The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1891-02-28
A RACE WITH ROBBERS.
JOAQUIN MILLER RELATES AN
EXPERIENCES.
Pursued by Three DcspcradOes
While Carrying $4,000 in Gold
How the Poet got out of a Tight
Place

joaquin Miller. the ''poet of the ST.
erras, " describes in ST. Nicholas a thrill
ing adventure which he had in the Far
West in his youth. He says:
Il was lying ice-bound at Lewiston,
Idaho. Men wanted to send money be-
low to their friends or families; mer-
chants, anticipating the great rush, must
get letters through the snow to Walla
Walla. Would l 90? C0ulG 90?
The snow was deep. The trails. over
open and monotonOus mountains, were
drifted full. Could any living man face
the drifting snow and find his way to
Walla Walla At first the merchants
had tried to hire Indians to undertake
the trip and deliver their letters. Not
one could be found to go. When the
storm abated little, the men who kept
the ferry across the ShOshonce River
scraped off the snow, and cutting down
the upheaved blocks of ice made it pos
sible to cross with horse.
At first | meant to carry only letters.
But having finally consented to take a
little gold for one merchant, soon found
should lose friends if did not take
gold for others. The result was that
bad to take gold worth nearly ten thou
sand dollars.
A few mufiled-up friends came down
to the river bank to see me OFF. II was
great event. For two weeks we had
not had line from the outer world. And
meantime the civil war was raging in all
its terrible fury. As set out that bleak
and icy morning, after | HAD mounted my
plunging pony | saw in the crowd sew
eral faces that l did not like. There
was Dave English, who was hung on that
spot with several of his followers. not
forty days later; there was Boone Helm,
hung in Montana; Cherokee Bob, killed
in Millersburgh; and also Canada joe
This last lived with some low Indians a
little way down the river. So when he
rode ahead of me | was rather glad than
otherwise; for felt that he would not
go far. kept watch of him, however.
And when saw that he skulked around
under the hill, as if he were going home,
and then finally got back into the trail,
l knew there was trouble ahead.
But the ''Rubicon" was now behind.
NV impetuous horse was pluneing in the
snow and l was soon tearing through
the storm up the hill Once fairly on
my way l looked back below. Dave
English and Boone Helm were bidding
goOd-by to two mounted COW BOYS at
the ferry-house. Ten minutes later, as |
looked back through the binding snow,
L saw that these two desperate fellows
were following me.
True. there was nothing criminal in
that. The two highwaymcn had right
to ride behind Inc if they wished. And
Canada Joe had Just as good a right to
ride ahead of me. But to be on a horse
deep in the binding snow and loaded !
down with gold was bad enough. To
have desperate blocking the narrow
trail before you with his two friends be-
hind you was fearful.
had two six-shooters close at hand !
under the bearskin flap of my saddle bag
where the gold was. | kept my LEFT |
hand in my pocket where lay a small !
six-shooter warm and ready. Once as /
the drifting and binding snow broke /
away up the mountain. saw Canada Joe /
with his head bent down in the storm /
still pushing on ahead of me at safe |
distance. \ few moments after, as l !
crossed and climbed the farther bank of !
an ugly canon, the two robbers came |
close enough to hail me. One of them
held up bottle. They evidently in
tended to overtake me if they could.
and profess to be friendly. This must
not allow. | urged my ambitious horse
to his best. But, to my dismay, as 1
fastened up narrow pass found that |
was not far behind Canada joe This :,
low browed black fellow was reported to
be the worst man in all that country.
And that was saying he was bad in
deed.
/ was in a tight place now, ard had to
think fast. My first plan was to ride
forward and face this man before the
others came up. But | was really afraid
of him. 1t seemed much easier task to
turn and Kill the two rear men and get
back to town. But, no! No. All this
was abandoned almost as soon as thought
of. In those days even the most desper-
ate had certain rights which their surviv-
ing friends would enforce.
l was now but a few hundred yards
behind Canada Joe. So far as l could
find out, the robbers were closing in on
me. But we had ridden over the ,
toughest part of the road and were with
in few miles of the high plateau, so
that the wind was tearing past in gale.
and the drifting snow almost blinded
me.
Suddenly, l had new thought. Why
rot take to the left, gain the plateau by ,
q new route, and let these bloodthirsty A.,
robbers close their net without having '
me inside ? rose in my saddle with ex- ,
element at the idea, and striking spurs 1
to my brave horse l was soon climbing {
up the grandual slope at a gallop. All! 1