River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1899-03-09
BILLY THE KID
A Tale Of the Border
written for this paper
BY w. w. Williams
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= by w. w. Williams *
ar the tough characters who infest-
u ed the southwest in the early days
none attracted more attention or com
mitted more desperate deeds than
Billy the Kidd" He was young, boy
/ ish-lookIng fellow, with a retreating
/ chin and a hooked nose-not of the Ro-
man order, but more like the beak of a
! parrot. y stranger would never pick
him out for DIES perate man. but he was
all that the name implies. For reckless
4 dare-deyiltry. hardness with a gun and
/ bravery almost supernatural. he never
/ had an equal among the many of his
/ class who made things lively on the
/ border in New Mexico and helped 10 fill
/ the grayeyards. Hundreds Of times he
looked death n.the face with that steel
blue. cold eye OF his, which did not
/ seem to know how TO finch. When oc-
casion seemed TO demand it he'shot his
enemy dead in his tracks and turned
I upon his heel with cool Indifference.
or fled TO one of his stroneholds. as oc-
/ casiou seemed to require. The shots
/ that were fired at him by good marks
/ men were without number. but for
4 Years he appeared to have a charmed
life. which no bullet be it never so well
/ aimed. could cut short. The chances
which he took to escape punishment
for his crimes are almost incredible
when related. No jail could hold him
nor could any number of guards keep
BIN in their charge. lie always found
some way TO escape. and in doing so
usually left a trail Of blood behind him
The incident in the career of Billy
/ the Kid, which [ am a bout to relate, was
/ given to me by Mr.. W. II. Summons. Of
/ Lake City, Col. Mr.. Sammons' part in
the affair Will appear in the narrative
He said:
In the spring of 1881 the COM
mander of the government post al Fort
/ Craig, \. NJ, received word from Fort
4 Cummings. near Cooks Peak. that a
/ gang of White Mountain Apaches were
/ off the reservation. and that they were
pluuderjng and killing the settlers by
way Of diversion; that they were up
posed to have crossed the Rio Grande
/ and to he making their way towards
The Organ or san Andree mountains
/ in New Mexico. y call for troops was
made to go out and intercept them.
/ Dispatches were to be carried to Fort
\ stanton, near the Pecos river, to this
effect. Capt. Jack Crawford, the poet
scout was then in the employ of the
post as dispatch carrier. He was mott
( fed - leave al daybreak with the word
I that would alarm ard warn the settlers
/ in the Pecos valley and enable the Off
I GERS at Fort stanton 10 put cavalry in
/ the field and drive the Indians back to
4 their reservation west OF the Rio
I Graude beyond the Black Range noun
( tains. ! was stopping at the post for a
! few days on visit TO Capt. Jack. being
an old friend and acquaintance of his
years before in the Black Hills. | vol
/ anteered to accompany him upon his
hard and perilOus trip. We left Fort
I Craig shortly after daybreak carrying
/ our saddles and blankets across the Rio
Grande in a boat and swimming our
/ animals, which consisted Of two saddle
I horses and a government pack mule. a
/ very uimble-footed animal that was
trained o follow and could be depended
upon to he at our heels whenever camp
was made. We were suou in our sad
7 dies after the river was crossed. arG
made for the Tucson ranch, the only
place where water was TO be had for a
distance OF % miles, having to cross
what was known as the Dry tornado.
desert. SAND ana aIka'l waste. being
/ about 10 mics long and from % TO 50
WIDE. 1t lies luSt east OF the Rio
/ t'rande river. We arrived at the ranch
/ about nine O'Clock that evening, very
/ much tatigued from the hot and dusty
/ ride. Remaining there until day break.
/ we once more hit the trail for what is
( known as dripping Springs, where the
fast water was to be had until we
/ reached some Of the tributaries of the
I Pecos river to the east Of the noun
/ faius, which we must cross that day
and which lay between the Pecos val
/ icy ana the mo Urahde'
we arrived al me springs about
noon, having covered about 20 miles
/ Since dayhrfak Capt. Jack advised TAX
/ tng a slesta OF Two hours Our course
from Fort Craig had been in south
easteFly erection to the tucson ranch,
where we intercepted the old trail rum
mig from Fort stanton 70 Silver City,
/ our course to The springs having been
about due east After Iooaening cur
cinches and watering and feeding our
/ horses. we Partook Of our scanty din
ner of bareback and canned horse and
lay down to rest. We had finished our
slesta. and had started TO get ready to
renew our journey when cast my eyes
to the southeast and beheid what we
supposed to be band OF indians about
a mile away coming toward us. Los
lndos. was my only remark. as by
wave OF the hand called the attention
OF Capt, Jack 10 them There was