The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-01-16
QUEER WESTERN DUELS.
Curiosities Of the Code OF Honor
on the Mexican Frontier.
Hard Fights for Ljre with tho Iasso-sone
of Farmer Pee .e's Notorious Achieve
meuts-EacouuterS on the Com
k-UnderErouni L shts.

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 arc bound 70 DC
fierce But so sllillful and quick DO
these rope-throwers become that such
duel not uuirequently lasts for hours
Probably the best-remembered hght
OF this sort, says the San Francisco TX
aminer, was that between IeNan
known as hid Long and little AlcNican
who was only spoken OF as 'Gab4laa -
hawk-on the great Lievre range. 1hey
circled around each other, dodgIng the
rap!d throws from ten in the morning
until after sunset. When the horses
had almost given out the Texan threw
at his adversary, who throw back SO
that his moose passed right over
the other mans lasso and hand ana
caught him fair around the neck ana
under tho armpit. In almost no time
Kid was out of his saddle and being
dragged over the ground at rate that
knocked the life out Of him before ne
had gone a hundred yards.
The West, during its Wild and woolly
davs, and the Mexican frontier have
had many remarkable duels. That be
tween Farmer" Peel and a soldier
near one of the forts in Utah Is among
the classics OF the field of honor-or
what mas answered for that in the COW
towns and mining camp. The weapons
wore riff es, rcvolvers and bowie-knlVes'
The principals were placed on opposite
sides OF hillock, around which ran
.oasi. and started to meet. TIE curve
81 +.I
another until they were within hun
l-ed wards. As soon as they saw one
another they both fired. Though part
Of the rim of PceI's hat was cut of and
the soldiers sleeve was pierced, neither
was hurt. Then theypulled their pistols
and advanced, firing. Both dropped
badly wounded when less than twenty
wards separated thcm. They lay there
sauirriug and shooting until both had
emptied their weapons. Peel was des-
perately hurt, and his adversary had
one ball through the stomach and
several others distributed all over his
anatomy. When they could shoot no
more they lay for short time swear
ing Then Peel, who was so badly hurt
that he could not advance oven on his
hands and knees, began TO wriEglc
himself along with his elbows, and with
his one UninjurCd hand finished the SOL
diCr wi:h his bowie knife.
Farmer Peel already had tho 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 every
where the homage Of lesser knights.
They have lots of deadly encounters
UP there on the Ceustock. There was
one a number OF years uTO fought over
half mile underground. According TO
the evidence given at the inquest by the
survivor. the two miners were working
alone in drift. They were rivals for
tho affections of a woman, and in a quar-
rel one made a drive at the other with
his candlcstick. A miners candlestick
consists OF Il metal socket attached TO q
sharp steel spike, so that it can be
stuck in the face of the drift anywhere.
The second miner defended himself
with his candlesticll, and there, thou
sands Of feet under the ground, they
wrcstlcd and stabbed until ones life
was gone. As they did not come up
when they should have gone off shift
others went down in search Of thom.
They found one dead and the other un-
conscious through loss Of blood The
jury, of course, had 20 take the sur
viyor's story of the affair, and he was ac-
quilted
a little blind canyon in the Sierra
Madre used to furnish the ApaChes with
the means of formally settling their dis
putes. This gulch is fairly alive with
rattlesnakes. When two bucks had 4
quarrel that they did not wish to settle
OFF hand they repaired 10 this gully, and
while the remainder of the tribe stood
around and watched from the hills on
either side. the combatants went to-
gether TO where the serpents were thick
est. There, stark naked and weapon
less, they would wrestIe. 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 or strength enough
to struggle with him.
A most remarkable duel was fought at
Las Carnitas, n. NJ, many years ago. An
understood stranger came to the town
and picked a quarrel with Handsome
Harry" gambler renowned as a dead
shot. They got out into the road and
both fell mortally wounded. 1t was dis
covered that the stranger was a woman,
and though She never spoke after She
fell, the story became known that she
was a sister of a girl whom Handsome
Harry had wronged years before.