The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-06-19
THE SILENT MAN KILLED
LAUNCHING PARTY CONDUCTED BY
 DATE N1TIES.
Nerve and Cunning of the Man Who
 Was for n Time Marshal of Las Vegas
 Wiping Out of the Henry Gang-De- position of the Man Killer form Office.

Wiping Out of the Henry Gang-De-
 position of the Man Killer form Office.
 ITO the Suns recent story entitled "A
 Holiday at Las Vegas, in which Myste-
 rious Dave Mathes figured, l can add
 some history which will further illus trate the nerve and interruptions cum
 ming of that silent man killer" said a
 man from New Mexico now visiting
 New York. q was one of the party that
 went out under his command after the
 following the killing of Joe Carson, the
 city marshal. Daves pistol had ac-
 counted for two of the gang in the dance
 hall--Big Randayy was dead and Jim
 West lay mortally wounded in the jail
 and had wounded Tom Henry. Burt
 Henry and Dorsey the cook of the gang,
 were still at large, though we knew
 pretty well where to go for them. We
 rode out of the Las Vegas plaza in the
 
 that our work was cut out for us and
 that there might be casualties among us
 before our return. Tom Henry's desper- ate character was well known, and with his life already forfeited through the murder of Carson 1t was reasonably cer- tain that he would sell it dear. It took two hours for our horses hoofs to ham men out the twelve miles of frozen trail that led to the outlaws rendezvous, and the sun was an hour high when We came in sight of the shack that sheltered them. It was built of logs chinl1ed with mud and loopholed, and it commanded clear view of more than five hundred yards in every direction. The outlaws were at home, for sitting in the open doorway, with Winchester rifle in his hand was.Tom enry, waiting to recelve us.
 ''Mysterious Dave, the leader of our party had said no word to indicate what he proposed to do to dislodge the outlaws from their stronghold. To at tempt to storm the cabin in the face of Henry with his repeating rife would mean the certain loss of several of our party, with failure perhaps in the end. 10 SlL QpWu lO SldlNc lllG OutidNo oue meant a long siege, which would have involved great exposure and suffering to the besiegng party We all looked to our silent leader who rode steadily on, giving no order to halt until We had gone full hundred yards into the open space, expecting every moment to see Henry get to work with his Winchester. Here Mathes dismounted, laid his rifle and pistols on the ground, and, telling us to wait started on foot, unarmed, to- ward the cabin where the man whom he had wounded sat covering him with a rifle. As an exhibition of straight-out nerve it took our breath away, and none of us would have wagerad two bits on the chance of his getting through the business alive. Once the outlaw raised his Winchester as if to shoot, but Mathes only held up his hands above -Iais head and walked straight on. Near the door of the cabin he stopped, and the two men held a barley, which lasted quarter of an hour. What passed be- tween them none of us ever knew posi- lively. but Henry and Dorsey both said what Mathes never denied that he promised them protection against lynch HE dIU ldlI l1ldl III tlO Splii '7' iS barley ended with the appearance of Dorsey at the door and the three men started for us, Henry walking with difti- culty and supported by Mathes and Dorsey on either side of him. At this plain evidence of surrender we rode for ward to meet them, though scarcely able to believe at first that the capture could have been made so readily. The outlaws were placed on horses and the party re- turned to Las Vegas with the prisoners, riding slowly on account of Henry's wound. It was afternoon before we got back to the plaza. Henry and Dorsey were placed in jail, in the same cell where Jim West lay dying, and our par ty dispersed.
 Among the people of Las Vegas the feeling was very strong against the out laws, and there was much talk through the day that they should be lynched. But with the coming of evening there was a strange quiet in the town. Men talked in an undertone as they drank at the bars, the play was light at the gam ing tables, the dance-hall girls lolled about partner1ess, and everywhere there was the air of suspense and waiting.
  to gather at the corners about the plaza, and they grew larger as the evening wore on, lining up along the streets un- til at midnight hundreds of people were waiting Few or none Of the crowd could have named the source of the in but the word had been passed | that Mysterious Dave would act as mas ter of ceremonies at a necktie party on | the plaza that night, and they were there early not to miss it.
 sAt the old adobe jail, fronting the plaza at it's northeast corner, all was dark and still until the midnight hour. | Then. at the stroke of twelve, mur- | mur went round the plaza. There they | ,ome.' Out from the narrow street that l led along the east wall of the jail pro- ,ession of twelve or fifteen men filed out ] into the plaza and took ther way to- | ward the windmill. which stood above | The town well near the center of the | souare. Two of them helped along | all man who walked painfully, and four others carried a litter, on which rested something with blanket thrown over f. Beneath the windmill the party J halted. the litter was set down, and a man threw the end of rope up over ,ne of the cross-beams that supported he upper frame of the structure Mys- .erious Dave 1eftly tied haueman's xnot at the end of the rope and turned