The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-09-03
QUEER WESTERN DUELs.
Fighting With the Riata-Peel's Des-
perate Encounter.
Prom the San Francisco Examiner.

pCIalG
Prom the San Francisco Examiner.
The RATA duel is not a new thing on the
Mexican frontier. Indeed there is hardly
big cattle range anywhere that has not its
stories of hard fights with the lasso. Such
duels are bound to be fierce. Bat so skiiful
and quick do these rope throwers become
that such duel not unfrequently lasts for
hours.
Probably the best-remembered fight Of
this sort was that between Texas known
as Kid Long aud little Mexican who was
only spoken of as "Gsbilan"-hawk-on the
great Lievre range. Thew circled around
each other, doging the rapid throws, from
10 O'Clock in the morning until after sunset.
When the horses had almost given out the
Texan threw at his adversary, who threw
back 81 that his moose passed right over the
other mans lasso and hand, and caught him
fair around the neck and under the armpit.
In almost no time Kid was out Of hrs saddle
and being dragged over the ground at rate
that knocked the life out OF him before he
had gone hundred yards.
The west, during its wild and woolly
days, and the Mexican frontier have had
many remarkable duels. That between
Farmer Peel and a soldier, near one of
the forts in Utah, is among the classics of
the field Of honor-or what has answered
for that in the COW towns and mining camp.
The weapons were rifles, revolvers and
bowie knives The principals wererplaced
on opposite sides Of hillock, around which
ran a road, and started to meet. The curve
of the hill prevented their seeing one
another until they we're within a hundred
yards. As soon as they saw one another
they both fired. Though part of the rim
of Peel's hat was cut off, and the SOL
dier's sleeve was pierced, neither was
hurt. Then they pulled their pistols and
advanced, firing. Both dropped badly
wounded when less than twenty yards sep
arated them. They lay there squirming
and shooting until both had emptied their
weapons. Peel was desperately hurt and
his adversary had one ball through the
stomach and several others distributed all
over his anatomy When they could shoot
no more they lay for a short time swearing.
Then Peel, who was so badly hurt that he
could not advance even on his hands aud
knees, began to wriggle toward the fallen
soldier. be pulled himself along with his
elbows, and with one uninjured hand fin
ished the soldier with his bowie knife
Farmer Peel already had the biggest
private graveyard Of any man in the
vicinity. This encounter spread his fame
all over the coast, and when he went over
to Nevada he received everywhere the
homage OF lesser uguCS.
They have lots of deadly encount ers up
there on the Comstock. There was one a
number of years ago fought over half a
mile under ground. According to the evil
dence given at the inquest by the surveyor,
the two miners we're working alone in a
drift. They were rivals for the affections
of a woman, and in a quarrel one made a
drive at the other with his candle
stick. A miners candlestick consists
Al l. i.
spike, so that it can be stuck in the face of
the drift anywhere. The second miner de-
Tended himself with his candlestick, and
there, thousands of feet under the ground,
they wrestled and stabbed until ones life
was gone. As they did not come up when
they should have gone off shift others went
down in search of them. They found one
dead and the other unconscious through loss
of blood The jury, of course, had to take
the survivors, story of the affair, and he
was acquitted.
A little blind canyon in the Sierra Madre
used to furnish the Apaches with the means
of formally settling their disputes. This
gulch is fairly alive with rettlesnakes
When two bucks had a quarrel that they
did not wish TO settle off-hand they repaired
TO this gully, and while the remainder of
the tribe stood.around and watched from the
hills on either side, the combatants went
tOkObhcA W "bcio bhO SCI POuto WcI0 bIlCk-
est. There, stark naked and weaponless,
they would wrestle. This would wake up
every RATHER in the glen. The aim of each
was to force the other on to the angry
snakes. 1t was not unusual for both to be
bitten while they struggled and rolled
among the rocks Each was bound to re-
main and wrestle as long as his adversary
had life or strength enough to struggle with
him.
most rararko hla dual xuac forub+ ~
Las Carnitas, N. NJ. many years ago. An
understood stranger came to the town and
picked quarrel with Handsome Harry"
a gambler renowned as a dead shot. They
got out into the road and both fell mortally
wounded. 1t was discovered that the
stranger was a woman, and though she
never spoke after she fell, the story became
known that sae was sister of girl whom
Handsome Harry" had wronged years be-
fore