Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-07-15
EXHIBITION OF NERVE
KID TENDERFooT PROVES HIS
METTLE ON FRONTIER
Experience With Cattle Thieves-Sends
Texas Jack Across the
Great Divide.

read rev days ago of the hanging OF
Tom Horn. the scout. for murder at Chew
ehhe' ana the great amount of nerve with
~hich ne was accredited" said Gen An
uFe" D Burt, at Fort Myer recently. The
HerVest character of this kind | ever knew
was ah eishteen-year-old consumptive med
icdi student of the name of Finch who
came INTO the panhandle In the spring of
i''' ana worked as a general utility bow in
one OF the cattle camps of DriscoIl Bros
'heh the cattle kings of northern Texas and
indian territory. Finch had been advised nv
physicians to leave school and take I'D an
OUTDOOR lie to arrest the disease of his
lungs, and had determined to rough n in
every sense of the word in the effort to re-
store mis- health. He was little noticed at
HrSt, except that he was always a willing
cheerful chap, ever ready to lend a beInin1
mana al anything. from gathering buffa 10
ctHpS TOT the cook to rounding up a bunch
vi refractory cows. He soon developed in
80 an yAceheht broncho rider and first
eiass pistol shot-ammunition for practice
Tor the latter absorbing the preatar 49, -
MS $40 monthly pay. -
one day Finch was out with two Of tba
r,lssoi camp boys with a herd near Rcd
Clarke ranch on the Cimaron ybar 80
were set upon by half a dozen OF Dutch
,a'nit gang OF cattle thieves, who tried
" cur cur and run off a bunch Of cows
=
COMPANIONS was killed and the otbar
Wounded In the pistol arm. not. however
umtii one OF the thieves had bitten the
aIkai and another had been rendered haI'
less with bullet In the thigh -p
me remaining four seeing no ona 10
oppose tfsem but kid. started to round
up the entire herd. Here they reckoned
without good Judgment Finch wbo h,d
peen trying to stanch the blood OF hts
wounded companion. raised his revolver
wren Two OF the men We're within twenty
ies' Oh MIN and as two quick reports rang
our over the prairie both men dropped in
their tracks-one shot through the heart
and the other plum center through the
forehead
The Kid Promoted.
The firing had attracted the attention of
the herders Of another DriscolI camp some
two miles away. who hurried up to the
scene OF action. and the two unhurt thieves
Ned. taking their wounded companion with
them. The next day the kid was pro-
NOTED to be a full-fedged cowboy at $40 per
month and grub
In September 1877, the Cheyennes and
Arapahoes became troublesome and raided
iso,ated ranches. killed struggling herders
ana stole cattle along the Clmaron and
Sweetwater creeks. One hot sultry after
noon Finch. Powers and Dixon of the Dris-
coli ranch had charge of about 300 cows
grazing In the Cimaron valley, when, with
out note or warning, some fifteen befeath-
cred and war painted Cheyennes descended
upon the herd with howls and a shower of
arrows Dixon fell at the first voIley. but
Powers and Finch reached their ponies, cut
the lariats and made a wild break toward
Camp Supply. a military post about fifteen
miles to the south. Finch rose UP In the
saddle and turned to empty his revolver
into the faces of the oncoming sayayes
when an iron barbed arrow buried itself to
the shaft in his thigh. He attempted first
to pull II out and then break IL off but
failed in both efforts. and rode into fort
with it dangling between him and the sad
die seat. when it was cut out by the post
surgeon.
Wound Gives Trouble.
"a month later. in the. fall drive. this
wound reopened. and being unable to ride
horseback he was compelled to go to Dodge
City. Kan. for medical treatment. 1t will
be remembered that in TT and '78 Dodge
was about the hottest town in the wild.
uncurried west-all the frontier despera-
does. outlaws, gamblers and horse and