The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-06-22
HOW THEY SETTLED 1T
Some Odd DuelS That Have Taken Place
On The Pacific Coast.
Strange Weapons That Have Been
Used according to the Code"-
Indian RattIesnake DuelIo-
Fighting Embodied.

has hot hs storIes ol baFu Ilxflts Win the
lasso. Such duels are bound to be fierce.
The men who engage i'm them are men
who have for years been familiar with
their riatas, and the horses are trained to
the work, and when one man gets his rope
about another there is no escape. A spring
of his a~dvcrsary's horse drags him from
the saddle and the ~victor's rope is never
slackened until the life is jerked and
jolted out OF the unfortunate one.
But so skillful and quick do these rope
throwers become, that such a duel not UNI
frequently lasts for hours.
Probably the best remembered fight of
this sort was that between q Texan,
known as Kid Long, and a little Mexican
who was only spoken of as "Gabilan"-
hawk-,an the great Lievre range. They
circled around each other, dodging 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 right
over the other mans lasso and hand and
caught him fair around the neck and
under the armpit. In almost no time Kid
was out OF his saddle and being dragged
over the ground at a rate that knocked
the life out OF him before he had gone a
hundred yards.
The west, during its wild and woolly
49, - 'stNa W. l1le IlANI
many remarkable duels.
That tive Farmer" Peel and n
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 weapon
were rifles, revolvers and bowie knives.
The men principals were placed on OPP
posite sides OF IA hillock, around which ran
a road, and started to meet. The curve
of the hill prevented their seeing one an
other until they were within a hundred
yards. As soon as they saw one another
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 adj
vanced firing. Both dropped badly
when less than twenty yards sep
arated them. They lay there squirming
and shooting until both had emptied their
weapons. Peel was desperately hurt
and his adversary one ball through the
stomach and several others distributed all
over his anatomy. When they coald shoot
no more they lay FOR a short time swear
ing. Then Peel, who was so badly hurt
that he could not advance even on his
hands and knees, began to wriggle to-
ward the fallen soldier. He pulled him.
self along with his elbows, and with his
n uninjured hand finished the soldier
with his Bowie knife.
Farmer Peel already had the biggest
private graveyard of any man i'm the vi
cinity. This spread his fame
all over the Coast, and when he went over
to Nevada he received everywhere the
homage of lesser lights.
One day, however, he was playing faro
at the Delta Saloon, in Virginia City, when
Dick Paddock, the then chief of the Com
stock, stepped up.
''They say you're a fighter" said Pad
dock.
they tell me- said the farmer.
well, come out and prove H." said the
chief.
So the farmer cashed in his chips and
numbered out. Paddock was standing i'm
the middle of { street, waiting.
Its your play first, young fellow" said
Farmer Peel.
and began firing rapidly.
Farmer Peel took little heed of Pad.
docks firing. He was rather drunk, and
was unconcernedly steadying his gun
with both hands to make "A dead shot at
Dick.
The latter got behind an awning post
just as Farmer Peel got his gun right. He
soleninly outlined thea awning post i'm bul.
let holes i'm Dicks anatomy. After he had
run a line up and down on Paddock's
border on Zach side of the post, the Com
stock chief yelled. Enough"
"Drop your gum said Peel.
PaddocK did SO.
They have had lots OF deadly encounters
up there on the Comstock. There was
one, "A number of years ago, fought over
half "a mile underground. According to
the evidence given at the inquest by the
survivor, the two miners were working
alone in "A drift. They were rivals over
the affections of a roman, u in n quar-
rel one made n drive at the other with his
candlestick. A miners candlestick con-
sists of a metal socket attached to a sharp
spike, so that il can be stuck IN the face of
the drift anywhere. The second miner
defended himself with his candiestick,
and there. thousands of feet under the
ground, they wrestled and stabbed until
ones life was gone. As they did not come
up when they should nave gone of shift,
others went down in search of them.
They found one lea and the other UNI
conscious through loss of blood. The
jury. of course, had to take the survivors,
story OF the affair, and he was acquitted.
A strange duel was fought i'm a sparsely
settled part of Sonoro, Mexico, about If
teen years go. Captain v~illenueva and a
lieutenant of a battery of light artillery
belonging to n of the posts had some
| trouble about who was the best shot with
the mountain howitzers. They quarreled
and agreed to settle IL with the howitzers
| MT 500 YARDS. They took neither seconds
or assistant gunners, but from the top of
small hillocks they fired explosive shells
at one another. The captain was wounded
by "A fragment OF n shell, but they fired
ten Shots Defore either was aisaoieu,
though each was covered with dust.
Finally the captain landed a shot fairly
under his adversary's gun and the explo-
sion so manglcd the lieutenant that he
died before they could remove him TO the
post.
A little blind canyon in the Sierra Madra
used TO furnish the Apaches with a means
of formally settling their disputes. This
Qulch is fairly alive with rattlesnakes.
When two bucks had n quarrel that they
did not wish to settle of hand they re-
paired to his gully, and while b re.
mainder of the tribe stood around and
watched from the hills OH either side the
combatants went together. to where the
serpents were thickest. There stark
naked and weaponless they would wrestle.
This would wake up every RATHER in the
glen. The aim OF each was to force the