The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1894-07-05
TWO REAL BAD MEN
Cowboys Fight Duel Which
Ends Fatally.
BOTH MEN WERE DEAD SHOTS
Sight and They Come Together
with IA Clash.

"You must remember, gentlemen,
that not one in fifty of the stories of
gun play that came out of the west has
any foundation In fact. Most of them,
very nearly all of them, are pure
fancy"
1t was Colonel George Barry, start
cd again in his experiences on the
frontier.
s'Now, In all the time that | was
stationed in Wyoming Territory" he
went on, 81 met only two men who
might be called bad men, that is men
who are not only willing to shoot when
they get into trouble, but who rather
preferred trouble of that sort and
were frequently on the lookout for it.
Both of them were master hands with
a six shooter, and neither could quite
comprehend what allied man who was
ever afraid of anything. Each had
done murder. Neither would admit It,
OF course. Both would contend that
they had shot in fair fight, and the
dead men had had just as good chance
as themselves. But everybody knew
that wasn't so.
"One of these men, Ducello, was bad
horse man. That is 1t was his business
to break bronchos. He went about
from ranch to ranch and tackled the
ponies that the cowboys didn't have
time to work down. Perhaps it was
his business that made him reckless,
and then again probably 1t was his
natural recklessness that led him to
adopt the business. Ducello was the
quickest man with a six-shooter | ever
saw, although Hyde, the other bad
man, had the reputation of being the
swiftest manipulation of gun In all
Wyoming. | once saw Ducello do lit
tie fancy shooting. 1t was in the days
before Crook had thrashed the Sioux
several times across Nebraska, and we
were kept pretty busy. l had only
couple of bars on my shoulders then,
instead of these eagles. A small de-
tachment was sent under my command
to do some scouting over toward the
the Big Horn country. Ducello went
along as guide. He knew every foot
of the country. 1t seemed as II he
could tell where he was In the dark.
swell, one day as we were riding
along we ran pretty close to big rat
tlcsnake. The RATHER always fights
fair, you know. He never strikes until
he has given warning, unless you get
so close before he sees you that he
hasn't time to do anything but strike.
This fellow coiled himself up and rat
tied. Ducello noticed him just as we
came even with him. Without checking
his horse in the least the bad horse
breaker pulled his gun and with what
seemed to be the same motion, shot.
The bullet cut the snake In two. Du-
cello jumped of his pony and pulled off
the old fellows rattles; there were
twelve of them besides the button.
'But l started out to tell you OF the
fight between Ducello and Hyde. As !
said, each had done murder. The first
man Hyde killed was down on the old
trail between Sydney and the Black
Hills. There was dance one night al
roadhouse and Hyde went. He had
some trouble with another cowboy, and
the other fellow threatened to shoot
him. Hyde was a peaceab.e enough
fellow then and didn't pay much atten
tion at first to the other cowboy.
threats. But when they had been re
peated several times Hyde got tired
He went into the barroom of the road
house and got Winchester Why he
didn's use his six shooter | don't know
but he didn't. He went back into tn,
dining room, where they were dancin,
and, walking up the man who hat
threatened him, he said;
CD you, you've been talkn,
about shooting all night, and haven
done a - thing. Now, I'm going Il
shoot
HE pulled up his Winchester an,
deliberately shot the cowboy squared
through the heart. OF course thu
other fellow had time enough to pull
his gun while he was raising his Win
chester, but he didn't get it quicl
enough. Hyde said he was white
livered.
"Ducello's first man was killed In
different sort of i fight. A Mlchiga
man named Sandy Miller had located
claim in the middle of one of the fines
ranges of the Sweetwater. OF cours
he had legal right to do so, but yo
couldn't persuade the ranchmen wit
anything bu. bullets that they had an
moral right where he was. So the
sent party of cowboys up to run hir
out of the country. Ducello went along
1t happened that Miller didn't look wit
favor on the running out process, an,
he had man working for him who wa
similarity minded. Ducello told m
about 1t afterward.
'j'There was me- he said, and fel
low from Laramie with yellow chap
that couldn't ride much, and anothe
fellow, l forget his name, but his ALA
was Bullwhack Bill. guess he'd bee
freighter somewheres. Anyhow
they was us three and couple of NOR
fellers, and we was just going to fir
Sandy Miller p. d. q. But we didn't