The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1890-05-30
ROAD AGENTS ROUTED.

rs o'clock one Sep
- TENDER evening in
1891 1S73Itook the coach
n "a which left Custer City
" w -orCuster village, for
~ the town consisted of
20 or 80 log structures-to GO to Sid
ney, Neb. A coach Isupposei it should
be called, though on the plains this
vehicle, which has the drivers seat
OF the same level as the passengers
seats, is called a shack"
Ihad gone to the ''hills"to engage
in mining, but after four months OF
prospecting had decided to open O
general supply store at the new town
of Deadwood, and was on my way to
Omaha to purchase goods for the
venture.
A tin lamp, fastened to one corner
of the "hack" discovered to me two
passengers within as l entered and
took my seat. One was an old gen.
tleman, apparently weak and ill, for,
although it was not a cold night, he
was muf1ed in a coarse, heavy ulster
overcoat. Moreover, such of his face
as | could see between a gray beard,
which almost covered it, and the rim
of a SLOUGH hat was pale and thin,
and the eyes looked sunken and I'M
natural. At least so they struck me
at a cursory glance.
The other passenger was a young
fellow Of % or 23years, I Judged, de-
cidedly dandifed in his dress for that
region. He wore q stiff hat and a
stand-up collar encircled by a neat
tie, and had on a dark suit evidently
custom made, which was an unusual
"get up for that region, and one
which at once aroused my suspicion,
for the only persons l had seen about
the mining towns dressedi in anything
like that fashion were gamblers, a
class of men l have made it a point
to avoid.
Just before setting out the driver
came to the side ofthe vehicle, thrust
in a light Winchester carbine, and
placed it between my knees.
81 see you didn't have no gun,"
said he, IAN l keep q couple of extra
ones fer sech."
That was all. No further explana-
ton was necessary in those days.
Itook charge of the weapon, al
though / was as little expert in its
use as I was in handling the Smith &
Wesson in my hip pocket, which, in
deed, l had never yet discharged.
knew enough of life in the mines
to know that the 'bad man with q
gun" is usually the man who gets in
to difficulty rather than the peaceful
and unarmed citizen, but stage ride
from Custer to Sidney at that time
was a trip not altogether likelyt to be
without its adventures, and for once
/ regretted my unfamiliarity with
shooting irons"
1t occurred to me that if we were
dumped by road agents." as the
phrase went, the freebooters of the
route would have little to fear from
the occupants of the hack, whether
they got much money orEot. There
were usually valuables OF some sort
in the iron box under the drivers
seat.
The young man who sat opposite
ne had a earhine across his lap, but
Ifancied he knew even less of it's use
than I did. AS We started he sat,
without noticing me, twirling his
mustache and humming a tune. "a
fresh gamester, if one at ALL" said
to myself on a second look at him.
The old man had no arms in sight.
The driver no doubt regarded him as
out of the fight in any event.
AS we rolled up into Buffalo Gap l
had a few words in conversation with
my companions. l learned that the
elder was an Iowa farmer. who had
come out to see what he could do in
the mines, but he had been i'll with
mountain fever, and ~afterward at
tackled by rheumatism, so that he
had been forced to abandon his pro-
jects and return to the East. He
spoke freely and in the English ofthe
western men.
The young fellow said he was from
New York. 'Neh Yawk," he pro-
nounced it. He was, he said, a stu
dent ofmining engineering, but he did
not mention what his business had
been in that region; but that was
not strange, for we could not talk
much. A jolting stage bowling over
q rough country at eight miles an
hour does not give the best oppor-
tupity for conversation,