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X!SS*J^I5 l. h. geist 4 sons, Publisher., j % Jfanilg IfarsjajHr: 40r (he jgroOTOfioit of the political, Social, g.flricultural. and gammeijtial Interests of the feople. { ESTABLISHED 1855. YORKVILLE, S. C., SATURDAY, DECEMBER^, 1901. 3STO. 98. THE COURIER by julb CHAPTER XIII. ^ ^ICHAEL STROGOFF. 1 with bis bands bound. I I was held In front of the emir's throne at the foot of tbe terrace. His mother, overcome at last by so many physical and moral tortures, had sunk down, not daring to look or listen any longer. "Look with all your eyes! Look!" & Feofar-Kban had said, stretching out * his threatening band toward Michael Strogoff. Without doubt Ivan Ogareff, knowing well the Tartar customs, had understood the bearing of that word, for his lips parted for an instant in a cruel smile. Then he ^cut to take his place near Feofar-Khan. A call of trumpets was heard immediately. It was tbe signal for the amusements. "Now we have tbe ballet," said Alcide Jolivet to Harry Blount; "but, contrary to all custom, these barbarians give It before the drama." Michael Strogoff bad been ordered to look. He did look. A swarm of female dancers came upon the space reserved for them. Various Tartar Instruments, united with the guttural voices of the singers, formed a strange harmony. There were a mandolin with a long neck made of the wood of the mulberry tree, with two strings of twisted silk, a kind of violoncello, open at the back, furnished with horsehair and made to vibrate with a bow. a long flute made of a reed, trumpets, tambourines and tomtoms. At once the dances began. These dancers performed very gracefully various dances, sometimes singly and sometimes in groups. They had their faces uncovered, but from time to time they drew a light veil over their figures, and one would have said that a cloud of gauze was passing over their sparkling eyes like a vapor over the starry heaven. When this first entertainment was (over, a grave voice was heard, which said: "Look with all your eyes! Look!" The man who repeated these words of the emir, a Tartar of high stature, was the chief executioner of FeofarKban. He had taken his position behind Michael Strogoff. and he held in ^^ his band a sword with a broad and curved blade, one of those Damascus blades which had been tempered by the famous armorers of Karscbi or of Hlssar. Near him some guards bad brought a tripod on which was placed an iron dish, where some redhot coals were burning without emitting any smoke. The light crust which crowned them was due only to the Incineration of a resinous and aromatic substance, a mixture of frankincense and benzoin, which had been thrown on their surface. Meanwhile another group of dancers had succeeded the first, but of a race very different, which Michael Strogoff at once recognized. And we must believe that the two journalists also recognized them, for Harry Blount said to nis conrrere: "These are the ZIngarl of Nljnl Novgorod." "The very ones!" cried Alclde Jolivet "I Imagine their eyes bring more money to these spies than their legs!" And in making them out to be agents In the service of the emir Alcide Jolivet, it Is well known, did not d/ceive himself. In the first rank of the gypsies figured Sangarre, In her superb costume, strange and picturesque as it was, which set off still more her beauty. Sangarre did not dance, but stood in the middle of her dancing girls, whose fantastic steps partook of all the countries which their race had traversed in Europe, of Bohemia, of Egypt, of Italy gnd of Spain. They became animated at the noise of the cymbals which clanged on their arms and at the swelling of the "daires," a kind of drum sounded by the fingers. Sangarre, holding one of these daires, which trembled between her hands, excited this troop of veritable corybantes. Then came forward a youthful gypsy, some fifteen years old at most He held in his hand a doutare, the two cords of which be made to vibrate by a simple gliding of the nails. He sang. During the couplet of his song of fantastic rhythm a danseuse came and placed herself near him and remained Immovable, listening to him, but each time the burden came to'the lips of the young singer she again took up her interrupted dance, shaking her daire near bim and deafening him with the sound of her drum. Then, after the last verse, the dancers enlaced the gypsy iu a thousand turnings of their dances. At this moment a shower of gold fell from the hands of the emir and his allies. from the hands of the officers of all grades, and to the uoise of the pieces which struck the cymbals ol' the daucers were blended the last murmurs of the doutares and tambourines. "Prodigal as freebooters!" said AIcide Jolivet in the ear of his companion. And, indeed, it was stolen money which fell iu showers, for with the Tartar tomans and sequins rained also Muscovite ducats and rubles. Then silence was made for an instant. and the voice of the executioner, placing his hand ou the shoulder of Michael Strogofif. again spoke those words whose repetition rendered them still more sinister: "Look with all your eyes! Look!" But this time Alcide Jolivet observed that the executioner did not hold his naked sword iu his hand. Then suddenly, as if at a given si? OF THE CZAR, i i IS VERNE. I nal, all the fires of (be fantasia were 1 extinguished, the dances ceased, the 3 dancers disappeared. The ceremony was terminated, and the torches alone lit up the plateau which some Instants before was so full of lights. At a sign from the emir Michael Stro? - ^ ? ? 1 *1"* rv* 1/1/11A g()U Wild leu IUIU UJC UJIUUIC wk luv square. Little desirous of assisting at llie torture reserved for this unfortunate man. Harry Blount and Aicide Jolivet then re-entered tbe city. An hour later they were hastening along the road to Irkutsk, and it was among the Russians they would attempt to follow what Aicide Jolivet called by anticipation "the campaign of revenge." The emir made a gesture. Michael Strogoff. pushed by the guards, approached the terrace, and then in that Tartar language which he understood Feofar said to him: "Russian spy. you are come to see. You have seen for the last time. In an instant thine eyes shall be forever shut to the light!" It was not with death, but with blindness that Michael Strogoff was about to be stricken. Loss of sight, more terrible perhaps than loss of life! The unhappy man was condemned to lose his eyesight. Nevertheless on hearing the penalty pronounced by the emir Michael Strogoff did not become weak. He remained impassible, his large eyes open, as if he were wishing to concentrate all his life in this one last look. To ask for pity from these fierce men was useless and, besides, unworthy of him. He did not even think of it. All his thought was concentrated on his mission that had irrevocably failed, on 8 his mother, on Nadia, whom he should c never see again! But he did not allow 6 to be seen any of the emotion which he 8 felt 1 Besides, the feeling of vengeance, to be accomplished at some future time. , carried away his whole being. "Ivan," said he, with a menacing ? voice, "Ivan, the traitor, the last threat 1 of my eyes shall be for thee." Ivan Ogareff shrugged his shoulders. ? But Michael Strogoff deceived himself. It was not in looking, at Ivan 0 Ogareff that his eyes were to be fixed D never more to open. , Marfa Strogoff came and stood before him. J1 "My mother!" cried he. "Yes, yes, on thee must be turned my last look t and not on this miserable mau! Remain there before me, that I may still ^ see thy beloved figure; that my eyes ^ may close while lookiug at thee!" The old Siberian, without uttering a ? word, came forward. "Drive away this woman!" said Ivan , Ogareff. g Two soldiers pushed back Marfa Strogoff. She drew back, but remained t( standing some paces distant from her son. The executioner appeared. This time he held his naked sword in bis hand. . That sword, heated to a white heat, he had just drawn from the iron pan a where the perfumed coals were burning. Michael Strogoff was about to be made blind according to the Tartar custom, with a heated blade passed over ^ his eyes! e Michael Strogoff did not seek to resist. Nothing else existed in his eyes ll than his mother, whom he devoured A then with his look. All his life was in it this last vision. e Marfa Strogoff. with her eyes wide A open and her arms stretched toward b him, was looking at him. The white heated blade passed over C the eyes of Michael Strogoff. n A loud cry of despair was heard. Old e Marfa fell lifeless to the earth! E Michael Strogoff was blind. Is His orders having been executed, the n emir retired with all his household. o Soon there only remained on the pla- v teau Ivan Ogareff and the torcbbear- b ers. t: Did the miserable wretch wish to in- a suit hiin still more and after the ex- t( ecutloner give him the last blow? v Ivan Ogareff slowly approached Ml- a ?hael Strogoff. who heard him coming e and at once straightened himself. Ivan Ogareff drew from his pocket ^ the emperor's letter. He opened it and j, as the last insult placed it before the c eyes of the courier of the czar, before t those eyes whose light bad been bru- v tally extinguished forever, saying nt r, the same time: t "Read now, Michael Strogoff; read ^ and go and repeat at Irkutsk what you c shall have read. The true courier of v the czar is myself!" s Having said this, the traitor placed j the letter in his breast. Thou, without f turning round, he left the place, and j. me torcuoearers iouowcu uuu. Michael Strogoff remained alone. ' Dome paces from his mother, who was lifeless, perhaps dead. One heard at a distance the cries, the songs, all the noise of the orgies. Tomsk was illuminated and was bright as a city during a great feast. Michael Strogoff listened. The scene f of the late revels and crime was silent r aud deserted. c He dragged himself by groping toward the place where his mother had fallen. He found her with his hand. e lie bent down toward her. He brought 1 his figure near to hers. He listened { to the beatings of her heart. Then one ' would have said'tbat he spoke to her 1 in a low voice. * Did old Marfa still live and did she i hear the words Uit son spoke to her? < In any case she did not make any i sign of life by movement. t Michael Strogoff kissed her forehead 1 ind her white hairs. Then he rose, md, groping with his foot and trying to hold his hands in such a way as to guide him, he walked by little and little to the end of the plateau. Suddenly Nadia appeared. She went straight to her companion. t A. dagger that she held served to cut the cords that bound the arms of Michael Strogoff. ? He, blind as he was, did not know , who It was who was releasing him, for STadia had not spoken a word. But, that done, said she: "Brother!" "Nadia," murmured Michael StrogofT ( Nadia!" "Come, brother," replied Nadia. 1 'Henceforth my eyes shall be your > iyes, HDU 11 IS I WLIU win iuiiuui i jv>u ;o Irkutsk!" In half an hour after Michael Stro- 1 joff and Nadia had left Tomsk. j A certain uumber of the prisoners ou :hat night were able to escape from tlie ? Tartars, for officers and soldiers, all nore or less besotted, bad uuconscious- ^ y relaxed the severe surveillance which hey had maintained up to that time. )otb at the camp of Zabedeiro aud dor ng the march of the convoy. ^ Nadia. after having been led out vitli the other prisoners, had beou able A .0 escape aud return to the plateau at ^ he very moment Michael Stroguff was jeing conducted before the emir. / There in the midst of the crowd she tad seen all. Not a cry had escaped ler when the blade, white with heat, g >assed over the eyes of her compauion. She had the strength to remain motioness and silent. A providential inspira- E Ion told her to preserve herself still ^ ree to guide the son of Marfa Strogoff 0 the end which he had sworn to at- A aln. Her heart for the moment ceased 0 beat wheu the old Siberian fell lifeess, but a thought soon restored all " ler energy. "I will be the dog of the blind man." g ihe said to herself. After the departure of Ivan Ogarefif " s'adia had hidden in the shade. She vaited until the crowds left the pla- ? eau. Michael Strogoff. abandoned as 1 miserable being to bo feared by no ne, was alone. She saw him drag himelf as far as his mother, bend himelf down to her, kiss her forehead, hen raise himself up and grope for light. 0 Some moments later Michael and Nalla, hand in hand, had descended the teep hillside, and. after having folowed the banks of the Tom as far as ^ he extremity of the towu, they hapilly passed out by a gap In the fence. t( The route for Irkutsk was the only ne that struck eastward. They could n iot make a mistake. Nadia rapidly pull- u d along Michael Strogoff. It was possi- a ile that early next morning, after some iours of orgies, the scouts of the emir, si hrowing themselves again on the h teppe, would cut off all communica- e: ion. It was then of the utmost im- y ortance to outstrip them and to reach Crasnoiarsk before them, which was i 00 versts separate from Tomsk?in a ne word, only to leave the highway as ti ite as possible. The next morning, twelve hours after n heir departure from Tomsk, Michael Itrogoff and Nadla reached the town tJ f Semilowskoe, after a journey of flf- h een versts. w TO BE CONTINUED. j ei THE MOON AND THE WEATHER. Si .ttempta to Bate Weather Predlc- f' tlonn Upon Snpponed Lnnnr In01 flnencea. Some persons still believe that the nr reather Is controlled, to an Important y xtent, by the Influence of the moon or a fie planets. Long-range weather preictlons, based upon this supposed in- i uence, are published, apparently And- tl ig a considerable number of bellev- p rs. or It would not pay to print them. f< nother experiment of this sort is now tl eing tried In Russia. During the past year a journal called tl 'llmat has been published every two oi lonths at St. Petersburg. It Is print- tl d in English, German, French and rr tussian under the editorship of Mr. llcolia Demtschinsky. The earlier 01 umbers were devoted to predictions fl f the weather for a long time in ad- w ance by means of certain deductions h ased upon the alleged influence of ts he moon. The publication of these si rticles seem to have revived some in- rr rest in the mater. The predicitions 01 ,-ere made to include places as far way as Aberdeen, Scotland, and Val- rr ncia. Spain. a Dr. H. R. Mill, the editor of Symons's t( fonthly Meteorological Magazine has rr List subjected the predicted weather d onditions for Aberdeen and Valencia o the test of comparison with the ti /eather actually observed at those A laces. The results are disastrous for L he predictions. He found, as was 1o ie expected, that 'practically the fore- f< asts as a whole would appear to be o alueless" as far at least as those two tl fations are concerned. A note in The fi bulletin of the American Geographical tl Society says that, as far as the writer d las observed, this is the only pubIshed comparison of predictions with s< he facts of observed weather. r It cannot be said that any note- li sorthy results have yet been attained v rom the efforts of many persons to v race the supposed influence of the tl noon upon weather. Dr. Hann, in his rreat work on "Kllmatoligie" makes ti io allusion to the matter. Prof. Davis t ?f Harvard, in His "Elementary a ileteorology" says: "The control of b he weather by the moon or the plan- o (ts still occasionally finds enough be- d ievers to support the publication of d daborate long-range weather predic- n ions. As these are couched in general t anguage and intended to be applica- g de to large areas of the country it is t iot at all difficult to gather a number h if verifications for them; but they are io better than the forgotten predic- t ions of astrology of centuries ago."? g STew York Sun. 1 |Ui5fctlancous fUadittg. the: modern school teacher. Twas Saturday night, and a teacher sat Alone, her task pursuing; She averaged this and she averaged that, Of all that her class was doing. 5he reckoned percentage so many boys, And so many girls all counted, tnd marked all the tardy absentees, And to what all the absence amounted. Barnes and residences wrote in full, Over many columns and pages; Canadian, Teutonic, African, Celt, And averaged all their ages. :ne aaie or aamission or every one, And cases of flagellation, Ind prepared a list of graduates For the county examination. ler weary head sank low on her book, And her weary heart still lower; i'or some of her pupils had little brains And she could not furnish more, !he slept, she dreamed, it seemed she died, And her spirit went to Hades, Lnd they met her there with a question fair, "State what the per cent, of your grade is!" iges but slowly rolled away. Leaving but partial traces, tnd the teacher's spirit walked one day In the old familiar places. l mound of fossilized school reports Attracted her observation, is high as the state house dome, and as wide As Boston since annextion. he came to the spot where they buried her bones And the ground was well built over; tut laborers digging threw a skull Once planted beneath the clover. l disciple of Galen, wandering by, Paused to look at the diggers, Lnd plucking the skull up, looked through the eye And saw it was lined with figures. Just as I thought," said the young M. D. "How easy it is to kill 'em! tatlstics ossified every fold Of cerebrum and cerebellum." It's a great curiosity, sure," said Pat, "By the bones you can tell the creature!" O, nothing strange," said the doctor, "that was a nineteenth century teacher." ?Chicago Tribune. PONY EXPRESS'S BOLD RIDERS. >1(1 Record* Made In Carrying the , Pacific Mall. The men were talking of the crossontinent record made by the Austra- ' an mail. The old Indian fighter twis- , ;d his mustache thoughtfully. "There's something very fine about a ice like that," he said. "I never get sed to our fast trains. They are wesome things. I take off my hat to ' lem. But wlfen you want exciting tories of Pacific mail you must get old of some one who knew the pony ftpress. There was a mail service for ou. "Don't know much about it? Well, suppose not. It didn't last very long, ' nd down East here you forget every- ^ ilng except your family pedigrees. [ "The Indian troubles never seemed ;al to New Yorkers. They couldn't ' elleve in an Indian massacre later lan the French and Indian war. They eard about the Indian fighting out 1 est: but they didn't take it serious- ^ r. We did. Good Lord, it was serious ( nough!" The old man lapsed into silence and it staring into the past, with a deep arrow between his brows. "But about that pony express," some ^ ne asked. "Oh, yes: the pony express. You ! len aren't so young: but I dare say ' ou were too young to know anything bout those days, save what you read. ' "I wasn't very old myself in 1859; but remember. I was in the midst of lings. That makes a difference. I've j [eked up pony messengers where they ill with wounds all over them and j lelr scalps missing. "I've seen messenger stations after ie Indians had visited them and gone n. One doesn't forget that sort of ) lings. I knew Aubrey. There was a lan for you!" There was another long silence. No ' ne liked to ask questions. The old ghter objects to being prodded. He 1 ill tell his story in his own way, if 1 e tells it at all. If he doesn't care to 1 ilk, no amount of questioning will 1 tir him to reminiscence. So the other 1 len waited, and finally the major went n. I "The overland stage had carried the ' lail and express. Everybody knows good deal about the Overland's his- > iry. It ran from St. Joe to Sacra- I lento and covered the 2,000 miles in 25 1 ays. i "Taking everything into considera- ' on, that was pretty fast traveling, t first the stage ran twice a month. < .ater it ran daily. i "I've made the trip and I got more ; ir my money than I did when I came n from San Francisco last winter on tie fast mail. The stations were from ve to ten miles apart, according to tie ground, and we drove like Jehu, ay and night. "The driver didn't even leave his eat at the stations. Horses were eady, the change was made like ghtning and on we went. There were ,-flippers or outriders, heavily armed, ho helped guard the coach and lashed he horses to top speed. "Tf otooHv nnn'OQ tn onlnv thnt raveling. There was danger at every urn?hostile Indians, desperado road gents, bad roads, swollen streams, lizzards. "I've seen all that was left f a stage and its load after the Inians had swooped down on it. To this ay the very sight of an Injun makes ie see red. The road agents robbed he coach, and perhaps the driver and uard were killed in the mixup, but hey usually left the passengers unarmed. "The stage drivers had enough to ry their nerves; but the pony messeners had even a harder proposition, 'here was need of faster mail and ex press service. The Overland was too slow. "So the pony express was organized for the carrying of valuable light express, money and special letters, and it lowered the time record to eight days, in place of the Overland's 25 days. "One pony express carrying Lincoln's inaugural address was put through in seven days and seventeen hours. When you think that that means 2,000 miles of horseback riding over the worst sort of country and with obstacles of every kind to bar the way. it looks a good deal like a miracle, even from this distance. "There were 200 stations on the route, and 100 riders in the service; 500 other men were employed at the stations, v The horses used were broncos and t every rider had to be a bronco buster c of the finest sort; but bronco buster t was the least of the strains upon his t nerve. "The bronco was led Into the yard, t blindfolded. A big Mexican saddle, i made extra light and fitted with pock- 1 ets for the mall and express, was strap- r ped on him. Only 25 pounds of matter t was carried and the rates were high? t $15 for every letter weighing half an a ounce. 1 "When the mall was In the pockets the rider sprang Into the saddle, the 1 bandage was jerked off the horse's s eyes, and for a few minutes there was ^ a lively bucking seance. Then the f bronco started off on a dead run, and ^ he kept that run up until he reached 1 the first station, where the rider sprang ^ on a fresh horse and tore along. "The runs were only about 10 or 12 miles; but a horse always reached the 1 station dead beat and exhausted. The 8 riders knew what a horse could stand and ran each one .o his limit, hus- v banding his strength to make him last the distance. "Each man rode 50 or 60 miies on a J stretch and it was wild riding. The messenger was absolutely alone, fol- ' lowing a perilous trail, at top speed, day and night, through the wildest of 0 country. "Any rock or tree might hide an ene- ? my. Any ravine might shelter a band of Indians. The rotting wheels and bleaching bones scattered along the v road told stories that were not reas- 1 suring. c "There were streams almost impos- n slble to swim. There was the desert q heat and drought and mirage madness h In summer, and the blizzard In winter. b "Snow fell steadily, hour after hour, j, hiding all trace of the trail, and the n messenger plunged along through the a Btorm. trusting to the Instinct of his pony and his own craft. There wasn't t any going back or sheltering. The a moll tva a in trn tVimn<rV> nn or>VioHnln time. e "It was a common enough thing for r messenger and pony to ride off a precl- n pice In the blinding storm. Sometimes e they fell on soft snow, piled In the y ravine below and were not hurt, e There were scores of escapes fairly o miraculous. Sometimes no one knew what had become of the messenger until the searchers found him and his pony burled In the snow. n "Several times the pony In his plunging after the fall broke the rider's arm or legs. One man rode Into a station after such an experience with his hip ^ dislocated and one arm broken; %ut j, with the mall safe. j 'The Indians got a number of the t) boys; but the latter died game, and a good many of the messengers led the d Indians wild chases and came out all ^ right after hairbreadth escapes. You ]( see, a messenger would leave the trail u to avoid Indians, and then he had the r devil's own time hiding among the u mountains, starving, desperate, expect- f( Ing at any moment to see a painted face peering at him, or get an arrow p In the back and feel the scalping knife d run around his head. g "I wonder whether there would be j, men of this generation to take the job. We've become what Jim Bridger used p to call 'too doggone civilized fer p grit.' i "Did I ever tell you about Bridger? e Oh, well, he wasn't a pony messenger, a and I never knew him myself; but he i< ivas a great old fellow. I'd like to write c a story of the scouts. Nobody has a sver done them justice. o "But coming back to the express bus- tl Iness there was Aubrey. He was what u nowadays you'd call the real thing, b He started out with the mall one night, & and when he reached the end of his li ride, found the man who was to take g his place had been killed by Indians t; and the country ahead was swarming t with Indians on the warpath. n "He was pretty well used up after his a SO mile run; but he shifted the mail to c a fresh horse, mounted and went v ahead, leading an extra horse. He v knew there was little or no chance of s his striking the next few stations for t he couldn't keep to the road, and then s the probabilities were that the Indians 2< had already wiped out the stations. "So he struck off the trail and made k his way ahead as best he could, al- h most stumbling over bands of Indians b Uma a PfOf Hmo Mdtrifr and holdine f1 his breath to let the red devils pass P him, riding1 like mad over country d where nothing but a messenger pony P could have scrambled. h "He hadn't any food. He didn't ^ sleep. He faced death hour after hour; 1' but he covered 800 miles in five days a and thirteen hours, and rode into the h station with his mail and express in- f' tact. They had to lift him from the t< saddle. It was months before he could 1 walk. v "That was just one story. There are h plenty more. Many a time a man rode s until he was so exhausted that he d hadn't strength enough to dismount, ii yet found that the man who was to relieve him was laid off by death or t accident, and that he must go on. Of- g ten the messenger was too weak to n dismount and mount again. s 'The station men lifted saddle, rider, b jags and all bodily and set them on a Yesh horse. The messenger who could r lot have stood on his feet for a moment c iwallowed the liquor poured down his s hroat, set his teeth, gripped the sadlie with his knees and turned his fresh s ironco loose. Death and worse than p leath might be lying In wait; but the o nail must go on If there was a chance s >f getting It through. v "Fifteen dollars a half ounce wasn't r oo big a price for that sort of mail A lurrying. Even at those rates the pony n sxpress didn't pay. It was dlscontln- t led; and afterward, the first telegraph b lne followed the pony route. r "You know the Indians cut the first r vires down and made trinkets of t hem; but, luckily, a smallpox epl- d lemlc broke out and the tribes thought * he wire ornaments brought It on, so 8 hey didn't fool with the next wires. 1 "Then when part of the line was up, a wo bands of Indians were induced to a ise it and arranged a rendezvous. g rhey trotted off sceptically, to the 0 dace of meeting; and, when they met b heir friends there and found the 'long ** alk' was a square deal, they developed * l tremendous respect for the telegraph c Ine. "Most of the pony messengers went nto the overland stage service, and b ome of them did great stunts as stag<> w [rivers. There was one fellow. I have b orgotten his name; but he used to Irive a stage off the road, to avoid y ndlans or road agents, and follow un- T roken trail as cheerfully as If he had een alone on a bronco. 0 "He could drive a stage wherever Cl here was ground under Its wheels, b ,nd he squeezed out of more tight v ides than any one man in the ser- ^ ice. ei "A lot of the old messengers came to " rief In the 1864 massacre, when the ,r lostile tribes were allied against the a )verland. That was the only time w n history when the Sioux, Arapahoes, tl Jheyennes, Utes, Snakes?the whole utfit?got together. "They made simultaneous attacks all B tl .long the stage line from St. Louis to (alt Lake; raided the stations, held up a he stages, massacred travelers, dri- n ers, guards. It was in August, and " ravel was heavy. "The Indians had a royal time and 11 arried off great bunches of scalps and r< nillions of dollars' worth of booty. z< 'hey were so well satisfied that they :ept quiet for a long time after that; d iut the Overland service was para- C) yzed for months, and even the govern- a (lent mails couldn't be carried for c .while. g "I've often thought that a story of e he brave deeds that have been done 11 11 over the world In order that let- ? ers and despatches might be deliver- a d safely would be the most exciting ^ eading imaginable. Our own army t( nessengers, in Indian days, furnish- p d enough stories for a book; but if I - ere doing the writing I'd put the pony e' xpress messengers in a place of hon- ? r."?New York Sun. n . t g ARIZONA'S BAD MEN MUST GO. S lj lurt Moanman and Twelve Intrep- n' Ida to Hunt Down a Band of Dea- H perate Ontlawa. P S( The Arizona "bad man" must go. . 'hat is the verdict of the Arizona leg- cj fiature, and that body has selected ^ turt Mossman and 12 Intrepid rangers o enforce the edict. tl Mossman and his band will have a angerous duty to perform. The cowoys are offering even money that the ^ ;gi8lators' picked fighters will "turn p their toes" before next season's 0] ound up. But Arizona's fighting splrt is roused and the battle will be ' ought to a finish. ^ If the legislature can carry out their lana thorp will he nothing" in the ban- c %"v*v o it line in Arizona except outlaws' gi raves, and "bad men" will live only u i history. n Big Bert Mossman is not at all ap- ^ rehensive concerning the course map- tl ed out for him and his 12 assistants. 01 n fact, he is just the man to get keen tl njoyment out of border scraps. He is m typical cowboy. His tall, lean frame tl j covered with muscles as hard as j? ords. He has the eyes of a hawk and T daredevil nature that is as careless w f consequences in a fight as any of k he men he has been ordered to "round ^ p or bust." For years Mossman has ^ een "boss" on a large ranch and has oi ome of the most unruly cow-punchers i the territory to handle. "Dead- jjj ame" is the character that he has es- t ablished for himself, and it Is not easy tl o earn that distinction down in Arizo- J' a. When it comes to a gun argument, ) nd Moassman has had his share, he ? an make the bullets talk. Only two pi reeks ago the outlaws exchanged shots b /ith a posse of cowboys and killed everal of them. Frank Stayner was n he first man to come down from the a: cene of the fight, which was nearly 31 00 miles from a telegraph office. SI Carlos Tafoya, a young ranger tl mown throughout Apache county ror f? ils bravery, organized a posse of cow- ^ oys to pursue the outlaws. They aI ound their trail and followed it to a 01 oint which gave them a view of Paraise park. Far at the other end of the iark were camped their game, their st mrses herded at a short distance. 01 Vhen they saw the pursuing party hey at once jumped behind bowlders sj nd opened lire. The ranger ordered w is men to dismount, and each man 81 ound the best protection he could beore he commenced shooting. Ranger p< 'afoya rode forward a hundred feet, k! /here there was a large bowlder, beind which he could fight with greater afety. But he did not reach the bowl- VA er before a bullet struck him, resulttig in death. ^ William Maxwell was the next man n, o receive a wound. He attempted td ain an advanced post, and while run- jjj ,lng in a crouched position a bullet t( truck him. He died almost instantly, m iut Rangor Tafoya lived several hours. The fight continued, but the posse ealized that the outlaws were practially safe behind the bowlders and ent on to the Blue country for help. It was a battle against outlawry uch as is seldum seen.x For hours the 08se fired across the great open space f Paradise park?a long range for fine hooting: but they were equal to it whenever a head appeared above the ocks. Several hundred shots were ired, two of the posse killed and two nembers of the gang wounded. When he posse was reinforced the outlaws egan to saddle up and get over the ocks as fast as their horses could cary them. Out of range they made for he mountains, going In a southerly Irectlon toward the Chlrlcahuas. In he fight two of them?boys skilled In hooting and riding?were captured, 'hey gave their names as Floyd Smith nd George Tinnel, the former being son of 'Bill" Smith, leader of the ang. There are other Smith boys, one f them being a fugitive from justice, aving broken jail In Apache county, 'he mother of the boys Is cook at Ira larper's saw mill In the Blue River ountry. There are six men in the gang led by Bill" Smith. They had a large numer of horses in their possession, which rere afterward captured. The Smith oys have lived with their mother in tie Blue river country until the past ear, when they joined their father, 'he youngest is but 13 years of age. Captain Burt Mossman, with a band f rangers, is now in the Black river ountry, and another fight is expected 0 take place at any time. Burt Groer took a number of rangers into the hlricahua mountains in an attempt to scape across the Mexican line. Shert Ortega, with 10 men, left St Johns, 1 Apache county, to run them down, nd Captain Mossman and his rangers ill be well supported when the fight ikes place. A short time ago August Gibbons nd Frank Leseur were killed in the Hack river country in a fight with cate thieves. Tafoya, Maxwell, Gibbons nd Leseur were ail popular young len, noted for their bravery. In 18 lonths six men have been killed by utlaws In Apache county, among lem ex-Sherlflf Beeler. These are the jcent crimes that have made the Ariona legislature sit up and take notice. Years ago Captain Mossman ran own Salaveras, the notorious Mexian bandit. That cut-throat had shot nd killed the superintendent of the alico mine. Salaveras was after the old, which he knew the superlntendnt was taking to the mine to pay off he men. The bandit strapped the bag f gold on his horse and struck out cross the desert, heading for Utah, iossman was In another part of the jrritory, but Immediately started in ursult Meanwhile Salaveras was ittlng like a shadow across the desrt. He knew enough about the "Grinoes" to feel certain that they would ot let him get away with so much old, without a hot and desperate hunt, o he pushed on hurriedly, so hurriedr that his gold-laden horse gave out ear the head lake of Paradise valley, [e then made for a water hole and repared for business. He burled him;lf up to the chin in the mud, shovig the bags beneath him, and took ire that a broad bunch of Spanish ayonet grass should conceal his head. Mossman. with two Indians, with ' leir fresh horses, came into sight tree hours later. The dogs with them radually nosed their way toward the ayonet bush. Salaveras crawled out f the hole, a gun in each hand, and pened on the advancing party. He ad hardly risen when Mossman had Im covered. The bandit's bullet tore [ossman's right side. In return he ut a bullet into the bandit's chest, alaveras dropped out, but he was ame, shooting .to the last. They dug p the gold, took back the body and ?celved the reward. Mossman was asked what plans he ad framed to carry out the orders of ie legislature and rid the territory f Its bad men. "First of all," he said, "we'll hoe for le small potatoes?escaped prisoners, ien who have charges pending against lem, and the like. I don't think I'll ave much trouble bringing them in. mean business. They know that, hey likewise know me and the men ho are working with me. and they . now we'll get the drop on them. If ley come aiong easy everything will e all right, if they don't, well, I Just uess we can make pretty short work f them. I know most of them and le life those fellows are leading in the lesquite scrub and land holes to keep Lit of reach of the law is a dog's life, hey ought to thank me for giving lem a chance to come in and take leir medicine. Some of them will ob;ct, of course. It's quite natural that ley should hang out as long as their rub and ammunition last. They'll robably try a little gun play as a luff, but I shoot fairly well myself, nd the boys who will back me up are andy enough with their guns. Any astler who wants to yank on the rope nd kick up trouble will find he's up gainst it." The "bad men" themselves are rejonsible for the crusade. It was lought that when Burns was killed ?veral months ago they would take a sson from his fate, but a week after Is death Monet Pete, full of firewater id an insatiable hatred of law and rder, turned himself and two revolv s loose on Pecos, a mining camp, aitr "shooting up" the town and killing vo men, he made his escape. Two ages and seven riders were held up i the same road in one day, the banIt getting off without a scratch. "Split-ear" Shandon, not long ago, tot a Mexican packer because he did ot get out of the trail fast enough to lit his fancy. "Joyous Jerry." one of the desperaDes recently killed, met a number of jople going to a barbecue at the Wil1ns ranch. He demanded their valua!es. This feat so pleased him that e rode on with the idea of holding up le remainder of the guests at the filklns' fiesta. Three cowboys present jclined to throw up their hands when ) ordered, and a fusilade followed, in hich two men were killed and a wolan and a child seriously wounded. Joyous Jerry" with a dozen bullets i his body, managed to gallop off on Is cayuse; but the cowpunchers stuck > his trail and ran him down in the lesquite scrub.?Baltimore Sun.