The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1892-06-25

what it's for" one of them sale
"You robbed Red Jim's sheban
last night. There's no use sayin
you didn't, for we found the none
on you. If you've got any prayer
to say, or friends east that yol
want to send any message to, you.
better hurry up about it, for we'r
going to string you up in just tw
minutes"
I'm not going to tell you how
pleaded for my life, for it Nigh
not sound we'll; but / was badl.
scared man, and / think | was ex
cusable for being scared. Almos
any man would be moved if he wer
standing under a tree on a darl
night with a moose around his necl
and a dozen angry men with six
shooters standing round waiting tt
hoist him into eternity and fill his
body full of lead afterward. Wher
/ fully understood that robbery
had been committed and that -four
bills had been taken from Red Jim's
money drawer, and that they hac
found four $40 bills in my posses
sion when they searched me, I was
nonplused. This to them was con.
elusive evidence that was the bur.
glar, and they were going to lose
no time in administering hasty
border justice. l told them that
had gone to bed early and knew
nothing about the burglary, but
they only jeered at me and pre-
pared to pull the rope; and pull i,
they did with vengeance. l left
the ground with jerk that almost
took my head off, and in a second
was hanging between heaven and
earth.
How did I feel? Stars I guess
I saw a few million of them, besides
comets, and moons, and suns, and
red lights, and blue lights, and
green lights, and lights of more
colors than ever knew existed be-
fore. My head seemed to go round
like a top, and l could hear buz-
zing and roaring, and rumbling as
though locomotive and train OF
freight cars were running a race
with cannonball passenger train
on the inside of my scalp. The time
seemed an eternity to me, although
it could have been but few sec
onds that | was suspended thus.
FRIGHTFUL EXPERIENCE.
Then they let me down; that
seems the worst part of it. | felt
myself falling, falling, falling; it
seemed about a thousand miles /;
and then / struck the earth with a
crash, as though the two trains l
felt in my head had come together
in collision. And then came the
pain in my neck. I was choking
and gasping for breath, and felt as
though an iron band not more than
six inches in circumference had
been riveted around my throat. l
could feel the throb-throb of the
blood as my heart strove to force it
up into my head. Then / suppose
they loosened the moose. think
now know something about what
a man must feel in a stroke of ap-
oplexy. The blood rushed and
surged into my brain with a noise
as though my head was a rocky
coast and the mountain pillows of
the stormy sea were beating upon
it. Then I heard voices.
"Give him another chance, boys,
and maybe he'll tell us who helped
him." I heard some one say.
They gave me drink of whisky.
It burned my throat like fire and
brought me back to consciousness.
Accomplice, / thought. Why, / do
aot know, but it made me think of
he tall stranger with whom | slept
he night before. Huskily and blind
y, for / could not see a thing, and
ny eyeballs seemed storting from
ny head, / told them about the tall
stranger who had slept with me the
hight before.
''Give me chance to find him.
said, land can prove that I never
eft my room all night. J"
That was all l could say, and l
laid it over and over again. But
hey only laughed at me, and the
was given to "String him
lp again if he won't confess; we've
pent enough time over him."
mingled with oaths. gave up then
md knew / must die. It was strange
,ut did not think of the injustice
# the act then nor Of the death !
vas to die away from home and
indeed, I do not remember
hat / thought of anything.
Then the moose tightened and up
went again. You have heard how,
7hen men are dying, a vision of
heir life flashes over their brains
childhood, youth, manhood. ..all
be acts they have committed, the
ood.and the wrong they have done
in short their whole life passes in
panorama. Well, this was not
ay experience. I felt the lightning
f the band again around my throat,
he rush of the railroad trains as
hey tore madly around inside my