Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-02-15
'DEAD OR AllYEW
How a Sergeant's Life Was Saved Almost
 by n Miracle.


 by n Miracle.
 He had reached the fort as a driver of one of the freighter's teams--a supple yet pow erfully built man, whose coal black eyes had a glitter in them to remind you of the looks of wolf when driven to bay. Two days after his coming corporaPs guard was or dered out to arrest him for murder. The courier had brought in a message from Gal latin that the man had murdered and robbed his comrade. He sat at his campfire smok- ing his pipe as the three soldiers approached. When ordered to accompany them, he knocked the ashes from his pipe, quietly arose, and in the next 30 seconds had shot two of the men dead in their tracks and mounted a mule and headed for the noun tain range to the south. Fifteen minutes later cavalry sergeant and 10 men were in pursuit with orders to bring the man back, dead or alive.
 As we rode away from the fort we had him fairly under our eyes on the plain be- low. He had d start of more than two miles and a good animal under him. The mountain was If miles away, and we must ride fast to overhaul him. The pace was killing one as we got fairly started, and for the first half hour we gained on him. Then we could do no more than hold him even, with the distance of a mile in his favor
 
 shoulder, and now and then he waved his hand and uttered yell of defiance. He rode straight at the mountain, and we fol lowed We were still mile behind him as he crossed the swells lying out on the flank of the spur like an abatiS before an earth work We gained bit on him here, but he was still beyond the range of our car pines as he flung himself off his mule and disappeared in ravine. Three or four minutes later we were off our horses and after him. For the first hundred feet the rift was not over 20 feet wide and the path obstructed by masses of rock fallen from above. Then it made a bend and widened then another bend and narrowed to 10 feet, and as we pushed ahead we saw that it end ed abruptly against rocky cliffs almost plumb up and down. The murderer had rushed into trap. As we turned the last bend we saw him standing at bay not more than 40 feet away. The light of day filtered down through the cedars until he was plainly revealed, and 1 remember that streaks of sunshine lay here and there on the wet and ragged rocks behind him.
 We are to take you, dead or alive!' said the sergeant as we came to a halt in line across the canyon.
 "Then you'll take me dead!" replied the man.
 We had left two men with the horses, but we had eight carbines, and the sergeant was armed with a revolver.
 This isn't a fair show' said the fugi- tive as he stood glowering at us 'You'll kill me, of course, but I'll wipe out three or four of you frstn'
 ''Better quietly surrender" replied the sergeant in d coaXing voice. "Wc are only obeyng orders and don't want any shoot ing"
 The mans hands hung by his sides. Like a flash of lightning the right arm came up, and his pistol was eveled on the sergeant, who was step in advance of the line.
 Sergeant, give the order for your men to go back" he commanded.
 II cant do that" protested the sergeant ''You've got the drop on ne, but I'd better die here than go back and report that you stood me off"
 "Men, Pm going to count 10 and then shoot!' called the fellow. If there's one of you left in front of me when I'm done counting I'll put bullet through the ser geants headn'
 "Don't move from your tracks" com manded the sergeant.
 "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine''-
 The man counted slowly and distinctly, and everything was so quiet down there that his voice seemed to come out of a grave We had our carbines at a trail. If he fired, we would bring them up and give him a volley. The sergeant stood like a statue, though never doubling that the man was counting away the seconds of his life But it Was mui to be. As he counted nine there was a fierce scream in the ccdars above him, a dark object seemed to sail through the gloom, and the report of q rc- Volvtr brought a hundred echoes. Ten sec ondS later d mountain lion stood facing Us, with his paws on the murderer'S prustrutc body. Up came the carbinrs, and the dis | charge was like a crash of thunder. Four or five of the ounce bullets struck the lion l in head ana breast, and he was dead as we advanced.
 And this fellow, too," said the sergeant , as We pulled the corpse aside. See? His neck is broken. The beast killed him with a blow of his paw as he crushed him down" " M. QUAD