Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-01-13


who hired the Kid. along with others to do
some killing for him. And the Kid did it.
Sentenced to BE Hung.
Everybody knows of his arrest of his
trial in Lincoln county, New Mexico, and Of
his being sentenced to be hung. Pat Gar
rett was the sheriff, and he was leaving
the court room with the Kid, after he vas
sentenced, the Kid, who listened and looked
on at his deaths sentence with an express
sion Of mild. placid gray-eyed interest, said
in joking tone:
Pat to make that hanging a success,
I'll have to be there. won't IL
~ reckon you will, Billy said the sher-
"'weIl. said the Kid, I don't intend to
be there, SO IN allow you'll have to put it
off some
Garrett put the Kid in charge of two
deputies by the names of Ollinger and Bell.
These men, IL reputation has an honest
tongue, should have both been hung long
before Billy the Kid was born. However,
in the vicissitudes and the tendency to get
things wrong end up which even now pre-
vail in southwestern quarters. they were
both sworn officers of the law.
''They had the Kid penned up in little
Dolby jail To watch him more at their COM
fort during the day they used to keep him
upstairs-the DOLBY building having two sto-
ries. A DOLBY Jail is after all no great OBJ
struction to an Industrious prisoner. He
will cut through the dry DOLBY bricks very
readily. The Kid had once before this
broken out of a dolby construction which
served as the Las Vegas bastile and walked
off. To prevent anything of the sort after
he was sentenced to be hung and had be-
come a prisoner of considerable magnitude.
either Ollinger or Bell, or both, were with
him all the time AS 1 say, during the day
they used to keep him upstairs, more for
their own comfort than for his.
'"The Kid had a heavy pair of leg locks on
and also was embellished with an old pal.
of handouts connected by chain about
yard long. Ollinger and Bell hated him and
he them, with the energy of a cat and dog
antipathy. Nor were they in the habit of
taking off his handouts or induls ing in hi
larious card games, after very usual fash
ion with western she-iffs with any stach
restless character. Neither Ollinger nor
Bell was fool. They knew the town right
then was half made up of Bonney's friends.
They knew. too. that il he ever got his
hand on one of Their guns. they would have
him to kill, even with the irons on. AS
fact they never ceased to watch him and
keep steadily beyond his reach. 1t as
if they were standing sentinel to a wildcat,
and they knew it. The Kids wrists were
large and his hands were small, and the
handouts were old and clumsy He found
out very soon that he could release his left
hand. However, he didn't confde this to
either Ollinger or Bell
Matters ran on for several days. Garrett
himself was away. 1t was about noon. Oh
linger was cleaning ten-gauge breech-
-
talking to him. The Kid was listening, but
doing nothing. AS Ollinger got through his
gun cleaning he put couple of cartridges
into the piece with the remark:
There's just twenty-one buck-shot in
each cartridge
What are you loading that gun for?
inquired the Kid with a tone of suspicious
soon.
I'm loading it for you said Ollinger
with rather savage glare. This excited
Bonney's wrath.
You may get it yourself he retorted:
And then he poured forth current of
southwestern vituperation which almost
carried Ollinger off his feet.
His Break for Liberty.
"Ollinger put the shotgun in a sort of
locker, which was fastened to the wall
and which contained an assortment of shot
guns. Winchesters and Sharp's rifles, for
use when the arm of justice should stand
in need. He locked it up and told Bell he
would go to dinner and then come back and
relieve him. Bell still sat on a stool reading
paper. The Kid, whose fury at the shot
gun incident seemed unusual, hastily made
up his mind TO bring matters to q focus
He was rather to the rear Of Bell, whose
six-shooter hung carelessly on his hip. The
Kid made up his mind to acquire 1t. That
would be good beginning, and he hoped
for much. He cautiously slipped off his
left handcuff, slid Off his chair and started
toward Bell Bell heard his leg locks rattle
and realized his danger as If a rattesnake
had spoken. He never looked back but
made jump like an antelope toward the
stairs. The Kid was even quicker He
rushed upon Bell and succeeded in grasping
his shooter and taking it from the scab-
bard. AS Bell fled down the stairs the Kid
shot him twice, and Bell curled up on the
landing at the bottom, very successfully
killed.
"Of course the town heard the shooting
and naturally Ollinger started for the scene
on run. The citizens generally stood
hands off. The Kid had many friends, who
while not saying much and taking no ap-
parent side, would still readily have re-
scented any attempt to interfere with him
on the part of anybody not an accredited
officer of the law. 1t was the sheriff busi-
ness to take Billy the Kid. That his friends
all conceded. But it was not the business
of any cow-punching Tom. Dick or Harry
and should such an one interfere these
sullen adherents of the Kid would have re-
garded it as invidious and no doubt have
spoken their revenge with their six
shooters
The Kid was fantastic person. He
had killed Bell and he knew that Ollinger
was on the run for the scene of action. He
made up his mind to kill him with that
villain of shotgun which had been loaded
only a few minutes before, as Ollinger said,
for him. He tore open the locker, got the
gun just in time to appear at a side win
dow and observe Ollinger drawing toward
the door TO come in. The Kid hailed him:
Say, Ollingerr
THE deputy sheriff looked up, and with
out a word, the Kid gave him both barrels
plumb in the face and breast Ollinger
fell. too dead to skin. Then the Kids rage
broke out again like a volcano With a
tremendous effort he broke the gun in two
across his knee, and from the window hurl-
ed stock and barrels at the dead Ollinger
III teach the son of thief said the
Kid. to load shotguns for me-
He then picked up a Winchester worked
1t once to make sure that it was loaded,
belted on some fifty cartridges, took his
pistol and appeared on the front porch of
the building. Being in the second story it
gave him proud outlook over the street
Probably 200 people were there Some no
doubt, were anxious to recapture the Kid,
others were not. No one cared to 'mingle'
with him, armed as he was, and in his
mood of blood. Without wasting much
time the Kid suddenly presented his Win
chester at the clerk of the court who he
sighted in the throng. He ordered him to
stand still or be shot He then gave the
citizens a mandate to send q blacksmith
up to file his irons Off If it were not done
at once he would shoot the clerk. The
blacksmith appeared and the irons were
filed off. When free the Kid signalized it
by an eXhilarating small Jig. Then, at his
demand, his pony was brought out and
saddled
The Kid rode away. AS he got to a bend
In the trail. where point of rocks was
about to hide him from further sight, he
stopped, turned, waved his sombrero, and
yelled:
'Threa phaarc for Io;II,, tbo Ey;ay,