The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1899-12-14
FROM DESPERATE TO TAMALs MAN.
Tie Unromantic End of a Once Notorious
California Outlaw.


California Outlaw
Year ago nobody rode better horses,
could ride harder, dance longer, or
shoot faster than Ramon Ruis. He
was the beau ideal of fandango dandy,
and travelled pace so fast with such
an utter reckless disregard for the
proprieties, even life, that not even
his best friends Numerous, too--pro-
dicted for him an ending more tran
possibly the closing forever of his eyes
in the cell of penitentiary. Instead.
however, he passed quietly away
recently in Calayeras county, Califor-
MIA, the result of cold contracted
while selling tamales on the street at
night. The powerful constitution
which had laughed at bullets and knife
wounds had permitted cold to de-
velop into consumption, and in just
thirty days Ramon was a dead man.
He was born in California sixty
years ago, and in his teens developed
remarkable ability as bronco rider
and dexterity in the use of six
shooter. Thus it soon became known
to the Off ers Of the law that one of
the most DANCE Gus combinations they
had TO deal with consisted of Ramon,
a good mustang and pair of ''sixes.
He confined his operations almost ex-
clusively to Calaveras, San joaquin,
Stanislaus and Merced counties,
though occasionally he was known
to do Il trick in other sections. Tuo-
lumne he claimed as a home, and fire.
quently returned, though generally
on the run, with sheriifs, detectives
or posses in hot pursuit. Once in the
hills Of ''home," he managed to es-
cape. lie did one term in San Quen-
tin for stage robbery, aud is known
to have been the lone highwayman Of
several other hold-ups in which the
sufferer was Wells, Fargo, Il Co.
These operations, together with ac-
quiring some OF the best horses the
state could produce without going
through the formality of consulting
the owners, kept Ramon very busy
keeping out of Jail But as his ill
gotten gains came, so they went--easy.
He 81 ent his money like prince, aud
gave Il great deal to people who har-
bored or showed him any kindness
| He never fot got friend nor forgavs
an enemy. That was his religion. h e
gave his promise to the officers of the
county that he would commit no crime
within its boundaries and lived up to
it. Some fifteen years ago or so the
state got too small to hold him, and
| ou hio AID ananNinu kla % l,n
law, were closing in on him from all
sides, he crossed the mountains, but
had hardly reached Hot Springs, Mono
county, when he got into trouble with
Piute Indian and killed him. Ten
years ago he worked his way to Lower
California and opened butcher bust
ness. He did a brisk business from
the start, and, though he trusted in
discriminatory, never tried to make
his army of debtors settle up. The
reason of this was that he got cattle
cheal er than anybody else could. AT
length the sto k. raiser got tired of
Ramon's mode of getting beef cattle,
organized n mob and started to hang
him. In the fight that ensued Ramon
was shot twice, but succe eded in killing
one man and wounding three others.
He staggered to his horse,amid a rain
of bullets, mounted and fled.
He came direct to this county and
settled down. The old spirit of bra
vado had died out and the man who
loved adventure for the sake of the
danger that went with it settled down
to the unromantic life of tamale
yender, and as such he passed away.