Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-07-10
4 THRILLING RIDE.


hotel that four commercial travellers
recently sat in . circle and exchanged
stories. One Of them was q swarthy.
keen-eyed Westerner OF some forty years
of age. A story had just been finished.
| when the dark-haired man knocked the
ashes OF his cigar and remarked: IT guess
| it's my turn next. boys"
yes; go ahead. Jack" said his three
companions.
WELL" commenced Jack. fitting himself
back in his chair, with thoughtful ex-
| preston, I'm 1880 was in Denver and had
| to visit Leadville on business. In those
| days there were two ways Of reaching the
latter place-one was to take the railroad
to Buena Vista and the stage up the Ar
kansas river; the other was the stage from
Denver across the mountains. had al
ways gone to Leadvifle by the river route.
and on this occasion. for the sake Of va
| riety, resolved to take the all-stage road.
| I'VE started at daylight in a coach Of
| the old Concord pattern. that was almost
| as large as Noah's ark. The vehicle was
| swung on leathern hinges. 30 arranged
| form Of motion. 1t would lurch. pitch, roll
like q ship In the trough Of the sea. 1t
would rear, kick and buck like a mustang,
and had the solid Jolt Of dromedary.
Like all the other coaches used for car
rytng passengers over the mountains 1t
had a mechanical attachment, within easy
reach of the driver, by which he could in
an instant detach the horses from the
coach. 1t was to be used to save the
horses in case the vehicle toppled over a
precipice.
There were three seats inside, each of
which had three people, who were so
closely packed together that in case Of an
| overturn there was no extricatfon, but all
| must go over as one. There were two sea to
on top of the coach besides the drivers all
OF which were filled, making a total Of
eighteen persons, including the man who
held the reins over the four-horse team.
In the front seat was an Englishman and a
young woman, he an agent of some English
capitalists sent to inspect some mires. and
she an actress. as 1 afterward learned
going to Leadville to join some theatrical
starring company.
THE driver. who Is always the most i'm
portant feature of the outfit, was a mere
boy in appearance. He was rather slender
very blond as to hair and smoothly shaved
save as to mustache, milky in it's white
ness He wore an immense sombrero and
his hair was so long that the ends lay on
his shoulder.
Il studied him with curiosity and mingled
anxiety. He seemed to me to be very
young for the responsible duty of holding
the ribbons over four horses on a route
| that is regarded as one of the most diff
cult and dangerous in the Rockies
Il ascertained that this was his second
trip on this line and the before coming here
he had been driving in the San Louis valley.
almost a dead level and affords no training
for mountain driving.
He was very reticent, unlike the average
driver, and hence the passengers did not
cotton to him. We tried to establish social
relations with him. but he would only re-
ply in surly monosyllables. He spoke only
once to the extent Of one or two words
We were pa ssing a shanty on a bit of ia
BILE land, beside which stood a dog regard
Ing US with friendly glance and exhibit
Ing his Sc tisfaction by wagging his tail
Suddenly from the seat behind me a voice
was heard:
"'Say, driver, will your horses scarer
The driver as well as the rest hooked
around and saw q young man holding out
| a revolver pointed In the direction Of the
dog.
Put up that gun. you foolr roared
the blonde driver. What do you want to
fire at the dog for? What harm has he
done your
1.-THE young man. very much abashed.
muttered something about only wanting
to have little fun and scare the brute
and sheepishly returned the pistol to his
pocket. The little incident had the effect
to raise the driver in my estimation. and
| the favorable impression was further
heightened when the Engiishman offered
him a drink from a flask Of whisky, which
| he refused in gruff manner
THE second morning we reached the sum-
NIT of the pass The road was steep, diff
fcult and in places very dangerous. The
driver however, seemed always cool, and
began to exact the confidence of all the
passengers.
TT was not quite light when we reached
the divide. and began the descent on the
further side. The pass was scarcely a
pass In any proper sense of the term. 1t
was simply a broken, ragged hollow which
cut through the ridge at an elevation of
many thousands Of feet above the level of
the sea. The shadows of night were just
sinking from the mountain tops and the
scene was one Of grandeur.
Above us to the left rOse a single neal
clad in snow. and which catching the
earlier rays from the eastern horizon stood
In the clear atmosphere clean cut, massive
and glittering with a respondent opal
essence. Just below US extended a cloud.
formed ocean. still dark and with the
shadows of night, which was as level as a
floor. and which extended to the distant
horizon The high peak, with its bright
ness, seemed a huge dome of light as il q
giant to Illuminate the cIoudIand below.
AS we descended We entered the ocean of
clouds which receded little way from US.
making 1t seem as II we were dropping
down Into an enormous well. Through the
walls Of this cloud shaft we could see dis
torted ob1ects-ptnes assumed fantastic
Shapes, and great fragments of fallen rocks
became hideous monsters. The composition
OF this ocean was something wonderful. II
was OF two colors-a heecy white and a
piue. Ihese two coIors were not inter-
mingled except In large masses; there was
clearly defined stratum of one and then
the other everything 1t. They were like Ia
cfae OF the blue ard white, all exhibiting a
superb striatfon
suddenly we passed through the cloud
masses which left open the view below
The hollow In which We began to descend
had sunk rapidly to fathomless rayine
ard we were seen to be crawling along a
narrow shelf blasted out from the side of
the mountains. and which was but a few
inches wider than the space required for
the wheels of the coach. We were be-
tween what seemed to be two parallel
mountains. I glanced up. 1t was like
looking out Of deep slit IN the earth I
locked down to the right, and withdrew
my eyes with dizzy feeling of horror.
It was on the very edge of the precipice
that we were moving, and 30 close was it's
outer edge that 1t seemed that with nv
extended hand 1 could have dropped a peb-
bic directly into the abyss. In the momen-
tary glance had caught sight Of a border
OF pines 50 far down that they seemed like
hothouse plants strewn along the walls of
the chasm- Not a sound was heard save
the queruleus creakfng Of the leathern
hinges and springs Of the coach and the
dull grating of the brakes on the wheels
Even though the latter were 50 fastened
that the hind wheels NO longer revolved,
they were not sufficient to control tn,
speed OF the coach. and the wheel horses.
almost on their launches, were Juggling at
their pole straps TIL they were apparently
about TO be carried from their feet I
glanced along the road In our front with