The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1890-12-31
DESPERATE WESTERN DUELs.
Fighting With the Riata-Some Remark
able Deadly Encounters.

Fighting With the Riata-Some Remark
able Deadly Encounters.
The RATA duel is not 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. But so skillful and quick
do these rope throwers become that
such a duel not infrequently lasts for
hours. Probably the best remembered
fight of this sort was that between a
Texan known as Kid Long aud lit
tie Mexican who was only spoken of us
"Gabilan" (hawk) on the great Lievre
range. They circled around each other,
lodging the rapid throws, from 10 in
the morning until after sunset. When
the horses had almost given out the
Texan threw at his adversary, who
threw back so that his moose passed
over the other mans lasso and hand
and caught him fair around the neck
and under the armpit. In almost no
time the Kid was out of the saddle and
being dragged over the ground at
a rate that Knocked the life out of him
before he had gone hundred yards.
The West. during its wild and WOOL
ly days, and the Mexican frontier have
had many remarkable duels. That
between Farmer" Peel and q 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 were placed
on opposite sides of Il hillock, around
which ran a road, and started to meet.
The curve of the hill prevented their
seeing one another until they were
within hundred yards. As soon as
they saw one another they both fired.
Though part of the rim of Peers hat
was cut off and the soldiers sleeve was
pierced, neither was hurt. Then they
pulled their pistols and advanced firing.
Both dropped badly wounded when
less than twenty yards separated them.
They lay there squirming and shoot
ing until both had emptied their
weapons. Peel was desperately hurt,
and his adversary had one ball through
the stomach and several others dis
tributed all over his anatomy. When
thew 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 and
knees, began to wriggle toward the
fallen soldier. He pulled himself
along with his elbows, and with his
one uninjured hand finished the SOL
dier 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 lights.
They have lots of deadly encounters
up there on the Comstock. There was
one number of years ago fought over
a half mile under ground. According
to the evidence given at the inquest
by the survivor. the two miners were
working alone in a drift. They were
rivals for the affection of woman,
and in quarrel one made drive at
the other with his candlestick. A
miners candlestick consists of metal
socket attached to sharp steel spike,
so that it can be stuck in the face of
the drift anywhere. The second miner
defended himself with his candlestick,
and there. thousands of feet under the
ground, they wrestled and stabbed un-
til 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 from loss of blood.
The jury, of course, had to take the
survivors, story of the affair and he
Was acquitted.
A little blind canon in the Sierra
Madre used to furnish the Apaches
+Io g
their disputes. This gulch is fairly
bucks had quarrel that they did not
to this gully, and while the remainder
from the hills on either side, the COM
batants went together to where the
serpents were the thickest. There,
stark naked and weaponless. they
would wrestle. This would wake up
every rattler 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 remain and Wrestle as
long as his adversary had life OF
strength enough to struggle with him.
A most remarkable duel was fought
at Las Carnitas, N. M, many years
ago. An undersized stranger came to
the town and picked a quarrel with
Handsome Harry" a gambler re-
nowned as dead shot. They got out
into the road and both fell mortally
wounded. 1t was discovered that the
stranger was woman, and though she
never spoke after she fell the story be-
came known that she was Il sister of a
girl whom Handsome Harry" had
| wronged years bcfore.-SGn Fran
cisco Examiner.