Julio de la Sol

1898 Photograph of Don Julio tending a campfire outside of Rhodes. Photo taken by Louisa Beaudine.

### Aliases

Don Julio (Valentine Mob)Sol of South Texas

## Don Julio

Don Julio at LaPedite manor posing for a photograph outside of the estate gazebo. Photograph taken by Stanley Shelton in 1899.

## Prologue

Julio Guevarra-Cortez de la Sol was born to be the eldest son of a Mexican family in a small, unknown town in the Baja Peninsula in 1872. His father was a cattleherd and his mother was a seamstress, but that is all we know. He had 2 younger brothers that were both born in 1874, and a youngest sister born in 1875. Growing up Julio was offered very few opportunities besides his father's cattle business, so he learned how to shoot, ride horseback, hunt, and speak english to communicate with other ranch-hands and traders. His ability to speak english and perform well at many different tasks earned him recognition by a local bandit gang, which took him in as an apprentice thief, teaching him to steal watches and rob people at gunpoint when people weren't looking.

## Escape to the US

In 1889 he met Juaquin Juarrez, who was also an apprentice in the gang. The two were continuously put on missions together due to their similarities in age, and learned to trust eachother. In 1890 the Juaquin and Julio, along with 5 other gang members, were caught attempting to rob a train headed for Mexico City. The two paired up and ran over the American border into San Diego, avoiding capture by bounty hunters by hopping onto another train that was headed for San Antonio. While travelling through Nevada, the two were caught by Victor Krochovsky during one of his inspections of the train cars. He provided them with a few cans of food, a loaf of bread, and a single 1873 Colt Peacemaker with 3 bullets, with Victor keeping a second gun in case the two turned on him. At the behest of Victor, the two decided to hop off the train near Benedict Pass and walk their way to Tumbleweed, a barren, nothing town with few residents that the group would be able to safely sneak around in. They set up camp on the outskirts of town, hopping locations every night to avoid suspicion. On the 11th day there, they tried setting up camp in an abandoned shack but were surprised to find Stanley Shelton and Louisa Beaudine hiding inside. The two immediately drew guns on eachother, but after a long silence of no one pulling the trigger, Stanley called for a peace between the two groups. They agreed to work together with eachother so long as they were in the area, but would split off at the first sign of trouble. Louisa cooked a large stew of pork, corn, beans, and spices and Julio serenaded everyone by playing an acoustic guitar they found in the basement and singing "La Calandria". Everyone, with lifted spirits, fell fast asleep in the cabin.

## Tumbleweed

Everyone awoke at separate times and all decided to head into Tumbleweed to fetch supplies, with Juaquin staying in camp to guard what they already had. Stanley rode into town with Julio as his secondary atop his white horse, which he named "Ulysses" after the former US President. Louisa went to the general store to fetch provisions, whilst Julio, Stanley, and Victor undertook a minor bounty to make some quick cash. They elected to hunt down a man named Reese Tolbert, a local highwayman known for holding up stagecoaches. Upon finding him, Julio tied him up and placed him on the back of Ulysses, with Victor taking what was formerly Reese's steed. The 3 galloped back to Tumbleweed and turned him in and were payed 40$ for his apprehension, but were recognized by a Texan Ranger that was working temporarily at the Sheriff's station. The gang stole a horse from the local stables, which Louisa mounted, and rode back to camp to pick up Juaquin. There was no time to take anything they had stored away, they just grabbed whatever was in sight and rode hard eastward for Armadillo.