The Saint Paul globe., 1899-02-13
BILLY The KID.

LAKE CITY. Col, Feb. 9.-Of all the
tough characters who, infested the
Southwest in the early days, none at
traeted more attention or committed
more desperate deeds than BILLY the
Kid" He was young. boyish- looking
fellow, with retreaIing chin and a
hooked nose-not of the Roman order,
but more like the beaka of "a parrot. A
stranger would never pick him out for
desperate man, but heiwas all that
the name implies. For reckless dare
deviltry. hardness with a gun and bra
very 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 to fill the
graVeyardS. Hundreds. of times he
looked death in 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 turn
ed upon his heel with a cool indiffer-
ence or fled to one of his strongholds.
as occasion seemed to require. The
shots that We're fired at him by good
marksmen were without number but
for years he appeared to have charm
ed life which no bullet, be it never so
we'll aimed, could cut short. The chan
ces 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
him in their charge. He always found
some way of escape. and in doing so
usually left trail of blood behind him.
1t is believed that in the course of his
brief career not less than fifty persons
fell victims to his unerring and deadly
aim. His calculations of his chances
for escape were always faultless. Ev-
erything worked as he expected it
would. Pursuit, though often hot and
close, was always fruitless until he
was finally cornered and his life taken
Many persons drew sigh of relief
when they heard that he had at last
met that end which is sure sooner or
later, to overtake men like him who
take the law into their own hands and
slay right and left as the mood takes
them
The incident in the career of Billy
the Kid which 1 am about to relate
was given to me by Mr. w. H Sam
mons, of this city. Mr.. Sammons' part
in the affair will appear in the narra-
tive. He said:
A STORY THAT THRILLS.
I'm the spring of 1881 the commander
OF the government post at Fort Craig,
New Mexico, received word from Fort
Cummings, near Cooks Peak, that
gang Of White Mountain Apaches were
off of the reservation, and that thes
were plundering and killing the set
tiers by way of diversion; that they
We're supposed to have crossed the Rio
Grande and to be making their way
towards the Organ or San Andree
mountains in New Mexico. A call for
troops was made to go out and inter-
cept them. Dispatches We're to be car
ried to Fort Stanton, near the Pecos
river, to this effect. Capt, Jack Craw-
ford, the poet scout was then in the
employ of the post as dispatch car
rier. He was notified to. leave at day
break with the word that would alarm
and warn the settlers in the Pecos val
ley and enable the officers at Fort
Stanton to put cavalry in the field and
drive the Indians back to the reserva
ton west Of the Rio Grande, beyond the
Black Range mountains. I was STOP
ping at the post for a few days on a
visit to Capt. Jack, having been an old
friend and acquaintance of his years
before in the Black Hills. I volunteer
ed to accompany him upon his hard
ard perifous mission. We left Fort
Craig shortly after daybreak, carrying
our saddles and blankets across the Rio
Grande in a boat and swimming our
die horses and government pack mule,
very nfnble-footed animal that was
trained to follow, and 7couldshe depend
ed upon to be at our heels wherever
camp was made. We We're soon in our
saddles after the river was crossed and
made for the Tucson rancho, the only
place where water was to be had for
distance of .seventy-five miles, hav-
ing to cross what was known as the
Dry Hornado,' a desert, sand and al
kali waste, being about 125 miles long
and from so to so miles wide. 1t lies
just east of the Rio Grande river We
arrived at the rancho about 8 o'clock
that evening, very much fatigued from
the hot and dusty ride Remaining
there until daybreak, we once more
hit the trail for what is known as
the Dripping Springs where the last
water was to be had until we reached
some of the tributaries of the Pecos
river to the east of the mountains
which We must cross that day, and
which lay between the Pecos valley and
the Rio Grande.
SIESTA OF TWO HOURS.
1--WE arrived at the Springs about
noon. having covered about thirty miles
since daybreak. Capt. Jack advised
taking a siesta of two hours. Our
course from Fort Craig had been in a
southeasterly direction to the Tucson
Rancho. where we intercepted the old
trail running from Fort Stanton to Sill
yer City, our course to the Spring hav-
ing been about due east! After loosen
ing our cinches and watering and fod-
dering our horses We partook Of our
scanty dinner of hardtack and canned
horse and lay down to rest. We had
finished our siesta and had started to
get ready to renew our journey when
cast my eyes to the southeast and
beheld what We supposed to be band
of Indians about a mile away, coming
towards us. Los Indos' was my only
remark, as by wave of the hand 1
called the attention of Capt. Jack to
them. There was mighty quick work
tightening our cinches and hurried
departure from the spot. The Indians
apparently did notsee US until we were
in the saddle, they then being about a
half mile away, coming along On our
trail. We put-spurs to the horses and
started for the pass. touching the
ground only in high places as Capt
Jack afterwards expressed it. Sc
ries of loud demoniacal yells told US
that we were discovered, and a few
stray shots were heard as we rode rap
idly away. The trail we We're on was
well worn ard fairly good, so we soon
proved that distance lends enchant-
ment to the view After two hours
hard riding we passed the crest of the
range and beheld the valley of the Pc
cos in the distance. We saw nothing
more of our pursuers. At the foot of
the range we encountered the famous
salt beds which extend several miles to
the east and are about thirty miles
long
"As we descended into the valley
Capt. Jack perceived a solitary horse
man approaching in the distance. AS