Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1920-02-26
FIRST "TRIP. MADE
 gBY PONY EXPRESS { SIXTY YEARS AGO
nluers Were Started on Bet {, to Finish in Ten X Days

.' Joseph, Mo-, Feb. 25.-The six
 siegth anniversary of it's fonndinc
 pr9ngs to mind the history of the
 j aaNous nous pony express founded Anri,
 2, .ooo, and which made St. Josenh
 aAa omaha we'll known throuphont
 sns west. In Pstee Park. here. is a
 nun ument to f'the pony riders. It
 was erected ir. 1912 by Daughters of
 sns AmericN. Revolution. with cer-
 GSynies' af. which Buffalo Bill"
 Ss, Juuy, one Tof the riders, made an ad- suhs Giarles Cliff of St. Joseph, ", no are ady had lived more than his ,.;5as y ore and ten, is the only pony yas zsasi low living. The pony express ,,oas - tarted as the result of weger Ae by William H. Russell, senior R,I nber of the freighting firm of
 .ssell, Majors & Waddell. Rus / ell said he could carry the mails rom St. Joseph, the western ter
 minus of all railroads, to San Fran
 cisco, in 10 days, strengthening the
 boast with $10,000 bet. He is said
 to have made the wager because a
 company of New York capitalists
 mad asked for $1O,0O0,00O subsidy
 rom Congress to carry the mails
 overland to California.
 Kussell's bet was called.
 The first rider left St. Joseph at
 o;S0 p, m., April 3, 1860 He took a pony from the old Penn street livery Darn and rode to the express office that at that time stood on Third street near the Missouri rived. The mall he carried had just been un- loaded from the old Hannibal and St. Joseph train. Nearly every resi- dent of the village was at Patee ]. Park to see the start M. Jeff Thompson, mayor of St. Joseph. lat CT famous Confederate soldier, made a speech, and when he shout ca the word "Go!" he and John Lan- dis, of local fame in those days. slapped the pony with their hats, and amid cheering of the crowd, John Fry. the first rider, was off
 Crossed by Ferry.
 Racing to the foot of Jule street, he crossed to the Kansas side by fer ry and rode west At the same time Harry Rolf started with the Califor- nia mail from San Francisco
 Russell's wager was to be decided on the mail from the West. He was to have the sacks safely on the train here < m exactly 10 days from the hpur pheY left San Francisco The : het was almost lost through an ac- cident to one of the riders. Time was lost when snow was encountered in the Salt Lake Valley, butsthis was made up ons'the warm plains to fife l1 eastward, When the Platte Valley was reached and the rider arrived at Julesburg, he found the river away ( out of it's banks. He hesitated but ! moment, then plunged into the waters and made for the other side Horse and rider drifted far down. stream, missing the landing, and the ( horse was caught in the auicksand { near the bank. But the rider res cued the saddlebags. He walked 10 : miles to little village store, where he procured fresh mount and has ( tened eastward.
 Fry was the last rider east on l that eventful trip. and he had six I relays of 10 miles each to make in z prder to save the wager of his em- ployer. He was light and wirv. and i was said to have been the best rid ] er of the day. He was but school 1Oy at the time
 St. Joseph Awaited Finish.
 St. Joseph and the surrounding ,puntrv was excited when the time ? lmlt drew near without word from T he express rider. The entire ponu- 1 ation of the town pathered on the t aver bank, except Russell, who. it t Vas said, never betrayed sign that c le was worried as to the outcome of b lis bet.
 A sharp-eyed youngster made out p 'fe form of horseman in the dis f Ance across the river, and he was t Identified as Fry. A cry of exulta- h lon went up.
 Fry rode little mare named S sylph on the last lap. As he raced d ID the street from the ferry the lit g ae animal was flecked with foam md blood ran from her nostrils. I snt the bet was wonT-with 10 min l ltes to spare!
 Ihe arrival of the first rider in San Francisco caused like excite nent Stories were told of the hun lreds of Westerners who procured mounts and wents- to meet the ex- ,ressman, determined to race him is he, rest of the way. It was said ir ha rider beat the field.
 ID vy li