The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1905-10-19
Shipped stolsn Money to Con.
tedsrate Who Makes His
Escape.
a LITTLE BOX FROM HOME
Company sostsstivss Experiences Ne
0iMevlty IN TsasiHs PiU"ssr to
Nsms u rkisvss, but Tee
Lsts 10 Eject Rseevsry.
rrom the Ksnsss CITY star.

Tnere wal pr0uooty never such sH-
other lot Of cut-throsts and desperate
men gathered together In o bunch In
any part Of the world NJ those who
followed the building OF the Southern
Pacific -raiiroad westward through
Texss." remarked Jesse Fry. travelling
freight agent Of the Iron Mountain. -
afoW days ago Mr.. Ery was with the
sponoea1er Department .of the old Gal
weston, Harrisburg q San Antonio rail-
road. now . part Of the Southern Pa
cific. In those days and to him fell the
duty OF opening up the new stations at
h end Of he line as construction
Il have read OF the poker games and
gun plays hat used to occur In Dodge
and Abilene and other frontier towns.
but none Of them were a patching to
incidents that were Of almost nightly
occurrence In the construction camps
ut tho snd OF the line" he continued.
you zee. the rin-ran Of Mexico and
the United States were gathered along
the Rio 0rande border In those days.
The oficen Of the law made slight pre-
tense OF regulating Affairs. The hunted
outlaws who had ned to h remote
canyons bordering the Rio Grandc
came out OF their hiding and ran things
with q high hand In h railroad camps.
None Of the railroad employees expected
10 do any better than make both ends
meet from month 20 O and from
day 20 day. know that In my own
case I would no sooner get my monthly
pay than I would sit In a poker game
with some of the cut-throats. IL made
little matter whether I won or lost
money. II I got up from he game with
money In my pockets II would be gone
before morning. The thieves were 30
bold about Il that they would rob you
no matter what precaution you took.
Il had a remarkable experience at
Dryden. n new station at the end or the
line.' which I had Just opened up. One
morning q Handsomely dressed fellow
entered the little shack which i was
using for telegraph once and station.
He introduced himself 10 me by some
name which I do not now remember
and me that he was going over Into
Mexico on n mining prospecting trip,
but that he would have to wait In Dry
den until q boz OF some kind OF supplies
which he needed showed up. He was a
well educated. quiet and reserved sort
Of fellow md seemed quite out OF place
In that rough community. l took quite
a fancy to him n there being no
such thing an hotel Accommodations nj
the front I invited the stranger TO share
my bunk In the little station building.
He spent much time with me during
the FIRST few days N we got along
famousiy together. II did not take long
for me to discover. however. that he
was not the tenderfoot that ! o him
TO be. He run up against some OF the
tough men Of h camp In the course
OF our nightly p~rowiings and he held
his own with the best OF them when
they undertook to dress him down In
games OF poker.
He had been at Dryden about a
week and seemed to be getting anxious
about getting on on his prospecting
trip He said that his health was not
the best and he though that a year or
20 OF roughing II In the mountains or
Mexico would do him good. He made
"a few casual Inquiries from day To
day as TO the arrival OF the box for
which he was waiting. The long-ex-
rectcd box came out on the mixed pas
singer train from San Antonio one
y ening. IL was dumped on with n lot
of other express matter and II almost
escaped my eye until saw the name
OF the strange written across u. I
too.s u into the Office and pitched II
over ON "A lot OF other goods.
".Tha, box came for you this even
In ! said TO the stranger when he
came in after supper.
That soy' he said. without much
show OF interest.
Do YOU want TO sign for IL now.
or will you walt until morning. !
asked.
nc ausweered. Just let IL stay where
want 10 get out into the solitudes Of tbs
q is until I get ready to go.
He sat up late with me that night
and We talked OF different things.
81 will hate 10 leave YOU he said
when we had turned In and were lyine
together on the Wide bunk. but i must
be getting away from here tomorrow,
This In too tough a place for me.
MONTANA
Next morning the stranger got VI
early and the sun was still low In ths
east when he rode up on a good horse
To tic saddle vas strapped a biz sup
ply Of provisions and n blanket. HI
left the horse standing at the door ol
the station while he came In and tolc
me he was now ready for the vi thaI
had conn tho evening before. liz
signed for the box and when hlndct
A. TO him observed h light that kin
died In his eyes as he gave a quick IN
II is Just a few taings from bach
hin.e,' he explained. II does a fellow
good TO get something from home whci
he Is Wy oa' In this ood-forsaHe'
CO. -.
- strapped the box 20 the saddle
ara gave me n warm got<."by. not for
getting To thank me for n kindness
that I had shown him.
"prydcA-Js within a hundred yards o
no OF the RIO Grande, which was easily
Formidable AT that point at that time o
the year. The last ! saw OF my visito
WAS when his horse was climbing TN,
bank OF the Mexican side OF the rive
and turned into a canyon that lee
down ON that side OF the stream. Tn
fellow turned In his saddle u wnve'
me a farewell with his big sombrero.
Il was sitting nj my telegraph In
strument the following evening when
received the following telegram from
ST. Louis. Mo-:
Hold box shipped By express. GOV
cred by way bill No. 3t1.'
That was the Identical box whic'
had como addressed TO the strange
and which he had taken with him Int
Mexico. wired "A reply that the DO
had already been signed for n take
out OF the ONCE. Three days later
man got on the train AT Dryden and In
troduced himself Ia ms as the chief Q
detectives for the express compan
which operated on n OF b road
running out Of 81. Louis. He informe
me thai the box which had CONF To TN
stranger and which had been carrie
of by him contained $4,000. Thi
mon, y had been stolen from the eS
pr,ss company "a few miles out of .
Louis an. was shipped by the robbs