El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-08-22
RAN GAUNTLET
Of VILLISTAS
J. H. Locke Reaches Border
From Pershing's Column;
Escaped at Minaca.

two companions killed IN the streets o.
Minaca. J. H Locke reached the border
this week, after serving as a scout
with Gen Pershing's column since he
had made his escape from Minaca when
it was in the hands Of Villistas follow
ing the attack on Columbus.
J. H. Locke is one of the best known
Americans in western Chihuahua For
years he has operated the NIinaca hotel
and livery stable and his hospitality
was known wherever Americans were
in western Chihuahua With num-
Der of other Americans he was taken
prisoner by Villa before he evacuated
chihuahua taken there and confined
in the Palace hotel for two days and
was then released by Villa and permit
ted 10 return to Minaca without being
harmed.
Has Narrow Escape
It was after Villas raid into Column
bus and his wild flight south from the
border that Locke had his narrow es
cape from death at the hands OF the
Villistas Villa was near Guerrero and
had sent Beltran to Minaca with 100
Villistas to capture the town There
were 100 Carranza soldiers there, Mr.
Locke says. and they were driven out
of the town like rabbits, 26 of them
being killed as they ran and the others
escaping to the hills. That was on
March ga day Mr. Locke says he
will never forget as long as he lives
The Villistas were looting the stores,
riding through the streets and shooting
at every one who showed his head
Two Other Americans.
Realizing that their lives were in
great danger, Locke told Herman
Blankenburg, who had come in from
the Magistral mine to buy supplies,
and David Bruce cor David McGregor),
= cal hat
their lives would not be worth a cent
if they remained there Locke told the
two other Americans of his plan, which
was to dodge out the back way of the
hotel and escape across fiat mesa
while the VfIlistas were looting the
stores Blankenburg hesitated and
finally said he would go TO the home of
another German subject. as he was a
German subject also. and would receive
protection because Of this fact Bruce,
or McGregor. a newspaper man, was
urged to go with Locke, but at the
last minute. refused and stayed with
Blankenburg. Both were killed in the
streets that day. while Locke escaped
Made n Run for 1t.
q took a board off the back fence
and made a run for it Mr. Locke said
Monday afternoon The Nillistas were
riding around the town and up and
down the streets. and for several min
utes I did little or no breathing. but
kept moving. I lodged in behind an
adobe house to keep them from seeing
me and finally got out of sight behind !
the mesa and stopped at the home of an
Indian and had the old Indian woman
20 back TO town and find out what
had happened. She returned in about
an hour and a half and told me that
things were 'muy malo' there and that
the two Americans had been killed.
One. she said. had fallen just inside of
the yard Of my hotel and the Other |
just outside in the street The one in
the street. she said. had had his head
cleft by a sword slash and he had mis-
valise with him. This one. L believe,
was Blankenburg, who expected am
nestv because of his nationality I
continued on my way ana finally ar
rived ct Cusi. where the other Ameri- !
cans were"
villa Was Wounded.
8fr Locke declares that Villa was !
wounded on the edge of Guerrero on !
the morning of March p, al z:30 i'll the I
morning He remained in Guerrero I
until the afternoon Of the 18th, when
he left in a coach. with 4 mattress.
which he had obtained there, spread
down in the coach so h could lie down
because of his wound
Mr.. Locke told for the first time the
story of Lee Lindley's narrow escape /
from the execution squad AT Guerrero. 1
Lee ran a little restaurant at Guer-
tered the town" Mr.. Locke said. He
was ordered to be shot, together with
six Mexicans who were caught there. !
His wife begged so hard for his life
and promised to get an American doc
tor to dress his wounds that Villa |
finally agreed to this and Mrs. Lindley !
succeeded in getting the American
doctor-Dr- Stell. I believe-and Lind
ley's life was spared. though the six
Mexicans who had been arrested at the
same time were shot Villa. they told
me, was walking around Guerrero on
a stick for a crutch and with a rifle
in his left hand He borrowed the mat
tress from Lee Lindley and promised to /
return il, but he never did, as he was
too hard pressed BY Dodd's column. On
the afternoon Of the 2Sth he heard that
Dodd was coming and he left for the
south and passed the San Antonio
ranch at a. m. on the morning of the
18th, just two hours before Dodds col
unnn passed the same ranch on the way
to Guerrero. Had Dodd not lost his
way he would have overtaken and can
tured villa for he was right behind
him"
Joined Gen. Perrhinr.
Mr. Locke. after leaving Minaca to l
escape the Villistas. returned on April
and, on April 9. Joined Gen. Perish
ing's column as a scout being one of
the best posted men in Mexico on the |
trails and roads of that country
One of the interesting things he tells |
Of his experiences in Mexico was the
loss and recovery of his blooded race
horse The horse was driven awav :
from his corral al Minaca by the vii
listas. When Brown fought the Skin
nish at Aguacaliente later, Locke
heard that a blooded horse had been
shot through the foreleg and, upon in
vestiga tion. he found that il was his
horse which the Villa soldier had been
riding He took il back to camp, had 4
the wound dressed and brought it 10
Columbus with him when he left Gen
Pershing's column last week
Is Modest Man.
Mr. Locke is modest man who does \
not tell Of his narrow escapes and his ,
experiences in a boastful way. but 4
more like q man telling of his expert |
ences in a middle western community /
instead of a bandit ridden Mexican dis /
trict- 1t is only when he tells of his /
escape and of the narrowing scenes in I
Minaca on the morning of March 81 /
that he becomes tense and tells the-t
story with a dramatic fervor which !
makes il a thrilling narrative