The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-06-29
PIONEER OFFICERS
OF JUSTICE.
Armistead's Rife Dael With
Jones, the Convict.
a Eand-te-Hend Conflict on the Headwaters
If the Sen Josquin Rivsr twenty
Years Ago.
Written for THE SUNDAY CALL.

IAN the list Of terrible struggles with from
tier desperadoes, one of the most re-
kS Diarkable appears to have escaped COM
ment, even at the time 1T occurred, nearly
twenty years ago. By right it ought to
have become Immediately famous from one
end Of the land to the other, for it lacks no
element of ferceness, courage and pathos.
but its strange details have been 80 COM
pletely forgotten that the following brief
account is all that have been able TO OBJ
tain. 1t is enough. however, to mark the
episode of the Armistead Jones rife duel as
worthier of remembrance than many duel
Of which the whole civilized world has
heard.
Francis S. ATmistead was a famous man
in the State of Nevada and Upper San
Joaquin twenty-five years ago. His last
battle had but one surviving witness.
George Slawson Of Visalia. who wrote
down the main features of the affair short
time after it took place and published it in
some Of the local papers.
A number of convicts. among whom were
Rob erts. Morton. Black and Jones. had
esca ped early in 1871 from the State prison.
Ar mi stead, who was one of the foremost in
the recapture of the first three of these.
fifty miles from Long Valley. on the San
oaquin River, in one of the widest parts
OF the Southern Sierras. Jones, it appears,
had found George Slawson's sheep camp,
and telling him he was a prospector OBJ
tanned permission to stay there awhile.
When Armistead, leaving his horse in a
small valley, came up to the sheepranch lie
talked awhile to Slawson and Jones, saying
70 la lot hot I..w antei n bira n m n
10 60 to Arizona and help him prospect for
silver. After good deal of conversation a
bargain was made between them, and Armi-
stead spent the night at Slawson's camp.
hanging his Henry rifle over his bed and be-
side SlaWSon's own repeater. The two guns
were precisely alike, and the fact was COM
mented upon by all three men.
AN ESCAPED CONVICT.
Jones, the escaped convict, rolled himself
up in one of Slawson's blankets and slept
in the same cabin. The whole affair had
been managed so far with consummate skill
on the part of Armistead, who was sup
posed by both Jones and Slawson to be ex-
actly what he represented himself to bs-a
rancher and examiner. who had sold his
farm and, having little money, wanted to
explore some of the Arizona district.
During the night, however, Jones, very
shrewd man, and of course extremely anXi-
Gus respecting his own safety, appears to
have meditated upon ArmlStead arrival.
and determined to fight him at the first sus-
picious move. No other hypothesis will
serve to explain the course Of events. In
the morning SlawSOn went TO the stream to
wash. while Jones and ATmistead con-
versed amicably. After breakfast Jones
went out and left Slawson alone in the
cabin with Armistead. The latter began to
pump" SlawsOn, in order to see whether or
not he could be depended upon TO help ar
rest Jones if any sudden crisis arose and
the latter resisted. At this moment Jones
stepped inside the door and some
thing in the attitude of the two nen at once
aroused his worst suspicious. He could
not have heard word that was being said,
nor did he wait an instant.
Rushing across the cabin the convict sud
denly seized Slawson's heavy repeating
rifle and tore it loose from the wall Armi-
tead seized his own weapon at the same
ms tant, and the two men looked at each
other in the full recognition OF the fact that
they were enemies. Jones turned first and
made for the cabin-door and the open clear
ing When about thirty PAGES from the
cabin, aud from Armistead, who had only
stepped to the door. Jones said; II don't
know you, but know your business. You
cant take me alive; l wont 60 back to Jail
I'll die first, or kill you.
To EIGHT TO THE DEATH