The Colfax chronicle., 1891-12-12

stage without firing shot, unless a
fighting shotgun messenger happens I'd
be on the box, in which case he may
get into trouble and miss the trick.
The expert professional never fools
with a stage on open ground or a steep
down grade. He selects his ground
with care and Judgment, choosing
place where the stage must be driven
slowly, and taking such position that
he cannot be seen until he has the
driver covered with his shotgun. he
uses a shotgun rather than the rifle or
revolver because the shotgun is the
most formidable weapon at snort
range, its capacity for scattering hre
being well known and duly respected
by drivers
The bigger the bore of the gun the
more terrifying it is to passengers al
though it is singular fact that under
such circumstances twenty-two-caii-
Der rifle barrel is likely to be mistaken
| for the mouth of the Sutro tunnel On
the line of every old stage road in Cali
fornia is pointed out some spot that Is
a favorite stand for robbers 1t Is
usually in a sharp reentering angie,
where the horses must be brought
down to a walk, and the rocky bank or
a tree affords a hiding place for the
robber. 1t does not matter ii the
driver knows that he is liable to be
held up at that spot and is on the alert
He cannot make the turn at high
speed, and he must give his attention
to his team to avoid an upset Just as
the coach swings into the gully, and
4 the driver is about to rein the leaders
out from the bank, he hears the sharp
command to halt, and, without turning
to see, he knows that a shotgun is
poiuted at his head from behind the
tree. The stage driver, being common
ly man of sense and good Judgment,
puts on the brake and stops instantly.
Throw down the box" is the next
order, and the driver tosses out the ex-
press box. Sometimes the man behind
the tree wants the mail sacks, too, and,
If he is very greedy and bold, he orders
the passengers to jump out ana empty
. their pockets Usually the passengers
tumble over one another in their haste
, to obey the orders of the man with the
gun. and he makes good haul OF
watches and loose change.
If the robber is alone nobody neee
llose much wealth in a hold-up, howev
er. The robber will not throw himself
off guard to search the pockets OF 10
of passengers. 1t is his business II
keep them covered with his gun, ant
q he depends upon their terror to induc'
n them to give up what he would no
d search for. It requires an artistic op
Is orator and one with supreme audacit,
20 to go through a whole stage load Q
It people and clean them out to the ultl
n- mate nickel, but California can proud
b. ly boast of having produced such arr
" lists. One way of doing the trick is t
ID pretend that another robber is cor
d cealed in the brush close by.
a. "Jim, You keep these galoots covere
,e while go through 'em," remarks tn
in road agent, in a cool, matter-ot-1as
ed way, after he has ranged the frigh
as ened passengers in a row with the
he hands above their heads. And then
a goes through them without undr
of haste, making facetious remarks as /
8, brings up the plunder.
ne The lone highwayman OF Shast'
to who was captured recently, had vel
10 neat method of taking care of passeI
ce gers when they were numerous enoue
.rd to he troublesome. His outfit consis
.k- ed of a six-shooter AMI bundle
eel barley sacks. He stopped the inwar
a bound stage within the town limits
ad Redding, and put barley sack ov
he the head of every man in the crow
on Inst as he had finished that part of t
iob the outward bound stage drove
ck Il and he stopped that and bagged Z
Md heads of all hands. Then a farm
to happened along. and he was treat
md similarly. A citizen of Redding. DIR
his ing for doctor, fell into the trap al
of Joined the barley-sack brigade, a
the then came the schoolmarm OF the q
Dot trict, who was told to stop and sit 81
.ck In her buggy, which she did. The 10
at robber explored the pockets OF
inn. crowd. broke open the express box
YER and quietly slipped away into !
as woods. and the bagged victims did
srs dare to move until the schoolma
and began to laugh at their ridiculous
the pect, and told them the robber b
,ers gone.
.ses In the hands of q road agent entir
ger great fence picket is as mighty
and two-shot scatter gun. The Gilroy st'
was toiling up a long hill at dusk SO
wears ago when the driver saw sol
thing white fiuttering just ahead,
his leaders stopped with their bres
against q rope stretched across
road. A handkerchief was fiutter
from the center of the rope.
II driver put on the brake, and t
somebody standing by tree at
side Of the road told him to thu
II down the box. He glanced tow
g the person who spoke and saw
masked man pointing something
him. He threw down the box,
4 masked man cut the rope and told
<o drive on and the stage went on