The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-02-12

ing band of diSturberS when a crowd from New Mexico rode into town, and finding Aver absent, proceeded to ''shoot up the town" in the approved fashion of the day They literally took possession
 of the little frontier village, breaking
 into stores that had been closed when
 they appeared. Citizens who dared to
 show themselves were beaten with the
 butts of the outlaws rifles, all the pro-
 visions they could carry were stolen and
 others destroyed and the store of liquor in the saloons was consumed The in-
 vaders were some of Billy the Kid S
 gang" the most vicious of the despera-
 does. Among them was Charles Bests,
 alias John Henry, who acted asleader. .
 When the Sheriff returned the bad
 men had left and the town was reason
 ably quiet. But John Henry and his
 followers remained The leader was
 emboldened by his seeming success,
 even to the extent of bragging that he
 would remain in town until he "got"
 the Sheriff. The day after Ayers re-
 turn he was in a barber shop and few
 doors away Henry sat in lawyers
 office, apparently waiting for the Sher- ia. Failing to attract him by other means, he shot off one of his revolvers, knowing that when he heard the report, Aver would rush out to learn the cause
 of the shoting. In this he was correct,
 for Aver jumped from the barber's
 chair and rushed to the door of the
 lawyers office. As he stepped in Henry
 aimed and fired at him, but missed. He
 never got a second shot. There may
 have been men who could draw a gun
 quicker than the boy Sheriff, But they
 were not common for western Kansas.
 When Henry was picked up it was
 found that two bullets had penetrated
 his body, either one of which would
 have finished him. Just after the sec-
 ond shot Aver was grabbed from behind
 and hi sarms pinioned. How he freed himself from the strong arms of Henrys
 followers Aver cannot tell, but he
 threw him out of the office, firing at
 the same time, the bullet passing
 through the mans breast. There was double funeral that afternoon, and no more was heard of "Killy the Kids
 gang Aver restored peace and order in Decatur county, but there were number of funerals before the desired end was reached.
 l He is modest, as are most brave men, but in relating a few incidents of his life | in the early days of Kansas his pierc- | ing gray eyes sparkled and he drew himself up as best he could on the cot, as if the spirit of the old days came ! back to him.
 But I don't like to talk of these | things" he said, slight groan escaping him, and his bruises were painful. T l did only my duty, and in proof of this, can cite that I won the respect of all good people in the county. They re- elected me Sheriff after my first term, and afterward I served as United States Marshal of the district"
 Eleven years ago Aver moved to Colo rado and has since lived in Routt coun- ty, where he owns large ranch and big herd of cattle. On the Colorado- Wyoming border he has won the same reputation for bravery he had in Kan eas The opinion of his neighbors is that more fearless man never lived. He is held in great respect in that part of the State, as much for his exemplary conduct as for his untiring vigilance The border cattle rustlers and bad men fear him more than any officer. He is strictly temperate In his habits and never gambles. All the bad men that have eyer hung about the border towns know and fear him, though he is the last man that would pick quarrel with | any one. When he goes after one of | them he gets him. The story is told that | he lodged one of Dutch Cassidy's men for two years keeping out of the way to avoid trouble. Finally they met by | accident and the desperado taunted him r,It iao o1,, fa1 fhof he had kept from meeting one of the man, but if they must fight he would { accommodate him. And accommodate him he did. He never failed to reach the mark when he pulled gun.
 Aver owns cattle and has no use for sheep or the men who own sheep. They are not molested by him, but if he would he might tell much of the un- written history of the Routt county sheep and cattle wars. He says that the drastic measures adopted by cattle men last fall, when about 12G00 sheep were killed, will end these troubles. The sheep men will hereafter keep on their side of the Snake river, andso long as they are in Wyoming their flocks are safe. ~.
 Aver was thrown from horse last October and his life was nearly crush ed out by the animal falling on him. He was riding to Craig from his ranch when overtaken by a storm and his horse gave out. Stopping at ranch he borrowed another, but the animal was a bronco, taken off the range Aver saddled it and mounted, when the bron- Z co began to buck, finally turning over , backwards, with the rider under him. Ayers thigh bone was fractured, the :, pubic arch crushed, the bones penetrat- , Ing the intestines. Only his great k, strength and splendid health saved him z from almost certain death. : After treatment by local surgeons he was sent to St. Luke's Hospital in this |, ,ity. To reach here he was obliged to ~ ravel 100 mAes in slelght and then by F 'ail for several hundred miles. But he 1 stood the journey we'll and is recover f ng from the terrible injuries. o For all the remarkably adventurous q fife he has lived MT. Aver is but 43 :, years old now. "Too young" he said, Q to be permanently put side."--Denver h f
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