El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-05-20
FOUGHT TO WIN SOULS.
Preacher Won Three Prize
fights to Save Cowboy.
ONE FIGHT LASTED SEVEN ROUNDS

At ConclusfOn of the Contests EacI
Cowboy Joined thu Battered Evan
CYCLISTS Flock Hard Hitting tn
Rule-Ne Punishment Was Too Sc
we're For the clergyman
In the interests of Christianity and tx
raise money for his missionary worl
the Rev. Cyrus Escomb, a travelling
evangelist of the Dunkard faith, recent
ly participated in three prizefights al
Bellefourche, S.. D., of two, foul IND
seven rounds respectively. In each he
was victorious, and with every victory
he saved, or thinks he saved, a soul.
The Rev. Escomb has been holding
r%evivals at the various cattle camps in
this section for nearly a year. About
the middle of January he came to Belle
fourche. The citizens received him kind
ly, but the COW punchers from the neigh
boring ranges, concerning whose spirit
ual welfare he was especially solicitous,
were not interested in religion.
His opportunity came in an unex-
pected way. Chuck Perkins, foreman on
the ''Star V" ranch. had been kicked
by a vicious broncho and was INDUCING
in considerable profanity. The Rev. Els
comb overheard and rebuked him.
Chuck instantly became abusive. The
minister, nervous and irritable from his
long, up hill struggle with the cattle
men, threatened him with a whipping.
click me-, said Chuck impressively.
"an I'll jine yer church,"
Big Mike Crane, another of the ''Star
V" gang, and Charles Ransom. a local
tough and bully, heard the conversation
and wanted in" in the game on the
same terms. 1t was Crane who suggest
ed a cash donation of $40 in aid of the
~clergyman's work Of evangelization for
each fight he won.
1t was probably the clerical cut of the
pastors garments rather than anything
in his appearance hat made the men
SO confident, for when they came to
strip they could not help noticing that
he was decidedly in the heavyweight
class and picked their best fighter to
meet him first. Crane was their selec-
ton. The fight was fought in a corral
outside Of town, where there was no
danger of interruption. A big crowd
gathered to watch the result.
Not much skill was displayed, but
what the contestants lacked in science
they made up in strength. courage and
determination. To every ones astonish-
ment the Rev. Escomb forced the fight
ing from the start. Crane held his own
during the first and second rounds, but
came up groggy in the third and was
knocked out in the fourth.
Ransom made a better showing. He
lasted seven rounds and mauled his an
tagonist severely. The latter won more
by sheer endurance and Indifference to
punishment than by superior skill.
Ransom entered the ring at the begin
ming of the seventh round badly blown
and much annoyed by the flow of blood
from a cut yer the eye. The Rev.
Escomb saw his advantage and, avail
ing himself of his superior weight and
reach, rushed his man rapidly about
the ring, beat down his guards by pure
force of muscle and finally landed a |
blow on his jaw under which he went
down and was unable to regain his feet |
Perkins confessed himself beaten be-
fore he began fighting and devoted
most of his time to lodging the rever-,
end gentleman's sledge hammer fists. |
The latter was considerably battered, |
but Perkins, who had at first considered !,
himself sure of victory, completely lost !
his nerve when he saw Crane and Ran
son fall and would. as he afterward
admitted, have kept out of the ring al;
together had he beer able to do 60 ,
creditably. He went out after two easy |
rounds.
The Rev. Escomb held his men strict
ly to their agreement, and all promptly
paid their money and professed Chris
fIanifv PorEinS on1 Crona {oo1x %ho;~
defeat in excellent part, and the minis
ter expresses all confidence in their
conversion, despite the unusual manner
in which it was effected. Ransom is
sullen and dissatisfied. He claims the
full if he will make a valuable or lasting
to the evangelist's flock. |
The latter is an old Vermonter, passed
his boyhood on a farm, spent several
years in the Wisconsin lumber camps
and bore the reputation in his youth of
being an almost invincible rough and
fighter. He is now about 45
years old and weighed in at the ring-j
side at 1877 pounds. Crane is 80 years
old and tips the beam at 219. Ransom
weighed 1913 and Perkins 1SO.-Special
New York World.
Cuban Dogs Experience With Snow.
Mr.. Thomas Bisket of Norwich, Conn,
his guest, Chief Engineer Robert
have a handsome Newfoundland
dog, which the latter brought north as
memorial of the battle of San Juan.
The dog. Leon, was formerly the prop,
erty of General Linares and was
brought from Barcelona when a pup.
He is 8 years old, weighs "a pounds and