The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1901-12-07
: HISTORICAL
; DEPARTMENT.
THE OLD PONY EXPRESS.
Bronchos Carried Lincoln's Inaugural
Address 1000 Miles in 7 Days.
10000 0-0-o-o-0-o-o-0-0-0-0
New York SunO

continent record made by the Austria
liam mail. The old Indian fighter
twisted his mustache thoughtfully
There's something very fine about {
race like that" he said. Il never ge
used to our fast trains. They are awe.
some things. l take off my hat tC
them. But when you want exciting
stories of Pacific mail you must gel
hold of someone who knew the pony
express. There was a mail service fol
you
Don't know much about it? Well
suppose not. II didn't last very long
and down east here you forget every
thing except your family pedigrees.
1.-THE Indian troubles never seemed
real to New Workers. They couldn't
believe in an Indian massacre later
than the French and Indian war. They
heard about the Indian fighting out
west, but they didn't take it seriously
We did. Good Lord, it was serious
enough
The old man lapsed into silence and
sat staring into the past, with a deep
furrow between his brows.
But about that pony express?'
someone asked.
''Oh. yes; the pony express. You
men aren't so young, but l dare say
you were too young to know anything
about those days, save what you read.
81 wasn't very old myself in 1859, but
1 remember 1 was in the midst of
things. That makes a difference. I've
picked up pony messengers where they
| fell with wounds all over them and
their scalps missing.
I've seen messenger stations after
J the Indians had visited them and gone
on. One doesn't forget that sort of
thing. L knew Aubrey. There was a
man for you"
There was another long silence. No
one liked to ask questions. The old
fighter objects to being prodded. He
will tell his story in his own way, if
he tells it at all. If he doesn't care
to talk, no amount of questioning will
stir him to Renaissance. So the otheE
men waited, and finally the major
| went on:
THE overland stage had carried the
mail and express. Everybody knows a
good deal about the Overlands his
tory. 1t ran from st. Joe to Sacra-
mento and covered the 1000 miles in
twenty-five days.
Taking everything into considera-
ton, that was pretty fast travelling.
At first the stage ran twice a month.
Later it ran daily.
I've made the trip and 1 got more
for my money than 1 did when l came
on from San Francisco last winter on
the fast mail. The stations were from
hVe to ten miles apart, according to
the ground, and we drove like Jehu day
and night
The driver didn't even leave his seat
at the stations. Horses were ready,
the change was made like lightning
and on we went. There were whippers
or outriders, heavily armed, who helped
guard the coach and dashed the horsNs
on top speed.
1T took steady nerves to enjoy that
travelling. There was danger at every
turn-hostile Indians, desperate road
agents, bad roads, swollen streams,
billiards.. I've seen all that was left
of a stage and its load after the In
dams had swooped down on it, To this
day the very sight of an Injun makes
me see red. The road agents robbed
the coach, and perhaps the driver and
guard were killed in the mfx-up but
they usually left the passengers I'M
harmed.
THE stage drivers had enough to
try their nerves, but the pony messen.
gers had even harder proposition. |
express service. The Overland was too |
slow.
% O. @
So the pony express was organized |
for the carrying of valuable light ex- |
press, money and special letters, and
it lowered the time record to eight |
days, in place of the Overland's |
twenty-five days.
7
inaugural address was put through in
seven days and seventeen hours. When
you think that that means 1000 miles
o. horseback riding over the worst sort |
of country with obstacles of every I
kind to bar the way, it looks a good |
deal like miracle, even from this
distance.
There were 200 stations on the
route, and 100 riders in the service;
500 other men were employed at the
stations. The horses used were
brOnchos and every rider had to be
a broncho buster of the finest sort;
but broncho busting was the least of
the strains upon his nerve.
The broncho was led into the yard
A big Mexican sad
lie, made extra light and fitted with
pockets for the mail and express, was
strapped on him. Only twenty-five
pounds of matter was carried and the
'ates were high-S15 for every letter
weighing half an ounce.
When the mai! was in the pockets
he rider sprang into the saddle, the
was jerKed off the horses
yes, and for a few minutes there was
| lively bucking scene. Then the
oroncho started off on a dead run,
Ind he kept that up until he reached
he first station, where the rider
prang on a fresh horse and tore along.
THE runs were only about ten or
welve miles, but a horse always
cached the station dead heat and ex-
lausted The riders knew what a horse
ould stand and ran each one to his
INIT, outstanding his strength to make
lin last the distance.
Each man rode fifty or sixty miles
n a stretch and it was wild riding.
HE messenger was absolutely alone
a perilous trail, at top-speed, |
ay and night, through the widest of :
ountTy. y,
Any rock or tree might hide an en-
my. Any ravine might shelter band d,
f Indians. The rotting wheels and
teaching bones scattered along the
DAD told stories that were not reas-
uring.
There were streams almost impos-
ibe to swim. There was the desert
eat and drouth and mirage madness {
4 summer, and the blizzard in winter. :
Snow fell steadily, hour after hour. +
iding all traces of the trail, and the
Messenger plunged along through the c
torn, trusting to the instinct of his {
ony and his own craft There wasn't &
ny going back or sheltering. The '