Year: 1879

The presence of J. B. Hume. Chief Detec-

 tive of W. F. & Co. in Prescott, reminds the

 writer of funny incident that occurred in

 Northern California in 1878 or 1874.

 Hume had caused the arrest and convic.

 tlon of a number of stage robbers, and a.

 mong them the noted shorty Hayes.

 Shorty, with others, broke jail at Shasta

 one night and the whole police force of the county as we'll as several of W. F. & Co's

 men were after him, searching the country

 in every direction.

 Deputy Sheriff Kennedy finally got on his trail and tracked him to the Iron Can yOn, four miles above Red Bluff, in Tehama County, put was unable 10 find him after thorough search and concluded to engage tle services of a wood chopper, whose cabin was near by, to assist in hIs capture. The axman readily took up with Kenne- dy's offer of three hundred dollars for Shor- tvs delivery to Sheriff Cushing, at Red Bluff, provided he came to the cauin, as it

 was rightly conjectured that he would, in search of food, as soon as he was satisfied that Kennedy had left the neighborhood.

 Kennedy mounted his horse aud galIopped s~ay 10 Red Bluff to await results, and sure enough Shorty made his appearance at the caOin door before the Deputy was fairly out of sight, and demanded somethingto eat.

 The wood chopper had loaded both bar. rels of his gun with buck shot and set it in the corner, intending, if Shorty came, 10 get the ''drop" oa him and march him to town 10 the tune of three hundred dollars, but when bis victim confronted him and had so fho .f his demand for food, than the sneak thiefhe had pictured him, it rather non -plussed his would be captor and set him to thinking whether or not there was a better way to take him. He finally concluded to set the grub on the table and while he was eating get the drop on him, but tO his utter aston ishment and dismay, when Shorty sat down he laid a Colts dragoon six shooter beside his tin plate, and kept one eye on the prG- prletor of the house and the other on the shotgun in the corner. Itwas evident that any attempt to get possession of the gun would be fatal, as Shorty commanded the situation with his battery, and the woods man approaching the fact, concluded that the best way was to seize him from behind, get possession of the pistol and thus disarm and have him in his power.

 Watching the opportunity when Shorty's arms were in the right position, he grabbed him by both elbows and attempted to pin ion them behind his back, but Shorty was too quick for him, and as he fell back from the stool to the floor seized the pistol in one hand and took it with him.

 Here commenced a life and death strug gle, each contending for the mastery and each trying to wrest from the other the GOV eted pistol. Shorty's attempts to turn the muZzle towards his antagonist, tO shoot him, were thwarted by the superior strength of the brawny armed wood chopper, while the robber was himself regular stub and twist full of nerve thoroughly desperate.

 They were now both lying upon the rough board floor, and each had hold of the bone of contention, the pistol. but Shorty had so managed as to place the backs of his antag- onists hanus on the floor where the robber rubbed them so vigorously in the scufile and contention for the weapon that the skin, tough though it was, began to slip from the flesh and hurt, internally, so that our hero dccid- ed that the game was up and there was no three hundred dollars or any other sum in 1t for him.

 During a Hull in the struggle, and while gasping for breath, they finally came to a amicable understanding by which Shorty a- greed, upon the honor of professional road agent, that if he were allowed to take his pistol and depart in peace he would do so aud not shoot nor attempt in any way to molest the proprietor Of the premises, who in turn covenanted aud agreed, on his part, never again to engage in so uncongenial and illegitimate a business as that of detHlning gentlemen who were honestlytrying 10 evade the officers of the law. With thls mutual understanding which both relIgiously kept to the letter, Shorty departed and went on his way rejoicing only to be gobbled up a week later by Marysvile Sop" who caught him asleep in a lumber pile. SOon after his departure from the cabin. the wood chopper struck out fir town to relate his experience to the officers, which be dId most graphical ly in the presence OfJhe writer of Ihls sketch, who still retains vivid recollection of the earnest manner in winch, while exhibiting his bloody hands, he declared,so far from en- tertsiaipg any hope of earning the three hundred doIlfTs, wsile lying on the floor with shorty, that if he had, or could Lave got SO large a sum, he would have freely i given a thousand dollars to have had some l Ons,here "to help tO let him go