Elbert County tribune and Elbert County banner., 1921-04-08
which can be opened only from the In
side. r.ff
Yours very sincerely.
EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS.
CHAPTER I.


On the Arizona HllIs-The Escape Of
the Dead
/ do not know why 1 should fear
death, who have died twice and am
still alive; but yet / have the same
horror of It as you who have never
died, and 1t is because of this terror
of death. / believe, that I am SO con-
WINGED Of my mortality.
And because of this conviction i
have determined to write down the
story Of the interesting periods of my
life and of my death. I cannot ex-
plain the phenomena can only set
down here In the words Of an or
binary soldier of fortune chronicle
of the strange events that befell me
during the ten years that my dead
body lny undiscovered In an Arizona
cave
My name is John Carter; am bet
ter known as Captain Jack Carter of
Virginia. At the close of the Civil
war found myself possessed of sew
eral hundred thousand dollars (Con-
federate) and captains commission
In the cavalry arm of an army which
no longer existed. Masterless, penni-
less. and with my only means of live
lihood, fighting, gone, determined to
work my way to the Southwest and
attempt to retrieve my fallen fortunes
In search for gold.
i spent nearly year prospecting
! in company with another Confederate
| officer, Captain James X. Powell of
Richmond. We were extremely for
| tunate, for late in the winter of 1865,
after many hardships and prIvatlons,
we located the most remarkable gold
bearing quartz vein that our widest
dreams had ever pictured.
AS our equipment was crude in the
extreme we decided that one of us
| must return to civilization. purchase
| the necessary machinery and return
with a sufficient force of men properly
to work the mine.
AS Powell was familiar with the
country, as well as with the mechani-
cal requirements of mining we deter
mined that 1t would be best for him
to make the trip.
On March 3, 1866, Powell and I
packed his provisions on two of our
burros, and bidding me good-by he
mounted his horse and started down
the mountainside toward the valley,
across which led the first stage of his
journey.
could see him and his little pack
animals picking their way down the
mountainside toward the valley, and
! all during the morning I would catch
occasional glimpses of them as they
| l. ,ayr
level plateau. My last sight of Powell
was about three in the afternoon as
he entered the shadows of the range
on the opposite side of the valley.
Some hours afterward / happened
to glance casually across the valley
and was much surprised to note three
| little dots in about the same place |
had last seen my friend and his two
| pack animals. l am not given to
needless worrying, but the more l
tried to convince myself that all was
well with Powell, and that the dots l
had seen on his trail were antelope or
wild horses the less was able to as
sure myself.
Powell, l knew, was well armed
and. further, an experienced Indian
fighter; but / too had lived and fought
for years among the Sioux in the
North. and J. knew that his chances
We're small against party of cum
ming trailing Apaches. Finally /
could endure the suspense no longer,
and. arming myself with two Colt re-
volvers and carblne, strapped two
belts of cartridges about me and
catching my saddle horse, started
down the trail taken by Powell In the
morning.
Close upon dusk. I discovered the
point where other tracks Joined those
of Powell. They were the tracks of
unshod ponies, three of them. and the
ponies had been galloping.
! followed rapidly until. about mid
night. / reached the water hole where
Powell had expected to camp.
was interested to note that the
tracks of the pursuing horsemen, for
such i was now convinced they must
be. continued after Powell with only a
brief stop at the hole for water: and
always at the same rate Of speed as
bis J.,