The morning call., 1890-07-06
PIONEER OFFICERS
OF JUSTICE.
The Death of P0nch0 Bascns in
Blackburn Gulch.
Lopez Of San Luis and His Escape 10 Sonora
in 1s74-The Mexican Outlaw and
the Italian Bandit.
Written for THE SUNDAY CALL.

S-<ANTA CRUZ COUNTY long took
the overflow of native Californian
ssS desperadoes from Santa Clara and
Monterey. who found hiding-places for
years in the thick forests and unfenced
mountains Of the northern part of the
county. One of the noted men Of Santa
Cruz was Sheriff Calderwood, who, in 1864,
had a desperate hand-to-hand encounter in
a dark room with notorious Mexican
named Lorenzano, whom he secured after
receiving severe knife-wound in the arm.
The struggle that Sheriff Lincoln and his
deputies had with Poncho Bascus is often
spoken of among the pioneers. Bascus was
an ex-convict, one of the stage-robbers who
had operated with Chaves, Procopio and
others near Visalia and in other parts of
the country. One of their exploits in 1870
was to capture rich rancher named Moore.
After binding him to a tree they relieved
him Of his watch and money. They also
robbed an old man named Grewell south OF
Gilroy, and, in Monterey County, cleaned
out sheep raiser named Patterson. They
afterward stopped the Salinas stage on the
wide and wind-swept Salinas plains, then
about as desolate and lonesome a piece OIL
country as there was ID California. BaScus
was known as a bad one" from Monte Dr.
. ablo to Santa Barbara.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS MEXICANs.
On September 18th. 1871. Lincol In heard
that several suspicious-looking Mexicans
were in the Blackburn Gulch, near a ranch
owned by man named LorenZsno, and he
organized a posse consisting of MesSrs.
Haynes, Majors and Dickerman to go with
him to the place. They reached the Loren
Zano house about day break and searched it
wit Unlrh
distance. Returning they saw boy stand
ing near the barn and heard his voice as II
talking to the horses in the open stable.
Lincoln at once entered while the others re-
manned outside at the doors and windows.
He climbed into the loft and over the mar
row dark spaces next to the caves. While
crawling into the hay he came in contact
with Bascus, who sprang up with drawn
revolver. Lincoln attempted to draw his,
but it had fallen from his belt while creep
ing over the hay-mOw. He instantly sprang
aside as Bascus fired and jumped from the
loft to the ground, distance of nearly
thirty feet, as the hillside sloped away from
the barn.
Bascus sprang after Lincoln so rapidly
that they reached the ground a t about the
same instant, and seeing pistol in Majors,
hand he left his first antagonist and devoted
all his time to Majors and Haynes. lie
fired two shots at close range, but was
wounded in each case just before pulling
aged to beat the outlaw by hair s-breadth
at his own game of rapid firing, for Bascus
was reputed to be one of the fastest shots
among the whole Mexican contingent OF
three counties. Majors third shot killed
his opponent.
The audacity of some of the native Cali
fOrnians is well shown by an experience
which Officer Liddell of Santa Cruz had
four or five years after the Bascus affair.
He was decOyed into the willows of the
liver bottom and there set upon by five
Mexicans, who attempted to kill him, but
he wounded several and escaped. Later,
returning to the spot, he found that his
assailants had dug grave in the sand In
which to place his body. About the time
of the Bascus business the same Mexicans
returned to Santa Cruz and made another
attack on Liddell, who had been oDe of the
most faithful officers in Santa Cruz County.
Manuel Lopez of San Luis Obispo was
one of the most famous and lucky of the
outlaws. The sheriffs of Santa Barbara,
Los Angeles, San Luis, Monterey and Santa
Clara were every now and then on the
trail of Lopez, especially after he had shot
some poor Mexican or s1eep-herder, for he
is SAID to have murdered at least bali
dozen people in San Luis County. But
Lopez knew the mountains so well that he
kept out of the way of every posse. Early
in 1874 Calderwood of Santa Cruz, Tom
| Cunningham of San Joaquin and Morse of
Alameda were cruising about the San Luis
| border line ana they heard that Lopez was
| in the neighborhood. They followed him
| for many miles through Jolon region and
| about the rocky San Antonio pass. But
| the usual good luck of these officers de-
serted them for once; Lopez had the best
| horses, and, being accompanied by band
| Of stolen animals, was able to remount as
often as he chose. They had the melan-
| choly satisfaction of seeing Lopez few
miles ahead on the hillside, but be escaped
and "went to Mexico" while the officers,
who were after other game, consoled them
selves by carrying out their original plan.
FOLLOWING A DESPERATE.
Nothing better illustrates the difficulties
of following up desperate in such dis
tricts, where neither railroad nor telegraph
lines were yet built. The outlaw had every
advantage when he was in the wilderness.
1t was only when he came down into the
valleys or the Mexican villages to see some
favorite senorita that the mountain robber
left such traces that he could be followed
Immediately. The Mexican hOrse-thieves
were very much like Italian bandits, except
that they were never so fully organized nor
so dominant as to terrorize whole districts.
Nevertheless they levied tribute on their
countrymen and on the hated gringo; they
had their spies and watched from their re-
treats for single travellers, and they were in
turn watched in thousand ways whenever
they came into the rude adobes OF the Next
can quarters of the old towns. Every Sher-
/ if in the coast range knew that if be
watched every Mexican adobe long enough
and sharp enough he was likely to get his
clew at last, either from some careless
tongue or from the lips of revenge or jeal-
ousy.
This, as one perceives, is the italian BAN
dit over again. Tho Mexican outlaw who
had no social weakness, no desire to brag,
no fondness for whisky, no confidantes Of
either sex, would have stayed uncaught
many months longer than most of them did.
Many once notorious native Californian
desperadoes took warning as soon as the
best of the frontier officers began to make
things warm for them and left for the South
RockipS Nav Mayifn or Sopnra yvhara THAR