly of sheep skins. have seen some
hard looking men in my time, but never
anything to compare with this half dozen
who were under the leadership of the
notorious Joe Trimble. This man had
been transported for murder, and during
the two years he was in the colony he
killed two guards and led revolt. He
escaped from Tasmania by floating out of
the harbor on plank, being loaded down
with forty pounds of chain at the time,
but whether he was picked up at sea or
driven to Australian coast was not known
to the authorities. He got there some
how, and for two years previous to my
story had been veritable terror in a dis
trict 100 miles square.
! For minute after the rangers rose up
about me not u word was said. Each
man was heavily armed, and, though |
had rife in my hands, it would have
been folly to move.
"Well, who ere you2" asked the leader,
after we had all taken good look at
each other.
l gave him all the information asked
for, and was honest in stating the num-
Der of the party in pursuit. They did
uOt huOW lue idHSSl Nlloih
had seen lying dead had fallen by our
bullets, but supposed he had become
separated from them as they retreated.
When 1 admitted his death their rage
knew no bounds Had I been an I'M
armed traveller they would doubtless
have taien my life just the same, for this
gang had never been known to spare any
one. But when they knew that was one
of the party, and was more or less respon-
sible for the death of their comrade, they
would have cut me to pieces then and
there had it not occurred to them that
such death was too merciful for me.
And, too, they were not aware of the
fact that Shsw's party had retreated.
After an outburst, lasting three or four
minutes, was disarmed, my pockets
emptied, my hat appropriated by one,
and my jacket by another, and we set of
for the ravine at a dog trot, two OF the
men going before and the Others follow
ing after me and striking me at every
opportunity.
The ravine was dark and dismal
spot, reached by we'll worn path. wind
ing about and making gradual descent.
We went down in single file, and when
we finally got to the bottom found a
hut made Of brush and limbs and rock,
with the numerous evidences that the
place had long been occupied as head
quarters. 1t had now come to be sun
down, and as nothing had been heard
from Shaw's party since my capture the
outlaws reasoned that they had given up
the pursuit. got pretty good look
at the surroundings, and, as near
as I could make out, the path
was the only way out Of the ravine. As
we came down one Of the men took
his seat on rock, with his revolver in
hand, to act as guard, and, as l got no
orders, sat down on another rock near
the hut One o. the men started fire,
another cut some meat, and a third went
down ravine and got can Of water at
spring. While supper was preparing
the leader Of the gang took long pull
at the whisky jug and then came over
and stood in front of me and INDUCED in
TRADE of oaths, threats and abuse. He
sWDTe ne q Clean OUT every IdACundu III
! the district, and that he would have
twenty lives for the death Of his com-ade.
He boosted Of the number OF his victims
and the amount of his plumber, and ended
up by declaring that | should be skinned
alive and my head sent TO Shaw Ms II re.
minder of what was in sore Tor him.
; made no answer, knowing that anythin g
could say would only add to his fury.
: was hopeless. | could nos figure out
the slightest chance TO escape my impend-
ing fate.
| A primitive meal was,soon ready and
five of the outlaws sat down to devour it,
, while the sixth kept his place on the
rock At this time thought l heard .
noise as of distant thunder, and the all
, felt to me as if storm was brewing. /,
5 had come to be fully dark now, and al
, ter an interval Of three or four minutes
there came binding flash of lightning,
! followed by crash of thunder, which
seemed to illuminate and shake the whole
island. The men suspended their eating
! to look up, and the guard rose to his