Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1891-08-08
THE WHITE DEVIL.
A MEXICAN SUPERSTITION AND ITS INTER-
ESTING ORIGIN.

One day as the freight train running
from San Francisco to San Jose rumbled
around a sharp curve just outside of tho
city of San Jose, a white horse sprang on
the track and raced down toward the
town in front of the engine For mile
the train did not gain on him; then the
unequal footing of the cross ties and the
pace began to tell on the white steed, and
the engine crept slowly up to him. The
engineer gave a few shrieks of the whis
tie to scare the horse from the track but
he kept right on in front, running with
the speed of a racer, with his long tail
streaming in a straight line behind him.
The engineer saw a stock gap in front
half a mile away. and again pulled the
whistle. The horse simply let out a few
links and went on. The engineer got
mad. He pulled the throttle open and
went after the white phantom at 30
miles-an-hour clip. He was bare 100
feet behind the horse when the animal
reached the stock gap and plunged in
among the open tis and fell The pilot
struck him, ground the life out of him
in an instant. and then plowed into the
dirt on the oppo. ;te side of the track.
Tba anoincer slyo. @ a few choice oaths
and i,mnnd ont of tho cab. The horse
was ne Grad as n door nail. and the en-
cine had left the rails.
"Another suit for the company, said
tho conductor as bc came ND. "J[ow did
Won do it. JIM"
oh I don't know, answered Jim in
, .,,,1,- way ,.The brute GOT on thr
,.,c}, and lust STAYED there till stfllcl;
him He was po,sessed of the devil, /
cunss y
They had to send to San Jose for the
WV. cllino enoine to mt thc train back on
tho raiIs and while thev were waitino 4
Nfaxican rode ale r. the road beside the
+r,rl, He n1lled nm his hroncho to see
the wracl
"Caran,ba senior he exclaimed. turn
;,o ,a1a .nd trnn hlinn "it os Vasnuez'
horse And he mounted his pony as
onickIv as nossihle and snod Off down
tha road
.Wbo +bo deuca is vasounz?" asked
Tin, "Fron, tbe vav that Greaspr GOT a
nusb on bimself vou'd think we'd killed
= GHOST
"Tf tbot,s Vasm,az' horse as tbe Greaser
s.id won bova kiIIad a Nexicon Ghost -
said the conductor and he walked over
crd 1ooled Of the daad animal lvinm
rn9er tho front vraels of the enoinn
It was Vascunz' horse The whole
co,,ntrv know if the next dav, He was
% roors old and totally hind when he
met his death in front of the freight
train and for 10 wears had roamed over
tha unoccuniod land abont the lower
mart of SANTA Clara county free as = bird
and faarad Inv tne Nexicans more than
lion Uo was called bv them the "whito
devil and if was their belief that he
was nossessed of q soul mortpaped to tho
OWL one-the soul of Vasouez. 1t is a
stranoe tale that the old Mexican mothers
tell of this white horse
vasorez was the most noted bandit of
tho early davs of California. He bid
| defiance 70 the law eluded the detectives
and SEARCHING nartics for wears. and killed
and rohhed half hundred men. He
roo,,,ed over tho Sta+e of California from
tbe north 10 the soutb leaving desolation
and death in his wake. He surrounded
himself with = band of desperate Mexi-
,oos ood to,rorized entira communities
Iona t.o,eIo,s Inv dav and hv nirht were
etnnrod an tha road and relieved of their
o,sL a,,d oft.n Of +boir lives A ouint
,,irIa,.a i, +ba Son Iooc,,in Valley >yould
ha .r,,o1,enod of tho daod of nioht hv tI,
rusb Of sonndinr boof heats tiin;d men