The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-08

above our heads, and small pile of wal
let's, watches, little pocket leather and
cloth bags of coin lay at the feet of the
young man of our party, who had been
compelled to search his companions.
Now, you driver throw that money
box off damned quick, while my pards keep
you in range, said the robber when we had
been searched. There; that's right. Be
lively. 1t may cost you your carcass. Get
that AK under the back seat and chop the
box open. Hurry up. Don't speak, and
don't get behind that coach, or you'll drop.
The ak was got, and the driver chopped
open the box near us while we stood there
like metal forms in front of clothing
stores. When the box had been split apart
and the valuables thrown out, the high
wayman all the time keeping his rifle
slowly moving up and down our line of
silent, hand-uplifted men, said:
p" Now, river, get up on your seat. You
gents get into youth coach. Don't let me
hear you peep. Driver, lick your horses
up fast and get out of this
" Now, gents said he, as the last of us
had got back into our seats weaponless
and moneyless, you can brag that you've
been held up by single-handed in the
profesh. / don't mind telling you that
1 m all alone to-day, and that l need your
money awful bad. Tell them Tombstone
fellers that Dan Elkins has a new trick in
his line of business
The horses were whipped up, and the
last we saw of Dan Elkins he stood there
on that big bowlder keeping his head still
on US until we turned in the foothil road
a mile away. l think the rascal must
have got $1,000 that day. You see we did
not carry much money on our persons in
those days when there was danger of high
way robbery. Not one of us in the coach
so much as spoke for several miles and
then we talked of everything but stage
robbing and of how easy it is for a lot Of
passengers to assert their rights If they
| only want to.
During the winter of 1879 and 1880 the
recklessness and bravado of Elkins and
his partner began to see that the stage rob
| berries were hurting the name of Arizona
so an unusual effort was made to get the
rascals. An extra reward for their can
ture was offered, and two or three detec-
tives from Los Angeles, Cal. began work.
Several half-breed Apache Indian trailers
were hired, and after a few weeks the
trail to the bandits was found. These
Apache trailers are the most wonderful
of their kind They sometimes follow a
mans tracks across a desert Of sand. even
after a wind storm, when the tracks have
| become obiterated to white mems eyes.
They can follow at break necked speed
on a horse the trail of a man who has run
in moecasins and taken pains to leave only
the faintest traces of his course They
see signs of a trail through cactus and
sage brush that no white man would rec
ognize. The turning of a manzanita leaf
on trail has significance for these Indian
trailers As Gen. Nelson A. Miles says,
! the Apaches can almost smell a trail a
| week after 1t has been made.
After a short period of more trailing and
| questioning of the few white settlers in
the region, Elkins and Wilbur were loca-
| ted Their hiding place was thirty miles
south from Benson, among the granite
| foothills, whore no white man but they
| had probably ever been Indians were hir-
ed to go to the spot, and to act as If they
were out hunting and had unwittingly
! stumbled upon the bandits. Then when
the Indians had engaged EllSins and Will
| bur in conversation they were TO give a
signal A posse of twenty men was to
| ride at once to the scene. Each man in
the band was to take his chances Of get
] ting shot by the robbers.