The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-05-22
SHADOW OF THE DESERT.
Strange Phenomenon Witnessed on the Desert in Arizona
Territory.

San Francisco Chronicle: The fol
lowing thrilling story of moonlight
adventure on the plains of Arizona is
recited by a well known gentleman OF
San Francisco, Alden r. Vining, whose
single avowal is the best warrant for
! its absolute truth. He is a thorough
business man, who possesses the addi-
tional advantage of a good scientific
education He cannot readily be sup
| posed, therefore, TO indulge his mag
| nations, nor allow it to be imposed
upon by flying phantoms or any NTH
I erto unexplained phenomenon. Travel
! ing by moonlight in an open country
leaves the strongest man open to iliu-
sion, and the fault is ordinarily impart-
ed to the imagination. When mind
of this nature is iiiusioned twice and
under almost identical circumstances,
and followed besides by results which
remain forever indelible in the mem
DRY. the causes leading up to such eff
fects are not so easily dismissed. They,
perhaps. are and forever may temain
unexplainable. and only verify the
words well known: There are more
things in heaven and in earth, Horatio,
than are dreamed of in your philoso-
ply"
IL
Vining left San Francisco, intending TO
bond a gold mine, situated near Black
canyon, Ariz., a place about 20 miles
south of Prescott. He reached this lat
ter town some days later and found
upon his arrival there the owner of the
mine, a man by the name of Hobart,
whom ne had never met before. AS
Mr. Njning was most anxious 10 see
the mine and ascertain its value, ne
IaN IN,
Black canyon on the evening follow
ing his arrival at Prescott, accompan-
led by Mr.. Hobart.
No railroad then covered the line of
travel between Prescott and any of the
smaller towns to the south. Only
stage read existed. A rugged, sandy
road it was, but if travelling under foot
was unpropitious, all inconvenience
was compensated fer by the glories of
the night on which Mr.. Vining and his
companion commenced their journey.
About 9 o'clock in the evening they
reached a point seven or eight miles
south of Mayors station. Far to the
left nothing was visible but the purple
sands of the desert meeting and COM
mingling at the horizon with the cloud
less ether of the sky. To the right, and
about two miles distant, was clearly to
be seen the rising ground of the Apache
reservation. lit up at intervals by the
starlike campfires of the Indians. Al
most directly at the zenith swung the
full moon, shedding a halo of dreamy
beauty over the landscape. A stiffness
almost solemn prevailed, but slightly
broken by the hoofs of the horses and
the wheels of the buggy as they sank
and made Roadway through the thick
sand of the stage road. The travellers
conversed in whispers; they seemed to
be under the spell of the place and
hour. And now appeared the strange
phenomenon which MIR. Vining called
the black shadow or omen. Through
broad defile in the rising ground TO the
right dark object was seen to APP
proach. What at first appeared to the
travellers a horse and buggy, now as it
drew nearer assumed quite different
and. to men in their position. an almost
than a seemingly solid black body
about ten feet square and impelled by
some invisible power. Imagine their
horror when it took up a position Jew
feet away and maintained an equal
rate of speed with their own. Although
Mr.. Vining was thoroughly frightened
himself he describes his companions
condition as truly pitiable. The poor
fellow was shiverinS from mead to foot;
his knees were krccking together; his
teeth chartered, and his one piteous cry
to Mr. Vining was to drive on, to drive
on for Gods sake" Mr.. Vining did not
heed the pleading of Hobart, but, de-
termining to shake off the unspeakaple
terror fast taking possession of him.
after much trouble. in rein /
ing up the almost unmanageable horses. |
Then, to his great surprise and joy, the |
thing slipped back to a distance OF % /
feet, but there came to halt.
Mr. Vining whipped up the horses |
again. and the frightened animals broke !
into a furious gallop, straininS me |
traces to the uttermOst and making |
such progress as the sandy road |
would allow His hair fairly stood on |
end as ne GLANCED over his right |
shoulder, only to See the black appar-
ition rapidly advancing and finally !
taking up it's former position by mis-
side. For fully ten minutes this mad
race was kept up, until human enduI-
ance could stand il no longer. Scarcely
knowing what he did, he stopped the
horses, and, forcing Hobart
to hold the reins, he sprang, whip in
hand. to the ground. AS the horses
came to a stand the apparition began
to recede Mr.. Vining closely pursuing
Ii. At one time he was so close he
could alnost have struck it with his
whip, but just then it began to rapidly
retire and gradually fade away in the
distance. Mr. Vining watched il for
some time, until it finally disappeared
through the defile in the hills, whence
It came. With the disappearance of the
desert phantom, he rejoined Hobart,
and together they continued their
Journey. Arriving at Black canyon the
next day the mine was duly examined,
and Mr.. Vining bonded it for three
years What troubled him greatly
Turing the latter part of his stay at
Black canyon was the strange, &c
centric conduct of Hobart. He would
disappear for whole days at q time,
md would be generally found hiding
n the sagebrush at the outskirts OF the
settlement. This continued until MIR.
yining was ready to depart for Pres
.ott. and neither entreaties nor expos
uIations could induce Hobart to ac-
company him on the way back. 1t was
plainly evident that his sensibilities
lad been so wrought upon by his desert
experience as to go a great way in
ihattering his nerves, if not his rea-
on Mr. Vining, ii must be confessed,
lid not wish to cross the desert alone,
md. after some days of waiting, in
iuced two prospectors to accompany
lin as far as Mayors station. In his
Iwn mind, he would have ample cause :
or congratulation could he make that
distance without difficulty.
Nothing worthy of note transpired
Turing the first half of the journey,
'ut to his extreme modification one of
he horses broke down at this point
hus leaving him with only one avail
BILE animal to complete the distance
O Mayors station. The prospectors.
My too glad to avail themselves of
is distressful predicament, and plac-
ng, besides, no reliance on the terrify
ng powers of moonlight apparitions, 7
atty refused to accompany him fur
her Mr.. Vining fully realized the stu !
ton he was placed in. The day was 7