Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-07-14
CHAPTER XII Continued.

And when, the strangers having rio'
den awav TO a safe distance, the NOR
sitting smother Of my hiding-place the
mons came in and helped me out OF the
entire family was frightened almost
indeed, the good woman whose
nuick wit had saved me had not mucn
more than consoled herself by talntlns
away than Mrs. Mormon No. 2 cried:
"Whv man: your head has sure
turned white" AS. in truth, ! was
astonished to find it had.
Moro than once heretofore | have
had occasion to admit that ! nave never
been able to come up to the cohlront-
Ing OF danger without being pos.
sessed by an awful sense OF scare at
the first clatter of trouble, however
coolly /. might .contrive TO Jump lh'o
the middle of it later. ;.
And It is up to me now to ADMIT
that the visit Of those three strangers
rave me far and away the worst scare
Of nv life; perhaps because was SO
comparatively helpless, still feverlsn
and sorely weakened by my wounds.
Nevertheless, it would have been
ANYTHING but healthy for them to pull
the he'd Quilts off me, for all the time
they were prowling around the mouse
I Law with one Of my pistols on my
breast and the other in my right hand.
at full cock both.
The worst wounds heal some time
when they don't do for you the first
rattle out of the box-and finally
dav came that l was able to mount
and ride away, and it became the &C.
casion OF about as severe a test OF my
manhood as any I have had 10 COLI
front.
Being poor man, my Mormon host
had only three wives, but that little
three OF Mormon kind was quite
adequate to demonstrate how d1fflcule
the Mormons find it to maintain sat
isfactory majority Of contentmcnt ana
happiness among a plurality OF 'help-
meets. At least, so it seemed to me.
Anyway, the fact is that Mrs. Nor
mon No. 1, the dear woman whose VIII
saved me from probably fatal con-
f,ict with the strangers. appeared to
have convinced an attachment Tor me
that had certainly not been courted.
For all through the years of my
wanderings the mischievous face OF
the Michigan maid who had outlawed
me was ever before me. The flame
the little forest imp had lighted in my
heart still burned as fercely as IN the
DAYS I used to pass Bessie McVfcker
on our woodland paths, although | had
net heard from her in all those years.
for to communicate with home hao
not ventured
Moreover. my Mormon host was
protected from any poaching by me IN
yet another way: for while. to be sure
! had paid him liberally for the shelter
he had afforded me, was not one to
deal treachery to a man whose salt
had eaten
Thus when. inspired measurably by
a real attachment for me. but very
likely in still larger measure by her
disgust Of her situation in that house
hold, No. 1 begged me to carry her
away with me, was placed in d.
lemma Of the worst sort; for it was
really to her more than to all the
others I owed my escape.
And when at length l rode away
alone, it was with a sore heart for
weary woman to whom l certainly
owed heavy unpaid debt.
After most painful journey. for
was still weak and suffering from my
wounds, riding into the suburbs of
Salt Lake late one afternoon, I saw
a man playing in his garden with
group Of children in hearty sort of
way that inspired me to believe |
might trust him.
So dismounting and introducing
myself, I frankly told him my story
and asked he give me asylum. And
once again I found my judgment
proved trustworthy. for he took me in
rugged me up a bed in his cellar, and
for two months fed me up and nursed
me back to strength.
From their kinfolk, the Kimballs,
my host got the address Of DR.. John
son and his wife. and they used to
come and visit me Of nights frequently
and were very kind.
But they told me frankly they Just
could not pay me the additional four
thousand dollars they had promised.
for. after our escape, the Green River
thugs had completely looted his tent
and wagons and had ruined him.
So, still having left few hundreds
vi Jlc lilCy Auo PUN q
bigger cargo Of money than I was ac-
customed to packing anyway, told
them to forget it, and promised that
! would also. ..
At that time Mormon hatred Of
Gentiles was fierce as ever, and any
Gentle frequenters Of the Salt Lake
saloons indiscreet enough to fash a
1at roll OF money was lucky to escape
no worse than robbery at the hands of
the police CT the city.
Miners from the nearby diggings,
or enroute east from the Alder Gulch
or Nevada camps. were the principal
victims. Robberies and murders by
the police were Of at least weekly oc-
currence 1t was mind your eye for
Gentiles walking Salt Lake streets Of
nights in those days.
But while my confinement in hiding
in my hosts cellar became almost in
tolerable, only at night was it prudent
for me to 60 abroad, for the Green
9iverites had hung up a reward for
y head big enough to make 1t feel
" me mighty unsafe.
CHAPTER XIII.
Exit Cox.
One dark night I slipped out Of Salt
~, Cnonich Eorly 70