Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1898-08-04
SNATcHED FROM THE TORTURE
STAKE.

In our party, crossing the Great
Plains en- route to California in 1850,
was a young Kentuckian named
Charles Wesson, rashly adventurous
fellow who was continually getting in
to dangerous scrapes, and, either by
sheer pluck or good luck, getting out
of them unharmed. But there came
a time when his foolhardy daring babe
fair to end in its natural result-tor-
ture and death at the hands of the
willy foes he had so often and 50 reck-
lessly braved.
We were in the country of the Ton
to-Apaches, than whom no more cruel,
war-ike savages and adroit horse
thieves have ever infested the Western
plains Well armed, in their way, and
mounted on fleet, thoroughly-trained
ponies, these fierce nomads were con-
slant terror to the early gold-seekers,
many small parties Of whom they only
too often succeeded in utterly wiping
out. Three times since entering this
Indian region we had come upon the
iron-work of burned wagons and the
charred and horribly mutilated re-
mains of their late owners-ghastly
reminders Of what might be our own
fate should we for one hour relax that
eternal vigilance by which, quite as
much as by our large numbers, safety
had so far been purchased.
Our party consisted of thirty-two
men, all armed with muzzle-loading
rifles and the then costly Colts revol-
yers while our outfit comprised eight
covered wagons, small army Of draft
mules and twelve saddle horses, among
which last was a magnificent Kentucky
mare, Black Jess, the individual prop
erty of Charles Wesson, who would
not have parted with the beautiful
creature for any amount Of money, as
to her wondrous speed alone he had
more than once been indebted for his
life.
Every night,while traversing the In
dian country, all our stock was secured
in the wagon-enclosed corral, and at
least two men were always on guard ;
yet so concerned was Wesson for the
safety of his mare that, when not him
self doing sentry duty, he invariably
fastened a long, light cord to her head
stall and tied the other end to his own
wrist, so that when he slept in wa
gon or on the ground any unusual
movement of hers might instantly
awake him.
1t one day happened that in order
to reach a well-watered and grass
abounding camping place, near the
foothills of the Aquarious Mountains,
we were obliged to make an extra long
march, in consequence of which, and
sundry side skirmishes with prowling
Apaches, we were all pretty well tired
out by evening. Nevertheless, corral
was formed with our accustomed care,
the cattle tethered out to Craze, sup
per prepared and eaten, arms careful
" looked over, and all the usual pre-
cautions taken to guard against sur
prise. At nine o'clock the horses and
mules were brought in, and every one,
except the two sentries, gladly settled
down to sleep, each pair Of men keep
ing watch for two hours, then awak-
ening those next on the list, and TAX
ing their own turn for rest.
1t happened that from I to , clock
lack Truscott and | were on duty,
and on calling our successors, had
merely to report, as preceding sentries
had done, that no disturbance of any
kind had occurred during the night.
Whether the men who replaced us
were lulled into a false security by
these favorable reports and hence
failed to exercise due vigilance, or
whether they succumbed to drOwsiness,
was never known. But one thing is
certain, about 4 o'clock they were sud-
denly startled by hearing distant hoOf-
beats, and looking out on the plains
saw, in the gray light OF coming day,
Black Jess, with crouching, naked
Indian on her back, flying Ike the
wind toward the foothills.
Divesting himself Of every rag, the
skilled Tonto horse thief had crept
past the careless sentries, entered the
corral, cut, without awakening him,
the cord attached to Wessons wrist,
led the mare softly out through the
thirty-inch space between the two wa
CONS, mounted and ridden off in tri-
umph, being fully two hundred yards