White Pine news. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1920-1923, 1923-03-04

LlkEEARLY NEVADA HISTORY

~ tue udyS or Mark Twain
those eredulous people of the ems.
who took his stories of Neyaaa,,
pioneer rough ard tumble DAYS lit
orally another school of western lit
erary thought has grown IN. which
aoes mol believe a wore of It, but ths
truth Is that a wealth of material OK
Isis for other books with more page,
man 'Roughing It." that the founda
tion FOR the alleged romances of thu
oomstoek's literary patron saint ex
'sted then and exists today.
Harry Ramsey, who died in the
prime of a virile manhood ct ais
northern California ranch less thar
half a dozen years ago, was as much
a mar OF the old type as ever lived
IN the days of Kit Carson, honorable
and gentlemanly, a friend to The
death TO every person he took n ,ik
ing TO, yet when 1t came TO a pinch
he was lightning on the trigger and
Is reputed TO have quit with as many
as sever notches on his gun.
Ramsey was an express messeneer
and at first had a western run out of
Chicago or Omaha. The early . o
found him on the Mexican border.
IL IS related that he witnessed the ar.
rest OF an American across the line
by a squad of rurales. and a youne
men who drifted to Nevada afterward
declared that he saw Ramsey wade
into that bunch of armed soldiers
and shoot down five of them as fast
as he could work the lever Of his
rifle, and that he was as cool about
1t as If he had been doing that sort OF
thing six days a week. Also that he
came back with his mar unframed.
1t was supposed to be on account
of that one-sided war with Mexico
that Ramsey migrated to Nevada. He
settled In the vicinity of Death val
'ey and was known for his splendid
physique and utter lack of the sub
stance called fear. from far into Utah
TO the then thriving metropolis OF
Calico. Cal. in the heart of the Mo
jave desert. Las Vegas then was
known as Stewards ranch and in
that vicinity he was an especially IA.
miliar figure. There he married and
there his first wife's relatives still
reside
Ramsey became proprietor of a
store at a town called Tho Dauces,
now forgotten but entitled TO be list.
ed among the numerous ghost cities
OF the Nevada and California desert.
The Deuees lay between the Johnny
mine on one side and the Chispe on
another. the distance between the
two mines being five miles. Both
belonged 10 the Mormon church, and,
as occurs with all mines and camps
they had their ups and downs. Once
while there was a luil of a few
months 4 Mormon from Utah named
Phil Footc is said to have jumped
the piece OF ground upon which the
chispe mill was located. It was I'M.
der a perpendicular rim of malapai
similar TO that at Rabbit springs,
back of Goldheld. on the southwest
side of the town. The malapai was
a camping for the chispe ledge, which
was worked through a tunnel or In
cline. Foote. Jack Longstreet and n
man named Moran camped near the
mill and we're holding the ground.
During the night Pete Reed, Ramsey,
A man named Hennesscy and a fourth
one whose name is not remembered
are said TO have concealed themselves
ON the malapal within rifle range o.
the camp. At the first break OF
dawn Moran emerged from tho camp
and the crack of a rifle rang out.
He received a serious flesh wound.
Foote came out and was shot dead.
That ended II and nothing was
done about It. Reed, Ramsey and
their companions are said to have
been acting voluntarily, not in be-
half Of the Mormon church. the idea
being TO make 1t unhealthy for claim
runners. without taking into account
whose property was jumped. They
were not acting in behalf OF the
church. as subsequent events Will
show. It is related that they had no
purpose or intention of trying to Sc
euro possession of the property on
their W account. At first 1t was
commonly reported that Reed fired
the shots but in later years the Cos
sin OF the desert gave the credit to
Ramsey.
The Johnny and Chispe mines had
not been paying and had several
changes of management. A new man
vas brought IN and gave the Johnny
mill \ once-over with the idea OF
making him its superintendent. Some
lockers on a wall were opened and
In one of them was a loaded rife,
He asked what that was for and was
told that II was kept there to b. used
in case claim Jumpers tried to get
p~ossesslon Of the company property
He replied that he was a millman aad
not a fighter; II the company had any
fighting TO be done 1t would have to
6nd another man. SO he left.