Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1890-05-30

fore | could get my she'll out, ana
II was too excited TO think OF
using another guu. Suddenly the
Hight IN the hack went out and a
hand upon my shoulder jerked me
backward. Then a voice yelled in
my ear:
"Let me get at them! Load the
guns for me ~ let the team CO.
We might's wellsmash as be riddled
with bullets. Here-hele's two
boxes of cartridges"
I dropped back to the other
seat and gave place to him. lie
threw his carbines oyer the back
of the hind seat and began firing.
1t seemed to me that steady
strcam poured out of the back of the
stage, and before l had filed the
magazine of my gun his was empty.
He snatched miDe, however, and
thrust his own back to me.
Loading was awkward business
at first, as I had to feel for the
feeder; but l managed soon to
thrust them into my gun as fast as
he could work the lever of his OwD.
The men, whoever and whatever
they we're, rode up to within
twenty-five or thirty yards, and
spreading out, opened fire on us.
"Keep close down in the bot
tom !" shouted my cOmrade as be
kept on firing.
The "road agents" did not come
nearer, evidently fearing too great
exposure to the stream of shots
from the hack, and my courage
rose to something near the level OF
my companIon's. caught glirpses
as l glanced up now and then,
of plunging bOrseman, with shad'
owy, outstretched arm, from which
flashed blaze after blaze of llght.i
All at once We began descending
into a gully, and the hack bounced
from side to side so violently that
it was impossible for us to do any
thing but cling to the sides OF the
box.
"It's all right" rang my com
panion's voice IN my ear, shortly
after we had begun the decent
"they've quit. Trey can't ride
along the side of the gulch and
daren'U follow straight behind
There's a stage ranch below, too.
| remember the road"
Sure enough the men had drOpl e1
back and the shots had ceased.
My cool, brave cOmrade now clam.
bered over me, and IN some way
got into the front seat of the Jump
ing coach. A moment later |
noticed that we were slowing up
and running more steadily. Five
minutes more and we halted-what
was left of us-sate and sound in
IN front of a Stage station.
Our story was soon told, our
horses exchanged, and a fresh
driver, doubly armed, put with us.
Such little accidents did not stop
stages in those parts.
There was no danger, they told us,
from that same gang. The three
men who were left promised to 60
Immediately and look after our
other driver.
1t was only the darkness and
the motion of the vehicle and horses
that had saved us from being hit.
We found several bullet marks
about the coach next morning.
One of them, well aimed, had gone
through the back seat at an angle
and iptO the front, and might have
passed directly between us. My re.
spect for my young cOmrade was
greatly raised by the event of that
night, and was further incr eased
by an after acquaintance which dis
covered his real mDdesty and
worth.
On my return to the "Hllls" l
learned that our driver had been
picked up at the crossing OF the
creek badly wounded, and also that
the brave fellow had yelled to the
team to go the very second he was
hit. He had been carried to Sidney.
AS to the rheumatic old man, be
was, OF course, a rascal in league
with th3 band who attacked IL.
-YOuth'S Companion
Finger Insurance.
In party Of insurance men an
accident policy man put the ques-