The Big Stone post. (Big Stone Gap, Va.) 1890-1892, 1890-08-15
OLD TIMES IN CHEYENNE.
CIryOF THE PLAINS THAT WAS THE
TOuGH'S PARADISE.
primitive Government for Town OF TO-
ooo--- "Reminiscences of wild Biii---A
Fight Sot TO Il Finish---The Latter
End of an Officer I'm the Army
of Uncle sam.
lrro,:, Tho Boston Commercial Bulletin;)

OccuIar ana interesting as t"n' va M
( emo. Wvo. well remember when the
! Mace va. proudly styled wits inhabitants
tnc Great City OF the Plains. ms
too. ut time when il was rightly held 10
lac the wickcdest town OF ITS size III INC
limited States. At one period within my
recollection, there were upward OF oODo
nconlc living and diving in the place, for,
truth 10 say. hardly AN hour passed but
death. either by hanging or shooting
occurred there do not now remember
of amy births occurring in the city, the
nonul.tion being from time to time IN
creased by the arrival Of pilgrims" from
the Eastern States or returning miners
from California and Oregon.
AZ first remember the city, it stood on
, lcyel nlain about which flowed Crow
Creek. In the distance lowered Long
Peak. HIGH promontory son.c ninety
,,;les ia the south. while to the west the
lono line of mountains known as the
RI,ck Hill, reared seemingly impassa-
Lie barrier to further progress in that
direction. \ truly delightful spot in
which to dwell in summer time, where The
wind. blowing across the snowy SUBMITS
of fine Rocky Mountains, sweeps over the
civ and its surroundings with II refreshing
coolucss. In my day Cheyenne VAS the
nuradisc of rou.hs and belonged to the
Territory of Dakota, Wyoming not then
being organized. So far rs ] could ob-
serve there was no other government
maintained than the popular will, and the
will of such Il disrcputablc cosmopolitan
Gathering of people rs then resided there
w,s To saw the least. often disgraccful i'll
H. demands.
II mirh; truly have been said that Chcy-
cnnc was then the land of the beSgar and
nrincc. there being no middle class. One
Col. Murran, an rishman, had, previous
to nv arrival served Mayor OF the
town, and before him appeared all offend
crs To some Of our readers the story
may be old, nevertheless the fact may hc
told that the doughty Colonel invariably
inflicted a fine Of $40 upon any individual
in The place wlo shot ut another, no mat
ter whether he lit or missed his mark In
like manner all persons arrested for being
drunk were scvcrallv fined $40 and two
bis. the latter portion OF the fine being
appropriated by his Honor to pay for his
daily drinks AT II ncighborng saloon.
There was always plenty of excitement in
the town. the gambling saloons and places
of ill-reputc remaining in operation all
night long The only time of quiet was
from 10 in the morning until = i'll the
afternoon. \ person ON the streets during
the hours mentioned would often overhcar
remarks after the following fashion:
, "Dick Radfords out again, amt hc?'
.You bet Yer boots, and he's howln',
4 too for another fight
. "Kilcd anybody vit?'
b "Yup Had fuss over to Talbots last
a night Seeding from lnjiana tried to
Es stack up on him in a game o draw, when
:8aDick let drive
ga II see Major planted him. CHI
"Yup And Dick he paid his little ten
uer 10 old Murran and was turned loose
again.
"Durn that court. anyway; it don't
amount to nawthin Anybody that's got
the scads can gi away from thar.
The past record of Cheyenne for muir
der and robbery is simply horrible one.
On an average two murders daily were
committed, in some instances the victims
being fairly riddlcd with shot before
diving. As rule always found that
strangers to the place, or travellers who
strictly attended 10 to their own affairs,
4 were rarely. il ever, troubled As Wild
Bill WAS often wont to declare, a majority
of the murders committed in the West
occurred among the worst class living
there, who, like wild beasts, fought among
81 themselves.
81 nm led to believe, from the erroneous
q statements of certain writer's upon the
81 subject of life in the far West, that many
IS people in the East entertain the false
thnt min "a Of
81 As matter of fact have always found
81 the reverse to he the case. Like soldiers
81 and sailors, the average miner is careless
& and free with his money, and the very
SE nature of his calling makes him IL gam
~ bier, although he rarely becomes y drunk
M ard. \ firm believer in the doctrine of
Mchancc, he is always ready and willing to
M.'siack up against any game that mas he
in progress, hcing apparently never so
@happy az when within sound OF the seduc-
Mtivc clicking of the ivory chips used in
#gamng.
81 Speaking of gambling reminds me of
#thc fact that no more successful gamestcr
lever lived than Wild Bill, who WAS fire.
Mluent visitor to Cheyenne While the
@attcr was serving rs Marshal ut HAYS
EEity was living with the cavalry out
Where. and many pleasant evening |
Epcnt in company with the favoritc scout,
Tho had served with me ut Pea Ridge
&luring the war; Wclch's saloon was his
Navoritc place of resort, and there have
often known him TO win upward of $2D8O
&t poker in IL single sitting. The scout
Fas for II long time all night with the
&oldicrs, many of the latter being expert
kamcsters and free bcttcrs. Upon one
occasion, however, he lost some 5000 to u
Ss private and the latter was said to have
pade rather disparaging remarks con-
Eerring soldiers.
IL This speech of his finally reached the
sars of the soldiers themselves, and in
tlmc the Marshal was forced to arrest sew
era OF their number for assaulting him.
In the winter of 1870, Scrgt -, one
OF The finest fellows in his corps, Glanced
u meet. at Fort HAYS, Wild Bill. who was
chen drinking somewhat heavily. Now,