Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1900-07-19
HE FOOLED THE GANG
4 SNUG LITTLE FORTUNE WHICH THE
ROAD AGENTS MISSED.


The shrevvd Trick by which
Thrifty German Got HIS $4,000
Across One Hundred and Twenty
Miles of wild and Lonely Road In
Nevada 10 a Railroad.
when | was attending to business in
Phoebe, New, good many years ago.
said veteran miner, the town was 100
miles from railroad and lacked a good
many Of the ornaments Of a real high
civilization. But the money part Of it
was well represented, and among the
llseky chaps was Fred SchHster. a thrifty
German FROM Frisco, who wandered
out there and coppered the brewing bust
ness. He had a brewery which, however
good it might have been as d producer OF
beer, showed promise enough for him to
get $4,000 in cash out of it, not to men
fion a note or two, and Fred concluded
at once to get out with his money and 90
back TO the luxury of San Francisco
1T was easy en$agh to talk about bur
there was that 120 miles over a wild and
lonely road. and Phoebe just at that time
he'd % TOAD agents who needed about
$4,000 in their business and were hang
ing around waiting for the Dutchman to
start for the railroad with his stuff. They
didn't care for the notes especially, but
they did want that cash, and wanted it
bad enough TO have spilled blood for it
Sehuster knew all this as well as they
did, and at the same time he did not let
up on bis proposition to get out of town.
The boss saloon keeper and politician
of the town was named Lynch, and he
was good friend of Schuster's So was
4
Travers had a pair OF fine horses that
could 30 the distance better than any
thing IN that country. The three friends
talked the matter over, and next day
Schuster announced that he would cele-
brate his departure, which was to occur
on Tuesday Of the following week, by
wide open banquet the Friday night be-
fore at the hall over Lynch's saloon. In
the meantime Lynch came TO me and told
me to held wyself in readiness 10 go at a
minutes notice 10 a mine of his dozen
or so miles down the road to put up
pump.
''The banquet came off according to
announcement and was the biggest social
function that Phoebe had ever known.
All the town was out, including every
road agent in the place, and the cham
there in dress suit--think of that will
you, in Phoebe. over % years ago, and
nobody offered to shoot holes in i'll The
host forced the festivities, so TO speak,
which began at in the evening" and by
10 O'Clock most everybody was drunk,
including Schuster, who seemed to be
drunken than anybody. About this time
| was called out, being duly SOBER as |
J,.sx, +.
stairs, found Lynch at the side door with
Trayers' team of bays hitched to bug
gy. There was nobody around the
streets, and | wondered what Lynch was
doing there instead of being at the ban
quet, where had seen him not half an
hour before. He wanted to know if
was ready to start at once for the mine,
ard, although it was entirely unexpected,
| promptly told him ] was. l didn't have
on my working clothes, but that didn't
count for much there. He got out, and
| got in, and before | had got myself
fixed Schuster in his dress suit and as
sober as | thought before he was drunk,
joined us hufriedly and got into the bug
gy with me- He had a light overcoat
around his shoulders that be put on be-
fore he sat down. | didn't quite under
stand what Schuster had to do with the
pump, but before I could ask any aues-
tons Lynch told me he would explain
after we got started aud said it was time
for us to be off.
"yye drove away slowly and quietly, as
Schuster said ne didn't want to wake up
the police, and as soon as we got beyond
the town lie told me we were to drive to
the railroad and that he had his traps
and his $4,000 in gold in the buggy. This
was more than my contract called for,
but ! wasn't going to back out then, and
hitting the horses a lick we few along the
road like a cyclone. ! had always want
ed $75, 0O0, it seemed such nice poetical
kind of a sum of money to have, but
now that ! did have it / never was
more uncomfortable. | knew that if
those road agents discovered Schuster's
absence or guessed that he had skipped
they would be after US on horses. and /
did not like the idea of being chased for
a few dozen miles and being shot out of
buggy. would have much preferred not
to have the $4,000. 1t was fine night
for driving, just warm enough, and as we
kept the horses up to the best the road
would allow We kept our ears turned
backward for the sound Of hoofbeats,
and each Of as had two reyolvers in easy
reach.
1--WE stepped for breakfast 40 miles
from Phoebe. Schuster changing his
clothes as we drove the last mile or two.
We gave our team a good rest, with an
eye OH our buggy all the time, and at
noon we started again, making 40 miles
By dark, and the next day we reached
the railroad IN time to catch the train for
Salt Lake City. went there with
Schuster. and as we pulled out of the
station aud knew we and the $4,000
were safe. Sehuster tapped himself on
the head with a peculiar German smile
and said 'Meppe | vas Dutchmen vat
don'd know Something's; aber NIGHT Then
he waved his hand toward Phoebe in
farewell He wanted me to go to Frisco
and stay a year with him, but had 9TH
err business TO attend to. When got back
to my team four days later, they We're as
good as ever. ard went into Phoebe as
though I had not driven more than
dozen miles, bat everybody knew where
had been The road agents had very
little TO say. but enc of them told me, in
speaking iBaiaentaIly Of Schuster, that he
hated Il liar New York Sun.