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Cole Younger.

Jim Younger.

Bob Younger.

g^^NOTICE. — The above portraits were engraved from photo-
graphs furnished by Cole Younger in February, i88i, after three edi-
tions of this book had been printed. They are copyrighted, and the
law will be rigidly enforced against all infringements,

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

AN AUTHENTIC AND THRILLING HISTORY OF THE MOST
NOTED BANDITS OF ANCIENT OR MODERN TIMES,

THE YOmGEE BROTHERS,

JESSE AND FRANK JAMES,

AND

THEIR COMRADES IN CRIME.

COMPILED FROM RELIABLE SOURCES ONLY AND CONTAINING

THE LATEST FACTS IN REGARD TO THESE

CELEBRATED OUTLAWS.

Author of "Life of Wild Bill the Scout," ♦' Legends of the Ozarks,"

etc., etc., and Member of the Editorial StaflF of the

Kansas City and St. Louis Press.

Illustrated with Portraits and Colored Plates,

ST. LOUIS, MO.:

HISTORICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY.

i88i.

Copyrighted, 1880, by DAN. LINAHAN.

Ryan, Jacks & Co., Printers,

ST. LOUIS.

PREFACE.

An authentic history of the desperate adventures of the
four Younger Brothers has become a necessity. Their
lives require no romantic or exaggerated shading to make
the narrative remarkable. Their deeds are as prominent
in the archives of guerrilla warfare as their names are fa-
miliar on the border. But with a comprehension of the mor-
bid appetites of many readers, newspaper and pamphlet
writers have created and colored crimes with reckless ex-
travagance, and then placed upon them the impress of the
Younger Brothers, because the character of these noted
guerrilla outlaws made the desperate acts credited to them
not improbable. The difficulties encountered in procuring
facts connected with the stirring escapades of the outlaw
quartette, have heretofore been overcome by imaginative
authors and correspondents, giving in minute detail inci-
dents with which their creative genius is at all times well
supplied. These remarks are not intended to disparage
the merit of any contributor to the annals of border his-
tory, but rather to excite a proper suspicion on the part of
the pubHc against a too ready belief of every adventure,
fight or robbery charged to the Younger Brothers.

The part they acted during the great civil strife has, un-
doubtedly, been truthfully told, but their career since the
close of that dreadful drama has been, in a great measure,
elaborated by imagery, until it is difficult for those unac-
quainted with the facts, to conclude which record is true
and which created.

The writer does not claim exception from mistakes, but
50

6 PREFACE,

without arrogating to himself any special merit, k can be
truthfully said that the following history of these great out-
laws contains a less number of errors and a more reliable
and comprehensive description of their valorous deeds than
any previous publication. For several weeks prior to the
completion of this work, a correspondence was maintained
with the Younger Brothers, as well also with the warden of
the Minnesota penitentiary, and through this source many
new facts were obtained and numerous errors discovered.
In addition to this, personal interviews have been had with
several old comrades of the Youngers, and with Cole
Younger himself; and nothing has been left undone to pro-
cure all the facts possible, and to avoid falHng into the old
mistakes which have been repeated until they have become
almost traditionary.

For a considerable period the writer was a resident of
Kansas City, where he was engaged in journalism, and
made the acquaintance of hundreds of persons who were
intimately known to the Younger and James Brothers, and
from these also much valuable and trustworthy information
was received, which various corroborative sources have en-
abled the author to reliably write the history of the noted
utlaws without resorting to either fiction or romance.

J. W. B.
St. Louis, December 15, 1880.

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE.

PORTRAITS OF YOUNGER BROTHERS, Frontispiece.

Result of the Attempted Arrest, - - . g

Waiting for the Flames, - - - - jg

The Federals surprise Quantrell with their Cannon, - 31

Cole Younger' s Cattle Stampede, - - - 33

George Shepherd, - - - - - 36

PRESENTATION OF THE BLACK FLAG, - 39

Burning of Osceola, - ~ - - 42

Fatal Result of Cole Younger's Deadly Volley, - 47

Charging the Entrenched Guerrillas, - • - 49

The Federal Ambush, _ - - - 56

A NARROW ESCAPE, . - - - 58

The Hand-to-Hand Combat, - - - - 72

Desperate Fight at the Trenches, - - 80

The Retreat from Lawrence, - - - 104

RUSSELLVILLE BANK ROBBERY, - - 131

KANSAS CITY FAIR ROBBERY, - - - 156

HOT SPRINGS STAGE ROBBERY, - - 166

KILLING OF JOHN YOUNGER, - - - 174

THE LAST LOOK, - - - - 191

The Three Dead Bandits, - - - - 210

Firing into the Woods, - - - - 217

CAPTURE OF THE YOUNGERS, - - - 219

70,

RESULT OF THE ATTEMPTED ARREST. — SCC p. 53.

So.

BORDER OUTLAWS.

PAGE.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS—

Nativity, and Causes which led to Guerrilla Life, - - II

Le Marias du Cygne, - _ - _ - . - 14

Cole Younger's First Fight under Quantrell, - - 17

Desperate Fight at Tate's House, - - - - 21

The Slaughter at Blue Cut, _ - - - 26

The Most Remarkable Fight during the War, - - - 29

History of the Black Flag, - - "35

The Pillage of Osceola, _ - - - 41

The Second Fight at the Blue Cut, - -■ - 43
Battle of Walnut Creek, ----- 45

Ambuscades and Hard Fighting, - - - - ^2
The Fight at Independence, ----- 58

Battle of Lone Jack, ----- 66

Assassination of Col. Henry W. Younger, - - - 74

Skirmishes, Ambuscades and Executions, - - 75

Separation and Combats in Different Fields, • - - 86
Cole Younger's Escape through the Strategy of a Negro Woman, 89

Christmas Frolic in Kansas City, - - - - ^2

Mrs. Younger forced to Fire her own House, - - - 96

A Bitter Winter and Persistent Skirmishing, - - 98

Progress of Crimes which the War Inaugurated, - - 107

The Terrible " Black Oath," - - - - 108

The First Bank Robbery— At Liberty, Mo., - • - in

John Younger's First Fight, - - - - 115

Desperate Attempt at Jail Delivery, - - - - I17

The Lexington Bank Robbery, - - - - 118

The Bank Robbery at Savannah, Mo., - - - - 119

Robbery and Bitter Fight at Richmond, Mo., - - 121

The Russellville Bank Robbery, - « - - 126

Tragic Results of a Horse Race, - - - - 134
90

10 CONTENTS.

Robbing the Gallatin, Mo., Bank, - - - - 137

The Hanging of John Younger, . - • - 143
Murder of Sheriff "Nichols, ----- 146

The Corydon, Iowa, Bank Robbery, - - - 150

The Columbia, Ky., Bank Robbery, - - - ' 152

Daring Raid at the Kansas City Fair, - - - 154

The Ste. Genevieve, Mo., Bank Robbery, - - - 158

Robbing a Train in Iowa, ----- 161

The Hot Springs Stage Robbery, - - - - 165

Robbing a Train at Gad's Hill, - - - - 168

Death of two Detectives, - - - - -171

Robbing a Texas Stage, - - - - - 176

Cole Younger's Epistolary Vindication, - - - 178

The Train Robbery at Muncie, Kansas, - - - 182

Huntington, Va., Bank Robbery, - - - - 186

The Missouri Pacific Railroad Robbery, - - - 194

The Northfield Bank Robbery and Tragedy. — Capture of the

Younger Brothers, ------ 202

A Proposition to Murder Jim Younger, - - - 225

Interesting Correspondence from Cole Younger, - 227

Personal Interview with Cole Younger, - - - 234

How a Duel to the Death was Prevented, - - - 243

Attempts to Liberate the Younger Brothers, - - 249

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

The Younger Brothers

NATIVITY, AND CAUSES WHICH LED TO
GUERRILLA LIFE.

Henry W. Younger, father of the outlaws, was
one of the early pioneers of Missouri, having remov-
ed to the State in 1825 and settled in Jackson county.
Five years later, having arrived at manhood's estate
he was married to a Miss Fristo, a very estimable
young lady of Jackson county, and the relation thus
formed was a congenial and happy one. Mr. Young-
er, possessing a fair education, became a prominent
citizen in the neighborhood and for the period of
eight years he held the position of County Judge,
and subsequently was twice elected to the State Leg-
islature. The family became a very large one, con-
sisting of fourteen children, eight of whom are still
living, four boys and four girls.

In 1858 Mr. Younger purchased a large tract of
land in Cass county, near Harrisonville, to which he
removed the same year and began raising stock, in
which he was eminently successful and soon became
a wealthy man. He made many excellent invest-
ments which finally caused his removal to Harrison-

1 2 THE BORDER O UTLA WS.

ville, where he started a livery stable and became in-
terested in two large country stores.

Thomas Coleman, familiarly called Cole, was the
second eldest son, having been born in Jackson coun-
ty January 15 th, 1844.

Richard was the senior of Cole by two years, but
he died of a malarial fever in i860 before the exci-
ting events which culminated in a career which has
made the family name so prominent.

John was born at the old homestead in Jackson
county in 1846, Bruce in 1848, James in 1850, and Ro-
bert in December, 1853. It is not important to give the
births of any other members of the family, as their
names will not figure in the incidents herein recited.

It is not surprising that western Missouri has pro-
duced so many remorseless characters, considering
the peculiar conditions of her early history. Every
student of common school history is familiar with the
border warfare which existed between Missouri and
Kansas over the slavery question. Old John Brown,
whose career terminated at Harper's Ferry in i860,
was an important factor in that inter-state contest
which was waged with almost unexampled fury for
many years, to the destruction of a vast amount of
property and the loss of hundreds of Hves. The bor-
der counties of Missouri and Kansas suffered terribly
from the incursions of " Jayhawkers " and " Border
Ruffians," afterward guerrillas, as the opposing fac-
tions were called ; and perforce Col. Henry Younger
was involved in the bitter antagonism, as was every
property owner in that section.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 13

One of the incidents of the bloody border warfare
has been immortalized by the Quaker poet, John G.
Whittier, and its reproduction here will serve as a
more forcible illustration of the desperate cruelties
inflicted in that contest which lighted the camp-fires
of Abolitionism and prepared the way of freedom for
Southern slaves.

The history of this local event so elegantly and
pathetically apotheosized by Whittier is in brief as
follows. In the year 1856 Hamilton, whose reputa-
tion for fiendish brutality had preceded him, drew
his serpent trail across the border and appeared in
Miami and Linn counties, Kas., at the head of about
fifty conscienceless followers. He pillaged and burned
farm houses, laid waste teeming harvests and murder-
ed men, women and children of anti-slavery opinions.
The crowning act of his career was the arrest of
twenty of the best citizens of Linn Co., all residents
of a single neighborhood, whom he bound and car-
ried to a lonely spot on the Marais du Cygne river,
near Trading Post, and securing them to stakes, fiend-
ishly shot them one by one. Three of the number,
though wounded in a manner which gave evidence
of their death, survived to tell the terrible story of
that holocaust and become heroes of Whittier's verse.
Two of the survivors are still living, or were during
the writer's residence in Kansas in 1872. One of
these. Rev. Reed, is pastor of the Baptist church at
Ossawatomie, Miami county, and the other, Asa
Hargrove, is a prosperous farmer of Linn county.

14 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

Such, in brief, are the particulars of that dreadful
sacrifice so passionately wreathed with pathetic gar-
lands by one of America's greatest poets, and many
a tear has fallen from the eyes of sympathetic read-
ers upon the pages which relate the story. Follow-
ing is the poem :

LE MARAIS DU CYGNE.

A blush as of roses

Where rose never grew,
Great drops on the bunch-grass,

But not of the dew !
A taint in the sweet air

For wild bees to shun *
A stain that shall never

Bleach out in the sun !

Back, steed of the prairies !

Sweet song-bird, fly back !
Wheel hither, bald vulture !

Gray wolf, call thy pack !
The foul human vultures

Have feasted and fled ;
The wolves of the Border

Have crept from the dead.

From the hearths of their cabins,

The fields of their corn,
Unwarned and unweaponed,

The victims were torn, —
By the whirhvind of murder

Swooped up and swept on, •
To the low, reedy fen-lands.

The Marsh of the Swan.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 15

With a vain plea for mercy

No stout knee was crooked ;
In the mouths of the rifles

Right manly they looked.
How paled the May sunshine,

O Marais du Cygne !
On death for the strong life,

On red grass for green !

In the homes of their rearing,

Yet warm with their lives,
Ye wait the dead only,

Poor children and wives .
Put out the red forge-fire,

The smith shall not come ;
Unyoke the brown oxen,

The ploughman Hes dumb.

Wind slow from the Swan's Marsh,

O dreary death-train.
With pressed lips as bloodless

As lips of the slain !
Kiss down the young eyelids,

Smooth down the gray hairs ;
Let tears quench the curses

That burn through your prayers.

Strong man of the prairies.

Mourn bitter and wild !
Wail, desolate woman !

Weep, fatherless child !
But the grain of God springs up

From ashes beneath.

l6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

And the crown of his harvest
Is life out of death.

Not in vain on the dial

The shade moves along,
To point the great contrasts

Of right and of wrong ;
Free homes and free altars,

Free prairie and flood, —
The reeds of the Swan's Marsh,

Whose bloom is of blood !

On the lintels of Kansas

That blood shall not dry ;
Henceforth the Bad Angel

Shall harmless go by ;
Henceforth to the sunset,

Unchecked on her way,
Shall Liberty follow

The march of the day.

At the beginning of hostilities in i86i the border
warfare increased in virulency and the sympathizers
on both sides were forced into extreme measures.
Col. Younger, though it is claimed he was a Union
man, suffered terribly from the Kansas militia, who
were operating under the Federal banner. Jennison,
who was at the head of the jayhavvkers, made a raid
through the counties of Jackson and Cass, leaving be-
hind him a trail of burning farms and plundered vil-
lages, staying his hand of desolation in the town of
Harrisonville, a large portion of which he destroyed ;
.among the property he confiscated was all the livery

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

stock of Col. Younger, consisting of thirty head of
horses and several buggies and wagons. This act
was bitterly condemned, but there was no other means
of corapromising the wrong than by avenging it upon
the people of Kansas.

From this time the members of the Younger fam-
ily renounced their Union sentiments and enlisted
their sympathy with the Confederate cause. A few
weeks afterward Cole Younger sought and found
Quantrell, whose force he joined and pledged himself
to the fortunes of that dreadful black banner which
two years afterward streamed through the bloody
streets of Lawrence.

COLE YOUNGER'S FIRST FIGHT UNDER
QUANTRELL.

Three is no reason to doubt Cole Younger's as-
sertion that he joined Quantrell because of outrages
perpetrated by jayhawking Federals upon his father,
-and it must be admitted that he did not renounce
his manhood by so doing. It was terrible to see
the property of the household confiscated, and
■other indignities suffered at the hands of those
whose banner should have made them friends. Cole
Younger was a young man of excellent character,
refined by education and a training which made him
devoted to his parents. Little wonder, then, that his
nature became transformed by such cruelties upon

1 8 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

those he loved so well, and when he allied his for-
tunes with the most desperate man on the border, it
was the preliminary step in a determination to have
revenge.

When Cole Younger volunteered his services
Quantrell's force had but recently been collected and
consisted of thirty-seven men, all of whom were resi-
dents of Jackson, Clay and Cass counties. For sev-
eral weeks this small company confined its adven-
tures to the border counties of Kansas, taking horses
and capturing ammunition trains. Capt. Peabody,
with a full company of Federals, was sent out by
Gen. Jim Lane, who was in command of the Kansas
mihtia, with instructions to capture or kill Quantrell
and his band. The trail was readily found and the
guerrillas were followed to the house of John Flan-
nery, in Jackson county, where a stand was made
January 3d, 1862, and a bitter fight ensued. The
Federals surrounded the house and then sent a de-
mand to Quantrell for his surrender. The cunning
guerrilla asked for a ten-minute parley with his men,
which time being granted, he used it most advantag-
eously in disposing his men so as to make them most
effective. At the expiration of the time allowed, Quan-
trell shouted defiance at his foes, at the same mom-
ent discharging his double-barreled shot-gun, which
was loaded with buck-shot, killing Peabody's lieuten-
ant. The fight then began in earnest and for more
than an hour it raged with increasing fury. Finding-
it impossible to dislodge the enemy by pouring shot

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

into the building, Capt. Peabody ordered the torch
apphed to the house, an act easily accomplished in
the rear of the ell of the building, as there were no
windows from which an approach from that direction

WAITING FOR THE FLAMES.

could be commanded. A large quantity of straw
was carried from an adjacent stack which, being'
fired, soon enveloped the frame ell, but ere the flames

20 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

reached the main buildings they were quenched by
the guerrillas. A second attempt resulted as the first,
but the water in the house now being exhausted, the
third time fire was set to the building it roared and
crackled like a fiend of destruction to be baffled no
more. Smoke rolled through the windows and the
hot flames came leaping into the rooms, driving the
guerrillas from corner to corner and rapidly narrow-
ing the space they stood on until, at last, they were
forced to face their foe and stem the torrent of death
without protection. By orders of Quantrell, 'dum-
mies were hastily made of pillows and bed clothing
and set in the windows to draw the fire of the Fed-
erals, and then bidding his men follow, the desperate
guerrilla dashed through the door and broke for the
brush, every man emptying his gun at the enemy as
he ran. Cole Younger displayed the most remark-
able bravery throughout the fight, and at the retreat
his recklessness caused him to separate from his
command, and but for the operation of what seemed
almost a miracle, he must have been killed. Being
unacquainted with the place, Cole ran in a different
direction from the others of his command and sud-
denly found his course impeded by a strong picket
fence which he could not scale, while the Federals
dashed after and fired at him more than a hundred
times. After running fully two hundred yards, with
a large force in pursuit, he came to a defective place
in the fence, and pushed through and started across
a field. But, though he had distanced the infantry^

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 2 1

there were twelve cavalrymen who saw him, and to
tear down the fence was the work of a moment and
then the pursuit was renewed. Cole still carried his
gun but it was empty, he having had no opportunity
to reload, but from time to time he would raise the
gun as if intending to fire at his pursuers, and this
act would serve to partially check their rapid ride af-
ter him. By recourse to such strategies Cole gained
the woods and escaped, most singular to relate, with-
out having received the slightest wound.

In this fight the guerrillas lost ten men, but two of
these refused to leave the burning building and
therefore perished in the flames. The loss of the
Federals was eighteen killed and nearly as many
more wounded. None of the guerrillas were cap-
tured but all their horses fell into the hands of the
victors.

THE DESPERATE FIGHT AT TATE'S

HOUSE.

The Flannery fight was repeated with remarkable
similarity one month after that occurrence. The
particulars of this combat, as related by Geo. Shep-
herd, a participant, to the writer, are as follows : At
this time Quantrell's force consisted of exactly fifty
men and was on the march towards Sny-Bar, where
it was learned a small detachment of Federals were
It was Quantrell's custom, while on the

,22 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

march, to stop at farm-houses on the way, distribut-
x'Ci^ his men so that their accommodations might be
provided for. While enroute for Sny-Bar, night
coming on, Quantrell, with twenty-one of his men,
stopped at the large farm-house of Major Tate, near
Little Santa Fe, in Jackson county. The rest of the
company, under Todd, found lodgings five miles
further north.

Hard riding had made Quantrell's men weary, and
a fast since morning had whetted their appetites into
unusual cravings. Major Tate was a friend of the
cause, and a bounteous table, set with all the good
things provided by a successful farmer, was the wel-
come he extended to his guests. Without there was
snow and whistling, frosty winds, while within was
the crackling log-fire with its reflection of dancing
images and warming cheer ; hunger-producing odors
of fresh meats smothered in rich gravies ; smoking
sweet potatoes, and the luscious condiments which a
thrifty housewife had provided for special occasions ;
in addition to these seductive refreshments to the
hungry there was the brown cruet of freshly drawn
cider with its crest of breaking bubbles, and a pyra-
mid of apples red as the cardinal's robe. It was
supper time, and such a lordly feast the guerrillas
had not partaken of for many months.

After supper was over, every man, with distended
stomach, uncomfortable from excessive fullness,
gradually became languid until sleep stole upon them
in spite of the good jokes which were passing around
and being told with special zest by the jolly Major.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 23

The guerrillas were asleep, all save one who stood
sentinel at the gate, his big coat muffling his face
from the biting gusts of winter's winds. Slowly he
paced a little beat, his dreamy eyes closing, at times,
with fading resolution, 'but only to open wider when
full consciousness was restored. Nine, ten, eleven
o'clock, and not a sound to disturb the deep slumbers
of the- guerrillas. The hour of midnight was ap-
proaching, that mysterious time when the dead are
permitted to catch glimpses of the earth they once
trod in the flesh ; that period of brief space when
graves open to disgorge their surfeit of dead men,
and on which the shadows fall which margin the
confines of death and life. Were these gloomy re-
flections occupying the dreamy mind of that lone-
some guard ; he who was called to slay and spare
not; to hunt, to find, to kill?

" Who are you T' The clock was striking the mys-
terious hour, and the food for graves was being pre-
pared, but the graves had not yet been dug. It was
the voice of the guard who, startled by the tramp of
horses' feet in the crisp snow, gave the guerrilla
challenge, and as the road filled up with Federal cav-
alry there was a single shot, and a rush by the guard
into the house. A volley from carbines saluted his
entrance, but the door was speedily barred against in-
truders. Cole Younger, Geo. Shepherd and Quan-
trell heard that first shot and intuition told them its
full meaning : the enemy was without, two hundred
strong, and a fight was unavoidable. Some one was

24 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

always on Quantrell's trail and the force which had
now surrounded him had followed his track like a
sleuth hound, and only waited for the deepest shades
of night to fall upon and devour the little guerrilla,
band. The Federals understood the cunning and
bravery of the twenty-two men in the building, and
before making their presence known they had taken-
every precaution to prevent escape, by completely
surrounding the house and guarding every door and
window. The night was beautiful, with the sky as
clear as the ether of heaven, from which a full, bright
moon poured a flood of silver, pencilling the white
earth and throwing dark, fantastic figures behind the
woods and fences.

A brave lieutenant was the spokesman of the Fed-
erals, and with clanking spurs and saber he approach-
ed the door, gave it a few smart kicks with his heavy
cavalry boots, and then demanded an immediate sur-
render. It was a moment when there was no need
for orders; every guerrilla understood his duty, for
sleep is easily dissipated in moments of extreme dan-
ger. Quantrell strode cautiously to the door, and,,
locating the lieutenant by his voice, fired a large
navy pistol. The bullet cleft through the panel and
struck the officer in the chest. With a gurgling
moan the lieutenant fell, and with a few convulsive
struggles died. The battle then began, with the Fed-
erals pouring volley after volley into the buildings
which, though it was weather-boarded on the outside
and had a filling of brick between the studding, yet

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 25

it afforded but slight protection against the minie
balls that were poured into it. The guerrillas were
divided, with Quantrell, Cole Younger and six others
in the second story, while the first floor was occupied
by Geo. Shepherd, Quantrell's lieutenant, and the re-
mainder of the force.

After the fight had progressed for a short time four
of the guerrillas became so frightened that they
wanted to surrender, and it also became important
to extend some special protection to Major Tate and
his family. Accordingly, Quantrell hailed the Feder-
als and told them some of his men desired to sur-
render, and that the family of the house wanted pro-
tection. Permission for them to retire was therefore
given and the four guerrillas, followed by Maj. Tate,
much against his will, and his family, left the house,
taking up quarters in the barn which stood some
distance off. The fight was then renewed. Cole
Younger, with the same reckless bravery which dis-
tinguished him at the Flannery fight, took desperate
chances and did terrible execution. The snow be-
came crimson in many places and the cries of the
wounded fretted the air. Time and again came the
summons to surrender, but the only reply was a scorn-
ful laugh. It was thus the combat continued for
three long, terrible hours. No one had yet thought
of the torch, though there was the same fatal ell
with no window to guard it, as at Flannery's. It
came, though, at 'last, and when the flames threw
their lurid glare in through the crevices of the barri-

26 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

caded windows the guerrillas realized how near grim
fate was approaching. Time was asked for, but the
Federals refused to check their fire until terms of un-
conditional surrender were agreed to. Quantrell, in
last extremities, always proposing some desperate
scheme, ordered all his men to stop firing and reload.
When every pistol and gun was heavily charged, the
guerrillas massed themselves, threw open the two
doors and leaped upon their foes, pouring an un-
ceasing volley into the Federals, cutting a bloody gap
through which they passed to safety.

Singular to relate, though none the less true, the
guerrillas, besides losing their horses, had only one
man killed, and none wounded. The Federal loss
was a score killed and nearly twice that number
wounded. A junction was formed the next day with
Todd, and in a skirmish with thirteen Federals which
occurred in the afternoon following the Tate house
fight, horses sufficient were captured to remount
Quantrell and his men.

THE SLAUGHTER AT BLUE CUT.

From the time of the fight at Major Tate's house
the guerrillas changed their methods of retaliation,
and a fighting campaign was inaugurated which
ceased only with the close of the rebellion. The
militia of Missouri co-operated with the Federal
forces of Kansas, and every highway in the border

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 2/

counties became a battle ground. Quantrell's force
was augmented by recruits from neighboring coun-
ties, accessions being made at every camping place.
Their arms consisted of such weapons as the new
recruits brought with them or captured from
routed foes. Horses were readily obtained by for-
age upon stables and pastures, while ammunition
reached them through the secret avenues of sympa-
thizing friends.

After his escape from Capt. Peabody's cavalry,
Cole Younger went to the house of Jerry Blythe, a
relative, located on the Independence and Harrison-
ville road, and staid there two days before he could
learn the whereabouts of Quantrell, whom he was
anxious to rejoin. The Federals stationed at Inde-
pendence learned of Cole's appearance at Blythe's,
and a force of seventy-five mounted troops at once
started out to effect his capture. News of the Fed-
erals' intention reached Cole and Quantrell, and a
plan was immediately arranged to intercept and give
them battle, while a courier was dispatched to ac-
quaint Mr, Blythe with the purpose of both Federals
and guerrillas.

By direction of Cole Younger Quantrell's force,
now numbering fifty men, was stationed at a place
called the Blue Cut, on the Harrisonville road, fifteen
miles from Independence, through which the Fed-
erals would have to pass on their march, or make a
circuit of five miles by a bad road, to reach Mr.
Blythe's house. The cut is about twenty-five feet in

28 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

depth and of a width that will admit of the passage
of not more than two wagons, while 'both sides of
the summit are lined with a heavy forest in which it
was an easy matter for Quantrell to secrete his
horses and men.

For some reason, doubtless to prevent the knowl-
edge of their appearance in the neighborhood, the
Federals chose the circuitous route and reached the
Blythe mansion unperceived by the guerrillas. They
found no one at home except Mrs. Blythe and a
young son not more than thirteen years of age, who
was in the yard when the Federals rode up. They
captured the young lad and tried to force him to dis-
close the hiding place of Cole Younger, but he posi-
tively refused to tell anything; and when they gave
him a chance he ran into the house, seized a pistol,
and while the troops were sacking the place he fired
on them, killing one and severely wounding another.
This unexpected attack from so youthful a source so
enraged the Federals that, as the boy ran out at the
back door, he was riddled with bullets, no less than
sixteen striking him, extinguishing his young life im-
mediately. After the commission of this deed and
being satisfied that Cole Younger was not in any of
the outbuildings, the Federals started back on the
main highway, when they were soon seen by the
guerrillas and preparations were at once made by the
latter for the attack. Both ends of the cut, as welb
as the eminence on each side, were well protected by
the guerrillas, whose fire was reserved until the un^

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 29

suspecting Federals had ridden well into the gap.
With a wild yell from Quantrell the work of destruc-
tion was begun, and the murderous streams of flame
made the cut a hideous valley of death. From ev-
ery side the deadly pellets poured upon the demor-
alized Federals, not one of whom thought of any-
thing but escape, while horses and riders mingled
their blood together until that terrible gap became
red with the slaughter. Few lived through that de-
structive fire, for when the whirlwind of death swept
over the band, nearly sixty corses lay still under the
smoke which choked the cut. Cole Younger's aveng-
ing hand had been laid heavily upon ten men, and he
was satisfied with the work of that day.

THE MOST REMARKABLE FIGHT DURING
THE WAR.

In the latter part of February, 1862, three weeks
after the slaughter at Blue Cut, one of the most re-
markable battles of the war was fought, between
Quantrell's force of fifty men on one side and five
hundred Federals under Cols. Buel and Jennison on
the other, resulting in the defeat and rout of the lat-
ter with a loss almost twice as great as the entire
guerrilla force.

Independence had become a supply post and dis-
tributing center for the Federals in the west, and was
garrisoned by a force of one thousand militia. Spies

30 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

were continually on the track of the guerrillas, but
owing to the disbandments and reorganizations
which occurred every few days to avoid pursuit, it
was impossible for the Federals to determine the
force of the enemy in any engagement, which gave
to Quantrell a most important advantage.

In the latter part of February, the weather being
very cold, Quantrell went into camp on Indian Creek,
in Jackson county, about ten miles from Indepen-
dence, for the purpose of recruiting his force and
watching the movements of the enemy. His posi-
tion was soon reported and Col. Buel, at the head of
two hundred men, at once drew out from Indepen-
dence for the purpose of engaging the guerrillas,
whose numbers were found to be small. By some
means, never fully explained, Quantrell suffered him-
self to be surrounded, though his defensive precau-
tions were excellent; a large number of trees having
been felled and breastworks made which no cavalry
could penetrate.

On the morning of the 26th, Quantrell was sur-
prised by the shrill whistle of a shell as it came cut-
ting through the trees and exploded overhead. His
pickets were driven in and then he found that every
avenue of escape had been closed, besides which the
Federals had two pieces of artillery with which to
shell the woods. The situation was critical in the
extreme and Quantrell had grave apprehensions
which he communicated to his comrades. At the
suggestion of Haller, a brave fellow who saw the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

anxiety manifested by Quantrell, Cole Younger was
called into council because of his thorough knowl-
edge of the country and the cunning and daring
which had already distinguished him. His advice,
undoubtedly, saved the command and turned what

THE FEDERALS SURPRISE QUANTRELL WITH THEIR CANNON.

at one time seemed certain defeat and inglorious sur-
render, into the most brilliant victory of guerrilla
warfare.

Cole communicated to Quantrell the fact that in-
side the Federal lines was a large farm-house with
adjacent yards filled with cattle. His advice, there-
fore, was to hold the enemy in check until night,
make every indication of a stubborn resistance, and

32 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

then stampede the stock, which would confuse the
Federals, draw their fire and make escape possible.
His suggestions were at once received with the great-
est favor and, for the time being, he was practically
placed in command of the force. All day the fight-
ing was continued, but the loss of the Federals was
quite severe, while the guerrillas suffered slightly,
owing to the excellence of their fortification, and the
difficulty of throwing shells through the heavy growth
of timber. When night approached, the guerrillas
made active use of the axe in fellinp; more trees, os-
tensibly to strengthen their position, but in reality to
deceive the Federals, and the ruse was successful.
The night was one of unusual darkness, as there was
no moon and the heaviest clouds banked the sky.
Out into the gloom crept Cole Younger, William
Haller, Dave Poole and George Todd, four men
whose hearts never harbored fear, and in a few min-
utes after they left the quiet camp a terrible confusion
was heard in the barn-yard ; chickens were cackling,
dogs barking, and in the noise a score of affrighted
cattle were heard running and bellowing, their speed
being accelerated by several pistol shots, which
brought the Federal camp to arms in the belief that
the guerrillas were upon them. The cattle were mis-
taken for foes and a lively rattle of musketry told
how successful had been the strategy of Cole Youn-
ger and his aids.

The confusion resulting from the stampede and the
darkness permitted the guerrillas to withdraw from

COLE YOUNGER S CATl'LE STAMPEDE.

^O.

34 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

their beleaguered position and when morning broke
they were in the rear of the Federals ready to make
a bold stroke, which had already been agreed upon.
Quantrell knew the position of the battery and that
the line could hardly withstand a determined assault
at any point.

When the dawn came Quantrell followed Cole
Younger in a desperate charge upon the surprised
artillerymen, and the battery was captured with the
least show of resistance. A large force of cavalry,
under the command of Jennison, was seen rapidly
approaching at this instant, and as they wheeled to
the right for the purpose of forming a junction with
Buel's infantry the latter officer mistook Jennison's
force for Col. Upton Hayes, Confederates, and the
greatest disorder was at once developed. Quantrell
took advantage of the mistake, and in a moment he
dashed among the demoralized infantry and turned
loose the captured battery upon the now thoroughly
routed foe. Seeing Col. Buel's infantry cut to pieces
Col. Jennison concluded that the Confederates, or
guerrillas, were massed in large numbers and that it
was discretion on his part to withdraw. But he was
not permitted to escape the fire of the guerrillas, who
turned from the pursuit of Col. Buel's panic-stricken
command and directed their guns upon Jennison.
His cavalry never having been under fire before,
were soon thrown into disorder, the horses being
stampeded by the shells and whistling bullets, and
but for the protection of a friendly corn-field the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

havoc would have been terrible. The victory, how-
ever, was complete, resulting in a loss of one hundred
Federals, a large number of horses, twelve hundred
rounds of ammunition — an ammunition train being
at the time escorted by Col. Jennison — and a battery
of two ten-pound guns. The loss of the guerrillas
was only eight men. The cannon were spiked and
then thrown into the Big Blue.

In this battle the remarkable fortunes of war are
manifested. The Federals were as brave and com-
manded by as good officers as were the guerrillas,
but the strategy which first permitted the latter to
escape, and the determined charge, followed by a
mistake on the part of the Federals, placed them al-
most at the mercy of the guerrillas. It is little inci-
dents which often win battles, not always bravery or
larger forces.

HISTORY OF THE BLACK FLAG.

The circumstances which created the black ban-
ner and made it the in hoc signo of the guerrillas,
have never been related in history, important and in-
teresting as they are. The facts which are herewith
recorded were obtained from Geo. Shepherd, than
whom no other man now living is so competent to
give the truthful particulars.

Living in Lafayette county, Missouri, in the sum-
mer of 1862, was a family by the name of Fickle,

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

consisting of the old gentleman, whose first name
Shepherd has quite forgotten, his wife, and a daugh-
ter, twenty years of age, named Annie. The family-
were all of intense Confederate predilections, but
while the old gentleman contented himself with giv-

UtO. SHEPHERD.

ing expression to his opinions only among his imme-
diate friends, his daughter was virulent and overt in
her sentiments and sympathies, which caused her
father no. little solicitude, for in those days men were
killed for ooinion's sake.

TR. fOUNGER BROTHERS, 37

In May, one of Shepherd's guerrilla comrades was
found in the house of Mr. Fickle, by a company of
Federals, and was arrested. The guerrilla was a par-
ticular friend — perhaps a lover — of Miss Annie's, and
when the arrest was made she became so abusive to
the Federals that she was also taken into custody
and carried into Lexington, where she was imprisoned
for a week, and then permitted to return home.

The guerrillas were very anxious to secure the re-
lease of their comrade, whose fate, if not averted by
some special means, they could readily anticipate.
To accomplish this Shepherd called on Miss Annie,
through whose influence with a Federal lieutenant,
who was her cousin, he hoped to procure an exchange
of prisoners that would liberate his friend. Annie
forthwith placed herself in communication with her
lieutenant cousin and finally appointed a meeting be-
tween Shepherd and the Federal officer. At this
meeting the lieutenant agreed to effect the release
of the captive guerrilla for the sum of ;^400, which
being consented to, another appointment was made
for the succeeding night, at which the money was to
be paid and the captive would be at a certain place
to which they would ride and meet him. '

Shepherd had not entertained the slightest suspi-
cion of treachery because of the supreme confidence
he reposed in Miss Annie. True to the engagement,
he met the lieutenant at the trysting place shortly
after nightfall, and together they rode to the spot in-
dicated. After passing several miles they came to

38 THE BORDER Ot TLAWS,

an angle where the road they were traveHng united
with another. At this point on one side was a stone
fence and on the other a large pile of brush. As the
two approached the brush-pile about twenty Fed-
erals arose from the ambush and fired on Shepherd,
killing his horse which, in the fall, pinioned one of
his feet for a moment, but as horse and rider fell,
Shepherd drew hi« pistol and killed the lieutenant,
whose treachery was then apparent. By extraordi-
nary efforts Shepherd released himself and darted for
the stone fence, which he leaped amid a shower of
bullets, and, being fleet of foot, ran rapidly along
and behind the fence until he had outstripped his
pursuers, who groped aimlessly in the dark, not be-
ing able to discover which direction Shepherd had
taken.

Three weeks after this natYow escape, and two
weeks after the execution of the captured guerrilla,
who was shot. Major Blunt, commanding the post of
Independence, (Shepherd is not certain, but believes
Blunt was in command at the time, and that he was
also the author of the order), issued an order which
he caused to be printed in the Independence paper,
to the effect that from the given date, guerrillas cap-
tured would not be treated as ordinary prisoners of
war, and that all parties found bearing arms against
the United States of America-, in the district speci-
fied in the proclamation, would be regarded as guer-
rillas and punished as such. The inference gained
from reading the order was that thereafter all guer-

(^> ^. ^ -m Q^

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 39"

rillas or armed forces opposing the United States
would, in case of capture, be executed. The pur-
pose of the order was, no doubt, to prevent by-
intimidation, the recruiting of Confederate com-
panies in Jackson cownty, and hardly contemplated
the harsh and cruel methods which inference had at-
tached to it, for it was never put into execution.

A few days after the issuance of this order, while
Quantrell and his company, of about sixty men,
were camped near the little church in Sny-Bar town-
ship, the pickets reported the presence of Annie
Fickle, who desired an audience with the command.
She was, of course, admitted and her mission was to
make a presentation. Under her left arm she carried
a bundle wrapped in a newspaper, and in her left
hand there was a strong, smoothly polished hickory
pole. Annie, though born where nature was rugged
in the wilderness of its untrained productiveness, was
nevertheless of a romantic temperament. Plain of
speech, she was, notwithstanding, gifted with lofty
sentiments, and it was these she had gathered that
day and arranged in a bouquet of fervid enthusiasm.
Giving a courteous bow to Quantrell, she asked him
to have his men assemble for a moment around her.
Her request being complied with, she unrolled the
bundle and taking the paper which bound it, she
read Maj. Blunt's order of " death to all guerrillas,"
then in a brief harangue she addressed the men in
language, nearly as can be remembered, as follows ;

" It is a hard fate which awaits every brave Southern
soul found in Missouri fighting for a cause as sacred

40 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

to every true man as is the love of God. To falter
now, is to betray the holier instincts of love and lib-
erty, and in the peril which this infamous and bloody
order imposes upon the noblest sons of Missouri, I
can see rising this oriflamme, (shaking out the folds
of the black banner), which, though black as death,^
is purified by the righteous cause it represents. Life
to life and blood for blood ; let the border ring with
the cry of freedom, Quantrell and the sunny South,.
one and indivisible forever, and to you, into whose
hands I entrust this banner, let me nerve you with
my prayers and entreaties never to lower it so long
as there is a hand to clutch the staff, or until the
principles of the Confederacy are decided by the
sword and bayonet, when there is no longer hope for
appeal.

" And ever let your battle-cry be,
Quantrell and Southern Supremacy !"

While making this little speech Annie unrolled the
black banner, which had been carefully bound up in
the paper containing Blunt's order, and spread it up-
on the grass. When her remarks were concluded,
she produced a hammer and nails and fastened the
flag to the hickory pole in a dozen places.

The banner was made, by Annie's own hands, of
quilted alpaca, four thicknesses, and its dimensions
were three by five feet. In the center was deftly
worked, in sombre colored letters, the name "Quan-
trell," running endwise through the middle of the
flag. The pole was eight feet in length.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS 41

The donation was received in a demonstrative
manner of approval, the men Hfting their hats and
giving three cheers for Annie Fickle, while Quantrell
thanked her heartily and promised to carry and pro-
tect the banner so long as he had life to do it Jim
Little was chosen color-bearer, and he bore it con-
spicuously, though not in every combat, until after
the destruction of Lawrence. The flag was carried
with Quantrell to Kentucky in 1864, torn as it was
by a hundred bullets, and disappeared with the guer-
rilla band in their last fight. Its remnants may still
be preserved by some Kentucky relic lover, but if
so, its owner is not known to Shepherd.

THE PILLAGE OF OSCEOLA.

Following the fight at Indian Creek came the pil-
lage of Osceola, in St. Clair county, by Jim Lane.
This act, though unaccompanied by horrors like
those which distinguished the Lawrence raid, was
equally as indefensible. Osceola was a flourishing
town of about one thousand inhabitants whose peace-
ful homes were not disturbed or threatened until the
jayhawkers came down upon it like a wolf in the
night and applied the torch to every building of any
consequence in the place. By the light of the de-
stroying flames stores were plundered and many out-
rages perpetrated upon the defenseless citizens. It
was the result of savage and dishonest natures re-

42 o.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 4^

lieved of all legal restraint and encouraged to exer-
cise their vandalism and thievish bents by unscrupu-
lous and equally criminal officials. Osceola became
the war cry of the guerrillas for years afterward, and
to this day when the stigma of Lawrence is pointed
out to the Younger Brothers they never fail to refer
to Osceola as the prime cause for that dreadful holo-
caust.

THE SECOND FIGHT AT THE BLUE CUT.

Cole Younger was appointed second lieutenant in
Quantrell's command in April, 1862, and thereafter the
squad fighting by guerrillas was begun. In June in-
formation reached Quantrell that a company of fifty
men, under Capt. Long, was on the Harrisonville and
Independence road, foraging on the route to the lat-
ter place. Cole Younger was given a detail of twenty-
five men and ordered to ambush the detachment of
Federals at the Blue Cut, an order which he exe-
cuted with what success will appear. From spies
sent in advance Cole learned that among the Feder-
als was a former guerrilla by the name of Shoat, who
had enlisted under Quantrell a few months previously
and then deserted, carrying with him valuable infor-
mation for the enemy. Cole had harbored the sus-
picion that Shoat, was a spy and he therefore became
specially anxious to kill him. Capt. Long, however,
was an old acquaintance of Cole's, and in earlier days

4^ THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

the two had been boyhood friends, little recking how-
destiny had linked them to antagonistic causes in the
desperation of guerrilla warfare.

Having posted his men advantageously so as to
sweep the cut with a galling fire when the Federals
should enter, Cole spoke to his comrades and beg-
ged of them, under no circumstances, to kill Capt.
Long, whom he thoroughly described, but at all haz-
zards not to allow Shoat to escape.

It was about three o'clock in the afternoon of June
1 2th when the Federals rode into the cut unsuspi-
cious of any lurking danger, when suddenly a volley
from twenty-six pistols dissipated the good humor of
that unfortunate command and a fight to the death
was begun. Capt. Long was a man of extraordinary
nerve, and by his heroic words and bravery rallied
his surprised force and notwithstanding his disadvan-
tage he stood for a time like a stone wall, giving shot
for shot. The guerrillas, however, fought from the
summit of the cut and it was therefore impossible
for the Federals to reach them.

Fifteen minutes of desperate fighting, with the
havoc all on one side, caused a stampede and the de-
moralized Union forces dashed over their dead and
wounded comrades in determined effort to escape, des-
pite the entreaties of their commander. When the
rout became general Cole Younger ordered a pur-
suit in which he shot Capt. Long's horse from under
him, and then, espying Shoat, he gave chase and at
the second fire from his heavy pistol shot the desert-

JTHE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

er in the back, breaking the spinal cord, from which
death resulted in a few moments. Cole then rode
back to Capt. Long, who had been made a prisoner,
and greeted him in the same cordial manner as if the
two had met after a long separation under happiest
influences and unsevered friendship. A few moments
were spent in conversation, after which a list of the
dead and wounded was made, and then the prisoners,
numbering ten, including Capt. Long, were released
on parole. In this sharp fight the Federals lost
twenty-seven killed and wounded, while the guerrillas
suffered the loss of only three men killed and five
wounded, one fatally.

THE BATTLE OF WALNUT CREEK.

In July, 1862, Quantrell's command had been in-
creased to seventy-five men, an addition of twelve
men having been made by a union with Jack Rider
who had been ravaging the border counties on his
own account. With this force Quantrell decided to
make a retreat from the Sny hills and enter Harri-
sonville, which at this time contained a large amount
of provisions guarded by about one hundred raw
Federals. His designs were frustrated, however, by
his advance guards reporting large bodies of scout-
ing militia on every side. The roads were, in fact,
so well protected by the Union forces that Quantrell
was forced to take to the woods, and even this course

46 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

did not exempt him from pursuit, for his trail was
followed persistently and being unable to throw the
enemy off his track he was compelled to retrace his
steps and make for the Sny again.

After several days of hard marching, Quantrell
pitched his camp on Walnut Creek, in Johnson coun-
ty, which he fortified by felling heavy trees and mak-
ing his retreat inaccessible to cavalry except at
passes left for the convenience of his own troops.
Cole Younger was sent out on the 13th of July to
reconnoitre and forage, taking with him twelve men
well mounted. Upon reaching the house of Joe.
Larkin, a detachment of fifteen men was espied rid-
ing up the road in advance of a large force of Fed-
erals. Cole and his men had dismounted and their
horses were feeding back of the house. Hastily call-
ing his squad together, he ordered them to hide be-
hind some quilts, which had been washed that day
and left on the fenc© to dry. Thus secreted,
they awaited the approach of the Federal advance,
until they were in the road immediately opposite,
when suddenly the guerrillas arose as if from the
ground and poured such a deadly fire upon the fif-
teen astonished Federals that but one escaped. The
main body was so surprised at this sudden and fatal
attack upon the advance-guard, that it halted and
formed in line of battle in anticipation of a charge,
as the Federals had no idea of the guerrilla force.
At this juncture an additional force of two hundred
Butler county militia appeared, and thus reinforced.

47 o.

48 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

the Federals advanced while Cole mounted his men
and retreated to the camp, where preparations were
made to receive the enemy. There was no delay,
for Quantrell had scarcely time to close the passage
through which Cole Younger and his squad had en-
tered, before the Federal cavalry, now four hundred
strong, made an impetuous charge, but they recoiled
before the murderous fire of the well-protected guer-
rillas. A second charge followed, led by as brave
men as ever rode in battle, but again from the barri-
cades streamed flames of death until the brook
which babbled along the base of the hills was gorged
with the dead. The baffled and distressed cavalry
fell back in broken ranks and formed on a hill 'two
hundred yards distant, evidently to hold a council.
For two hours not a sound disturbed the stillness of
the forest. The two armies were content to quietly
contemplate the intentions and strength of each
other. In the afternoon, about four o'clock, the
Federals were again reinforced by another body of
two hundred men, and the attack was renewed. A
force of one hundred deployed down the creek and
another detachment of two hundred was sent to at-
tack the guerrillas in the rear, but the bluffs pre-
vented the latter force from reaching a point where
they could be effective. A combined attack was
agreed on, but when the charge from the front was
made again, the main body was unsupported by the
three hundred troops sent to attack the flank and
rear, and a terrible repulse was the consequence.

49 o-

50 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

The several disastrous charges made by the Fed-
erals convinced them that the cavalry was r useless
against such a strongly fortified foe, and a new plan
of attack was resolved upon. All the troops were
dismounted and their horses secured in the ravine
five hundred yards north of the battle-ground. The
combined force then moved in infantry columns, and
with solid phalanx ascended the hill, reserving their
fire until the last moment. The sight now was a
grand one. The guerrillas, with double-barreled shot-
guns loaded deep with slugs and buck-shot, lay low
behind their barricades and waited the approach of
the enemy. Not a gun was fired, nor a word uttered
until the Federals had almost reached the sheltering-
works and were preparing to scale them, when sud-
denly there was a rattling peal which shook the
sleeping forest and a cry of anguish arose which con-
verted that spot into a place too horrible for nature.
The line wavered under that mortal fire, but the rents
were repaired in the attacking column, and the onset
continued. It was almost a steady stream of deadly
fire that poured over and through the crevices of the
fallen trees and the havoc was too terrible for the
bravest to stand. Despite their exposed position the
Federals fought with a valor never surpassed ; though
their ranks were melting away like a thin depth of
snow before a warm sun, yet the survivors were men
of steel and fought like heroes batthng for life. Not-
withstanding the protecting butts of large trees, the
guerrillas suffered severely. Quantrell was shot

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 51

through the leg, but still he fought and cheered his
men wlTiJ.e the blood ran away and wasted his strength ;
Cole Younger had his clothes riddled with bullets
and his hat shot off; Geo. Shepherd was hit in the
arm, and more than a dozen of Quantrell's men were
lying here and there, in pools of their own blood,
never to fight again. To render escape more difficult,
nearly half of Quantrell's horses were killed and the
country was almost as thickly beset by large bands
of scouting Federals as with trees, brush and lofty
bluffs.

The charging forces were four times beaten back
from the impregnable barricade, tottering under the
flying pellets of death, but rallying again and again
until the dusky shadows of evening obscured foe
from foe. The roar of battle ceased gradually and
when the smoke uplifted nothing relieved the pain-
ful quiet which succeeded save the shrill piping of
summer insects and the distant monotone of a solil-
oquizing owl.

Late in the night Cole Younger, with two others,,
was sent out to locate the enemy for the purpose of
ascertaining the safest avenue of escape. Quantrell's
wound was now giving him much pain, his fighting;
force was seriously crippled and his ammunition al-
most exhausted. To remain and risk the battle
which was certain to be renewed on the morrow, he
realized would be sure defeat followed by the most
disastrous consequences.

Directly after Younger and his two comrades left
the camp to reconnoitre a heavy rain began to fall

52 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

which, rattling among the trees, permitted them to
proceed with less fear of detection and indisposed
the Federal pickets to keep vigilant guard, for they
were already fairly exhausted from fighting, and nat-
urally sought shelter and rest.

It was nearly twelve o'clock, midnight, when the
daring spy returned and made his report to Quantrell.
Cole had crawled inside the Federal lines, located
every squad and picket, and then found a clear pas-
sage, but it was up a dreadfully steep hillside which
only the surest footed animal could climb. But even
this information was encouraging, and hurriedly yet
silently the camp was raised, the wounded mounted
with aids, and the tattered ranks of the guerrillas were
put in motion. It occupied more than an hour's
time to get the horses and men up the hillside, and
in the confusion the Federal camp was aroused to
Quantrell's intention. The darkness, however, was
friendly to the guerrillas and protected them in their
escape, many of them being compelled to ride double,
owing to the scarcity of horses. The Sny hills were
reached, the wounded were left at the houses of friends,
and hastily separating the trail was broken.

AMBUSCADES AND HARD FIGHTING.

Quantrell and Shepherd received the best surgical
attention, and as their wounds were sHght they soon
recovered sufficiently to resume active operations.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 53

Before calling the command together, however, Cole
Younger and George Shepherd were sent into Kan-
sas City with instructions to procure all the ammu-
nition possible, while Quantrell went to St. Joseph to
collect arms. The guerrillas being life-long residents
of the neighborhood in which they fought, had many
valuable friends who gave important aid in all their
undertakings. It was not difficult to procure muni-
tions of war in Kansas City, and in two days after
entering the place a goodly store was secured, which
was loaded into a wagon and the two guerrillas start-
ed back to the appointed rendezvous on the Sny.
Five miles from the city they put up at a friend's house
for the night,but before bed-time they were surround-
ed by a body of Federal cavalry who, by some
means, learned of Younger and Shepherd's visit to
Kansas City and had been placed on their trail by
spies. Back of the house was a field of wheat al-
most ready for the harvest, and in this the wagon
was secreted, while the horses were larriated between
two out-buildings, ready for emergencies which
were anticipated. The Federals demanded an imme-
diate surrender, accompanying theorder with a threat
to fire the house in case of a refusal. The position,
critical in the extreme though it was, induced no
thought of capitulation. Looking out of the win-
dows the guerrillas discovered where the guard was
weakest and drawing their revolvers they rushed out
of the back door, killing four men as they ran, and
gained their horses in a shower of leaden rain. Both

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

were struck, Cole being hit with three balls, which
produced only flesh wounds, however, while Shep-
herd was shot in the shoulder and thigh, which pre-
vented him from keeping his horse, after riding a
few hundred yards. Younger succored him with
true comrade sympathy and under the cover of night
the two made good their escape, and again Shepherd
was given over to the care of friends until his wounds
should heal.

Younger, seeing his friend provided for, bandaged
his own wounds and then joined Todd on the Big
Blue, where, on the following day, with a squad of
fifteen men they fell on the flank of a Federal scout-
ing party which they routed, killing six of the num-
ber. Three days after, the same guerrilla force came
upon an ammunition and supply train under the con-
voy of fifty Federal cavalry in the eastern part of
Johnson county, Kansas. The meeting occurred on
the banks of the Aubrey, and, fortunately for the
guerrillas, they found the enemy powerless, owing to
their intoxicated condition, as with the train were
several barrels of whiskey. The attack was a slaugh-
ter as of helpless brutes, not a Federal escaping, and
the atrocities of the murder are shocking to remem-
ber even now. Men were shot down and then bay-
oneted, their riddled carcasses being left to fester in
the summer sun. The supplies captured were taken
to the retreat in the hills, more than compensating
for the loss of the wagon left by Younger and Shep-
herd in \X\h wheat field.

I'BE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 55

Five days later, Todd and Younger with their de-
structive squad of fifteen, met nineteen Federals as
they were crossing the Big Blue, in Jackson county,
in a hand ferry-boat. Awaiting until they were near
the shore on which the guerrillas were secreted, such
a deadly fire was poured into the thoroughly sur-
prised Federals that not a single one escaped.

These fatal surprises made the Union forces more
cautious and determined. Spies were sent out to lo-
cate the guerrillas and an ambush was planned into
which Todd and Younger rode without a suspicion
•of danger. Their cruel tactics were being played
against them, and had the Federals exhibited the re-
morseless nature of their enemies, not a guerrilla of
that band would have been left to tell how desperate
was the assault near Stoney Point.

The place selected for the ambush was a rugged
spot on the road between Pink Hill and Stoney
Point, about one mile from the latter place. There
was a shallow cut in the road and on each side was
a heavy timber of oak and hickory, and many large
rocks which afforded the most secure hiding-place
for an enemy. The squad rode leisurely into the
enfiladed passage with Younger and Todd at the head
of the column, who were chatting humorously to-
gether about their recent escapades. Suddenly,
right ahead of them, they heard a shot and quickly
following was a rattle of rifles and the whizz of bul-
lets cutting through the guerrilla ranks, emptying
several saddles and demoralizing even those who had

~ c* * »^>

THE FEDERAL AMBUSH

56 O

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

ST-

faced death frequently before, when it stalked in
their midst in more hideous aspect. The guerrillas
dashed through the guarded road and with rare good
luck escaped destruction. The Federals had not
made the most of their opportunity. The first fire
was given before the guerrillas were fully in the pas-
sage, owing to the accidental discharge of a gun which
gave warning to the guerrillas, and compelled the Fed-
erals to deliver their fire prematurely. In addition to
this mistake, instead of resorting to the destructive
revolver and furiously charging the guerrillas after
firing their carbines, the Federals waited to reload
and this gave the enemy time to recover and return
the fire, after which they dashed off towards the Blue
with one hundred and twenty-five cavalry in hot
pursuit. The chase continued for several miles, Todd
and Younger hoping to reach Quantrell, who had re-
ported his return from St. Joseph with a large num-
ber of navy revolvers and one hundred carbines.
When they reached the bridge over the Blue, on the
Kansas City road, the situation became more com-
plicated, for directly in front of them, Todd and
Younger, who were in advance, discovered a body
of mounted Federals whose carbines and sabres^
glistening in the sunlight, bristled with preparation
for murderous work. Enemies behind and in front,
more than twenty times their own number, caused
the bravest heart in that little band to sicken with
gravest apprehension. There was no time to hesi-
tate, it was of all others the moment for spontaneous

58 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

action. The charge was ordered at the enemy in
front, but what could so small a force do against
overwhelming numbers in an open fight? They fell
back under the burden of that galling fire, with
Younger's horse shot from under him; Todd's cloth-
ing cut to pieces ; Martin Shepherd killed, and Blunt,
Yaeger and Bledsoe desperately wounded. Wheel-
ing his horse, Todd shouted encouraging words to
his comrades and Younger, with a pistol in each
hand, fighting in his desperation, shouted to the band
to follow him, and dashing toward the bank of the
stream, which rose perpendicularly more than five
feet, he leaped into the water followed by those on
horseback. They crossed under an ineffectual fire
and, with Younger mounted behind Todd, the shat-
tered squad rode through the brush and gained
Quantrell's retreat in the Sny hills.

THE FIGHT AT INDEPENDENCE.

Col. Upton Hays had been among the Sny and
Blue hills for several weeks recruiting a Confederate
regiment, and had collected a force of six hundred
men. Having now the most effective arms and a
good supply of ammunition, Quantrell sought an
interview with Col. Hays, and the result was a de-
termination to attack Independence, which was gar-
risoned by five or six hundred Federals, under com-
mand of Col. Buel. One of the prime motives of

33
33
O

'^r:y ,ii^^u^\> >:^:

^^T^'^'V m,

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 59

the intended attack v/as to accomplish the deliver-
ance of about thirty Confederates and guerrillas, who
had been captured and were then confined in the In-
dependence jail.

To prepare for the fight, by locating and fixing the
strength of the Federals in the immediate neighbor-
hood, which might be available for reinforcements
to harass his retreat, if such a movement became
necessary. Col. Hays selected five of Quantrell's
bravest men. Cole Younger, Yaeger, Miller, Young
and Muir, and with these, made a detour of observa-
tion, clothed in Federal uniform.

When the squad reached Westport, they found the
place held by twenty-five of Jennison's men against
whom the guerrillas had sworn vengeance and a fight
of extermination. In their uniform disguise. Col.
Hays and his men had no difficulty in entering the
place without molestation. Finding the jayhawkers
unprepared for an attack, Yaeger shot one of the
guards, which became the signal for a slaughter. At
the first volley four of Jennison's men fell dead, and
before the others gained their arms more than a
dozen more were killed or wounded. One specially
obnoxious German was chased to his house by Cole
Younger, the door broken in, and in another moment
his dead body was dragged into the street by
Younger, who shouted : " Here is food for buzzards !"
The remaining jayhawkers had now reached the
cover of buildings and procured arms. It was time
for Col. Hays and his uninjured men to retreat,

€o THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

which they did, galloping down the road rapidly
only to find the way obstructed by a body of fifty
cavalry. A blind lane turned to the right and into
this the squad dashed, bringing up suddenly against
the fence with fifty sabers and carbines in their rear.
Fortunately, for fortune seemed to favor the guerril-
las, the fence was not very high and the rails rotten ;
it was therefore easy for men so used to the saddle
and desperate extremities to leap the barrier and fly
over the field to safety. Much valuable information
was gained by the detour, but the most important
knowledge concerned Independence ; how the forces
were stationed ; the strategic points in the place ;
the location of the jail ; the exact force of the gar-
rison and the preparations to resist attack from every
side. Who should gather this information ? Upon
whom the service would devolve was determined
with the query, for who was so well adapted to such
dangerous adventures as Cole Younger ? Who so fer-
tile of resource, so cunning in conversation, so per- .
feet in disguise ? Cole was selected to perform the
dangerous mission of a spy, and, with all its attend-
ant perils, he was as happy in such a recognition of
his abilities as d school boy with his merit mark.

Left to his own judgment. Cole procured an an-
cient, home-spun linsey-woolsey dress, in which he
had some alterations made to better accommodate
his person. Next in importance was an old faded
sun-bonnet with yellow strings and broken pasteboard
stiffening. His feet he encased in men's gaiters.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 6i

which were split up in the center to give them the
appearance of women's shoes ; a rough wig with hair
combed closely down over his temples, completed
the personal outfit. For conveyance he rode a horse
in whose eyes lingered an unchangeable disposition
to sleep, but in his heels there was the speed of a
hurricane. The saddle v/as for a man, which, in that
section of country, performed duty for male and fe-
male members of the family alike. The bridle was
comical to look upon. It had originally been a
blind-bridle, but now one of the blinds had fallen
off; the throat-latch was a tov/ string, and the curb
was of home-spun woolsey, while rope and tow-
strings held many of the broken parts of the bridle
together, and a piece of sea-grass rope answered the
purpose of reins.

Thus attired, with a large covered market basket
on his arm, Cole Younger rode into Independence on
the main highway. The pickets gave no heed to the
ancient backwoods grandmother, and Cole rode up
into the public square, where, after hitching his horse,
he spoke kindly to many of the soldiers and gave
them large red apples from his basket. A crowd of
soldiers gathered around him, to whom he gave all
his apples and then began a conversation as follows :

Said Cole, changing his voice to a tone suitable to
his appearance : ** I am nothing but a poor old
woman with few years before me, but I've lived un-
der this government a long time, and, do you know,
I can't think about the effort that is now being made

62 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

to destroy it, without crying. You see, old folks
don't like to change, and they are always anxious for
their children to enjoy all the good things they have
enjoyed."

" Where do you live ?" interrupted one of the
soldiers.

*'I live out near Pink Hill, about ten miles from
here, right in a nest of the worst rebels in fifty miles
of the Sny. Quantrell has been laying around there
for these two months past ; has stolen all my chick-
ens, taken the best hoss I had, and poor Johnnie, my
baby, only fifteen years of age, he carried away and
flogged him almost to death because he was my child
and Union to the core."

*' Where is Quantrell now?" asked a soldier, evi-
dently much interested in the old woman's honest
and pathetic story.

** Why, he's outen there somewheres about now,
and I tell you, if I had two hundred brave men, old
woman as I am and got no sense, I'd tackle Quan-
trell if it was the last act of my life."

This patriotic ebullition brought forth several ex-
pressions of " good !" "good!" from the interested
squad around her. One of the men then asked the
old woman if she knew anything about fighting.

The reply was : " Well, nothing to speak of except
what I inherited ; I used to be purty lively with my
finger-nails when I was a young gal; we used to
have some high times, you know, at corn huskin's
and quiltin's, and I've seed the hull crowd gouging

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 63

and clawing wuss'n a pack of wild cats, and I was
reckoned one of the most vigorous in the pack too."

The crowd laughed and joked the old woman
about her pluck, and then asked her if she knew how
to handle a rifle or revolver.

*' I used to a leetle, but my eyes haint good any
more, and I don't think I could knock a squirrel's
eye out from the tallest branches of the big hicko-
ries around here, any more, but twenty year ago I
could."

After some further joking on the old woman's
prowess, she changed the subject back to Quantrell.

** Well, what I'd like to know is, if the Federals
about here can't kill that Quantrell and his cut-
throats, and save our property. How many men
have you got in this here place, anyhow, and how are
you fixed for fighting?"

The soldiers responded : " We've got nearly six
hundred men here, but then we can't leave the place
to pursue Quantrell, for if we did, the Rebs might
turn on us and capture Independence."

** What good would it do them if they did ? wouldn't
you be doing better service by killing the infernal
and thieving Rebels, than by staying in here doing
nothing?" responded the old woman.

*' Yes, but then you should remember, we have a
large amount of government stores here ; powder,
rifles, provisions, etc., which might fall into the hands
of the Rebels if we left them unprotected," was the
soldier's reply.

64 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

" Well, I don't know nothing about war," remarked
the old woman, ** but I'd like to be edecated on it a
leetle. This is the first time I've been in Indepen-
dence since the troops took the town, and I'd like to
see what you all fight with and how you live ; where
you keep your prisoners; how many you've got, and,
in short, jist how the hull thing is done."

The soldiers very courteously told the old woman
where the jail was, and that she could go all around
the place and look at everything she pleased.

The road was now clear to obtain what informa-
tion was desired, and at every point where anything
special was needed. Cole would engage some soldier
in conversation and successfully obtain full explana-
tions.

About five o'clock in the evening, having made a
thorough inspection of every spot in the town. Cole
returned to his horse, which he backed up to the fence
and mounted. He rode slowly out of town but upon
approaching the outer picket a sergeant, seeing the
covered basket on Cole's arm, and being suspicious
that it contained some medicine or arms for the ene-
my, as such smuggling was common, ordered the
picket to halt and examine the old woman. Cole
tried to parley with the picket, but finding all entreat-
ies vain, and knowing the results of an investigation,
instantly drew a pistol from beneath the folds of that
ancient dress, and ere the guard anticipated the move-
ment a ball went crashing through his brain. Cole
then threw his right leg in proper position in the sad-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 65

■die, gave his drowsy horse a jerk, which threw the
lightning into his heels, and away he sped followed
by three mounted soldiers who, however, were soon
distanced, and the daring spy reached Quantrell and
Hays in safety.

In the gray of the morning of August nth, 1862,
Hays and Quantrell with a combined force of over
seven hundred men, nearly all of whom were, how-
ever, raw recruits, led by the intrepid Younger, at-
tacked the camp on the west side of town with a cav-
alry charge. The first picket was killed and the Fed-
erals surprised, though they were not demoralized.
The roll was quickly beaten, Col. Buel dashed the
sound slumber of the morning from his eye-lids, and
the line of battle was formed with extraordinary
celerity. The guard fired on the swiftly approaching
^nerny and then retired in good order to the buildings.
Nearly every picket was killed, but when Hays and
Quantrell poured their troops into the public square
they met v/ith a reception little expected. From
every window there were puffs of smoke and red
flames. Hays was compelled to dismount his men
and seek the protection of walls and fences. He then
attacked the canip while Quantrell struck at Buel
in the houses. Ijut he had a force to contend with
that was steel to steel. Hays carried the camp and
then joined Quantrell in the onslaught against the
building occupied by Buel and a hundred of his men.
Muskets and revolvers could not dislodge them, but
fire could. A farmer's wagon, loaded with hay, stood

(iS THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

in the square,' and this was drawn along-side of the
doomed building and set on fire. The swift flames-
shot upward and their malignant tongues soon licked
the cornice and roof, eat up the shingles and fastened
on the rafters. Superhuman exertions and consum-
mate bravery could not extinguish fire guarded as it
was by death dealing carbines and revolvers. Buel
fought like a tiger at bay until the fierce heat scorch-
ed his face, and to hold out longer meant death too
terrible to meet. The white flag had to be unrolled
and flung to the breeze, and Buel, the bravest of the
brave, was forced to capitulate unconditionally.

After the capture came the pillage. The wounded
were cared for, and the dead, winrows of which lay
around the square, were buried, after which all the
prisoners in the jail were liberated, the Federals pa-
roled and the stores confiscated. The price of vic-
tory and defense was great, more than one hundred
Confederates being killed and wounded, while the loss
of the Federals was fifty-seven.

THE BATTLE OF LONE JACK.

Jackson county had become an active volcano,
pouring down from its sides searing lava and filling
every village, hillside and valley with woe. It was
the fighting and recruiting ground of guerrillas, Con-
federates and Union men, neighbor against neighbor,
schoolmate against schoolmate, and war to the knife.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 67

Every rivulet had a bloody tinge, every home its
victim.

Five days after the capture of Independence came
the dreadful fight at Lone Jack, a hamlet in Jackson
county, twelve miles from Independence, consisting
of two country stores, a saloon, blacksmith shop and
a dozen other buildings.

Col. Joe Shelby, Col. Ward Cockrell and Col. John
T. Coffee, each at the head of a ^qw hundred men,
had come into Missouri from various points, all with
the same intention, to recruit their respective com-
mands and then begin an active campaign through
Missouri and Arkansas, and drive Gen. Curtis out of
the former State, who was doing the Confederate
cause much damage. The three commands formed
a junction two miles north of Lone Jack, and went
into separate camps on the evening of Friday, Au-
gust 15th. By a singular coincidence Major Emory
Foster, a brave and able officer in command of one
thousand Federal cavalry and supported by two
pieces of artillery, entered Lone Jack on the same
night and went into cam.p. Maj. Foster's purpose
was to strike Quantrell, who was located by Federal
spies in that section, not for a moment anticipating a.
meeting with a full regiment of regular Confederates..

The few residents Lone Jack contained were ins
full sympathy with the South, and word was speedily
communicated to the Confederates of the Federal's
proximity, their strength, equipment, etc.

Cockrell and Foster had, at one period of their

68 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

lives, been residents of Warrensburg, and the former
knew that in the fight which could not be avoided,
nothing but good luck and brave men could save
him. Long rides had jaded the Confederates' horse5=
and a rest was necessary ; this was the reason an at-
tack was not made during the night, but this excuse
is hardly pardonable under the circumstances, when
the advantages of attacking an enemy, unconscious
of lurking danger, are so conspicuous and invaluable.
Quantrell would scarcely have waited until the camp
had become quiet, ere he would have plunged in,
heading a charge like the mad dash of ocean break-
ers and irresistible as the lightning's bolt. But Quan-
trell was not there, neither was the intrepid Shelby,
for on the morning preceding the battle he had de-
parted for Waverly to meet a force of Confederates
awaiting him. But leading the troops by platoons
were Jackman,Tracey, Rathburn, Hunter, Bohannon.
Hays and Coffee, the latter, however, being too far to
the south (where, with nearly two hundred men he
was scouting) to participate in the fight.

Col. Cockrell had command, and shortly after re-
ceiving the report of the Federals' position he called
his men to arms and formed in line of battle on the
main highway to Independence, one-half mile from
the enemy's outposts. The line of battle wa^ main-
tained for nearly an hour, when it was decided to
break ranks, sleep on their arms and make the attack
early in the morning. This action of Col. Cockrell
has been severely criticised by Confederate officers.

THk, YOUNGER BROTHERS, 69

but criticism is no part of faithful history, and com-
ments and conclusions are therefore left for the
reader. Cockrell's bravery, it is but proper to add,
never was nor can it be questioned, for it was thor-
oughly tested in the battle of which we write.

Lone Jack lay sleeping in the prairie, with a corn-
field and heavy hedge rows on the east side, and a
growth of timber lined the murmuring brooklet
which curved a half-circle of the town on the west.
In the place was a two-story frame building called
the Cave House, an old-fashioned country inn. This
house was Foster's headquarters, and from an upper
window floated the stars and stripes. The hamlet
took its name from a large and lone black-jack tree
which stood like a solitary sentinel at the apex of a
prairie knoll, two hundred yards south of the Cave
House, but like many of those who fought around its
trunk on the i6th of August, it is now in the process
of decay.

At four o'clock in the morning the Confederate
bivouac was raised and the hurry and bustle of pre-
paration for the early battle was begun. The horses
were placed in charge of a guard of fifty men, and
the regiment, consisting of a few less than one thou-
sand men, was disposed, by orders of Col. Cockrell,
as follows: Jackman, with a force of three hundred,
was stationed near the steam mill south of town;
Tracey, with a like number of men, took up a posi-
tion in the cornfield east of town, while Bohannon
stretched his line on the south-west with instructions

70 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

to drive in the pickets and the first shot should be
the signal for a combined movement a^jd general at-
tack. When the positions were taken it was not yet
day, but the eastern portals of light were flecked
with an aureole of beautiful red, signaling the ap-
proach of a cloudless day.

It was six o'clock before the quiet of early morn-
ing was broken by the signal gun, much unnecessary
delay having occurred, and before the attack was be-
gun, the Federals had discovered the enemy and
were ready for the onset. When Tracey's line ad-
vanced rapidly, expecting to meet a surprised foe,
ere he reached the limits of the town, a raking fire
was poured into his astonished ranks, which caused
much confusion, but his men soon rallied. Tracey,
however, was shot in the foot and had to be taken
from the field, but his place was quickly filled by
Hunter. Jackman and Bohannon were slow in com-
ing up, but when they struck the enemy's flank,
they drove the Federals from the hedge rows, and
the fire from three sides soon drove them into the
buildings.

The artillery could not be made effective because
of the proximity of the Confederates, and the fire
which drove the gunners back under shelter, and af-
ter a most desperate and stubborn fight the guns
were captured. At this juncture. Cole Younger, with
forty mounted guerrillas, hearing the fighting, came
dashing into the rear and reported to Col. Cockrell.
Cole was sent into the action without any delay, and

THE YO UNGER BR O TIIERS. 7 1

the fighting grew hotter. Maj. Foster, seeing his ar-
tillery in the hands of the Confederates, and being
planted beside the blacksmith's shop where it could
batter down his defences, rallied his forces, and
placing himself at the head of three hundred men,
swept down upon the enemy with such resistless
fury, that the Confederates were forced to retreat and
permit the Federals to recover the guns. From this
time Foster forced the fighting and the hand-to-hand
-encounter in the street became terrible. A hundred
men held the hotel, and from their position did dread-
ful execution, killing Captains Bryant and Bradley,
and preventing, for a long time, the approach of the
Confederates up the street. Something had to be
-done and that quickly ; it was either a retreat or drive
the enemy from the hotel. Cole Younger was the
first to suggest fire, but who so rash as to drive
through the fatal hailstorm of bullets and apply the
torch ? The answer came from the guerrilla hero.
Turpentine balls were a part of the guerrilla's equip-
ment, and at the head of a dozen men, ten feet apart.
Cole rushed through the deadly volleys and flung the
burning balls in and against the building, leaving half
his men dead in the effort, but escaping himself un-
hurt. The dreadful scene before became appaUing
now. The roar of crackling flames mingled with the
rattle of musketry and the death cry of victims. Driven
from that furnace of destruction, the Federals poured
out of the doomed building, shooting as they ran,
but few lived to find another shelter. Among the

72 O-

THE YOUNGER BROTIILRS, 73

slain was the lady of the house, who fell, pierced
with a dozen balls, on the very threshold ; bullets are
no respecters of persons ; it was her misfortune and
the regrets of the Confederates could not infuse life
again into that innocent and bleeding body. Driven
from the buildings, the Federals fought with the
fierceness born of desperation ; the streets were fairly
choked with the dead ; hand to hand and hilt to hilt,
saber and bayonet, pistol and gun, blood for blood,
and thus the fight continued for more than three
hours. Younger was here, there, everywhere ; the
keen crack of his pistol was the cradle which har-
vested death.

The fight progressed with the Federals giving way
inch by inch, and moving slowly southward, which
was now the only by-way of escape. Maj. Foster
was wounded in six different places, and Capt. Fos-
ter, his brother, shot to death ; still the br^ve Fed-
erals would not yield so long as there remained a
fighting force. At noon, when the hot sun beat down
upon that field of carnage and the exhausted, sorely
stricken Major saw the bloody heaps of his fallen
comrades, and the few brave men of his command^
battling against hope, it was only then that he
yielded, brave even in the last act. In this terrible
battle the Federals lost two hundred killed and more
than five hundred wounded, and the Confederates
suffered a loss somewhat greater. Two hundred of
Foster's men made their escape and reached Lexing-
ton four days after the fight, while those captured
were paroled and sent to their homes.

74 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

ASSASSINATION OF COL. HENRY W.
YOUNGER.

On the 20th of July, 1862, Col. Henry W.
Younger, father of the Younger Brothers, was way-
laid and assassinated, five miles from Independence,
while driving in his buggy towards Harrisonville.
He had a large sum of money on his person at the
time, being the proceeds of a sale of cattle made in
Independence the previous day. When the body
was found, the pockets were turned inside out, about
four hundred dollars having been taken. The assas-
sins, however, failed to find the larger sum, several
thousand dollars, which Mr. Younger had placed in
a belt he wore around his body beneath his under-
clothes.

Cole Younger was soon made acquainted with the
tragic death of his father and at once returned home
to be present at the funeral services, regardless of the
danger encountered in so doing. It was reported
that the assassins were Jennison's Red Legs, but of
this there is no proof, though Cole harbored suspi-
cions, and he never rested until the last person whom
he suspected of complicity in this crime was dead,
and his revengeful hand murdered not a few.

Mrs. Younger was naturally a very delicate woman
with the hectic flush of consumption coming and go-
ing in her cheeks. Trouble, which laid its hand
heavily on her when the eagles of war spread their
pinions, gave food to the insidious disease and mel-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 7^

ancholy marked her for its own. Cole looked into
the dear eyes of his anguished mother and the re-
venge in his bosom was bent even against nature, to
lift that dreadful burden from off her precious heart.
James and John were almost ready to join the banner
of the prairie vulture, but there were sisters, and her
whose support had just been broken, needing protec-
tion, and desire for revenge could not break the seal
of duty. The property of the family had been
greatly wasted by foraging parties of jayhawkers,
who had come to regard Cole Younger as the incar-
nation of atrocity and murder, and were determined
to punish the family for his crimes. Not a week
passed but the house of Mrs. Younger became the
objective point of a squad of militia or jayhawk-
ers in seach of Cole. Indignity after indignity
was perpetrated and the most cruel means re-
sorted to in the endeavor to extort information of
his whereabouts. It was thus the horrors of war fell
athwart the Younger's household, making the very
air they breathed pestilential.

SKIRMISHES. AMBUSCADES AND
EXECUTIONS.

In the latter part of September, Quantrell's forces
were called together for the purpose of reorganiza-
tion. The policy of the guerrillas was to fight, dis-
band and reorganize ; cemented in their fellowship

THE BORDER OUiLAWS.

by oaths and obligations, whether separated or united
their hearts and arms were ever ready to respond to
the needs of their cause. When the winding horn
reverberated through the forests it was Quantrell's
call to the rendezvous, and when the roll was read
every name responded with a cheerful " on duty."
One hundred and twenty men, well armed and mount-
ed, were ready to begin active offensive operations
against militia, pillage unguarded posts, capture pro-
vision trains and kill — kill — kill. The guerrillas rode
out of Missouri to leave their bloody trail through
Kansas, and make reprisals of men and chattels. At
Shawnee Quantrell found a half-hundred undrilled
militia who surrendered to him without firing a
shot; two miles below there, on the route to Olathe,
seven mounted men were captured, and ill was the
hour of their birth, for the decision was that they
belonged to Jennison's band. That decision meant
quick death. To his men, "bring the ropes ;" to the
captives, " pray," were all the words spoken by Quan-
trell. Among the number was a young man, only a
lad in fact, with black eyes full of courage. He had
but one request to make : ** Let it be the rifle instead
of the rope," and the last wish of his life was granted.
From a broad-reaching oak limb six bodies hung side
by side among the dying autumn leaves, and at the
root of the tree one face looked upward into the un-
known with the stare of death in his eyes.

From Shawnee the guerrillas sped on to Olathe,
twenty miles further south, where they captured

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 77

seventy-five more militia, men unused to war, who
never thought of resistance ; they performed the
part of a sham battery, or, Hke sentinels of straw, to
intimidate only by appearances. All these were pa-
roled, and after feeding their horses and appropriat-
ing needful provisions, Quantrell turned to the east,
passing through Aubrey and over ground made
familiar to him by previous expeditions.

Reaching Cass county, in the northern part, the
guerrillas learned of a convoy of one hundred and
fifty Federal cavalry with ten heavily loaded wagons
of government stores, enroute to Kansas City. It
was the time for an ambush. The pick and shovel,
in many expert hands, soon made convenient rifle
pits along the road and then, secreting their horses
back in the woods, the guerrillas patiently awaited
the approach of the cavalry. Quantrell was on the
left, Todd on tiie right, and Younger in the center of
the ambushing file. It was on the 2nd of October
when the doomed convoy came slowly up the road
with the wagons in the center, creaking under the
heavy loads. On each side of the road there ap-
peared nothing but the natural stillness of the woods.
For a hundred yards the trenches extended along the
highway and the command was given not to fire until
the convoy had ridden abreast the complete line of the
pits. There was breathless silence, as every man re-
solved himself into an engine of destruction, paus-
ing, like a tiger, before the death spring on its vic-
tim. Unconsciously the train wended slowly along

78 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

over the road of bloody fate, the men laughing, sing-
ing love songs, passing jokes, talking of loved ones
at home and repeating stories of Quantrell's deeds
of murder. When the convoy came abreast of the
ambushed line, without a word of warning, the gates
of hell seemed to open on the left, and over the sides
of the masked trenches poured a stream of flame,
smoke and lead, starting at the lower end of the line
and running its length, like a trail of powder touched
by a spark. It was a work of murder, the surprise
was so complete, and as dead men fell with the
autumn leaves, fire was applied to the wagcns, and
the terrors of that seething hell were thus multiplied.
More than seventy of the Federal column lay in the
highway with only heat from the burning train left to
give them burial. The rest of the convoy broke
with the first fire and by desperate riding reached
Kansas City.

The woods were now resonant with the crack of
the rifle, and human game was easily found by the
opposing forces. Every hillside was a redoubt, ev-
ery ravine a rifle-pit ; a foe seemed lurking behind
every tree and death held his revel in the border
counties.

The Harrisonville and Kansas City road was a
principal highway along which Federals, Confeder-
ates and guerrillas were daily traveling. The ample
preparations made at the slaughter-pits were too ad-
va^ntageous to be readily abandoned, and on the fol-
lowing day it was decided to hold a second carnival

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 79

at the same place. Accordingly, the guerrillas took
up a position in the commodious trenches, while Cole
Younger, Gregg, Geo. Shepherd and Scott, were
sent out to deploy down the road and, if possible,
decoy another body of Federals inside the masked
dead line. Several hours elapsed ere there were any
indications of a " find," and the patience of the anx-
ious ambuscaders was becoming restless. Dave Poole
rose up from his sitting posture in the pits and put-
ting his hands behind his ears, to better catch the
sound waves, waited a moment, and then in a low
voice asked :

" Did you hear that shot ?"

*' No, from what direction?"

" A little to the west, I think," was the reply.

** There ! three more in quick succession. Boys,
they have struck them, sure !"

Poole and Quantrell then put their ears to the
ground.

" Look out, they are coming on a dead run, for I
can hear the clatter of horses' feet," remarked Quan-
trell.

" Get ready, every man, it's a chase, for they are
firing on the retreat."

Sure enough, there was a pursuit, the sound of
horses feet, and the rattle of pistols and guns could
not be mistaken. On they came at the bent of their
speed, the pursued, with nearly two hundred Federal
cavalry thundering in their rear, not two hundred
yards behind. At the pits there was a quick turn in

8o o.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 8i

the road and, hidden for a moment from the charg-
ing cavalry, the four intrepid decoys dashed into the
woods behind the trenches, leaped from their horses
and rushed to the slaughter which had now begun.
A sheeted flame broke from the pits as the Federals
breasted the line, and horses and riders plunged into
the dust, while the air was rent with cries of the
wounded and made stifling with powder smoke.

But the fight did not end with the first volley, for,
although fifty saddles were emptied, the Federals
•quickly comprehended the situation, and with reck-
less bravery, dismounted and began an onslaught on
the works. Fighting from behind trees, on the flank,
front and rear, the carbines did dreadful execution.
Within an hour the Federals were reinforced by Col.
Hubbard's Sixth Missouri cavalry, of three hundred
men, and then the tables of death were turned on
the guerrillas. A desperate charge was hurled
against the entrenched enemy, which swept up to the
very muzzles of the guns, but a tornado of bullets
hurled back the column and left the ground strewn
with dead men. Hubbard's bravery was equalled
■only by the fanatic martyr.

"To the front, Charge !" again came the command,
and again the blue line advanced with fixed bayo-
nets into tbe very face of the guerrillas, but again that
sheet of flame burst from the trenches and the
stricken Federals trembled, then fell back in confu-
sion. Charge after charge was made, but each time'
repelled by that storm-burst of leaden hail. It was
6

82 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

folly to fight longer against such disadvantages.
Night had approached, but the round, full moon and
a star-decked canopy lighted up the battle-ground^
and Col. Hubbard, unwilling to give up the contest^
fell-back for the purpose of surrounding the guer-
rillas and holding them until the morrow. His inten-
tion was, however, anticipated and the ambushers
drew off at the first opportunity, carrying their
wounded with them, and retreated into the Blue hills
where they camped and rested for two days. In this
engagement the Federals lost nearly one hundred
killed and the guerrillas twenty-two, and as many
more severely wounded.

After resting and receiving several new recruits
Quantrell divided his men into squads and sent them
in different directions to harass the Federals and
confuse his pursuers. Younger, with twelve men,
took the route toward Little Blue, and it was not
long before he had work for his revengeful hands.
At a bridge, over Little Blue, the guerrillas met a
mounted squad of twenty Federals and the passage
had to be made by one party over the dead bodies
of the other. To meet an enemy meant a furious
charge to Younger, and his tactics were put into
execution at the bridge. Giving the enemy no time
to consider, Younger shouted "to the charge," and
at the head of the hurricane he rodejnto the ranks
of the Federals, shouting and slashing like hunters in
a herd of buffalos. Two alone of the twenty es-
caped, each because of somcr favor shown Younger

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 83

in earlier days, and not one of the guerrillas was
even wounded.

But fortune did not always favor the fierce fighters,
for the Federals multiplied, and to slay a detachment
was like killing flies in summer time, the number
seemed undiminished. Pressed on every side, con-
fronted in every road and by-way, driven from every
shelter, the guerrillas began to tire ; squad-fighting
was too dangerous, the pursuing forces of the Fed-
erals too numerous, and Quantrell again ordered a
meeting at the old rendezvous on the Sny. Every
man was there whose body was intact; some there
were in the garrets of their friends' homes, with
wounds like church doors ; others were bleaching in
public roads, in lonely ravines, or sleeping in the
noisy woods — noisy not with the melody of plumed
warblers, but the crack of the carbine and clash of
the saber. Some came to the trysting, bleeding from
bullet sores that had not yet healed, and when the
roll was called again there were still more than a
hundred names on the list ready for duty.

Peabody, Burris, Hubbard, Jennison, Montgomery,.
Anthony and a score of others had entered into a
war which thought not of the subjugation of the
South, only the annihilation of Quantrell and his ter-
rible band. On the first day after leaving the ren-
dezvous, Quantrell met the foe ; with the first dis-
charge of pistols and bullets his enemies multiplied
• by a rush of reinforcements. The retreat was a run-
ning fight through Jackson, Cass, Johnson and a

84 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

dozen other counties. There was no tinrie to cook
or forage, except as they^gathered on the constant
watch. Younger, Shepherd and Gregg became the
rehance of Quantrell, without these he could have
done nothing but surrender or fight, and fighting die
with empty pistols in his grasp. These three men,
whose unparalleled heroism was their armor, rode in
advance or to the rear, wherever their services were
most needful, now checking a pursuit by some clever
strategy or discovering an ambush, gathering forage
for the horses and food for the men, they were the
fortune and succor of Quantrell's army.

Near Wellington the guerrillas met three score
Federal militia in the highway, and with the first
sight came the cry from Younger to " charge." The
retreat which the militia sounded only helped the
slaughter. A few fired at the avalanche and the in-
trepid Scott was struck badly in the thigh, but he
did not leave the saddle. On, on the charge swept,
and when the contact became too close for the pis-
tol the saber took its place ; cuts to the right, left,
and thrusts to the front, the fleeing ranks grew thin-
ner until not a life was spared, and strung along the
road for four miles were bleeding corses, the only
product of that retreat.

Wheeling to the right to avoid a large force of Fed-^
erals in the front, Quntrell crossed streams, burning
bridges behind him, breaking the trail by riding in
branches, and using every precaution to elude pur-»
suit ; still he could not rest. Foes were everywhere

THE I OUNGER BROTHERS. 85

and no strategy could steer him clear of destined
tribulations, fierce fights and disastrous results. Be-
tween the Sny and Big Blue, with retreat to the rear
prevented by destroyed bridges, Quantrell rode into
the clutches of Col. Burris, a brave Kansas Federal,
with three hundred men. There was but one way of
escape, and that lay in a desperate fight, with the
chances three to one against him. Desperate ex-
tremities can best be met by desperate acts, and
Quantrell was "the first to sound the charge with
Younger, Shepherd, Todd and Gregg in the advance.
Col. Burris was in the valley while Quantrell was
coming down the hillside in that wild, impetuous,
running sweep so irresistible that when he struck the
solid Federal column the momentum broke Burris'
ranks and left a bloody gap, but at such dreadful
sacrifice to the guerrillas that out of nearly one hun-
dred two-thirds of them were killed and hardly a
man got through without a wound. Quantrell was
hit in the shoulder, George Shepherd, Harrison,
Todd, Poole, Gregg, and in fact all the best fighters
except Younger were wounded more or less severely.
The stroke was too heavy for the guerrillas to bear
and maintain their organization, and another total
disbandment became imperative, every man able to
ride selecting his own method for escape. Many hid
for days in caves among the bluffs of the Sny, whilst
others moved l-ike shadows, at night, through the
forests, and slept like bats in the hollow of trees and
other dark shelters during the day. It was thus that
the campaign on the border closed in 1862.

S6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

THE SEPARATION AND COMBATS IN
DIFFERENT FIELDS.

QuANTRELL with a few followers, bade farewell to
Cole Younger and started south to join Shelby and
renew the campaign where the winds of winter blow
like mild and cooling zephyrs, and where pinching
frosts never visit to bite and wither the sweet smell-
ing verdure of the evergreens and magnolias. Cole
Younger remained to scout and watch in Jackson
and Cass counties. He was not long quiet, for the
charm of guerrilla life, like the odors of the poppy,
lured him back again into the old paths consecrated
by the sacrifices of direful war. Gathering together
a dozen farmer boys, who had escaped the conscrip-
tion of Federals and Confederates, he first taught
them how to ride and shoot, and appealing to their
softer sentiments in the inspiriting words of chivalry
and patriotism, made of them knights of the high-
way exalted with an ambition to fight and kill. To
get them into practice, Younger led them into am-
buscades from whence mail couriers were shot, and
lone travelers, suspected of Union sentiments, were
cruelly massacred. They soon learned to smother
their conscience, and then to fight small squads
caught foraging on barns and granaries. The force
gradually grew larger until on the first of December
Younger found himself at the head of twenty-five
amateur guerrillas, which number was further in-
creased by a union with Todd, who returned from

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 87

the south with fifteen men. The company was again
ready for active service, though no important engage-
ments took place until January, 1863.

The militia were constantly in search of Younger;
baffled in their efforts more than a hundred times,
they became desperate and resorted to desperate
expedients. A Federal force of fifty men went to
the home of the Youngers, in Cass county, and sur-
rounding the house in which they felt certain Cole
was secreted, made a rush, and with cocked guns
and drawn swords were ready to kill and quarter
their victim. A diligent search failed to discover
Cole, but that the long ride from Independence
might not prove entirely fruitless, three of the Misses
Younger were placed under arrest and carried to
Kansas City, charged with aiding and concealing
their guerrilla brother. They were confined in an
old guard house, which being undermined by rats
and natural decay, during a high wind was blown
down, and in the fall two of the sisters were killed
and the other seriously injured.

The arrest and death of his sisters converted the
cruel guerrilla into a veritable fiend, and made Cole
Younger as voracious for blood as the hungry tiger.
Who can say that his revenge, if not entirely sati-
ated, was not terrible to contemplate ? but, to his
credit let it be recorded, he never killed a woman.

About the^ middle of December, Younger and
Todd made a trip into Kansas for the purpose of
collecting horses and fighting detachments of Jenni-

S8 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

son's men, who were reported as operating at various
points in companies of fifty and one hundred.
Scarcely had they entered Wyandotte county, ten
miles from Little Santa Fe, when they met a force of
jayh^wkers, numbering sixty, and a fight was the re-
sult. It was on the open prairie, and bringing into
execution the old tactics of the guerrillas, a charge
was made, in a swift run, with a pistol in each hand,^
and the bridle-rein in their teeth, firing rapidly; the
onslaught was terrible, but the charge was met by
the jayhawkers with a bold front and steady aim.
The guerrillas were beaten back and divided. Cole
Younger, with a handful of desperate fighters, was
singled out, and the enemy literally rode him down,
wounding him and evej-y one of his men. John Mc-
Dowell was struck hard in the shoulder and his horse
shot from under him, holding his foot between the
saddle and ground. He called to Younger for help^
and his cry was not in vain, for, though it seemed
that certain death followed a return. Younger called
on Todd to charge, and through the driving hail of
bullets,. Cole rushed back, bleeding as he was, from
a flesh wound in the arm, and released his comrade,
lifting him into the saddle and mounting behind.
The fight continued furiously for about twenty min-
utes, when the jayhawkers, though holding their own,
were reinforced by another detachment, and thea
Younger and Todd were driven precipitately across
the prairie and into the woods, when superior riding
enabled them to escape, but not without serious loss.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 89

The guerrillas returned to Missouri, and at the
crossing of Big Blue, where the charred timbers of
the old bridge gave evidence of Quantrell's visit and
line of retreat, they caught six militiamen and made
quick work of them ; after shooting their bodies full
of bullets, a large pole was cut and stretched across
the road, resting in the forks of a tree on each side.
The dead militiamen were then hung to the pole,
their bodies dangling over the road, as a warning
that the guerrillas were on active duty again in Jack-
son county.

COLE YOUNGER'S ESCAPE THROUGH THE
STRATEGY OF A NEGRO WOMAN.

His first wound giving him some trouble. Cole
Younger determined to visit his mother, who needed
the comfort of her son in the new sorrow which had
just fallen so heavily upon her in the loss of her
daughters. Accordingly, he left his men in charge
of Todd and, unaccompanied, rode into Cass county,
reaching his home, under the cover of night, on the
13th of January. Notwithstanding the secrecy with
which he made the visit, there were so many spies on
his track, that, scarcely had he entered the house, be-
fore his presence became known to the militia sta-
tioned at Harrisonville. One hundred men quickly
surrounded the house and, conducting their move-
ments with much caution, they were climbing the

90 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

fence before their approach was suspected. Cole
was in a trap, and through his brain coursed the
events of a Hfe, forced by what he believed was im-
pending death. Hope for once had entirely forsaken
him, and he thought of nothing save his pistols,
which he might empty in the face of his execution-
ers before his arm became paralyzed by a fatal bul-
let. Living with the Younger family was an aged
colored woman, who had been a second mother to
all the children and whose love for Cole was as warm
as ever mother gave her child. With the intuition
of a woman in moments of great peril, the old aunty
became equal to the emergency, and, with the ce-
lerity of youth, she gathered a bed-quilt and flung it
about her, concealing Cole beneath it and her
ample crinoline. A loud knock at the door brought
a response from the old colored woman who, in an
unexcited tone of voice, and with confidence in her
ability to perform her strategy successfully, asked
what was wanted. ** Open the door and we will tell
you," came a voice from the outside.

Without manifesting any tripidation, old aunty
opened wide the door, to admit the heavily armed
and prepared men, a dozen of them. The night was
dark and cold, but the honest face of that aged col-
ored savior, in the light which shone from the little
lamp on the table, gave no appearance of cunning or
suspicion. Cole's thoughts, however, were burning
his very brain, as he crouched under the convoluted
protection of the old negress' skirts and blanket.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 91

Where is Cole Younger? We know he is in the
liouse, and it would save us time and yourselves
trouble, if he would deliver himself up to us," said
the lieutenant in charge of the men now in the house.

Edging herself up between two chairs, the old
colored mother, by proxy, responded : " Bress de
Lawd, honeys. Mars' Cole haint been in dis house
fer mor'n six months; and is it him you want?
and the old negro laughed heartily. Well, you
am de warst mistaken men dis side ob Gilhead.
Mars' Cole here ! why, dat does beat de Jews ob
Jerusalem ; now, if you can't beleebe dis old nigger
jes look de house ober an ef you fines him you can
take de wool offin my head."

Notwithstanding the earnest words of aunty the
Federals made a search, and while they were lifting
the feather beds and peering into closets, the old
negro remarked : " Well, I'll jes step on de outside
and see who's aroun'. " Suspicion never attaching
to the jolly old black soul, she was enabled to make
her deception thorough, and though her appearance
was rather bulky about the extremities, darkness did
not reveal it. Moving in a straddling gait, which
would have been certain to suggest an investiga-
tion had it been day, the aunty and her charge
reached the outbuildings, she talking all the time as
if anxious to engage some of the Federals in con-
versation, but in reality to locate the outer line of the
guards. It was a clear passage now, and when thev
reached a place of safety, Cole arose from his cramped

92 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

position and actually kissed his colored deliverer, but
he had done that a thousand times before, a habit
acquired in infancy. His horse was hitched back of
the orchard, two hundred yards from the house, and
fortunately the Federals had not found it. Mounting
quickly Cole rode away in the darkness for the old
haunts in Sny hills, which he reached without further
adventure.

CHRISTMAS FROLIC IN KANSAS CITY.

Christmas was coming on apace, and as it was
impossible for the guerrillas to celebrate it while
surrounded by thousands of Federals, Cole Younger
decided to commemorate the day by revenging his
father's death. Although it was never absolutely
known who composed the party wh9 so cruelly as-
sassinated Col. Henry Younger, yet Cole was always
satisfied that certain persons whom he knew had
some connection with that crime. Among those
thus suspected was a young lieutenant named Wal-
ley, whom Cole hated with a prejudice blind as re-
venge. They had been enemies, in fact, since boy-
hood ; dividing their feelings over the smiles of a
school girl whose childish favors were reserved for
Cole.

Kansas City was in the hands of the Federals^
twenty-five hundred strong, and every road leading
thence was picketed so strongly that cunning and
extraordinary bravery could alone pierce the lines.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 93

Through friendly sources Cole Younger learned
that Walley and his company were in Kansas City,
and would spend the holidays enjoying the good
things of the place. He immediately formed a
plan to reach that city and glut his vengeance on all
he could find whom he had believed participated in
the assassination of his father. Accordingpjy he com-
municated with Todd, Taylor, Cunningham, Traber
and Clayton, of his command, and acquainted each
with his daring scheme. Each man signified his
willingness to follow Cole and execute his orders.

On the 23d of December, the six guerrillas clothed
themselves in Federal cavalry uniforms and set out
for Kansas City. They had no difficulty in passing
the pickets, as squads were continually coming in
without the countersign. When they reached the
town, which was after dark on Christmas eve, they
dismounted in the south-east part of the town and
left their horses in charge of Zach Traber. The
five then made an examination of all the haunts of
the place with the hope of locating Walley or his
command.

The crowded condition of the saloons, and revelry
in the fast houses near the levee, gave the guerrillas
an excellent opportunity to discover the place of
their victims. On the south side of the public square
there were a number of low dives and gambling
dens, which Cole and his men did not visit until
nearly midnight. They entered one of the saloons
which occupied a central position in the block, and

94 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

no sooner had Todd's eyes taken an inventory of the
occupants, than he whispered : " Cole, here are six
of the fellows you have been looking for so anx-
iously."

" So they are," responded Cole, " I should like
the privilege of killing them all myself."

"Be quiet," said Todd, ** and let me arrange this
little Christmas frolic; you shall have your revenge.''

The guerrillas walked in, laughing, and strode up
to the bar. " Come up, gentlemen, and have some-
thing with us," said Todd.

The six Federals were engaged in playing seven-
up, three being at two different tables. They were
all perceptibly under the influence of liquor, and in
a condition to speedily accept Todd's invitation.
After drinking, the Federals resumed their games,
and the guerrillas went over into a corner of the sa-
loon by themselves, to agree upon the plan of exe-
cution. Seated together, Todd was the first to
speak : *' We want to do this job scientifically and
cause as little excitement as possible. There are six
of them and only five of us, so we will accord you
the honor, Cole, of killing two. Let the signal be :
First, 'Let's have a drink.' When this is said, we
will each move up behind our victims with pistols
under the capes of our coats. The second word will
be ; ' Who said drink ?' at this every man shall draw
and fire, and see to it that we have no misses."

"That is good," responded Cole, " and it shall be
carried out to the letter. The point of the whole

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 95

thing, however, is how to get out and avoid arrest •
I think I can plan that satisfactorily. The moment
our pistols are discharged we will move out of the
saloon together and, without hurry, separate and
mix with the crowd on Main street. Each man will
then use his own judgment in reaching Traber and
the horses, but every one will be expected to meet
there within fifteen or twenty minutes after we leave
here."

Everything was now fixed for the terrible deed.

** Let's have a drink !" said Cole Younsfer.

At this the five guerrillas arose and walked to-
ward the six doomed Federals ; the latter merely
looked around to see if the invitation extended to
them, but nothing further being spoken, they re-
sumed the game.

" Who said drink ?" came from the lips of Todd,
and at the same instant there was a crack of pistols,
only one shot being fired out of time, and the deed
was accomplished. Six souls launched so suddenly
into eternity ! It was a game with Death in which
the cunning old reaper held all the trumps.

The moment the shots were fired, the bar-keeper
raised the alarm, but the guerrillas stepped leisurely
onto the sidewalk, and from those they met running
to the scene the murderers eagerly inquired the
cause of so much excitement. The city was soon in
arms ; every soldier was called into line, the patrols
sent out in trebled force, and hurried orders were is-
sued to arrest every man found on the streets.

96 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

The guerrillas made their way separately, but
rapidly, to the spot where Traber was holding their
horses, and mounting, they rode swiftly out upon the
Independence highway. To every command " halt,"
they replied with their pistols and, though pursued
and shot at, every one of the guerrillas reached a
place of safety without having received a scratch.

MRS. YOUNGER FORCED TO FIRE HER
OWN HOxME.

The wild fever of war, in its desperate rage, caused
the perpetration of such horrors, that a reference to
them makes the heart grow sick. But in all the in-
tense agony suffered by so many thousands, whose
ill fortunes threw them across the pathway of that
demon of slaughter, none were more bitterly visited
with sorrow, than Mrs. Younger, and the hand of af-
fliction, which was laid upon her, was never raised
until it banked the earth over her grave.

In the early part of the great sectional conflict,
her devoted husband was sacrificed upon the altar of
desperate passion and remorseless greed. The main
support of the stricken family she then saw leave the
desolated roof and creep out into a very wilderness
of devastation, where, instead of the sweet cry of
sorrg-birds, there was the shrill whistle of death, and
the soughing trees became funeral dirges. But these
were but initiatory sorrows, preparing the way for

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

advanced degrees of intensified distress. She was
doomed to receive the mangled forms of three loving
daughters, their fair faces and bodies torn to death
by the falling timbers of their demolished prison.
Still her afflictions grew on apace. A brutal soldiery
learned what she had given up in the mad fury of
war, and then they added persecutions to her other
griefs. The boys left to comfort her, were hunted,
although they had committed no crime ; John was
hung and James chased at the point of the merciless
bayonet into the fastnesses of the bluffs ; her har-
vests were confiscated and at last she was forced to
flee into Cass county, with the accumulations of
honest labor dissipated like the winds. But she
found no rest in her new abode ; the brutal instincts
of her persecutors followed her like a hound, snuff-
ing blood, pursues the wounded deer. Here, in a
little home, without either the power or disposition
to avenge the cruelties she had so long suffered, a
party of twenty-two Federals appeared suddenly, on
the 9th of February, 1863, and commanded her to
tell the hiding-place of her son Coleman ; she did not
know, and had she known, what mother would have
betrayed her own boy ? Threats accomplishing noth-
ing, this brave squad, with cocked and pointed car-
bines, compelled Mrs. Younger to set fire to her own
house and she was then held a captive until the last
timber was consumed. There was a deep snow on the
ground at the time, and through this the poor woman
trudged three miles to a neighbor's house for shelter.
7

98 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Some time after the burning of her house, Mrs.
Younger removed to the home of her brother-in-
law, Lycurgas Jones, in Clay county.

Stung to desperation by such persecutions, James
Younger, though only fifteen years of age, joined
Quantrell, with the hope of being able to avenge his
mother's wrongs. But this only resulted in addi-
tional sorrow, for, in the following year, James was
captured at the fight in Kentucky, where Quantrell
met his death, and was confined in the military prison
at Alton, Illinois, until June, 1866.

The exposure and dreadful suffering Mrs. Younger
had endured for more than two years completely
wrecked her health, and she fell a prey to that in-
sidious monster, consumption. Cole went to Texas,
after the war, for the purpose of preparing his mother
another home, but she was too feeble for removal,
and the closing scene of her latterly wretched life
occurred on the lOth of May, 1870.

A BITTER WINTER AND PERSISTENT
SKIRMISHING.

The winter of 1862-3 will exist in chronology as
one of the most bitterly cold periods of history.
Everything was literally frozen up, and north of the
Mason and Dixon line the militia lay in enforced in-
activity. Cole Younger, with forty of his men, hi-
bernated in the Sny hills with *' dug outs " for

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 99

protection. These buildings consisted of an exca-
vation in the ground, covered with ridge-pole and
brush supporting a layer of earth. Here the month
of January was spent, predatory incursions being
made every few days for forage and provisions ; but
in February the weather moderated to such an extent
as permitted the guerrillas to resume operations.
Quantrell visited Richmond and applied for a com-
mission, which the Confederate Secretary of War
refused on account of the reputation the renowned
guerrilla had acquired by his merciless warfare.
Upon his return to camp offensive measures were
renewed.

On the 8th of February, Cole Younger and his
command fell on thirty Federal cavalrymen under
Lieutenant Jefferson, three miles west of Pleasant
Hill. The fight was a terrible one, notwithstanding
the superior force of the guerrillas. Younger led
the attack and struck the Federals furiously, but
Jefferson proved a hero and stemmed the onslaught
so bravely that the guerrillas were checked, but only
for a moment, when Bill Hulse, one of the best car-
bine shots in the service, shot the heroic lieutenant
and the impetuous charge which followed swooped
up and swept out into eternity all but four of the
Federals, who escaped by superior horsemanship^
The guerrillas' loss was only five men.

It was this year, 1863, which gave to the war Bill
Anderson, a name clustering with terrors like Medu-
sa's head, and Frank and Jesse James threw off their

100 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

youth and leaped into the dreadful vortex of battle
and slaughter.

Long fighting with no source from whence to re-
cruit, gradually reduced the guerrillas, and their
policy was changed from attacking superior forces to
waylaying squads, shooting pickets, capturing mail
couriers, and harassing the enemy without exposing
themselves. The unmerciful, inhuman cruelties per-
petrated by the guerrillas during this year can never
be measured. Anderson taught his men that mercy
was unmanly, that compassion was a crime in the
eyes of heaven. Meeting non-combatants, couriers,
or furloughed militia, it was an inflexible rule to kill
them ; every cross-path had its victim, and the high-
ways were fairly drunk with blood.

Near Westport, in the latter part of June, Jarrette
and Gregg, with ten men, approached an old-time
country tavern kept by a good-natured old man
named Hudson. It was after dark, and Gregg was
the one to raise the landlord.

" Hello ! " shouted the stern guerrilla.

Old man Hudson got up and appeared at the door
in his night-gown. ** Hello ! " responded the land-
lord.

" We want to stay all night, old man, and being
very tired and hungry we would like some supper,"
spoke Gregg,

" Well, gentlemen," replied Mr. Hudson, " I can
have some supper set for you, but I am very sorry
to say that every bed in my house is occupied, and
even the barn loft is full."

THm^ younger brothers. ioi

At this the guerrillas passed around the house and
soon found that the old man was entertaining a dozen
Federal cavalrymen. Proceeding cautiously, four of
them climbed up into the stable loft and there found
three sleeping Federals. It was the work of a mo-
ment to cut their throats and consummate the dread-
ful deed before an alarm was given. The guerrillas
then went to the house, and being admitted, they
seized old man Hudson and cut his throat, after which
they found their victims sleeping soundly, and like
cattle led to the slaughter every Federal in the house
was mercilessly murdered and left in that dreamless
sleep, flooded with their own blood. What a direful
sight, and what anguish was that which fell upon the
family of that hospitable old man! Alone i.i their
solitary habitation with none for company save the
now bloodless corses of father, husband and twelve
clothed in the uniforms which proved their funeral
cerements. Added to this the torch was applied
with the double hope of hiding the crime and de-
stroying that whereby the others left of that house-
hold lived. It is proper to state here, however, that
Cole Younger had no connection whatever with this
infamous outrage, and that he condemned the perpe-
trators as violently as human being could.

Following fast upon this massacre came many
others. Bill Anderson, the prairie vulture, was in
the saddle and killing defenceless men everywhere.
He neither asked for quarter nor gave any ; his mis-
sion was to slay and spare not. No ropes were

102 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

required, the pistol was quicker, or the knife more
certain. Near Olathe Anderson struck a squad of
infantry, and by surprising them put to death
every one. Two days afterward he came upon
twelve men driving wagons loaded with corn ; they
were not told to pray, nor would time have been
given had they asked it ; twelve men tumbled off
their wagons and fell in the roadway with pistol
balls in their head^. The corn and wagons were
burned and the horses appropriated.

But the killing was not all on the side of the guer-
rillas; the Federals adopted a similar mode of war-
fare and the policy was to kill man for man. Philip
Bucher was shot at his home in Westport by order of
Maj. Ransom, the wife of the doomed man clinging
to his neck begging for his life. Henry Rout was
hung in plain view of his house ; and then the shoot-
ing and hanging continued without the straining of
mercy even by either side.

The execution of men, and women too, had be-
come so common that both sides seemed to vie with
each other in the demonstration of their brutal in-
stincts. It was this unmerciful warfare which led at
last to the holocaust at Lawrence. More than three
hundred men had been gathered together by Quan-
trell for the express purpose of desolating that town
and capturing the vast wealth known to be accumu-
lated there. That the acquisition of this treasure
was the prime object of the attack, was frankly ad-
mitted to the writer by one of the chief participants
in that matchless raid.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 103

It was on the 21st of August, 1863, that the chief of
evil, Quantrell, descended upon that peaceful Kansas
town, and with pistol, sword and torch massacred
the defenceless inhabitants, plundered homes, banks
and stores, filled the streets with blood, and then to
complete the desolation applied the fire brands until
the streets blended with the buildings in one vast
block of lurid flames. The very soul grows sick at
the contemplation of such infamies, such crimes as
pollute the very name of humanity, and make us
almost wish we were not men, to have to bear the
odium which such dreadful deeds imposes on our race.

After the terrible work was completed, Quantrell,
gathering all the money and valuables he could se-
cure, turned his face again towards Missouri ; but the
return march was accompanied by hardships scarcely
anticipated ; the militia" swarmed on his trail and
struck him right and left ; his columns were broken
and scattered ; not a moment for rest was permitted,
and he gained Missouri only by separating and let-
ting each man look to his own safety. Many of the
guerrillas never returned to their homes again, for in
the continued retreat and fighting, more than a score
were left dead on the prairies. When the guerrillas
left Lawrence, they carried with them money and
valuables estimated at ;^3, 000,000 ; this is the sum
fixed by George Shepherd, but they reached Mis-
souri with less than one-half that amount, the bal-
ance being lost, in the retreat, out of saddle bags,
sacks, etc., in which the treasure was carried, and on
the persons of those killed.

•©t*I

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 105

' • After Lawrence came the famous order of Gen.
Ewing, requiring all the men in Bates, Vernon and
Cass counties to abandon their property and report
at once to the nearest military headquarters for ser-
vice. The force of Federals increased rapidly
through the instrumentality of this order, and Quan-
trell found himself in desperate quarters, day and
night. The warfare became even more cruel than
before ; revenge was not satisfied by the mere kiUing,
but extended frequently to the mutilation of the vic-
tims. Squads were massacred almost daily, and life
went for naught wherever found.

The days of the guerrillas were numbering fast ;
one by one they were shot out of the ranks, and
gradually Quantrell felt the Federals, like the folds
of the constrictor, gathering around him with more
certain grip to crush his life out. On the lOth of
September, three weeks after Lawrence, the now
straggling band was called together, and being
clothed in the uniform of Federals, marched away
from the old haunts to the South. On that march
Quantrell had a brush at Baxter Springs, and drew
off on account of superior forces; but, on the follow-
ing day, he met Gen. Blunt with two hundred men,
and being disguised, the guerrillas had an advantage
which they made the most of, riding upon the unsus-
pecting Federals and putting them to rout with se-
vere loss.

Lieutenant Cole Younger reported to Gen. E.
Kirby Smith and, with a company of fifty men, went

to6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

into quarters at Bastrop, Louisiana. In the spring
of 1864, he co-operated with a large force and did
effective service for the Confederates in attacking
small convoys and capturing supply trains.

In the early part of 1865, Cole Younger was com-
missioned by the Confederate Secretary of War, to
recruit a regiment in California. He took a small
squad of men with him and on the route encountered
some bands of Apache Indians, with whom he had
several severe fights, losing half his men. When
Lee surrendered, Cole was at Los Angeles and, tak-
ing that act as a final culmination of the war, he re-
mained in California for several months, and then re-
turned to Texas.

James Younger joined the guerrillas in 1864, and
was one of the command under Lieutenant George
Shepherd. He was a brave soldier, and like Cole,
preserved his honor by ever refusing to ill-treat a
prisoner or commit a wrong on a woman ; both boys
defended and assisted Temales, regardless of circum-
stances, and their generosity and mercy is gratefully
remembered by hundreds to-day, whose lives were
spared and property saved, by the intercession of
the Youngers.

The history and remarkable adventures of the
Younger Brothers since the war, will be found narra-
ted in chronological order in the succeeding chapters.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. io;

PROGRESS OF CRIMES WHICH THE WAR
INAUGURATED.

The evils begotten by intestine wars, like those of
a seductive habit, increase by gradual insinuation
until normal human nature is masked by a decision
of character, whose prominent propensity is always
evil. The bivouac on the field, the ambuscade, and
the battle, with all its horrors of soul-sickening car-
nage, do not represent the product of these multi-
plied scourges of human life; they are often but the
prelude to more desperate tragedies. The most sen-
timental heart becomes calloused by contact with
cruelties, and in the mellow days of innocence, the
eye that would veil itself with the tears of compas-
sion at the slightest object of suffering, may become
so familiarized with the sight of crime, that at last,
with clear and steel-cold vision, it springs to the aid
of the hand that plunges a fatal dagger through the
most guiltless heart. This is one of the consequen-
ces of civil war. When the great armies of the two
estranged sections folded away their tents, replaced
their weapons in the armories of the nation, and re-
turned to the maize fields, that had grown tangled
with the briers and growth which neglect cultivates,
there were those in whose ears the tocsin of war
echoed, like fresh peals, and those refused to aban-
don an occupation of pillage and destruction, made
congenial by long pursuit. It was the guerrilla and

loS THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

jayhawker during the great conflict, whc „.^ i.rcT»ted
new fields of operations, and carved a nighway to
the scenes of fatal greed and bitter vengeance.
Among this class, over whose head no longer floated
a banner as an emblem of their principles, were the
Younger Brothers. John and James had not reached
a mature age, when the antipodal war closed its hor-
rors and was hidden away under the sweet canopy
of peace, but they had matured the wavward hopes
of border heroism, and when the new time, or after-
math of unlawful cruelties, was at hand, they joined
their fortunes with those over whose persons there
was no protecting panoply, and boldly took the step
which, soon after, made them hunted outlaws.

THE TERRIBLE "BLACK OATH."

In the early organizations of the guerrillas, Quan-
trell, whose shrewdness and military tact, find few
parallels in history, adopted a measure which, though
terrible in some of its aspects, was like a salvation
clause in his desperate warfare, and saved him and
his band from extermination more than a hundred
times. Quantrell would have been a Union man,
so some of his comrades declare, but for the murder
of his brother and almost fatal wounding of himself
by a company of jayhawkers, in 1856, as he was
traveling overland through Kansas for California.
After Quantrell recovered from his deep and dread-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 109

ful wounds, thenceforth he sought for nothing except
revenge ; his Hfe he never cast up in the reckoning
of his adventure, and extremities he cared nothing
for. When men were enlisted under his command,
by a magnetic power for dissipating fear and hero-
izing the lovers of unmerciful warfare, he taught
them how to play with dead men, and crave the
most daring and hazardous undertakings. As a cap-
sheaf of his instructions he invented the " Black
Oath," black being the color he admired, because it
suggested danger and death. It was never adminis-
tered except after night, when the stars were faded
and the sky hung heavy with ominous clouds ; or,
when nature refused to lend her stygian curtain to
such a drama, those qualified to administer the obli-
gation repaired to the deepest shades, with the can-
didates, and there imposed the ceremonies. The
oath was as follows :

" The purpose of war is to kill ! God himself has made it
honorable, in the defence of principles, for did he not cast
Lucifer out of heaven, and relegate rebellious angels to
the shades of hell ! The love of life cannot be measured,
under two conditions : one is, when our surroundings are
happy and our attachments numerous ; the other is, when
our liberties are subjugated, peace destroyed, and every-
thing we hold most dear torn from us, until we realize that
contentment, love, hope, have forever vanished. We fight
that the former condition may be regained, and we fight,
because the latter leaves us no other occupation.

" You have voluntarily signified a desire to cast your
fortunes with us ;'by so doing remember that our purpose
is to tear down, lay waste, despoil and kill our enemies ;
mercy belongs to sycophants and emasculated soldiers, it is

no THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

no part of a fighter's outfit ; to us it is but a vision repug-
nant to our obligations and our practices. We recognize
but one power to separate us in the hour of peril, and to
succor one another at all hazards, we have pledged our-
selves more sacredly, and are bound by ties much stronger
than honor can impose. With this understanding of what
will be required of you, are you willing to proceed ? [The
candidate assenting, the following oath is administered, be-
ing repeated by the candidate as the initiatory officer speaks
it slowly by broken sentences:]

" In the name of God and Devil, the one to punish and the
other to reward, and by the powers of light and darkness,
good and evil, here, under the black arch of heaven's
avenging symbol, I pledge and consecrate my heart, my
brain, my body, and my limbs, and swear by all the powers
of hell and heaven to devote my life to obedience to my
superiors ; that no danger or peril shall deter me from exe-
cuting their orders ; that I will exert every possible means
in my power for the extermination of Federals, jayhawkers,
and their abettors ; that in fighting those whose serpent
trail has winnowed the fair fields and possessions of our
allies and sympathizers, I will show no mercy, but strike,
with an avenging arm, so long as breath remains.

*' I further pledge my heart, my brain, my body, and my
limbs, never to betray a comrade ; that I will submit to all
the tortures cunning mankind can inflict, and suffer the
most horrible death, rather than reveal a single secret of
this organization, or a single word of this, my oath.

" I further pledge my heart, my brain, my body, and my
limbs, never to forsake a comrade when there is hope, even
at the risk of great peril, of saving him from falling into the
hands of our enemies; that I will sustain Quantrell's guer-
rillas with my might and defend them with my blood, and,
if need be, die wiih them ; in every extremity I will never
withhold my aid, nor abandon the cause with which I now
cast my fortunes, my honor and my life. Before violating
a single clause or implied pledge of this obligation, I will
pray to an avenging God and an unmerciful devil to tear

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. in

out my heart and roast it over flames of sulphur ; that my
head may be split open and my brains scattered over the
earth ; that my body may be ripped up and my bowels torn
out and fed to carrion birds ; that each of my limbs may
be broken with stones, and then cut off, by inches, that they
may feed the foulest birds of the air ; and lastly, may my
soul be given unto torment, that it may be submerged in
melted metal and be stifled by the fumes of hell, and may
this punishmeiM be meeted out to me through all eternity,
in the name of God and devil, Amen."

At the conclusion of the oath, the candidate was
turned successively to the east, v^est, north and
south, while four men, clothed in red and black suits,
and wearing hideous masks, representing the devil,
drew their long, keen swords and presented them at
the newly-made guerrilla, one pointing at his heart,
another at the head, another at the abdomen and the
other shifting his weapon from the arms and feet.

This completed the ceremony and thenceforth the
accepted comrade went forth on his mission of mas-
sacre.

THE FIRST BANK ROBBERY— AT
LIBERTY, MISSOURI.

• The war had made the guerrillas expert in massa-
creing repugnant citizens, and in appropriating the
property of their victims. Many of the old crowd
were banded together by the sinews of the "black
oath," and scarcely had the smoke of battle been
lifted up and assimilated with the refreshing dew

1 1 2 THE B ORDER O UTLA WS.

clouds of heaven before plans were matured for the
robbing of country banks.

On the 20th of January, 1866, the sheriff of Harri-
son county attempted to execute a capias for the ar-
rest of Bill Reynolds, in Pleasant Hill, who was
under indictment for crimes committed during the
war. Geo. Maddox and N. P. Hayes were in town
at the time, and as the three were members of the
same organization, resistance to the officer was made.
It became necessary for the sheriff to summon a posse
of citizens to his assistance. A fight in the open
street then ensued, ending in the death of Reynolds
and Hayes and the capture of Maddox. Threats of
an attack on the town by guerrillas were rumored,
and for several days nearly every male citizen- was
bearing arms in anticipation of an attempt being
made to liberate Maddox.

The excitement was unabated in Pleasant Hill un-
til the 14th of February, when the robbery of the
Clay County Savings Association at Liberty, Mis-
souri, was reported. The reason why rumors were
so persistently circulated of an intended attempt to
deliver Maddox, was now clearly understood to be
for the purpose of making the surprise on Liberty
more complete. Early in the morning of St. Valen-
tine's day, a squad of the old guerrillas, numbering
an even dozen, rode into Liberty from different direc-
tions and meeting in the public square they disposed
themselves as follows : three of the robbers were
stationed some distance from the bank at eligible po-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 113

sitions, which would most readily detect any central-
izing attack or suspicious movement of the citizens ;
the other nine rode directly up to the front of the
bank, where two of the number dismounted and en-
tered with drawn revolvers. The hour being early,
luckily for the bandits there was no one in the bank
except the cashier, Mr. Bird, and his son. A pistol
was presented at the head of each, and under threats
■of instant death in case of refusal, Mr. Bird opened
the bank vault from which the sum of seventy-two
thousand dollars was taken and crammed into a pair
of saddle bags carried for the purpose. As the rob-
bers were regaining their horses for flight, Mr. Bird
thrust his head out of a window and called to a little
boy by the name of Wymore, whom he saw passing,
telling him that a robbery had been committed and
to raise the alarm. As the little fellow, not more
than twelve years of age, raised the cry of " robbers !
lielp !" he was fired on by the bandits and fell dead
with five fatal bullets in his body. The robbers then
began firing indiscriminately and yelling with savage
fury, so that for some time after the bandits had de-
parted the citizens were too badly intimidated to
think of pursuit. A posse, under the leadership of
the sheriff, was organized about one hour afterward,
however, and started out on a spirited chase. The
trail led to Mount Gilead Church, where the evi-
dence of bank-paper showed that the robbers had
tarried a few moments to divide the spoils. It was
also evident that the band had separated and taken

114

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

various directions so as to elude pursuit, which they
accomplished so effectively that not one of the
bandits was apprehended. Jim White and J. F. Ed-
munson were arrested in St. Joseph a short time
afterward on suspicion, and a warrant was issued for
Bill Chiles, their partner, but he escaped. The pre-
liminary examination failed to disclose any evidence
showing their complicity in t-he robbery, and they
were promptly released, though to this day there are
hundreds of good citizens who feel that Edmunson,
Chiles and White were members of the gang.
Among the bandits, positively recognized as partici-
pants in the robbery, were Oil Shepherd, Red Hon-
kers and Bud Pence, but they eluded the officers
cleverly, and very soon the chase was abandoned. The
excitement subsided and the event was partially for-
gotten by the citizens, nearly all of whom were afraid
to manifest any particular anxiety to bring the rob-
bers to justice, because assassinations on the high-
way, and even by the fireside, had become too
familiar.

The majority of Clay county residents believe
that Cole Younger and the James Boys were the
ones who conceived the robbery, and that it was
under their orders it was perpetrated. It would be
transgressing the duties of the writer, because preju-
dice would be manifest, to unhesitatingly declare
that the Younger Boys are responsible for the rob-
bery. The trail is given and the reader left to draw
his own conclusions, understanding that these out-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 115

laws deny any and all knowledge of the persons who
committed the robbery.

The sack of the Liberty bank was the first of the
second series of guerrilla crimes, and being accom-
plished with such perfect success, and the collection
of a booty so considerable inspired many other sim-
ilar surprises which will be related in their regular
order.

JOHN YOUNGER'S FIRST FIGHT.

There never was a Younger, perhaps, who did not
possess great courage, and this spirit was manifested
in each of the boys at a remarkably early age. The
brothers all matured rapidly, however, and in the
years of adolescence, they were considered men be-
cause of their size. In January, 1866, Cole Younger,,
while remaining near the scenes of his childhood,
but yet ostracised, because of the part he took dur-
ing the furious years of 61-65, had occasion to send
his pistol to Independence for repairs, as the dog-
spring was broken. John Younger, his brother, who
was then only fourteen years of age, hitched up a
team and drove to Independence, taking the pistol
with him. The weapon was loaded, and in repair-
ing it, the gun-smith allowed the loads to remain.
Some time in the afternoon of the day in question,
the exact date being forgotten, John got the pistol,
paid for the repairs, and then walked up the street

Ii6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

fronting the public square, where he entered a store,
which already contained about a dozen country peo-
ple. Among the number was an Irishman, named
Gillcreos, who had only recently been released from
jail, where he was confined for some offence. Gill-
creos had been a Union soldier, and was nearly al-
ways boasting of his soldier record. During the
general conversation John Younger's name was
called, and when Giljcreos learned that the boy be-
fore him was a veritable brother of Cole Younger,
he at once opened his batteries of abuse. John
acted as though completely frightened, returning no
answer to the epithets flung at him by the Irishman,
and using every means to avoid a difficulty. Find-
ing John so passive to insults, Gillcreos at length,
without the slightest provocation, administered a se-
vere kick to the peaceable boy. This was too much
to bear. John showed the temper that was slumber-
ing by saying : " If you do that again I'll kill you."
Gillcreos immediately kicked John again, much harder
than before. In an instant the pistol was out and
fired, the ball striking the insulting Irishman" directly
in the heart and killing him, without a groan pro-
ceeding from the victim's lips.

After the shooting, John ran out of the store and,
reaching his team, he quickly cut the lead-horse
loose and mounting, rode away. On the following
day, however, he was captured and taken back to
Independence.

Upon examining Gillcreos, after his death, a large

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 117

stung-shot was found on his wrist, and it was conclu-
sively proven, at the preliminary trial, that the vic-
tim, laboring under great excitement without proper
cause, manifested a determination to kill John
Younger, and would, undoubtedly, have killed the
boy, had John failed to fire at the moment he did.

The proof of justification was so overwhelming,
that the youth was exhonorated by the coroner's
jury, and the grand jury refused to review the evi-
dence, considering the original verdict eminently
just.

DESPERATE ATTEMPT AT JAIL
DELIVERY.

JoAB Perry, an ex-guerrilla and notorious law-
breaker, was arrested on the lOth of June and lodged
in the jail at Independence. His character and as-
sociations were sucli that an attempt at delivery was
anticipated, and a strong guard was maintained about
the jail. On the 14th, succeeding, five well-armed
and mounted men rode into the town and proceeded
directly to the jail, on which they made a desperate
attack, and at the second fire the jailer was killed,
while the bullet marks on the doors and windows
about the jail, bore evidence of the skilful marks-
manship of the 'attacking party. After firing about
twenty shots, all of which were ineffectual, save the
fatal bullet which killed the jailer, the party wheeled

1 1 8 THE BORDER O UTLA WS.

their horses and rode swiftly out of town, having
failed in this purpose to liberate their companion.
The names of the five men were never given to the
public, for the reason that every man in that section
knew the desperate character of the Younger and
James boys and their comrades ; to have manifested
any officious interference with these men w^as to in-
vite their vengeance. It was this reason which pre-
vented active measures, looking to the apprehension
of the guerrilla, now outlaw band.

THE LEXINGTON BANK ROBBERY.

At high noon, on the 30th of October, 1866, five
determined men visited Lexington, Missouri, and
leisurely hitched their horses in an alley near the
banking-house of Alexander Mitchell & Co. Two
of the men walked into the bank, meeting the cash-
ier, J. L. Thomas, in the door-way, who went behind
the counter, to attend to the wants of the strangers.
One of the men handed a $^0 7-30 bond to the
cashier with the request to have it changed. As Mr.
Thomas opened the cash drawer, two more of the
robbers appeared at the door with drawn revolvers,
the fifth man being left in charge of the horses. It
was quick work now, for looking into the muzzles of
four deadly pistols, the cashier was compelled to
hand over all the money in the bank, ;^2,ooo, which
being placed in a sack, the robbers coolly walked

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 119

out of the bank with a parting admonition to Mr.
Thomas, that, if he raised any outcry, they would
kill him. Mounting their horses, the robbers rode
swiftly away, and it was more than an hour after the
robbery before a pursuing party was organized.
Twelve well-armed citizens started after the bandits
and spent two days in a fruitless search for the
despoilers. People began to consider the insecurity
of country banks and the means for apprehending
the daring outlaws ; meetings were held and various
plans discussed, but in two weeks' time the outrage
was almost forgotten.

THE BANK ROBBERY AT SAVANNAH, MO.

Six months had expired after the Lexington rob-
bery, before another attempt was made to crack a
bank and outrage the citizens of a village. The
scars produced by the battles on the border were
healing, and over the deepest wounds was forming a
cicatrix of forgetfulness.

Savannah is the capital seat of Andrew county, a
thrifty little place, of twelve or fifteen hundred in-
habitants, that had suffered but little from the blight
of war. The place contained a small banking insti-
tution, under ,the proprietorship of Judge McLain,
with small capital.

On the 2nd of March, 1867, five ex-guerrillas, J.
F. Edmunson, Jim White, Bill Chiles, Bud McDan-

120 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

iels, and a fellow named Pope, rode into Sav^annah
in such a manner as indicated they were on import-
ant business. It was nearly high noon, and no one
was in the bank except the Judge and his son. The
bandits rode up and four of them dismounted, leav-
ing their horses in charge of the fifth man. As the
four entered the bank with drawn pistols, the Judge
looked earnestly over his spectacles, and at once
comprehended the character of his customers. He
slammed the door of the safe shut, and seizing a re-
volver, which lay on the bank counter, he met the
bandits half-way, but his shots proved ineffectual,,
while a big navy pistol ball went tearing through his
breast which made him sink to the floor as one death-
stricken. Young McLain ran into the street and
gave the alarm, which brought many citizens to the
rescue. The robber left in charge of the horses
shouted for the return of his companions, who find-
ing their position becoming very serious, mounted
the ready horses and fled.

A posse of twenty- five citizens went in pursuit of
the bandits, a few minutes after their hasty depar-
ture, and trailed them for a great distance. In the
extreme north-west part of Missouri, the citizen squad
definitely located Chiles and White, but the indica-
tions were also too apparent that others of the band
were in the same neighborhood, so that the posse did
not have courage sufficient to attempt the capture.
Pope and McDaniels were arrested near St. Joseph,
Mo., on the i8th of March, but they were both so

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 121

well fortified with witnesses,-who swore an alibi, and
thus their release was accomplished, but despite the
alibi, there were conclusive circumstances disclosed
which left scarcely a possibility of doubt that they
were members of the gang, and were accomplices in
the attempted bank robbery at Savannah. Judge
McLain's wound, though a desperate one, fortunately
did not prove fatal, and, after several weeks' suffer-
ing and close confinement, he was enabled to resume
his duties.

THE ROBBERY AND BITTER FIGHT
AT RICHMOND, MISSOURI.

Comparative little excitement having been occa-
sioned by the futile attempt to rob the Savannah
bank, and finding their funds low, a plan was formed
for the" pillage of the bank at Richmond, Missouri.
Accordingly, on the 23d of May a band of outlaws
numbering fourteen men, made a descent on the
place, headed by Peyton Jones, a well known guer-
rilla during the war. They charged the place, shout-
ing and firing their pistols at every person they
could see. Six of the number, under the sheltering
arms of their comrades, forced an entrance into the
private bank 0/ Hughes & Mason, from which they
secured the sum of four thousand dollars. -Mayor
Shaw, a brave and efficient officer, seized a pistol
and ran across the street where he hoped to concen-

122 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

trate a posse of citizens and give battle to the out-
laws. The moment he was discovered, three of the
bandits rode swiftly upon him, and though the brave
mayor fired with what aim he could command, it was
too imperfect, however, for execution, and he fell
fighting in the street, with four bullets in his body.

The robbers next began an attack upon the jail,
which at that time held a number of prisoners whose
arrest, it was claimed, was due to the expression of
secession sentiment. The jailer, B. G. Griffin, and
his son fifteen years of age, were at the jail, and they
received their assailants with remarkable bravery.
The boy stationed himself behind a tree and was
emptying a revolver in the face of the outlaws, when
he was surrounded and shot to death. Mr. Griffin,
seeing the fate of his brave boy, rushed up and
standing over the lifeless body fought like the fren-
zied man he was until, pierced by seven bullets, he
fell dead across the bleeding and lifeless body of his
son. By this time the citizens recovered their lost
nerves, and from a score of windows there poured
the rifle and pistol flame, yet throughout the combat
not a single robber was harmed.

This more desperate outrage than any previous-
ly committed by the banditti, aroused the citizens of
Richmond like a tocsin of war. A number of the
outlaws had been recognized, and the sheriff and one
hundred volunteer deputies determined to capture
the gang. Business was entirely suspended for three
days, until after the burial of the victims, and the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 123

heaviest capitalists in the district subscribed means
and lent every possible influence to the effort devel-
oped to apprehend the murderous robbers. War-
rants were issued for the arrest of Jim and John
White, Peyton Jones, Dick Burns, Ike Flannery,
Andy McGuire and Allen Palmer. Why the name
of the latter was included, it is difficult to tell, be-
cause Palmer was at that time in Kansas City work-
ing for J. E. Shawhan & Co. Neither the Younger
nor James Boys were included in the capias, though
that one or more of them were in the fight seems
certain from the later testimony of reputable citizens
of Richmond.

Kansas City sent out a squad of eighteen men in
pursuit of the robbers, and on the 26th, three days
after the fight and robbery, they learned that Peyton,
or Payne Jones, as he was called, was stopping at
the house of Mr. Evans, two miles west of Inde-
pendence. The squad decided to capture Jones at
night, that under cover of darkness they might sur-
round him before discovery. When the shades of
dusk appeared, the posse, taking Dr. Noland's little
girl along as guide, proceeded cautiously on the
highway to Mr. Evans* house. It was raining very
hard and the darkness was almost impenetrable.
Marshall Mizery, in charge of the squad, disposed
his men around the house and was just about giving
the word " close up," when Jones, aroused by some
means not understood, as the squad had preserved
the most perfect quiet, flung open the door and

124 THE BORDEU outlaws,

leaped into the yard with a double-barreled shot-gun
and two revolvers. The moment he struck the
ground Jones discharged both barrels of the gun,
killing a young man named B. H. Wilson and fatally
wounding Dr. Noland's little daughter. After firing
the gun Jones threw it away and made a rush for
the woods one hundred yards distant. The extreme
darkness and knowledge position of the surrounding
men compelled the posse to withhold their fire
lest they might kill some of their own number. Pur-
suit was, however, given, and continued for more than
two miles, but the extreme darkness only served to di-
vide the party, and the fifty or more shots they fired
might as well have been aimed at the inky clouds over-
head. It was afterward claimed that Jones had re-
ceived a slight wound in the shoulder, but this report
was doubtless circulated to create a belief that the
expedition had not resulted entirely fruitlessly, espe-
cially as they were compelled to return to Kansas
City with the dead bodies of two of their own
number. ,

On the night following the attemp to capture
Payne Jones, another party, of ten men from Rich-
mond, caught Dick Burns, and without giving him
time to pray, with reckless haste they hung him to a
large tree in a lonely spot where it was thought the
buzzards and crows would pick him before the vigi-
lante's work was discovered, and so it transpired.

Andy McGuire eluded pursuit for several weeks,
but his time came at last. He was caught not far

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 125

from Warrensburg by a small posse who knew him
too well to allow any intercession of the law. They
only decorated Andy with a new grass rope and
hauled him skyward over the branch of a big oak,
with the usual manifestation of sympathy.

Although considerable time had elapsed after the
attack on Richmond, yet the people did not allow
their desire for revenge to cool ; they continued the
pursuit, and every few days they learned the names
of others connected with the daring and desperate
outrage — there was hope for capturing the entire
band.

Tom Little was chased from cave to cave, over
hills, into lonely places, and driven, at last, to take
passage on the Fannie Lewis at Jefferson City.
When the boat reached the warf at St. Louis, the
chief of police, having been previously notified,
grasped Little and kept him in the St. Louis jail for
some time, for fear of lynching, if he were returned
to Richmond. Afterward he was taken to War-
rensburg, where, the citizens still remembering how
Little and Bill Greenwood had, during the previous
spring, robbed some of the largest stores and defied
arrest, they took him from the jail and left his body
oscillating from a large tree, as an example to law-
breakers.

Jack Hines and Bill Hulse were also suspected of
complicity in the Richmond robbery, and they were
so persistently haunted, that it became necessary for
them to leave the country. So many were now de-

126 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

clared connected with the robbery, and the efforts to
accomplish their arrest were so determined, that two
or three counties became so excited, that it appeared,
for a time, that another guerrilla war was to be in-
augurated. The bitterest feelings prevailed and
wayside assassinations became so frequent as to put
every man in jeopardy. This condition of public
insecurity continued for many months, and until sev-
eral of the leading men of the affected counties or-
ganized an effort for pacification, and made such ap-
peals to the different elements as produced, at last,
the desired effect, and ended a veritable vendetta.

There were many persons, of course, who asserted
that Cole Younger was in the robbery, and some
even declared that he was in command of the band,
but there is every evidence to show that he was in
Texas at the time and was neither connected with,
nor had any knowledge of the outrage. He was, in
fact, preparing a home for his mother, where she
might live so far removed from the scenes which bur-
dened her with sorrows, that the memory of those
dreadful deeds might not haunt her so vividly.

THE RUSSELLVILLE BANK ROBBERY.

The excitement in Missouri over the bank robber-
ies and other outrages, known to have been perpe-
trated by the same organized band of outlaws, k-ept
the officers of country banks in a state of anxious

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 127

anticipation for a considerable period of time. This
fact being realized by the bandits, they concluded to
carry their adventures into other fields. Kentucky,
therefore, became the objective point, the selection
being made because of a residence in that State by
some of the outlaws, which familiarized them with
m.any sections, and thus enabled them to strike with
better results and with surer chances for escape.
Accordingly, the band left Missouri in the early part
of 1868, and took up quarters in Nelson county,
Kentucky, where a plan was formed to rob the bank
at Russellville, the county seat of Logan county.
This place is located in a very rich district in the
State, and has a population of about three thousand
souls; the country around was known thoroughly to
George Shepherd, one of the band, who resided near
the town at the time and for two or three years be-
fore the robbery was committed. The particulars of
the bank plundering are graphically given by a cor-
respondent in the Nashville Banner of March 22d,
as follows :

''About ten days ago, a man calling himself Col-
burn, and claiming to be a cattle dealer, offered to
sell to Mr. Long a 7-30 note of the denomination of
^500. As none of the coupons had been cut off,
and the stranger, who pretended to be from Louis-
ville, where the notes were worth a premium, offered
it at par and allowed interest, Mr. Long became
suspicious and refused to take it. On the 1 8th he
returned again and asked Mr. Long to change him a

128 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

^100 bill. He was accompanied by a man of forbid-
ding aspect, and suspecting the note to be counter-
feit, Mr. Long declined changing it. On the 20th,
about 2 p. M., as Mr. Long, Mr. Barclay, clerk in the
bank, and Mr. T. H. Simmons, ^ farmer living near
Russellville, were sitting behind the counter, Colburn
and another man rode up to the door, hitched their
horses and entered the bank, three companions re-
maining outside. They asked for change for a $^0
note. Mr, Long pronounced it counterfeit, but was
about making a more careful examination, when Col-
burn drew a revolver, placed its muzzle against his
head, and cried out, * Surrender !' Mr. Long wheeled
around and sprang toward the door leading into a
room in the rear of the banking office. He hoped
thus to make his exit from the building and give the
alarm. He was, however, anticipated by one of the
robbers, who intercepted him at the door already
mentioned, placed a pistol within six or eight inches
of his head and fired, without having uttered a word.
The ball did no greater injury than grazing Mr.
Long's scalp for about two inches, tearing away the
hair and flesh, but not fracturing the skull. Mr. L.
seized hold of the weapon, and made an effort to
wrench it from his assailant, but the robber succeed-
ed in regaining possession of his pistol. He imme-
diately commenced to beat Mr. Long over the head
with the butt, and, after a few furiously dealt blows,
felled him to the floor. The latter, however, sprang
to his feet and again got hold of the pistol, just as

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 129

the robber was about to cock it for the purpose of
giving him the finishing touch. During the scuffle
which now took place, Mr. Long managed to reach
the back door of the rear room. Here he concen-
trated his almost exhausted strength into a final ef-
fort, freed himself from the clutches of the robber,
sprang through the door and closed it after him. He
then ran around toward the front part of the build-
ing, shouting for assistance. When he reached the
street, he found two men sitting on their horses be-
fore the entrance to the bank. They were all armed
with Spencer's rifles and pistols, and were shooting
up and down the street at all citizens who came
within range. As Mr, Long ran by, they also fired
twelve or fifteen shots at him, but, fortunately, with-
out effect.

" Inside the bank, while Mr. Long was struggling
with the fellow above mentioned, and before Messrs.
Barclay and Simmons could rise from their seats, the
latter were confronted by Colburn and his compan-
ion with cocked revolvers and threats of instant
death in case the least show of resistance was made.
Neither of the gentlemen was armed and they had to
accept the situation with the best grace they could
command. As soon as Mr. Long made his retreat
by the back door, his antagonist returned to the
banking office and assisted in the work of plunder.
One of the robbers stood guard over Messrs. Bar-
clay and Simmons, while Colburn and the other
proceeded to clean out the establishment. They

I30 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

appeared to have an exact knowledge of its re-
sources. As was afterward ascertained, Colburn had
made some cautious inquiries as to its capital, de-
posits, etc., and we have already shown that his
previous visits had enabled him to make a thorough
inspection of the interior. In the cash drawer they
found over nine thousand dollars in currency. From-
the vault, the door of which was standing open, they
took several bags of gold and silver. This specie
consisted principally of dollars, half-dollars and
quarters, and had been placed in the bank on special
deposit by several of the neighboring farmers. The
amount has never been ascertained, but it will not,^
we understand, exceed five thousand dollars. Sev-
eral private boxes which were on a shelf in the vault
and contained bonds were broken open, but none of
the bonds were carried off — doubtless because of a
fear that they had been registered and would lead to
the detection of the robbers. Two robbers kept
guard outside while the work of pillaging was going-
on, and, though the alarm had spread, kept the citi-
zens at bay until a Mr. Owens had the courage to
begin firing upon them with a pistol. He was seri-
ously but not dangerously wounded. Finally the
sentinels became alarmed and called for their ac-
complices inside to come out. They quickly com-
plied, bringing with them saddle-bags crammed with
gold and greenbacks.

" They were greeted with a heavy volley by a squad
of citizens who were advancing up the street. All

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CO

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<

if)

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 131

were soon in their saddles, and, at a signal from
Colburn, the party dashed at full speed out of town
by the Gallatin pike. Many a leaden missile was
sent after them, but beyond the report that one had
his arm broken, there is no ground for supposing
that any of the shots took effect. Ten minutes later,
some forty citizens, mounted on such animals as they
could collect from buggies, wagons and hitching-
posts, started in hot pursuit. All the advantage,
except in point of numbers, was with the robbers.
They rode splendid horses, and were as completely
armed and equipped as the most daring and accom-
plished highwayman < uld desire. Five miles from
Russellville the trail was lost in the woods, nor was
anything heard of Colburn and his men until the
2 1st, when a dispatch was received here stating that
they had crossed the Louisville and Nashville Rail-
road early in the morning, near Mitchellsville.

"Detective Bligh, of Louisville, was called into
the case, and he followed the trail away to the south
for seventy-five miles, where it suddenly vanished in
Nelson county. One or two of the gang had been
recognized by parties on the road, and it took but a
very little time to ascertain their associates and
friends. Bligh, with another officer named Wm.
Gallagher, and some Nelson county people, first
raided the house of George Shepherd, who was liv-
ing in Nelson- county. George surrendered after a
fight, seeing that he had no chance for escape. He
was taken back to Logan county, convicted and

132 THE BORDER 0 UTLA WS.

served three years. The arrest of George Shep-
herd had been first made because he was by him-
self, the others of the gang having been traced to
another part of the county. On gathering a posse
to capture them, it was found that news of George
Shepherd's arrest had gone ahead, and his cousin,
Oil Shepherd, had immediately started for Missouri
with two or three comrades. Inquiry easily devel-
oped information that Jesse James and Cole Younger
went with him. It was then satisfactorily shown
that Cole must have been the man who called him-
self Colburn at the bank. It was also found that
Jesse James had been ''visiting " in Logan county a
few weeks before. At that time Jim Younger and
Frank James were a hundred times more notorious
in Kentucky than Cole and Jesse, because the latter
two had not done the State with Quantrell. It was
a natural thing then on finding that Jesse and Cole
had gone with Shepherd, for the detectives to claim
that the other boys were in it too, especially as no
trace of a James or Younger could be found any-
where in Nelson county where they had been stop-
ping off and on for a year. So the cry of the * Jamses
and Youngers ' was raised. More careful investiga-
tion developed the fact that on the day of the rob-
bery, Jesse James was at his hotel in Nelson county.
He was slowly recovering from an old wound which
would not heal and made it imprudent for him to
ride on horseback on any violent trip.

** The romantic version of the raid is that it was un-

THji YOUNGER BROTHERS. 133

dertaken to procure funds to send him on a sea voy-
age. Frank James had gone to California some
months before."

"Bligh followed the retreating raiders till he was
satisfied of their destination, and then sent word
to the Jackson county, Missouri, authorities to look
out for them. Oil Shepherd made a quick trip
of it and on arriving, was waited upon by a sherift's
posse. As they summoned him to surrender he
broke for the brush and got about twenty bullets,
which finished him. The rest of the party w^ere
heard from a day or two later and as better informa-
tion had then been obtained, Bligh and Gallagher
went over with requisitions for Cole Younger, Jesse
James, John Jarrette and Jim White, who were
claimed to be the active assistants of the Shepherds.
However, the news of Oil Shepherd's death had
given them warning to keep out of the way. The
Younger residence was raided, but only the young-
sters, John and Bob, were found at home. The bal-
ance of the band were never arrested. Bligh still
holds that Jesse James was accessory to the job,
though he admits he was 75 miles away when it oc-
curred."

There are several facts connected with the Rus-
sellville robbery which the correspondence, quoted
above, perverts. Colburn, as he rightly suspicions,
was Cole Younger, but whatever detective Bligh ad-
mits, respecting Jesse James' absence at the time, it
is now positively known that both Jesse and Frank

134 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

James were active participants in the pillage of that
bank.

George Shepherd, while he would not positively-
state who his accomplices were in the robbery, yet
gave the writer some information from which conclu-
sions were readily reached. Instead of being cap-
tured at his home in Nelson county, Shepherd states
that he was chased nearly seven hundred miles ; that
he believed pursuit had been abandoned, and upon
going into a drug store in a small town in Tennes-
see, three men jumped upon him suddenly and pin-
ioned his arms before he could make any resistance.
Shepherd further told the writer that, before this
capture, he had resolved never to be taken alive, but
that the peculiar circumstances of his arrest pre-
vented him from carrying out his resolve. During
the period of his penitentiary service, Shepherd
made his escape and succeeded in getting nearly
thirty miles from the prison, but- was recaptured and
compelled to serve his time.

The Russellville band consisted of Cole and Jim
Younger, Jesse and Frank James, and George and
on Shepherd.

THE TRAGIC RESULTS OF A HORSE RACE.

After the escape from Russellville the band di-
vided up and Cole Younger went to Bastrop, Louisi-
ana, where, for a time, he was stationed during the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 135

war, and had a few acquaintances. He took with
him South a blooded horse which, though ill in ap-
pearance, had developed extraordinary speed. Cole
was a horse racer, and, in fact, he never hesitated to
lay a wager on either cards or horses, having a
marked penchant for gambling.

While spending a few months in Louisiana among
the sporting fraternity, a horse race was proposed ;
in fact, it was an every Saturday recreation, and Cole
was there with his long-coupled, limber-legged,
swaggering-gaited horse. Out of derision, several
sports bantered Cole for a race, to which he readily
consented, amid the hoots of the crowd. A long-
haired, wealthy planter, with a clean cut and noted
racer of the neighborhood, was Cole's antagonist.
The amount of the stakes was ^^ 1,000 which was de-
posited with a man on the ground, an entire stranger
to Cole, but he never anticipated any unfairness.

Everything being in readiness, the horses were
brought up to the starting point. Cole riding his own
horse, and they were sent off fairly together. It was
a half-mile stretch over an excellent track and for the
first quarter the animals kept neck and neck, but on
the last quarter Cole's horse gathered up his coup-
ling, straightened himself, and was throwing dust in
the eyes of his antagonist, winning in fine style,
when a fellow jumped out in front of Cole's horse
and threw a red blanket across the track. The re-
sult was, what the fellow anticipated. Cole's horse
broke the track and cut across the open field, thereby
losing the race.

136 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Cole did not say a word to the jockey, but, reining"
up his horse, he rode back to the starting point and
claimed a foul. The crowd made sport of his claim,
derided his horse and flung epithets at him. Seeing
that it was the intention of the racers to defraud
him. Cole first appealed vainly to the judges and then
to the stake-holder ; the latter party laughed in his
face and then delivered the stakes to the Southerner,
whose horse had won by such outrageous trickery.
Cole's face grew paler than usual, his brow lowered
and his lips became nervous ; it was evident there
was a struggle within him and that there was just a
moment of irresolution. He remained perfectly still
on his horse for nearly a minute, receiving the de-
risive banters of the crowd, and then he turned part-
ly in the saddle, drew two navy revolvers and opened
fire ; the first shot killed the stake-holder, and the two
judges fell next under his steady aim, while in quick
succession, five others received terrible wounds, from
which three of them never recovered.

The laugh quickly faded from the lips of those
who thought they were plucking a harmless and ig-
norant Missourian, and in the place of funds for a
rollicking spree, there were dead men awaiting bur-
ial, and others ready for, the surgeon's care.

After the slaughter Cole rode swiftly away, with
none to pursue him, and made direct for Missouri,,
which he reached in the latter part of June, and di-
rectly thereafter went to California in company with
Frank James.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 137

ROBBING THE GALLATIN, MISSOURI,
BANK.

More than eighteen months elapsed after the
Russellville robbery before the desperate bandits
were again heard of by the pubHc. Cole Younger
and Frank James spent more than one year of this
time in California with their relatives. Their deeds
were so far forgotten as to be remembered only in
the traditions of what were called " stirring times."
The country banks had relaxed their vigilance, and
detectives, anxious to pluck honors by bringing
noted criminals to justice, looked no longer toward
the border bandits. Suddenly, and with a surprise
which shook society like a social earthquake, the
outlaws returned to their old haunts in Missouri, and
descended like some terrible avalanche upon the
Daviess County Savings Bank at Gallatin. It was
but a fragment of the old crowd, however, Cole
Younger and the James Boys, the most desperate
trio that guerrilla warfare ever gave birth to.

It was on the 7th of December, 1869, when the
three rode leisurely into Gallatin and stopped in front
of the bank. Cole and Jesse dismounted, leaving
Frank with the horses and to keep the outside clear
of interference. In the bank, at the time, was a
young man named McDowell making a deposit, and
Capt John W. Sheets, the cashier. Jesse James
threw a one hundred dollar bill on the counter and

138 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

asked the cashier to give him small change in return.
Capt. Sheets took the bill, walked back to the safe,
took out a handful of money, and, returning to the
counter, was in the act of counting out the change,
when Cole Younger suddenly thrust a navy revolver
forward and commanded the cashier to surrender
to them the keys of the inner doors of the safe, the
outer ones being open. Before the startled McDow-
ell could recover from his astonishment, he found the
deadly revolver of Jesse James covering his person,
and was forced to consider himself a prisoner. Cole
Younger went behind the counter, plundered" the
safe and till, and secured in all about seven hundred
dollars in currency. After rifling the safe, there was
a whispered consultation, and the next moment Jesse
James turned and deliberately shot Capt. Sheets
dead. Meantime one or two persons who had come
to the bank on business had been driven away by
the confederate outside, and this, together with the
sound of the pistol shots,.had caused an alarm to be
given. The whole transaction occupied but a few
minutes, but by the time the robbers 'emerged from
the bank, a dozen citizens had snatched up various
weapons and were moving up the street toward the
bank. Frank James called out to his comrades, his cry
being answered by the immediate appearance of Jesse
and Cole, who rushed out of the bank. The horses,
spirited animals, were headed for flight, and affright-
ed by the shouts of the advancing crowd, Jesse's
horse gave a plunge just as he, with one foot in

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 139

he stirrup, had made an effort to mount. The sud-
denness of the horse's movement completely dis-
comfited the robber, who fell to the ground and was
dragged about thirty feet head downwards with one
heel fast in the stirrup. By that time, however, he
succeeded in disengaging himself. For a second he
lay prone on the ground, while the fractious steed
went careering away in the distance. The crowd of
citizens began to open a lively fusillade, but
Frank James instantly wheeled and rode back to his
dismounted brother, who leaped up behind him, and
away they went together. Less than ten minutes
had elapsed when the citizens were mounted in pur-
suit, and they must soon have overtaken the over-
loaded horse that was carrying double. It so
happened, however, that about a mile southwest of
town the fugitives met Mr. Dan Smoot riding an ex-
cellent saddle-horse. Without a moment's hesitation
they rode up to him, and with the muzzle of a re-
volver an inch from his nose, requested him to
dismount. Of course he took to the bush with great
alacrity, and the three bandits were once more thor-
oughly equipped. They appeared to have had little
fear for the result after this. Between Gallatin and
Kidder they talked "with several persons, boasting of
what they had done. On nearing Kidder they met
Rev. Mr. Helm, a Methodist minister. They pressed
him into service by the use of the usual persuasion,
the revolver, and made him guide them around so
that they could avoid the town. On leaving him

140 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

one of them told Mr. Helm that he was Bill Ander-
son's brother, and that he killed S. P. Cox, if he
hadn't made a mistake in the man. He claimed that
this was an act of vengeance for the death of his
brother Bill.

The pursuing posse followed hot upon the heels of
the fugitives, who were once or twice almost in sight.
About six miles south of Kidder they took to the
woods, going toward the Missouri river, and there
their woodcraft and the approach of night enabled
them to escape. The horse which had escaped and
so nearly killed Jesse in front of the bank, was held
by the sheriff of Daviess county. The escaping rob-
bers were traced across into Clay county, and the
abandoned horse, according to an account in the
Kansas City Times, ot December l6, 1869, was fully
identified as the property of "a young man named
James, whose mother and step-father live about four
miles from Centreville, Clay county, near the Cam-
eron branch of the Hannibal and St. Joe Railroad."
The account adds that " both he and his brother are
desperate men, having had much experience in horse
and revolver work." The most careful inquiry was
made in order to leave no question as to the identity
of the robbers, and it is still held that there was no
doubt about Frank and Jesse James and Cole Young-
er being the trio.

As soon as it was definitely ascertained who the
men were and where they lived, two of the citizens
of Gallatin, thoroughly armed and mounted, rode

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 141

away to Liberty, Clay county, where they called on
Mr. Tonilinson, the deputy sheriff, and stated what
they knew about the three outlaws, and what they
had done in Gallatin. Tomlinson, accompanied by
his son and the two pursuers from Gallatin, started
at once for Dr. Samuels' house, the step-father of
the brothers James. This house is some 20 miles
from Liberty. Approaching it, some strategy was
displayed. The Gallatin detachment watching it
from the side next the woods, the Liberty detach-
ment— father and son — dismounted at the gate in
front of the house and walked very deliberately up
to the door. Before reaching it, however, a little
negro boy ran past them and on to the stable, and
just as he got there, the door opened suddenly, and
out dashed the two brothers on splendid horses,
with pistols drawn, and took the lot fence at a swing-
ing gallop. The Gallatin party, from the fence above,
opened fire on sight ; the sheriff and his son followed
suit ; the brothers joined in at intervals, and then the
chase began. To mount and away in pursuit was
with Tomlinson but the work of a few seconds, and
he dashed on after the robbers. His horse alone of
all the horses ridden in pursuit would take the
fence, and so while the rest of the party were dis-
mounting and pulling off top rails, Mr. Tomlinson
was riding like the wind after the two brothers. He
gained upon them, well mo.unted as they were. He
fired several times at them and they at him', but the
rate of speed was too great for accuracy. Carried

1 42 THE BORDER O UTLA WS,

on by the ardor of the chase, Mr. Tomlinson soon
found himself far in advance of the supporting col-
umn and, in fact, hotly pursuing two desperadoes
with no weapon to rely upon except an empty re-
volver. Just what happened will probably never be
known, as there were no witnesses except the princi-
pals. A short time afterward, however, Mr. T. came
back to Dr. Samuels' house on foot, having evidently
made a forced march through the brush. Rebor-
rowed a horse and started for Centreville. He had
hardly been gone ten minutes, when the two James
boys returned to the house, and on learning that he
had had the cheek to come back there, they went
after him, swearing they would kill him. They
missed him, however. The horse he had first ridden
was afterward found shot dead. Tomlinson reached
Liberty about ten o'clock that night, and found the
town in considerable excitement over the report that
he had been killed. His posse having lost track of
him, had returned to Liberty and circulated the re-
port.

Tomlinson's story about the affair was that he
found he could not hit the boys from a running horse,
and so he dismounted to get one deliberate shot.
The outlaws subsequently told some of their friends
that when they found only one man close to them
they turned on him and killed his horse, where-
upon he plunged into a thicket, and they were will-
ing enough to let him get away, but they had no idea
he would go to their home for a fresh horse. Of

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 143

course the whole country turned out after this, to
catch the Jameses, but they were not caught. The
robbery was, perhaps, the most remarkable of all
that have been done by the Missouri bandits, partly
because only three men were engaged in it, and part-
ly, because of the utter wantonness of the murder
committed.

In justice to Cole Younger, let it be said, that he
not only denied any participation in this outrage, but
there are hundreds of persons who have announced
their readiness to make oath that Cole was not in
Missouri at the time of the robbery. Both the James
boys also offered to prove alibis, but it is almost cer-
tain they were the perpetrators of the pillage and
murder. The proof is much less convincing respect-
ing Cole's participation. The account of the rob-
bery as here given, is in conformity with the gener-
ally accepted belief of the people in and about Gal-
latin.

THE HANGING OF JOHN YOUNGER.

After the first charges of robbery were preferred
against Cole and James Younger, there was no time
in which they could neglect a vigilant watch, for de-
tectives were in constant pursuit, and armed bands
of vindictive border residents were almost constantly
prowling about the Younger residence, with the hope
of catching Cole, especially. In the early part of

144 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

1870, only a few months before the death of Mrs.
Younger, a squad of twelve men, supposed to be
Kansas vigilants, stole upon the Younger residence
during the night, in pursuance of information re-
ceived that Cole and Jim were at home. Upon for-
cibly entering the house, they found only John Youn-
ger and his sisters ministering to the needs of their
dying mother. The scene was one of extraordinary
sadness and would have caused, it would seem, the
most callous heart to bleed with sympathy. Mrs.
Younger had suffered so much by the havoc of war
and the passions of infamous men, that her health
gave way and she fell a victim to that slow, but cer-
tain destroyer, consumption. When the squad en-
tered the house with rattling spurs and aspects fiercer
than the arms they bore, the wretched mother lay
like one in the grasp of death ; the sunken eyes^
hectic cheeks and emaciated form, around which
gathered those who realized how soon they would be
motherless, was that ** touch of nature which makes
the whole world kin."

Singular as it appears, the armed posse took no
heed of the tread of death which might have been
heard in the roorn ; their aspects were not softened
by sympathy, and their purpose was inflexible ; they
meant to kill. The house was examined but no
traces of Cole or Jim Younger were discovered ; de-
mands made upon John and his sisters respecting the
whereabouts of their outlaw brothers, were, of course,
treated with ignorance. But the squad, determined

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 145

not to be deceived, forcibly took John away from the
bedside of his mother and carried him to the barn ;
here they attempted to extort from him the informa-
tion they sought, first by threats, and faiUng in this
they resorted to torture. A noose was thrown
around the unfortunate boy's neck and run over a
rafter; he was then drawn up and left suspended
until his face grew black. The poor fellow was then
let down and again asked to reveal the hiding place
of his brothers. Still declaring that he did not know,
the squad again suspended him as before ; three
times this cruel treatment was repeated ; the last
time he was allowed to hang so long that the rope
lacerated his neck, and when they let him down he
was unconscious. After recovering somewhat, the
now infuriated mob had recourse to their knives;
with these they cut and slashed the boy, finally leav-
ing him apparently dead. For several hours he lay
unconscious and bleeding in the barn before his sis-
ters discovered him, they being compelled to remain
in the house when their brother was carried away.

It was several weeks before John recovered from
the wounds he had received, and during his conva-
lescence Mrs. Younger died, and then the family was
indeed wrecked. To escape further persecution,
John Younger went to Texas where his other broth-
ers had preceded him some time before, and for a
short time he- clerked in a grocery store in Dallas.

146 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

THE MURDER OF SHERIFF NICHOLS.

During his residence in Texas, John Younger
formed the acquaintance of a large number of ques-
tionable characters, and under their influence he was
led into the commission of a crime which he has
bitterly repented of a thousand times. The particu-
lars concerning the murder of the sheriff of Dallas
county, by John Younger, have been given so many
times and with such variance that it is impossible
now to relate the circumstances without incorpo-
rating some mistatements. John Younger's story
makes the deed one of justifiable homicide, while
others declare it to have been a cold-blooded mur-
der. In the absence of a reasonable motive, it is
impossible for the writer to believe that the murder
was committed without cause. Following is be-
lieved to be the most reliable version:

On the night of January 15, 1871, John Younger,
in company with several associates, was in a saloon
in Dallas kept by Joe Krueger; the crowd had been
drinking rather freely, and their conversation finally
turned on who was the best pistol shot in the party.
In the saloon at the time was an old besotted wretch
who went by the euphonious title of ** Old Blue ;"
whiskey had destroyed his manhood and produced
a physical wreck. His only desire was for whiskey^
and to obtain this he would hesitate at nothing.

John Younger professed to be a crack shot with
a pistol, and at length bet the crowd a treat that he

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 147

could shoot a pipe out of " Old Blue's " mouth at
the space of ten steps. The old fellow was sitting
in a chair half drunk when the proposition was
made, and shook his head in doubt but, said noth-
ing. One of the men accepted the bet, and to get
** Old Blue " to stand the fire, he was given two
glasses full of whiskey. The space was measured
off in the saloon, and the old sot was propped up in
the corner with a pipe in his mouth, his head had
been steadied by lying back between two beer
kegs. John Younger then took position and, aim-
ing as deliberately as his condition would allow, fired.
" Old Blue " gave a snort as the bullet cut off the
end of his nose and the blood streamed from the
wound in great profusion. He yelled murder, and
nothing would pacify him, not even the offer of a
barrel of whiskey. The crowd soon after broke up
and went home, leaving the old man to take care of
himself.

On the following day, at the suggestion of some
official persons, "Old Blue" swore out a warrant
against John Younger, charging him with attempt to
commit murder. The sheriff of the county, Capt.
S. W. Nichols, who was a former resident of Mis-
souri and an officer in the Confederate service, took
the warrant himself and served it on Younger. John
received the sheriff very affably, but when the war-
rant for arrest was read, he began to reflect seriously
about submitting. The reputation of the Younger
Boys was well known in Texas, and John concluded

148 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

at once that if he became a prisoner that other
charges would be preferred against him by his ene-
mies.

Contemplating his position for a moment, John
Younger made answer: "All right, Captain, just as
quick as I get my breakfast I'll come over to your
office."

This reply did not exactly satisfy the sheriff,
though he said nothing, concluding to remain and
watch the house until Younger came out, at the same
time entertaining fears that some trouble was immi-
nent. Back of the place where John was boarding,
there was a livery stable, and after eating his break-
fast, he passed out at the back way and had reached
the stable, where he inquired for a horse, when the
sheriff espied him. As he ran, Nichols drew his pis-
tol and commanded John to halt, but, instead of
obeying, Younger ran through the stable and was
passing out at the rear door, when the sheriff fired at
him. Finding himself headed off by a blind alley,
John turned and, drawing his pistol, forbid the fur-
ther approach of the sheriff. By this time consider-
able excitement had been created and a merchant of
the place seized a loaded shot-gun and joined in the
pursuit. Finding escape impossible, while the sher-
iff was shooting at him from time to time. Younger
at length put out his pistol and shot Nichols through
the heart, killing him instantly; the merchant, whose
name cannot now be recalled, then discharged his
gun at John, sending a load of fine shot into his

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 149

shoulder. The next moment the merchant lay writh-
ing with a pistol ball in his breast, while John ran
back through a small crowd and, taking a horse that
was standing hitched to a fence, he mounted and rode
off. Some hours afterward a posse of citizens went
in search of the fugitive and followed him for more
than one hundred miles, but he escaped and came
north to St. Clair county. Mo., where, after obtaining
some money, he went to California. He remained in
Los Angeles for several months, unable to find any
profitable employment, and receiving a request from
his brother Cole to return, he started back by rail. On
the route home, a detective sought to accom.plish his
arrest and there was an exchange of shots in the car
when the train was twelve miles west of Laramie. The
detective was shot through the arm, while John, be-
ing unhurt, leaped from the running train, seriously
spraining his right ankle in the fall. He made his
way on foot for several miles and finally fell in with
a wagon train for Denver. From that city he
reached home after a journey replete with misfor-
tunes, for, having no money, he was repeatedly put
off the train and more than one-third the distance he
was compelled to walk in shoes so badly worn that
they could scarcely be kept on his feet.

After reaching home, John joined his two broth-
ers. Cole and Jim, and afterward was with them in
their raids until his death in 1874.

150 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

THE CORYDON, IOWA, BANK ROBBERY.

The bank-raiding outlaws went into seclusion af-
ter the Gallatin robbery, spending another eighteen
months in Texas and their impregnable cave in Jack-
son county, Missouri. They had a well-defined pol-
icy of action by which they were guided in their so-
cial intercourse as well as in their dangerous adven-
tures. Secret communication was kept up when the
band was divided, and each one was always on the
alert for special opportunities in the practice of their
peculiar profession.

After a long period of idleness and plotting, the
reorganized band, consisting of the two James boys,
Cole and Jim Younger, Clell Miller, Jim White and
one other, whose identity has never been conclusive-
ly established, seven in all, decided to visit Iowa and
plunder the bank of Obocock Bros, in Corydon. On
the 3rd of June, 1 87 1, the seven outlaws, well
mounted and armed, came trooping into the town,
like so many countrymen hastening to the pohtical
meeting then in progress in the public square. They
halted before the bank and three of the party dis-
mounted, while the remaining four stood guard on
the outside. The dismounted trio entered the bank,
very quietly, and, findng no one inside but the cash-
ier, it being high noon, he was confronted by three
heavy revolvers and then bound hand and foot.
This was a singular act which the bandits never be-
fore or since attempted, and their purpose is not yet

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 151

apparent, for they obtained the keys of the safe
without trouble, and plundered it of nearly ^40,000,
one of the largest hauls, if not the largest, they had
ever made up to that time.

After completing the robbery and placing their
treasure in a sack, the three emerged from the bank
and, mounting their horses, the entire party masked
themselves with handkerchiefs and rode over to the
political meeting, which was being addressed by
Henry Clay Dean, where Jesse James asked pardon
of the speaker for mterrupting him a few moments.
Mr. Dean graciously gave way when Jesse, still sit-
ting astride his horse With the other bandits by his side,
spoke as follows : " Well, you've been having your fun
and we've been having ourn. You needn't go into hys-
terics when I tell you that we've just been down to
the bank and robbed it of every dollar in the till.
If you'll go down there now you'll find the cashier
tied and then if you want any of us, why, just come
down and take us. Thank you for your attention,"
At the conclusion of this strange speech the seven
dare-devils set up a wild yell, lifted their hats and
sped away southward. The crowd thought the con-
fession was only a plan to break up the meeting, but
a few minutes served to prove the truth of Jesse's
words.

After discovering the robbery there were hasty
preparations for pursuit, and a posse of a dozen
men, headed by the sheriff, dashed off in reckless
haste to capture the bandits. On the second day

152 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

the outlaws were overtaken in Daviess county, Mo.^
and a fight ensued, but the citizens were forced ta
give way without inflicting any damage on the bold
marauders. Others joined in the chase, however, and
the trail was followed into Clay county and then inta
Jackson, where the track faded out suddenly.

The Kansas City detectives continued to search
for the perpetrators of the robbery and two month*
afterward they arrested Clell Miller in Clay county
and took him back to Iowa on a requisition. He
was tried at Corydon in November, 1872, the court
proceedings lasting from Monday, November loth^
until the Friday following, when, owing to the insuf-
ficiency of the identification evidence, he was dis-
charged ; the mask he wore had saved him.

The Younger and James Boys stoutly protested
their innocence and referred to scores of parties in'
the counties of Clay and Jackson to prove their
presence in certain places, at the date of the rob-
bery. The accepted belief, however, is that the out-
rage was perpetrated by the individuals named in
this account ; the alibi had become a subterfuge al-
together too flimsy.

THE COLUMBIA, KENTUCKY, BANK
ROBBERY.

The outlaws spent several months in their well-
lurnished cave in Jackson county, living a life of

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 155

elegant ease, enjoying all the comforts liberal wealth
could purchase. Tired, at last, of hilarious idleness^
the James and Younger Boys concluded to pay an-
other visit to their friends and relatives in Kentucky.
Having plenty of money they divided with their poor-
er kinship in Nelson county, and sporting until their
natures grew restless for new adventures, they
planned the pillage of the Deposit Bank at Colum-
bia. First- providing themselves with the purest
blooded horses they could purchase, and completing
every detail for a profitable ride, the three Younger
brothers and the James Boys set out for Columbia.

On the 29th of April, 1872, the five daring out-
laws rode into Columbia by different roads, coming
together in the public square at 2:30 o'clock in the
afternoon. Scarcely had they met when John and
Jim Younger dashed down the street yelling and
firing their pistols at every person seen abroad, while
Cole and the two James Boys rode directly to the
bank and entered with drawn pistols. In the bank
at the time was the cashier, Hon. R. A. C. Martin,
James Garnett and Mr. Dalrymple. A demand was
made on the cashier for the safe keys, which being
refused, one of the outlaws shot him dead. The
other gentlemen in the bank made a hasty exit,
leaving the bandits in undisturbed possession. Be-
ing unable to effect an entrance into the safe, the
robbers were compelled to content themselves with
the currency they found in the drawers, amounting
to about two hundred dollars ; they then remounted

154 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

their horses and the gang galloped away southward.
On the same afternoon of the robbery, fifteen
men, with such horses and arms as they could hastily
secure, started out after the bandits,, while telegrams
were sent in every direction with the hope of head-
ing them off. Others joined in the chase, and the
trail was followed pertinaciously through Kentucky
and several hundred miles in Tennessee, but the out-
laws gained the dense coverts and recesses of the
Cumberland Mountains where pursuit ended. The
shooting of tTie cashier has been charged to Frank
James, but this is merely supposition. It is almost
certain that Cole Younger did not commit the mur-
der, because of his well known aversion to the
adoption of such expedients to effect a robbery ;
Cole would try intimidation, but his nature revolted
at murder except where the conditions were equally
divided, and it was life staked against life.

A DARING RAID AT THE KANSAS CITY
FAIR.

The outlaws returned to Missouri after their last
raid in Kentucky, and spent several months in their
comfortably fitted up cave in Jackson county. Jesse
and Frank James were frequent visitors at their
mother's house, and Cole and John Younger were
not infrequent guests at the same residence. All the
Younger brothers were seen together when they at-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 155

tended the Sny Bar church on the second Sunday in
August, and they took no means to hide their iden-
tity. In the September following, 1872, the Kansas
City Fair was held, beginning on the 23d ; the attend-
ance was very large, one of the special attractions
being the renowned horse Ethan Allen, which wais
advertised to trot against a running mate on Thurs-
day, the 26th. At this time the writer was a report-
er on the Kansas City Journal, and was performing
special duties at the fair, occupying a position which
afforded every facility for learning full particulars of
the incident about to be related.

When Thursday, which is always the "big day"
of the Exposition, arrived, - every incoming train
poured hundreds of new arrivals into the city. The
streets were literally jammed during the early morn-
ing hours, and by nine o'clock the stream of human-
ity began to flow toward the fair grounds. It was,
indeed, a big day for both the city and the fair as-
sociation. By one o'clock in the afternoon there
was scarcely standing-room about the race course or
the buildings containing exhibition articles. Ethan
Allen was brought out and shown to the thousands
occupying the amphitheatre, and then the pool sell-
ing began on the other races to take place after the
noted horse had exhibited his speed. I can never
forget the excitement manifested by the crowd ; not
that there we're any rows or disturbances, but the
gathering was so great, and there was such an unus-
ual disposition to bet, both on Ethan Allen's time.

1 56 THE BORDER O UTLA WS,

and the combinations in the pool, that the noise was
like Pandemonium on election day.

At three o'clock the great horse appeared In har-
ness in the ring, and when he was sent off the most
deafening cries arose from the crowd and continued
until the mile was finished, in 2:18, I beheve. After
this there was a gradual dispersion of the vast as-
semblage, numbering more than thirty thousand
persons, and the streets leading to the city were filled
with returning people.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Mr. Hall, the
secretary and treasurer of the Fair Association, com-
pleted counting the receipts of the day and, in re-
sponse to a question from the writer, he stated that
the day's revenue was only a fraction less than
;^ 10,000. This money he placed in a large tin box,
which he instructed his assistant to carry to the First
National Bank for deposit. The young man left the
secretary's headquarters about ten minutes after four
o'clock, and in fifteen minutes afterward a big rush
toward the gates indicated that some unusual inci-
dent had occurred. The writer ran rapidly in the di-
rection taken by the crowd, and at the entrance
gates, which are more than a quarter of a mile from
the main buildings, he soon learned the cause of so
much excitement. As the young man with the
treasure box was passing through the gate, three
horsemen rode swiftly up to him, and one of them
leaping to the ground, snatched the box and handed
it to his mounted companion. The young man

-h '

?«:■ ^■^'"

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 157

shouted lustily for help, and though he was sur-
rounded by dozens of men leaving the grounds, no
one seemed to think of attempting to arrest the rob-
bers. The three mounted outlaws rode through the
crowd with such recklessness, that a little girl, about
ten years of age, was badly trampled, but not fatally
injured, her left hip being lacerated severely. As
the bandits repeatedly fired their pistols, for a time
it was thought the little girl was struck by a bullet,
but this accident was the only casualty. Before the
hundreds of surprised witnesses of the struggle
could recover from their fright, the three daring
highwaymen sped away like the wind, carrying the
^10,000 with them.

The excitement following the robbery was intense,
and every one seemed to have distinct suspicions as
to who the bandits Vv^ere. The police, detectives,
and the sheriff with several deputized citizens, went
in pursuit of the robbers before night approached,
and they had no difficulty in following the trail for a
distance of ten miles, when the tracks faded like fog
lifted by a heavy wind ; the outlaws had entered
their mysterious cave and, while counting their sud-
den gain, laughed at the foiled pursuers.

From confessions since made by members of the
gang, it has been definitely ascertained that the three
desperate outlaws were Jesse and Frank James and
Bob Younger,' and that the party who dismounted
and grabbed the cash box, was Jesse James.

Some time after the robbery, the latter wrote a

158 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

card, which was published in the Kansas City Thnes^
denying his connection with the robbery, and ac-
cused Cole Younger of acting the principal part in
the daring outrage, but regardless of his proffered
proof of an alibi, the perpetrators were certainly the
three named ; at least the most satisfactory evidence
obtainable so indicates.

THE STE. GENEVIEVE, MO., BANK
ROBBERY.

Every robbery thus far had been consummated
with such signal success, that the outlaws could not
long remain idle, for the love of money increased
with its accummulation, just as the love of adventure
grew greater with successful accomplishment. Be-
fore the winter ended, Jim Younger and Frank James
left their hiding place in Jackson county and made a
trip through the northwest, going through Omaha
and as far west as Cheyenne, where they remained
for a considerable time prospecting for opportunities.
They both had relatives in California, and as ship-
ments of gold over the Union Pacific Railroad from
San Francisco were frequent, the purpose of the
two bandits was, doubtless, to ascertain the date of
contemplated express shipments of treasure. Dur-
ing their stay in Cheyenne, Cole and Bob Younger,
Jesse James, Bill Chadwell, alias Styles, and Clell
Miller, conceived and definitely arranged a plan to

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 159

rob the Savings Association at Ste. Genevieve, Mis-
souri. In pursuance of their arrangements, the five
bandits left Jackson county about the 1st of May,
1873, and stopped a short time at a country place a
few -miles south of Springfield. From here they
went to Bismarck, on the Iron Mountain Railroad,
but remained there only one day. From this latter
point they rode through Ste. Genevieve county and
on the morning of May twenty-seventh, the five out-
laws appeared in the old Catholic town, three enter-
ing from the south and two from the north.

It was shortly after nine o'clock when the bandits
made their appearance, and as three of them entered
the bank they found no one inside except the cash-
ier, O. D. Harris, Esq., and a son of Hon. Firman A.
Rozier, the president. No time was given for par-
ley ; the robbers presented their pistols at the cash-
ier and commanded him to open the safe. Young
Rozier comprehended the situation at once, and as
none of the pistols were covering him, he ran down
the steps and through the street rapidly, calling for
help. The two bandits who stood guard outside
fired three times at the fleeing boy, one bullet pass-
ing through his coat, but doing no bodily injury.
Mr. Harris appreciating the critical position he occu-
pied, accepted the more sensible alternative and
opened the safe door, permitting the outlaws to se-
cure all the funds then in the bank, amounting to
four thousand one hundred dollars. This money,
much of which was silver, they threw into a sack.

i6o THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

and mounting their horses decamped. Before get-
ting out of town the bandit who carried the sack, by
some means, let his treasure fall to the ground, which
necessitated his return for it. All the five robbers
came together here, and four of them halted in the
road while the fifth one dismounted for the treasure
sack; in the attempt to remount, his horse became
frightened and broke away, running some distance
north. At this juncture a German came riding into
town, and the mounted bandits by direful threats
compelled him to ride after and secure the fugitive
horse, which he accomplished after considerable de-
lay. In the meantime a posse of citizens gathered,
and obtaining horses quickly, they went in pursuit of
the robbers, whom they came up with within a mile
of the town. There was an exchange of shots which
halted the citizens, and after this the outlaws were
not again approached.

The bold desperadoes, in order to exasperate the
authorities, it would appear, marked their trail by
leaving sign boards in their wake on which they
would inscribe the day and hour they were at the
spot indicated by the board. On the 30th of May
the robbers rode into Hermann, Missouri, and stopped
for dinner, telling the people of the place who they
were, and performing other dare-devil acts which set
the authorities after them in a state of fury. The chase
continued for weeks, it being joined in by several
detectives from Chicago and St. Louis, who arrested
dozens of " suspicious characters/' only to find they

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, i6l

"had the wrong men. It was thus the chase ended, as
all the other attempts to arrest the bandits had ter-
minated.

The Savings Association at Ste. Genevieve was
one of the strongest banks in the State, carrying a
•deposit of over one hundred thousand dollars con-
tinually during the period of its active existence.
At the time of the raid the bank was winding up its
business, and to facilitate this, the capital and funds
were deposited with the Merchants* Bank af St.
Louis, and all the deposits had been drawn out.
But for this fact the robbery would have resulted, as
the bandits, no doubt, anticipated, in a magnificent ap-
propriation.

ROBBING A TRAIN IN IOWA.

When the five outlaws reached Jackson county
from Ste. Genevieve, they found Frank James and
Jim Younger in waiting with a plan perfected for
collecting treasure which they had learned would be
shipped over the Union Pacific Railroad, reaching
Omaha on the morning of July 2ist. How they
obtained this information can only be conjectured
from facts already given. Their trip to Cheyenne,
therefore, had resulted* very satisfactorily, and the
band made immediate preparations to profit by the
news. Accordingly, on the I2th of July, the party
of seven left their secret haunts and mounted on
11

l62 THE BORDER O UTLA WS.

excellent horse'^, they set out for the neighborhood
of Council Bluffs, reaching their destination about
the 1 8th. Frank James and Cole Younger visited
Omaha to learn what they could respecting the treas-
ure which was expected, and by what road it would
be sent east from Council Bluffs. They returned to
their waiting comrades on the 2 1st, and in the after-
noon arrangements were made for wrecking the
evening passenger train on the Chicago, Rock Island
& Pacific Railroad. The spot selected for this pur-
pose was about five miles west of Adair, a small
town in Adair county, where there is a sharp curve
in the road which obscures the rails sixty yards in
advance of the engine. The outlaws hitched their
horses some distance from the track out of sight
from the train, and procuring a spike-bar loosened
one of the rails. To this loose rail they tied a rope
leading several yards out into the grass, where they
concealed themselves. The passenger train consist-
ed of seven coaches, including the two sleepers, and
was due at the point of ambush at 8:30 p. m. John
Rafferty was in charge of the engine and was look-
ing srharply along the curve when he saw the rail
move out of place. He instantly reversed the lever,
but the distance vvas so short, while the momentum
of the train was so great, that the engine plunged
through the break and turned over, while the coaches
piled on top of one another in direful confusion. The
engineer was instantly killed and a dozen passengers
seriously injured. Notwithstanding this result, the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 163

robbers quickly boarded the wreck, two of them en-
tering the express car, while the others forced the
excited and demoralized passengers to deliver up all
their money and valuables. The express messenger
was made to open the safe and give the bandits
what money he had in charge, but the amount was
small, consisting of about three thousand dollars.
From the passengers nearly as much more was ob-
tained. This was a bitter disappointment to the out-
laws, for they confidently expected to find not less
than fifty thousand dollars in gold, as reported.
Fortunately the bandits were twelve hours too soon,
as on the following day the express carried over the
same road seventy-five thousand dollars in gold.

After securing all the booty possible, the seven
daring wreckers waved their hats and shouted fare-
well to their victims, and gaining their horses, they
rode away to the south.

The excitement created over this dreadful outrage
was very great and hundreds volunteered to assist in
apprehending the desperadoes. The trail led straight
through Missouri and to the Missouri river, where
there was unmistakable evidence that the outlaws
swam the stream with their horses. Following the
track on the other side, the band was followed intO'
Jackson county, where, as usual, every trace disap-
peared. A party of detectives went down to Mone-
gaw springs in search of the outlaws and found Jesse
James and two of the Younger Boys, but they made
no effort to bring them away and were glad to es-
cape themselves alive.

i64 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

Cole Younger has always strenuously denied any
participation in the wrecking of the train, and the
writer confesses to a reluctance in believing he was
present. The facts, as gathered from available
sources, sometimes doubtful, are given here without
any pretention to positiveness. The narrative is in
accordance with the generally accepted belief.

On the day after the robbery five of the bandits,
or, at least, believed to be them, took dinner at the
house of a farmer named Stuckeye, in Ringgold
county. He described these men as follows:

No. I. Seemed to be a kind of leader; five feet
seven or eight inches tall, light hair, blue eyes, heavy
sandy whiskers, broad shoulders, short nose, a little
turned up ; high, broad forehead ; looked to be a
well-educated man not used to work; age, thirty-six
to forty.

No. 2. Tall and lithe, with light complexion, high
forehead, light brown hair, long, light whiskers, al-
most sandy, long, slender hands that certainly had
not done much hard work, nose a prominent Roman.
He was very polite and talked but little. Looked
thirty-six years old.

No. 3. Slender, five feet nine or ten inches tall,
hair cut short and of a light brown color, straight
nose, uncouth and sarcastic in speech, brown eyes,
and wearing a hard, dissipated countenance. Mid-
dle-aged, and wore dark clothes.

No. 4. Dark complexion, dark hair, clean shaved,
five feet eight inches tall, heavy set, straight, black

titl younger brothers. 165

eyes, straight nose, good looking, but appeared dis-
sipated. Middle-aged, and wore light pants, hat and
vest and- dark coat.

No. 5. Five feet ten inches tall, large, broad
shoulders, straight, blue eyes, reddish whiskers.
Roman nose. Middle-aged, and very pleasant in
appearance.

These descriptions answer for Frank and Jesse
James, Clell Miller and Jim and Bob Younger; where
the other two bandits were at this time, it is difficult
to surmise, especially since it is positively known
that the seven were together when they rode through
Missouri.

Jack Bishop, in a card in the Kansas City Times,
accused Ike Flannery of being one of the band, but
this accusation might have re?.dily proceeded from
some prejudice or other motive. The public will,
perhaps, never learn positively each member of the
band that wrecked the passenger train, for the act
was so disgraceful and monstrous, displaying neither
bravery nor cunning, that circumstances can hardly
induce any of the party to make a confession of the
crime and name his accomplices.

THE HOT SPRINGS STAGE ROBBERY. ^

After the train wrecking in Iowa there was an-
other long period of inactivity among the bandits.
The James and Younger Boys were frequently seen

l66 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

by intimate acquaintances in Jackson and Clay coun-
ties ; they also spent a considerable time in Texas, but
committed no new depredations until the beginning
of 1874. By this time their money was probably
well nigh exhausted, as all the band were known to
be high livers during their periods of plenty. Dur-
ing the holidays of 1873, the outlaws proposed other
schemes for plunder, and by New Year's day of 1874,
they had perfected their plans for three robberies,
which were accomplished according to programme.
When they left their haunts. Bob Younger and Jesse
James went to Louisiana, while Frank James, Cole
and Jim Younger, Arthur McCoy and Clell Miller
remained together to carry out their designs for rob-
bing the stage running between Malvern and Hot
Springs, Arkansas. On the 15th of January, the
five bandits left Hot Springs, where they had re-
mained the previous night, and secreted themselves
near the stage roadside, five miles east of the town.
At eleven o'clock in the forenoon, the heavy Con-
cord stage with two ambulances and fourteen passen-
gers, came lumbering over the rough road enroute
for the Springs. When the stage came nearly abreast
of the robbers, they suddenly rose out of their hid-
ing-place and, presenting their pistols, sternly com-
manded the driver to halt. Frank James acted as
leader and was the one who gave the order. The
driver, thoroughly frightened by the appearance of
the bandits, drew rein quickly and became a quiet
spectator of the proceedings that followed.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 167

The outlaws soon informed the astonished passen-
gers the occasion for such authoritative actions on
their part, by ordering the immediate vacating of the
vehicles. Obedience became a stern necessity under
the pressure of so many deadly appearing weapons,
and when the passengers stepped out, they were or-
dered to form a line along the road, then the most
interesting part of the programme began to take
place.

Jim Younger and Clell Miller acted as examining
experts, while the other outlaws maintained guard.
To more thoroughly intimidate the already almost
insensible travelers, a conversation was carried on
between the bandits, well calculated to freeze the
slow-flowing blood of their victims. Each individual
was robbed of every cent that could be found and
their watches, were also appropriated. A Mr. Tay-
lor, of Boston, who had the unmistakable appear-
ance of a "down caster," was persecuted by the
threats made against his life, and ex-Governor Bur-
bank, of Dakotah, was about to be executed on the
suspicion that he was a detective, but bloodshed was
averted ; it may never have been contemplated, and
the threats were probably intended only to frighten.

One of the passengers betrayed a Southern nativ-
ity by his speech, and one of the bandits asked him
if he had been in the Southern army ; receiving an
affirmative reply, together with satisfying informa-
tion concerning his regiment and company, the out-
laws returned the money and valuables taken from

1 68 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

him. After completing the robbery and securing-
about ;^4,ooo, Cole Younger made a brief explana^
tion of the causes which led the band to the com-
mission of such iniquities. He referred to the re-
morseless manner in which he and his parents had
been harassed and despoiled by jayhawkers, and
how he had been pursued after the war until forced
to become an outlaw. The entire band spoke very
vindictively about Pinkerton's detectives and made
many threats of vengeance. They then very cour-
teously bade their victims an adieu, mounted their
horses and soon disappeared over the hills.

When the stage reached Hot Springs, a full re-
port of the robbery was made, but owing to the al-
most inaccessible condition of the surrounding coun-
try, little or no effort was made to capture the high-
waymen.

ROBBING A TRAIN AT GAD'S HILL.

Finding that the stage robbery had created little
excitement, the band did not delay long in accom-
plishing the second plan they had arranged one
month before in Jackson county. After taking a
northwest direction and going into a familiar settle-
ment in southern Missouri near the Arkansas line,
they took a resting spell of nearly two weeks, and
then rode to Gad's Hill, a small station on the Iron
Mountain Railroad in Wayne county, Missouri.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 169

They made hasty preparations to rob the Little Rock
express train, which was due at Gad's Hill shortly
before six o'clock p. m. The statit)n contained a
population of not more than a dozen persons, and
the country about was very sparsely settled, so that
no danger of interference was anticipated from the
neighborhood. Their first precaution was to make a
prisoner of the station agent and the five other men
found about the station. The switch was then turned
so as to force a stoppage of the train should it at-
tempt to pass by. Clell Miller then secured the
signal flag and planted it in the center of the tracks
after which the bandits awaited the coming of their
victims. Promptly on time the train rattled along
the track, and the engineer seeing the flag closed
the throttle valve and brought the heavy passenger
coaches to a standstill alongside the httle platform-
The conductor, Mr. Alvord, stepped off one of the
cars to ascertain the cause of the signal, but at the
same moment he was confronted by a revolver in the
hands of Frank James and made to surrender. The
outlaws were theii posted, one on each side of the
train, another covering the engineer and prisoners,
while the other two went through the coaches, and
by fierce«threats and more dangerous revolvers com-
pelled all the passengers in the first-class car and the
sleepers to disgorge their money and valuables. Af-
ter completiAg the robbery of the passengers, the
express car was next raided, obtaining from the safe
one thousand and eighty dollars, and then the mail

I/O

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

bags were cut open and rifled, one registered letter
being secured which contained two thousand dollars
in currency. The money and valuables obtained ag-
gregated nearly twelve thousand dollars. None of
the bandits entered the second-class cars, saying
they were only after the " plug hat " crowd. South-
ern men, they also passed over, when convinced of
the fact. During the robbery the band talked con-
stantly, but were always vigilant. All of them wore
masks made of calico with holes cut for the eyes.
Only one of them had an overcoat, and it was this
one who attended to the switch and guarded the
prisoners. When he fixed the forward switch he had
thrown his overcoat down on the track. After the
robbery was over they brought the train men out,
put them on the train and told them to pull out.
After the train started, one of them happened to dis-
cover that the overcoat was still lying on the track,
when he instantly made the engineer stop until the
fellow could go and get it. The amount obtained
from the passengers was nearly two thousand dollars.
As usual, there was a great deal of guessing as to
who the robbers were. Entirely reliable parties who
had known all the men named, declared positively
that two of the Youngers, that is. Cole and Bob, or
Cole and Jim, were with Arthur McCoy and Bill
Greenwood and another man in the vicinity for a day
or two before the robbery. That they were the same
party who had been chased up from Hot Springs,
and that an hour before they went to the station they

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 171

all had blue overcoats on. Other circumstances
strengthened the belief that these were the men, and
of course, one of the James Boys was put in for the
fifth man.

Before leaving, the robbers left the following flash
account of the affair with one of the train men:

" The most daring on record — the southbound train on
the Iron Mountain Railroad was robbed here this evening

by five heavily armed men, and robbed of dollars.

The robbers arrived at the station a few minutes before the
arrival of the train, and arrested the station agent and put
him under guard, then direw the train on the switch. The
robbers were all large men, none of them under six feet
tall. They were all masked and started in a southerly di-
rection after they had robbed the train. They were all
mounted on fine blooded horses. Tnere is a hell of an ex-
citement in this part of the country.

*' [Signed] Ira A. Merrill."

Later information shows that Clell Miller and Ar-
thur McCoy were members of the band, but there
is still much dispute about the presence of Cole
Younger, though the preponderance of evidence
points to him as being one of the band.

THE DEATH OF TWO DETECTIVES.

Plundering the train at Gad's Hill created an ex-
citement never before equalled in eastern Missouri ;
armed bodies'of men from nearly every point along
the Iron Mountain road went out in pursuit of the
marauders, stimulated to the greatest activity by

172 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

large rewards offered by the railroad and express
companies for the apprehension of the robbers. Sev-
eral St. Louis detectives engaged in the search, and
Pinkerton dispatched two of his best men to the
haunts of the bandits. These officers were known as
Capt. Allen, alias Lull, and James Wright, the lat-
ter having been in the Confederate service and
claimed to be acquainted with the Younger boys.
At Osceola, Missouri, the two detectives engaged the
services of an ex-deputy sheriff named Edwin B.
Daniels, and together the three penetrated the Mon-
egaw Springs settlement, where the Youngers spent
much of their time.

After leaving Osceola the official trio assumed the
character of cattle dealers, and on March i6th, they
set out on the road for Chalk Level, a little place
about fifteen miles northwest of Osceola. On the
route Lull and Daniels stopped at the farm-house of
Theodore Snuffer, a distant relative of the Youngers,
and asked for directions to widow Simms' house.
Wright did not stop with his companions, but rode
on, intending to spend a few moments with an ac-
quaintance two miles west of Snuffer's.

By chance John and Jim Younger were stopping
with Mr. Snuffer at the time, but did not show them-
selves. They listened intently, however, and after
the directions were given as requested, they saw the
detectives take a contrary road ; this excited the
suspicion of the two Youngers, and they decided to
watch the strangers. For this purpose they mounted

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 173

their horses and followed after Lull and Daniels for
nearly a mile before coming up with them." The
authentic particulars of this meeting are best given in
the ante-mortem statement made by Capt. Allen,
alias Lull, and subscribed to before justice of the
peace St. Clair. It is as follows ;

Yesterday, on the i6th of March, 1874, at about half
past two o'clock p. m., E. B. Daniels and myself were riding
along the road from Roscoe to Chalk Level, in. St. Clair
county, which road leads past the house of one Theodore
Snuffer. Daniels and myself were riding side b^ side, and
our companion Wright was a short distance ahead of us ;
some noise behind us attracted our attention, and looking
back we saw two men on horseback coming toward us ; one
was armed with a double-barrel shot-gun, the other with
revolvers ; don't know if the other had a shot-gun or not;
the one that had the shot-gun carried it cocked, both barrels,
and ordered us to halt ; Wright drew his pistol but then
put spurs to his horse and rode off; they ordered him to
halt, and shot at him and shot off his hat, but he kept on
riding. Daniels and myself stopped, standing across the
road on our horses ; they rode up to us, and ordered us to
take off our pistols and drop them in the road, one
of them covering me all the time with his gun. We
dropped our pistols on the gromnd, and one of the men
told the other to follow Wright and bring him back, but he
refused to go, saying he would stay with him ; one of the
men then picked up the revolvers we had dropped, and
looking at them, remarked they were damn fine pistols, and
that we must make them a present of them ; one of them
asked me where we came from, and I said " Osceola;" he
then wanted to know what we were doing in this part of the
country; I replied, "Rambling around."' One of them
then said, " You were up here one day before.^' I replied
that we were not. He then said we had been at the
Springs. I replied that we had been at the Springs,

174 I^HE BORDER O UTLA WS,

but had not been inquiring for them, that we did not know
them ; they said detectives had been up there hunting for
them all the time, and they were going to stop it. Daniels
then said, " I am no detective ; I can show you who I am
and where I belong." And one of them said he knew
him, and then turned to me and said, " What in the hell are
you riding around here with all them pistols on for ? " and I
said, " Good God ! is not every man wearing them that is
traveling, and have I not as much right to wear them as
any one else? " Then the one that had the shot-gun said,
*' Hold on, young man, we don't want any of that," "and
then lowered the gun, cocked, in a threatening manner.
Then Daniels had some talk with them, and one of them
got off his horse and picked up the pistols ; two oi them
were mine and one was Daniels'; the one mounted had the
gun drawn on me, and I concluded that they intended to kill
us. I reached my hand behind me and drew a No. 2
Smith & Wesson pistol and cocked it and fired at the one
on horseback ; my horse became frightened at the report of
the pistol and turned to run ; then I heard two shots and
my left arm fell; I had no control over my horse, and he
jumped into the bushes before I could get hold of the rein
with my right hand to bring him into the road ; one of the
men rode by and fired two shots at me, one of which took
effect in my left side, and I lost all control of my horse
again, and he turned into the brash, when a small tree
struck me and knocked me out of the saddle. I then got
up and staggered across the road and lay down until I was
found. No one else was present.

W. J. ALLEN.
Subscribed and sworn to, before me, this i8th day of
March, 1874.

JAMES ST. CLAIR.

The statement of Capt. Allen was used at the
coroner's inquest over the bodies of Daniels and
Younger, and the examining physicians gave the fol-
lowing testimony:

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 175

All we know concerning the death of the two men, being
the same that the inquest is being held over, is that the one,
John Younger, came to his death from the effects of a gun-
shot wound, which entered the right side of his neck,
touching the clavical bone, on the upper side, and about
two inches from the meridian, went nearly straight through
the neck ; the orifice is small, indicating that he was shot
with a small ball. The other man, Edwin B. Daniels, came
to his death from the effect of a gunshot wound, which en-
tered the left side of the neck, about one inch from the
meridian line, and about midway of the neck, opposite the
aesophagus, and as per examination, went nearly straight
through the neck, striking the bone ; the orifice was pretty
large, indicating that the ball was of a pretty large size.

A. C MARQUIS, M. D.

L. LEWIS, M. D.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this i8th day of
March, 1874. JAMES ST. CLAIR, J. P.

The jury, with A. Ray as foreman, submitted a
verdict to the effect that Daniels was killed by James
Younger, and that John Younger met his death at
the hands of W. J. Allen.

Capt. Allen was struck very hard in the left side,
two inches above the hip ; he was carried back to
Roscoe, where he lingered for a period of six weeks,
and then died, surrounded by his family that had
come to him from Chicago directly after the shoot-
ing. His remains were enclosed in a metallic case
and returned to Chicago, where they were buried with
Masonic honors. Ed. Daniels was laid away in the
little churchyard at Osceola, while John Younger
sleeps under a neglected mound in old man Snuffer's
orchard.

i;6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

ROBBING A TEXAS STAGE.

On the 7th of April, 1874, less than one month
after the -killing of John Younger, the stage running
between Austin and San Antonio, Texas, was robbed
under the following circumstances : On the day in
question, the regular mail stage, carrying eleven pas-
sengers, was stopped by five masked bandits, at
seven o'clock in the evening, twenty-three miles from
Austin. They advanced to meet the stage and each
of them presenting a heavy pistol, forced the stage-
driver to halt, leave his seat and open the door of
the vehicle. Among the passengers was Mr. Breck-
enridge, president of the First National Bank of
San Antonio, who had. one thousand dollars on his
person. Bishop Gregg, of the same city was also in
the party, and three ladies, whose fright at seeing
such a display of fire-arms, produced a panic inside
the stage. The robbers were very courteous, but
exacting, forcing an immediate compliance with their
every request. All the passengers were made to get
out and form in line, in the rear of the stage, where
they were examined for money and valuables by two
of the bandits, while the other three stood guard
over their victims. The ladies, aside from the re-
spectful language used toward them, were not par-
tially treated by the outlaws, but, like their male com-
panions, they were persuaded, by the peculiar means
of the robbers, to give up all their money and

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 177

watches. The total amount secured, including that
:gathered from the mail-bags, was about ;^3,ooo.
Having appropriated all the valuables the passen-
gers possessed, the bandits cut out the lead span of
horses and taking these with them, they rode away
rapidly toward the north.

The loss of two horses so delayed the stage that
it was not until four o'clock on the following morn-
ing that it reached Austin ; this prevented an early
report of the robbery, so that fully eighteen hours
had elapsed after the perpetration of the outrage,
before the sheriff, with ten men, went in pursuit.
The search for the robbers was fruitless for more
than two weeks, the trail, seemingly, being thorough-
ly covered. After the sheriff returned home, a re-
ward of ^500 was offered for th*^ capture of the ban-
dits, and some time afterwards several detectives
came upon a party by the name of Jim Reed, whom
they suspected of having been one of the robbers,
and in their efforts to arrest him, he fought his
would-be captors until mortally wounded. Before
dying, it is claimed, that he confessed to a participa-
tion in both the stage and Gad's Hill robberies. In
the latter, it is said, his companions were Arthur
McCoy and Jim Greenwood, but he refused to di-
vulge the names of the two others.

It is more than probable, however, judging from
later circumstances and confessions, that Jim Reed
was not one of the stage robbers, and there is a pre-
vailing suspicion that he never made any such con-
12

i;8 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

fession as that attributed to him. There are hun-
dreds who maintain that the robbers were Jesse and
Frank James, Clell Miller, Cole Younger and Arthur
McCoy. The facts, however, are involved in such a
confusion of contradictory claims and statements
that it is impossible to fix the robbery, positively, on
any special persons.

The same stage was robbed again two years later
in almost the identical spot and manner as in 1874,
the robbers securing ;^2,000 and escaping without
leaving any clue* of their identity.

COLE YOUNGER'S EPISTOLARY
VINDICATION.

In the absence of positive testimony connecting
the Younger brothers with all the robberies charged
to them, and in order to avoid even a suspicion that
intentional injustice is done them in this record of
their lives, the writer, in a special correspondence
with Cole Younger, asked him to make a written
statement embodying his proofs and denials of any
and all the crimes with which he and his brothers
stand charged by current report, offering at the same
time to publish it in full in this work. A very cour-
teous reply was received, in which reference was
made to a letter written by him to his brother-in-law
Lycurgus Jones, of Cass county, and published in the
Pleasant Hill Review, November 26th, 1874. It is

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 179

but an act of justice that the letter be reproduced
in this connection. It is as follows :

Cass County, November 15, 1874.

Dear Curg: — You may use this letter in your own way.
I will give you this outHne and sketch of my whereabouts
and actions at the time of certain robberies with which I am
charged. At the time of the Russellville bank robbery I
was gathering cattle in Ellis county, Texas : cattle that I
bought from Pleas Taylor and Rector. This can be proved
by both of them ; also by Sheriff Barkley and fifty other re-
spectable men of that county. I brought the cattle to
Kansas that fall and remained in St. Clair county until
February. I then went to Arkansas and returned to St.
Clair county about the first of May. I went to Kansas
where our cattle were, in Woodson county, at Col. Ridge's.
During the summer I was either in St. Clair, Jackson or
Kansas, but as there was no robbery committed that sum-
mer, it makes no difference where I was.

The gate at the fair grounds at Kansas City was robbed
that fall. I was in Jackson county at the time. I left R.
P. Rose's that morning, went down the Independence road,
stopped at Dr. Noland's and got some pills. Brother John
was with me. I went through Independence, and from
there to Ace Webb's. There I took dinner and then went
to Dr. L. W. Twiman's. Staid there until after supper,
then went to Silas Hudspeth's and stayed all night. This
was the day the gate was robbed at Kansas City. Next
day John and I went to Kansas City. We crossed the
river at Blue Mills, and went upon the other side. Our bus-
iness there was to see E. P. West. He was not at home,
but the family will remember that we were there. We
crossed on the bridge, stayed in the city all night, and the
next morning we rode up through the city. I met several
of my friends, among them was Bob Hudspeth. We then
returned to the Six-Mile country by the way of Independ-
ence. At Big Blue we met Jas. Chiles and had a long talk
with him. I saw several friends that were standing at or near

1 80 THE B ORDER O UTLA TVS,

the gate, and they all said they didn't know any of the
party that did the robbing. Neither John nor I was ac-
cused of the crime for several days after. My name would
never have been used in connection with the affair, had not
Jesse W. James, for some cause, best known to himself, pub-
Hshed in the Kansas City Times, a letter stating that John,
myself and he were accused of the robbery. Where he got
his authority I don't know, but one thing I do know, he had
none from me. We were not on good terms at the time,
nor haven't been for several years. From that time on
mine and John's names have been connected with the James
brothers. John hadn't seen either of them for eighteen
months before his death. And as for A. C. McCoy, John
never saw him in his Hfe. I knew A. C. McCoy during the
war, but haven't seen him since, notwithstanding the Ap-
pleton City paper says he has been with us in that county
for two years. Now, if any respectable man in that county
will say he ever saw A. C. McCoy with me or John, I will
say no more ; or if any respectable man will say that he
ever saw any one v/ith us who suited the description of A.
C. McCoy, then I will be silent and never more plead in-
nocence.

McCoy is forty-eight or forty-nine years old ; six feet and
over high ; dark hair and blue eyes, and low forehead.

Poor John, he has been hunted down and shot like a
wild beast, and never was a boy more innocent. But there
is a day coming when the secrets of all hearts will be laid
open before that All-seeing eye, and every act of our Hves
will be scrutinized, then will his skirts be white as the driven
snow, while those of his accusers will be doubly dark.

I will now come to the Ste. Genevieve robbery. At that
time I was in St. Clair county, Missouri. I do not remem-
ber the date, but Mr. Murphy, one of our neighbors, was
sick about that time, and I sat up with him regularly, where
I met with some of the neighbors every day. Dr. L. Lewis
was his physician.

As to the Iowa train robbery, I have forgotten the day, I
was also in St. Clair county, Missouri, at that time, and had

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. i8i

the pleasure of attending preaching the evening previous to
the robbery, at Monegaw Springs. There were fifty or a
hundred persons there who will testify in any court that I
and John were there. I will give you the names of some
of them : Simeon C. Bruce, John S. Wilson, James Van-
Allen, Rev. Mr. Smith and lady. Helvin Fickle and lady of
Greenton Valley, were attending the Springs at that time,
and either of them will testify to the above, for John and I
sat in front of Mr. Smith while he was preaching, and had
the pleasure of his company for a few moments, together
with his lady, and Mr. and Mrs. Fickle, after service. They
live at Greenton Valley, Lafayette county, Missouri, and
their evidence would be taken in the Court of Heaven. As
there was no other robbery committed until January, I will
come to that time. About the last of December, 1873, I
arrived in Carroll parish, Louisiana. . I stayed there until
the 8th of February, 1874. I and brother stayed at Wm.
Dickerson's, near Floyd, Dickerson was Master of a Ma-
sonic lodge, and during the time the Shreveport stage and
the Hot Springs stage were robbed ; also the Gad's Hill
robbery. Now, if the Governor or any one else wants to
satisfy himself in regard to the above, he can write to the
Masonic Fraternity, Floyd, Carroll parish, Louisiana. I
hope the leading journals will investigate the matter, and
then, if they find I have misrepresented anything, they can
show me up to the world as being guilty, but if they find it
as I have stated, they surely would have no objections to
state the facts as they are.

You can appeal to the Governor in your own language,
and if he will send men to investigate the above, and is not
satisfied of my innocence, then he can offer the reward for
Thos. Coleman Younger, and if he finds me to be innocent,
he can make a statement to that effect. I write this hur-
riedly, and I suppose I have given outlines enough. I
want you to take pains and write a long letter for me and
sign my name in full.

THOMAS COLEMAN YOUNGER.

1 82 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

THE TRAIN ROBBERY AT MUNCIE, KANS.

Remaining in Texas until late in the fall, the out-
laws finding no special divertisement or opportunity
to enrich themselves, decided to return north and
put into operation plans for robberies which would
yield large results. Through their communications
with one another and, especially, it would appear,
with accomplices in the extreme West, it was learned
that a large amount of money and gold dust would
be shipped from Denver to the east, via the Kansas
Pacific Railroad, on the 1 2th of December follow-
ing. A scheme was at once devised for the intercep-
tion and appropriation of the treasure. To accom-
plish this design, the band, consisting of Cole and
Bob Younger, Jesse and Frank James, and Glell Mil-
ler, took into their confidence a worthless fellow in
Kansas City, named Bud McDaniels. There is an-
other story to the effect that McDaniels had learned
of the intended valuable shipment through a friend
in Denver, and that, communicating this knowledge
to the bandits named, the six then confederated to-
gether, with pledges of confidence, to accomplish
the robbery.

On the 13th of December, the outlaws, being well
mounted, left Jackson county without the discovery
having been made of their presence in the locality,
and rode over to Wyandotte county. The localities
along the railroad were inspected for the purpose of
selecting the most available place for the successful

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 183

perpetration of the crime then in contemplation.
The spot finally chosen was one mile east of Muncie,
Kansas, and five miles west of Kansas City. This
selection was made because there was a water-tank
at the place at which trains almost invariably stopped,
and because the Kaw river ran alongside the road,
with a margin of heavy timber and brush, in which
the bandits secreted themselves, after placing a pile
of old ties on the track, to await the train which was
due at 4:45 in the afternoon. They had been under
cover only a short time, when a bank of smoke in
the distance and the singing sound that ran along the
rails, signalled the approaching train. It happened,
on that particular occasion, the engine did not re-
quire water and would have run by had not the engi-
neer discovered a pile of ties on the track, which
compelled a stop. At the moment the train came to
a stand-still, the robbers sprang from out their hid-
ing-place and advancing with menacing weapons,
forced a compliance with their demands. Each one
of the bandits was thoroughly masked and their ap-
pearance indicated determination. One of these,
since believed to have been McDaniels, covered the
engineer and fireman with his pistols, while the others
distributed themselves among the passengers and the
express car. They uncoupled and made the engi-
neer pull the express car forward about one hundred
feet, when they forced the messenger to open the
safe, and took about ^30,000 in currency and ,^25,000
worth of gold dust. They also robbed some of the

I $4 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

passengers of money, but left them their watches.
There was some jewelry in the express car which the
thieves took, however, and this furnished the evi-
dence which gave them away in a short time. The
horses of the gang were hitched in a little clump of
brush in plain sight of the train, and after they had
done, the passengers saw them run across the inter-
vening open ground and mount their horses with the
sack full of plunder. They rode away and crossed
the Kaw river bridge, passing within five miles of
Kansas City. Late that evening they overtook a
man named Steele and made him exchange horses
with one of them.

After the train reached Kansas City due report
was made of the robbery and an armed band of
about twenty-five persons went in pursuit. The track
was easily found and on the day following, the sher-
iff's posse traced the bandits through Westport,.
Jackson county, and discovered the spot, five miles
south-east of that place, where they had camped^
and doubtless divided their booty.

The robbers made directly for their secret haunts
on the Blue, however, and further search by the au-
thorities proved unavailing.

The old band of outlaws was immediately charged
with the crime, chiefly because of the manner in
which the robbery was completed ; the well-known,,
distinguishing marks of the bandits so familiar with
that section, afforded almost conclusive evidence,
though the circumstantial testimony would never have

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 185

been sufficient for the conviction of any of the old
band, had they been arrested.

Two days after the robbery Bud McDaniels hired
a horse and buggy in Kansas City for the purpose of
treating his girl to a ride. Proceeding to her house,
he found she was absent, and being much provoked,
he drank frequently and was soon driving through
the streets in a very reckless manner, indicative of a
decidedly drunken condition. He was at length ar-
rested by the police, and on searching him at the sta-
tion-house preparatory to locking him up to sober
off, they found on him ;^ 1,034 in money, two revolv-
ers and some jewelry, which he sai,d he had bought
to give his girl. His statement as to where he
bought it was not very definite, and, besides, the de-
scription of the jewelry taken from the train had
been furnished to the police. Suspicion was instant-
ly aroused, and investigation resulted in the positive
identification of the jewelry. It was also found that
Bud had been out of town. The case was too clear.
He had to go back to Kansas to stand his trial. He
had a preliminary examination and was held to an-
swer before the grand-jury. He had refused to
breathe a word about his confederates.

McDaniels was confined for a considerable time in
the Lawrence jail; when he was taken out by a
deputy sheriff, who attempted to conduct him to the
court-house for trial; McDaniels made a break and
succeeded in escaping. After enjoying his liberty
for about one week, he was discovered, and in the

l86 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

effort to again arrest him, the officers, meeting with
resistance, one of them shot him dead.

THE HUNTINGTON, VIRGINIA, BANK
ROBBERY.

After the train robbery there was a short sepa-
ration of the outlaws, some going to Texas and
others proceeding east, where identification was less
liable, for the purpose of enjoying the sights of New
York and Washington. Each of the band was now
provided with sufficient wealth to dissipate every de-
sire, for the time, except the best and most enjoyable
means for spending it.

During a short residence in the East, Cole Younger
formed the acquaintance of a sharp, black-eyed fel-
low who went by the name of Jack Keen, alias Tom
Webb. This man had spent many years in Ken-
tucky and West Virginia, being at all times a suspi-
cious character, and it was he who proposed the
robbery of the bank at Huntington. Cole Younger
and Frank James considered the proposition, and
meeting Tom, or Tomlinson McDaniels, a brother of
Bud's, at Petersburgh, they laid the scheme before
him, and then the four concluded to raid the bank.

The plan for the robbery being perfected, the
bandits decided to wait until fall, when the bank
would probably carry a large amount of money for
the handling of the harvests.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 187

On the first of September, 1875, the well armed
and mounted quartette rode into Huntington, each
wearing a long linen ulsterette over a heavy fall
coat. They made directly for the bank, where two
of them dismounted, leaving the other pair on horse-
back to clear the streets of people. The latter two
then opened a fusillade with their pistols, driving
every one indoors, while their companions entered
the bank, and with presented pistols forced the cash-
ier, R. T. Oney, to open the vault. One of the ban-
dits kept his pistol pointed at the cashier and a
citizen, who chanced to be in the bank at the time,
to prevent an outcry, while the other searched the
safe and drawers carefully, from which he gathered
about ten thousand dollars. Having secured all
the funds of the bank, the two ran out and gave a
shrill whistle. The others responded quickly,
bringing up the two horses for the dismounted
bandits. Then succeeded the clatter of fast speed-
ing horses' feet as the outlaws dashed out of town,
to be pursued a few hours afterward by twenty reso-
lute men, while telegrams were sent in every direc-
tion for the interception of the robbers. The pursuit
then began with remarkable earnestness, posses of
armed citizens joining in the chase from every
direction. The outlaws had frequent fights with their
pursuers, and were several times forced to abandon
their horses and take to the brush on foot. They
kept working southwest through the mountains.
Occasionally they would steal horses and make a

1 88 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

forced march, but the whole country was aroused
and out against them. Daily reports from the pur-
suers were sent in every direction, showing just
where the bandits were last seen, and which way
they were going, caUing on the people to look out
for them, etc. And the people turned out. After
ten days of incessant ambuscade, one of them met
his fate at Pine Hill, Kentucky. There were two
brothers named Dillon, who, becoming very much
interested in the reports concerning the bandits, con-
cluded that from the route given that the robbers
would come near their place. Each of them pro-
cured an old army musket which they loded with
slugs, and then kept a sharp lookout for the outlaws.
On the night of the 14th, which was cloudless^
and with a new moon which rendered objects visi-
ble, the two brothers in maintain ing their watch saw
four figures moving through the wo ods on foot about
fifty yards south of them. When the outlaws ap-
proached the road they stopped, and consulting
together for a moment, they separate d, two of them
proceeding down the road, while the other pair came
directly toward the brothers. Now was the supreme
moment. The watchers could not be mistaken ; two
tall men wearing linen dusters and with pistols, the
handles of which protruded from the front of their
coats. Two to two without any odds provided the
first fire could be made effectual. But what if those
two muskets should fail fire, or, firing, miss? The Dillon
boys perhaps never thought of this ; like the enthu-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 189

siastic hunter who attacks a grizzly bear, he only
thinks of the game before him ; evidently the
brothers were prompted by a similar enthusiasm, for
as the two bandits approached the brothers com-
manded a "halt! throw up your arms." Instead of
obeying the injunction, the bandits drew their pistols
and four shots were fired ; each one giving an ex-
change. After the firing the outlaws ran off, one of
them moving in a manner that indicated suffering.

On the following morning the two brothers visited
the spot where the engagement had occurred, and
made an examination ; they were rewarded by
finding blood stains on the leaves, and following
the trail into a cornfield for a distance of two
hundred yards, they found a man with a gaping
wound in his side, within nand-reach of death's
threshold. The brothers tenderly carried him up to
their home, and laying the tortured body upon the
bed, sent quickly for a surgeon. The wounded ban-
dit, with the fever and damp of dissolution on his
brow, cried out in his delirium for '* Bud,", and then
in the last moments, as the hand of death, lifting the
veil of unconsciousness like one who draws the dra-
pery from the face of the dead, for a last look, the
robber exclaimed, " Yes, I'm dying, where are my
friends ? "

The question was asked him, "What is your name,
and who were your companions?"

Looking sternly into the face of the questioner,
he replied, in a gurgling whisper: "Did you think

190 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

approaching death would make me a coward ? I
never betrayed a friend."

The eyes did not close, but continued their with-
ering stare until a film grew o'er the sight ; until those
around the bed-side looked dqwn into the shallow
depths of a dead man's eyes.

On the body of the outlaw there was found only
a seal ring and two photographs ; one of a man who
proved to be Bob Ricketts, who said Tom McDan-
iels was the only person who had his picture ; and
the other of a woman who was recognized as an old
sweetheart of McDaniels. The same woman received,
some days afterward, a piece of black crape enclosed
in a letter. The seal ring was identified as one
McDaniels had worn.

On the day succeeding the robber's death, Sep-
tember 19th, three men came to the house where the
body lay and asked the privilege of viewing the re-
mains. It so happened that onl}^ Mrs. Dillon and
some lady friends were present at the time, who be-
came frightened, correctly suspicioning that the three
were the surviving bandits of the Huntington raid.
Mrs. Dillon, therefore, refused the request by saying
that the remains were in the coffin which had already
been permanently closed. There was a sign of dis-
appointment on the faces of the men for a moment,
but the largest one directly spoke in a firm tone of
voice, saying:

" Madam, we are sorry that circumstances require
us to appear rude ; we came to see the dead body.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 191

and therefore ask you again, this time firmly, to show
us the remains."

Mrs. Dillon, somewhat frightened before, immedi-
ately conducted the three strangers into another
room where the coffin rested on two chairs. A screw-
driver lay on the window-casing, and with this the
lid was readily removed, which, being turned aside^
was held by Mrs. Dillon while the trio looked long
and sorrowfully at the pale, upturned face of the dead
man. The largest man betrayed great emotion, the
tears straggling down his cheeks and falling on the
cerements of his comrade. Standing there and look-
ing down into the sightless, but opened eyes of the
dead robber, who can conceive the reflections of the
surviving bandits who had lured the poor unfortu-
nate to that wicket of life from out which no soul can
ever come to tell its story.

After a speechless gaze of many minutes, with
manifestations of deep sorrow, the three men asked
if the party who did the killing was about ; being
informed that he was not, they courteously bade Mrs.
Dillon good-day and departed, going out through the
corn-field.

Mr. Oney, the Huntington cashier, had been to
Pine Hill, the second day before this occurrence, and
had fully identified the wounded man as one of the
two who entered the bank and made him give up the
money. He returned by way of Louisville, and,
while there, received the following dispatch, which
was published in the Courier-Journal :

192

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Louisville, Ky., Sept. 20.

RoBT. T. Oney: — The other three entered the
house and had the coffin opened ; said he did not
look hke he did before. One of them was crying.
They asked for me and then went into the corn-field.
I was at the house about five minutes after they left.
I look for a desperate attack to-day.

W. R. Dillon.

There was no attack of course. The three survi-
vors bushwhacked about for some time, two of them
eventually escaping, while the third was wounded
and captured in Fentress county, Tennessee. He
had about him some ^4,000 in money. He was iden-
tified as one of the men who wore a long duster at
Huntington, and was taken back and given twelve
years in Moundsville prison. He was booked Jack
Kean, alias Tom Webb.

In justice to Cole Younger and Frank James, the
following suspicions concerning the identity of the
other two robbers are given ; for the intention of the
writer is to draw no inference not supported by rea-
sonable conclusions. Regardless of the information
which led to introducing Cole Younger and Frank
James as plotting with Jack Kean the robbery of the
bank, the evidence is not convincing that either of
them were at Huntington. It is claimed that Clell
Miller was one of the party, while the fourth man is
in dispute. Some hold that it was Cole Younger,
because Cole was commonly called " Bud " by his
comrades, and they think Thomp. McDaniels' delir-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 193

ious inquiries as to whether Bud was captured, re-
ferred to Cole or " Bud " Younger. Others say that
McDaniels, being out of his head, was thinking and
raving about his brother Bud. The matter was never
settled. The following is a description of the rob-
bers, published a few days after the raid :

No. I. Heavy-set man, at least six feet high,
weight two hundred pounds, tolerably dark hair,
with reddish whiskers and moustache, red complex-
ion, black hat, long linen duster and blue overalls,
gold ring on left little finger.

No. 2. Tall, slim man, in height about six feet,
one hundred and fifty pounds, delicate-looking, light
hair and sandy whiskers, high forehead, long nose,
gold buttons in shirt, left little finger had a ring, long
duster and blue overalls.

No. 3. Tall, slim man, about six feet high, weight
one hundred and sixty-five pounds, short, black
whiskers and black hair, slim face, black hat, long
duster, blue overalls, suit of black twilled cloth with
stripes, fine boots, two gold rings on little left finger ;
had two collars washed with " London " printed on
the bands.

No. 4, Heavy-set man, about five feet ten inches
high, weight one hundred and eighty pounds, very
stout, square-looking man, brown hair, round red
face, patch of red whiskers on his chin, light-colored
hat, linen duster, gray striped coat and vest, pants
similar, but not like coat and vest, red drilling over-
alls, fine boots, broad gold ring with flowers cut in it

on his left little finger.
13

194 . THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

It should have been stated that while in the bank
one of the robbers dropped a small jewelry orna-
ment, on one side of which was engraved the name
** A. S. Underwood/' and from this and the direction
of the flight, it was thought some of the Kentucky-
Underwoods might have been in the band. This ap-
pears to have had little weight, however, with the
authorities. On the nth of March, 1876, a man
named Keeney was arrested at Sedalia, Mo., on sus-
picion of having had some hand in the Huntington
raid. He was a poor man, and was found to»have
received a large sum of money by express from a
brother living near Huntington. He gave no ex-
planation satisfactory to the authorities, but in the
absence of any positive evidence, even tending to
show his connection with the robbery, he was re-
leased after a confinement of two weeks.

• THE MISSOURI PACIFIC RAILROAD
ROBBERY.

More than one year elapsed after the robbery at
Huntington before the bandits were heard of again.
In this interim of activity the Younger and James
brothers were in Texas and Indian Territory, with
old friends and war comrades. A few detectives
were still on the search, but only as an auxiliary to
other work, there being no prospect of arresting
either of the outlaws.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 195

The policy of the bandits was to conceal their
presence, even from friends, just before perpetrating
a robbery, so as to make the crime such a thorough
surprise, that after its commission people would be
too badly confused for an immediate and intelligent
pursuit.

The old tactics of the outlaws were put into prac-
tice at the Missouri Pacific Railroad robbery, one of
the most daring and successful sorties ever made by
the " Knights of the Rail." The particulars of this
bold adventure are as follows:

About 9 o'clock on the night of the 7th of July,
1876, Henry Chateau, the old Swiss watchman, at
the Otter bridge on the Missouri Pacifiic Railroad,
was sitting by the pump-house smoking his cob-
pipe and enjoying the balmy air of the evening. The
sound of voices fell on his ear, and looking out into
the shadow he saw four men walking across the
bridge toward him. It was an isolated, out-of-the-
way place, and though strangers did not very often
pass, their very scarcity made company the more wel-
come. The men came along and proved to be right
sociable fellows. Three of them sat down, passed
the compliments of the evening, and talked a i^vr
minutes about anything that occurred to mind. Pres-
ently the fourth, who was a tremendously big fellow,,
standing just in front of the watchman, asked,
"What kind of a job have you got? What do you
have to do here ? "

" Just watch the bridge," was the reply. *' If there

ig6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

is danger I show the red light and the train stops.
If all is safe I show the white light and she goes on.

The big fellow remarked that that was a good easy
job. Then turning to one of his comrades he asked,

'' What time is it ? "

""Ten minutes after nine," said the other.

** It's about time."

One of the others rose to his feet and asked for a
drink of water. The watchman stepped Into the pump-
house to get It, and was suddenly seized. A revol-
ver was placed at his head and he was a prisoner.
The next thing he discovered was that all the men
had pulled out masks and slipped them on. The
large man then said :

" Come, follow us, and be quiet."
. Trembling with fear the watchman pleadingly
inquired :

" You do not intend to kill me ? "

" What do we want to kill you for ?" replied the
leader, *' we only want you to do what you're told,
and if you are wise you'll do It without any ques-
tions."

The large fellow then pulled from his pocket a
handkerchief, with which the prisoner was blindfold-
ed, and then taking up the white and red lights, the
parties crossed the bridge and walked for more than
a mile along the track, when they came to a deep
rocky cut, two miles east of Otterville, where the
captive watchman was ordered to be seated, two of
the robbers maintaining guard over him. Meantime

THH YOUNGER BROTHERS, 197

otiiers of the gang heaped a lot of ties on the track.
Presently the train was heard in the distance. Then
one of the bandits lighted the red lantern which he
placed in the watchman's hand and led him out on the
track, telling him to stand there and stop the train or
be run over, or shot, just as he chose. The train
consisted of two baggage, one express, three pas-
senger and two sleeping-cars, John Standthorpe en-
gineer, and Capt. Tebbitts conductor. On came the
train, and the prisoner, who conceived death staring
him from every side, made industrious use of the
signal. The vigilant engineer saw it, and applying
the air-brakes brought the locomotive to a stand-
still about twenty feet from the frightened watchman.
Pistol shots were heard, and the old man slightly mov-
ing the bandage over his eyes, saw that his guards
had vanished; frightened, then, at what he could not
define, the watchman threw down the lantern and
fled through the woods in the darkness.

The cow-catcher of the engine had actually pushed
in amongst the pile of ties on the track, and had the
train stopped less promptly, the engine would have
ibeen ditched.

The engineer and fireman had company in an in-
stant. Two masked men shoved revolvers at them,
telling them to take it easy and come along. They
were quickly escorted to the baggage car and forced
in. Others of the band had instantly piled an ob-
struction on the track behind the train so that it
could not back out, and also dispatched a man to

198 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

the bridge to flag a freight-train shortly due. Still
others at the sides of the train kept the passengers
indoors, firing and warning all not to come out.

The work of robbing was executed with a cool-
ness unparalleled in the history of crimes of this
kind. The express messenger, J. B. Bushnell, had
in his charge a through safe of the Adams Express
Company, for which he had no key, and a United
States Express safe. The messenger, divining what
was up as soon as the train stopped, made his way
back to one of the sleepers and gave the United
States safe key to a brakeman, who put it in his
shoe ; hence, when three of the robbers rushed into
the express car, which was also a baggage car, they
found the baggageman sitting there looking demure.
They asked him for keys to the safes, and when he
said he had none they searched him. Then they ad-
vised him somewhat earnestly to hunt them up or
say his prayers. Finally he convinced them that he
was not the messenger. Without a moment's warn-
ing they bade him show them the messenger.
Through the train they marched him in front of their
revolvers until the messenger was found. The argu-
ments used to induce him to give up the key proved
irresistible. The brakeman was pointed out, the shoe
pulled off and the key found, the messenger and brake-
man were then marched forward to the baggage car
and locked in, with the injunction not to be "too fly."
The United States safe contents were speedily trans-
ferred to a grain sack without examination. The mes-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 199

senger once more found himself in peril, because he
had no key to the Adams through safe, but as his
explanation was reasonable, the robbers were con-
vinced. One of the bandits then ran out, got the
fireman's hammer and began banging at the safe.
He was unable to produce much impression, where-
upon a herculean bandit caught the hammer and
with a few tremendous blows broke a hole in the
side, into which he vainly attempted to force his
hand. The first striker, however, remarked that he
**wore a No. 7 kid," and could do better. In just
two minutes the safe was plundered and the booty
bagged. No attempt -was made to rob the passen-
gers. The train-boy's box was broken open, and
peanuts and apples were gobbled up voraciously.
Only one or two shots were fir.*"d from the train, the
robbers keeping up a fusillade on both sides and
moving from point to point, so that in the darkness it
seemed as though the brush was full of men.

The train-boy had a revolver, and early in the fra-
cas he stepped out on the platform and blazed away
at one of the robbers, who gave a loud croaking

laugh and called out, " Hear that little bark ! "

As soon as the safes had been emptied, the robbers
told the train-men to remove the obstructions before
and behind and pull out, which was done with alac-
rity. The train was stopped an hour and ten minutes,
and the booty'secured amounted to fifteen thousand
dollars.

All the robbers who were seen in the cars were

200 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

tall men, except the one who said he wore the No. /
kid, and he was the only one who wore no mask.
The others were masked in various ways, some hav-
ing the whole face covered, except holes for the
eyes, and some having a mask covering only the
nose and lower part of the face. The one who seemed
to be the leader was tall and had light or yellowish
hair.

The mustering for the pursuit was hot and zealous.
Bacon Montgomery started out from Sedalia with a
picked crowd and ran the robbers to within three
miles of Florence, where they scattered temporarily
and took to the hills. Sheriff Murray led another
band. On every side the country was in arms. The
robbers were eight in number. It was found where
they had eaten at farm houses the day before the
robbery. Accurate descriptions were given, and it
was positively stated that the Youngers had been
recognized both on the advance and retreat. Maj.
Wood accordingly visited the Younger settlement
and reported that the boys had not been away from
home. The Osage river was high, all the fords were
guarded, and from the other side the country was
scouted over in every direction, yet the robbers were
cunning enough to get away without apparently ever
being run to close quarters. Matters fell to a dead
quiet, and the pursuit changed to a still hunt, till
about the first of August, when Hobbs Kerry and
Bruce Younger were arrested at Joplin and Granby,
the St. Louis police having taken a hand at working

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 20 r

up the case. Bruce Younger was soon discharged,
as it was easily shown that he was not at Otterville.
Kerry, however, was positively identified. It appears
the name of every member of the band had been
definitely ascertained, and most of them had been
traced to their lairs. Charley Pitts and Bill Chad-
well had gone to Cherokee and Coalfield, Kansas,
where an attempt was made to arrest them by agree-
ment on the same day Kerry was taken in. Pitts
was captured on Spring river with one thousand
eight hundred dollars in his pocket, but subsequent-
ly got away. He had been engaged to marry a
widow named Lillie Beamer, but about three weeks
after the robbery he married another girl in Coalfield.
As he had already temporarily intrusted a two thou-
sand dollar package to Mrs. Beamer, and talked
freely about the robbery, she was not slow to tell of
it when he married the other girl. Pitts' real name
was Wells. An effort was made to arrest Chadwell
the same time that Pitts was taken, but he got into a
cornfield and escaped. The officers, who were
sheriff's deputies, then rushed back into Missouri
after the James and Younger Boys, but as usual did
not get them. Kerry made a full confession about
a week after he was captured. He said Cole and
Bob Younger, Frank and Jesse James, Clell Miller,
Charles Pitts, Bill Chadwell and himself did the job.
They rode twenty miles the first night before divid-
ing the money. Then they emptied the sack, ripped
open the packages, put all the money in a pile and

202 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Frank James counted it. Kerry's duty was to watch
the horses while the robbery was being accompHshed.
His share was one thousand two hundred dollars.
Then he and Chadwell and Pitts went out together.
They got away easy enough. Kerry left them and
went to Vinita, then back to Granby, where he spent
money, gambled, gave himself away and was sent to
the penitentiary for four years. The usual proffer of
an alibi came from the James Boys in spite of Kerry
and the widow Bcamcr.

THE NORTHFIELD BANK ROBBERY AND
TRAGEDY.

CAPTURE OF THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

The Rocky Cut, or Missouri Pacific Railroad rob-
bery, caused a separation of the bandits for only a
brief period. Jesse and Frank James, with Charlie
Pitts, Clell Miller and Bill Chadwell, went directly to
Texas, finding a safe retreat in the western part
of that State. The Younger Brothers proceeded
to Jackson county and withdrew into the secret
cavern, where they felt secure against molesta-
tion. From time to time, however, they visited reli-
able friends in the adjoining counties, but were ex-
tremely careful to escape the observation of strang-
ers.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 203

About the middle of August Cole Younger con-
cluded to visit Texas, and in order to make the trip
without interference, he conceived the idea of mask-
ing his identity behind the make-up of a teamster.
To prepare for the journey, he went to Lees Sum-
mit, accompanied by his brothers, Jim and Bob,
where, after a short stay, he purchased a pair of
horses and a substantial wagon, which being loaded
with provisions of various kinds, the three started for
Texas on the following day. They had proceeded
only a few miles in Kansas, throurh which the route
was taken, when they met the James Brothers
with their confederates, Clell Miller, Charley Pitts
and Bill Chadwell. How this meeting occurred,
whether by accident or in pursuance of arrange-
ments perfected through correspondence, the writer
cannot say, but the natural conclusion would be
that it was intentional. At this meeting plans were
discussed respecting the plundering of a bank in
Minnesota.

Bill Chadwell, alias Styles, who was with the James
Boys, had been a former resident of Minnesota, in
which State he had some respectable relations. His
acquaintance in the eastern part of the State led to
a consideration of the results of a bank robbery in
that section. He told a long and plausible story
concerning the wealth of that country ; the heavy
deposits carried by some of the banks, that of Man-
kato being especially mentioned, and then declared
his knowledge of every road and hog path, cave and

204 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

swamp within two hundred miles of St. Paul. His
story produced a most favorable impression upon the
two James boys and Clell Miller, who, in turn, sought
to persuade Cole Younger and his brothers into a
similar disposition. It is said that Jim and Bob
Younger thought favorable of the enterprise, but
Cole shook his head and expressed doubts and dis-
satisfaction. He plainly told his comrades that Min-
nesota was too far from home for a successful adven-
ture of the character proposed, and that " the game
was not worth the ammunition." However, the will
of all the others prevailed against his good judg-
ment, and selling his team and provisions, the reor-
ganized party proceeded to Minnesota by railroad.

After reaching the section of their intended ex-
ploit, it was decided to make Chadwell the leader,
because of his knowledge of the country. In ac-
cordance with his suggestions the bandits separated
into pairs, coming together again, as occasion re-
quired, in order to preserve a concert of action. In
riding through the country they went sometimes in
pairs and then again there were three in one com-
pany and five in another, carrying with them county
and section maps, that their retreat might be made
with a thorough understanding of all the avenues af-
fording the best means of escape. At some places
they claimed to be railroad surveyors, which was
their excuse for making inquiries regarding swamps,
bluffs and stretches of heavy timber. At other
times, in crossing prairies, they passed for land spec-
ulators and cattle dealers.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 20$

It is positively known now that the bandits visited
the cities of Minneapolis, St. Paul, Mankato, Jaynes-
ville. Lake Crystal, Owatonna, Dundas, Madelia and
Northfield, and in each of these places they stopped
at the hotels and demeaned themselves like wealthy
gentlemen. They purchased horses at different
points until all the bandits were superbly mounted.

At Mankato all the outlaws came together on the
3d of September, and paid a visit to the city bank,
where one of them obtained change for a ^50 bill.
During their stay in this place Jesse James was
recognized by an old acquaintance, but the recogni-
tion was not returned, Jesse claiming that the speaker
was a stranger. After this only five of the bandits
were seen together until the attack at Northfield ; the
reason for this is found in the arrangement for Bill
Chadwell and Cole Younger 'to ride in advance and
obtain necessary information which would determine
the party upon what bank the raid should be made.
When the bandits rode into Mankato on the 5th of
September, they all wore long, Hnen ulsterettes over
their heavy coats. On Wednesday, the 6th of Sep-
tember, 1876, three rode in from Millersburg and
met a fourth. All tied their horses near the depot,
where they were admired by fanciers of fine stock.
Two weeks before the raid two of them had pur-
chased horses in St. Paul, and Officer Kenny recog-
nized one of them as Clell Miller, whom he had seen
on trial at Corydon, Iowa, for the bank robbery com-
mitted there in 1871. Miller talked with the officer,

2o6 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

whom he also recognized. He said he was going to
the Black Hills. . All the gang appear to have ob-
tained a good knowledge of the town and immediate
vicinity without exciting suspicion that they were
other than honest cattle dealers with plenty of
money.

On the following day, the 7th, the eight daring
brigands rode into Northfield, a town of two thou-
sand inhabitants, located on the line of the Milwau-
kee and St. Paul Railroad, in Rice county. A small
stream runs through the place, called Cannon river,
over which there is a neat iron bridge, and just above
this there is an excellent mill race, with a large flour-
ing mill owned by Messrs. Ames & Co. The town
is chiefly noted for the location of Carlton College,
one of the finest educational institutions in the State.

Just before noop three of the bandits dined at
Jeft's restaurant on the west side of Cannon river.
After eating they talked politics, and one of them
offered to bet the restaurant man one hundred dollars
that the State would go Democratic. The bet was
not taken, and they then rode across the bridge into
the business part of the town, hitching their horses
nearly in front of the First National Bank. They
stood for some time talking leisurely near the corner.
Suddenly there came like a whirlwind a rush of
horsemen over the bridge. There were only three
of them, but they made racket enough for a regi-
ment. Riding into the square with whoops and
oaths, they began firing revolvers and ordering every-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 20/

body off the streets. Almost at the same moment
two others rode down from the west, carrying out a
similar programme. It was a new experience for
Northfield, and for a few minutes the slamming of
front doors almost drowned the noise of the firing.
At the first sound of the onset the three men who
first entered town, Jesse James, Charley Pitts and
Bob Younger, had walked quickly into the bank and
leaped nimbly over the counter. The cashier, J. L.
Haywood, was at his place and Frank Wilcox and
A. E. Bunker, clerks, were at their desks. All were
covered by the revolvers before they apprehended
danger. The robbers stated that they intended to
rob the bank. The cashier was commanded to
open the safe, and bravely refused. The outer
door of the vault was standing ajar, and the leader
stepped in to try the inner door. As he did so
Haywood jumped forward and tried to shut him in.
One of the others, afterward found to be Charlie
Pitts, promptly arrested the movement. At this
moment Bunker thought he saw a chance, and so he
broke for the back door. The third robber, Bob
Younger, followed and fired two shots, one of which
took effect in the fugitive's shoulder. The others
then insisted that Haywood should open the safe, and
putting a knife to his throat said, '* Open up, d — d
you, or we'll ^lit you from ear to ear." A slight cut
was made to enforce the demand. Haywood still re-
fused. Meantime the firing outside had commenced,
and the men then began to cry out, " Hurry up •

208 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

It's getting too hot here !" The three hastily ran-
sacked the drawers, and finding only a lot of small
change, jumped over the railing and ran out. Jesse
James was the last to go, and as he was in the
act of leaping from the counter, he saw Haywood
turn quickly to a drawer as if in the act of securing
a weapon. Instantly the outlaw presented his pistol
and shot the brave cashier dead. The bullet pene-
trated the right temple and ranging downward lodged
near the base of the brain. Haywood fell over with-
out a groan, a quantity of his blood and brains
staining the desk as he reeled in the death fall. The
shot which struck Bunker entered his right shoulder
at the point of the shoulder-blade and passed through
obHquely, producing only a flesh wound.

As the bandits rushed into the street they met a
sight and reception quite unexpected. Recovering
from their first surprise, the citizens began to exhibit
their pluck, and were ready to meet the outlaws half
way in a deadly fight. A search for fire-arms was
the first important step, and Dr. Wheeler, J. B. Hide,
L. Stacey, Mr. Manning and Mr. Bates each succeed-
ed in procuring a weapon which they expeditiously
put into service. Dr. Wheeler, from a corner room
(No. 8) in the Dampier House, with a breech-loading
carbine, took deliberate aim at one of the bandits as
he was mounting, and sent a big slug through the
outlaw's body. The death-stricken man plunged
head-long from his horse and never uttered a sound
afterward. This man proved to be Bill Chadwell, or
properly Bill Styles.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 209

Mr. Bates was in a room over Hananer's clothing-
store in the Scriver block, while Manning stood fear-
lessly on the sidewalk, and the two kept firing at
the robbers as opportunity presented. At length
Manning walked out, and seeing one of the bandits
riding rapidly up Division street, he fired and was
rewarded by seeing the robber grow unsteady in his
seat, and then checking the speed of his horse,
tumble to the ground. This second victim proved
to be Clell Miller, and as he fell, Cole Younger, see-
ing the fatal result, rode up to the prostrate comrade
from whose body he unbuckled a belt containing
two pistols, securing which, he remounted and rode
back to the others who were still firing. Another of
the outlaws used his horse as a barricade, and from
behind it he continued to shoot until another shot
from Manning's gun killed the animal. His protec-
tion being destroyed the bandit ran for the iron
stairway which leads to the second story of the
Scriver block froiif the outside. Behind this stair-
way were a number of empty pine boxes, from
behind which the bandit used every effort to kill
Manning. Dr. Wheeler was a critical observer of
everything occurring in the street, and bringing his
carbine to bear on the outlaw, he fired, sending a
bullet through the bandit's right elbow. This man
proved to be Bob Younger, who, not in the least
discouraged by his painful wound, coolly maintained
his position, and, shifting his pistol to the left hand,
fired at Bates, who was standing with his weapon
14

BILL CHADWELL.

CLELL MILLER.

CHARLEY PITTS.

Engraved from Photographs taken after Death.

2IO O.

THE YO UNGER BR O THERS. 2 1 1

upraised inside his store. The bullet sped through a
window plate and cut a furrow through Mr. Bates'
cheek, but not deep enough to draw much blood.

A Norwegian by the name of Nicholas Gustava-
son, was on the street, when one of the bandits or-
dered him to get indoors. His limited knowledge
of the English language caused his death, for not
understanding the command the outlaw shot him in
the head, producing a wound from which he died four
days afterward.

By some means Jim Younger lost his horse, and the
other bandits, finding the citizens' fire too destruc-
tive, mounted their horses and fled. At this
moment Jim shouted, " My God ! boys, you don't
intend to desert me? I am shot!" At this Cole
Younger dashed back and took his wounded
brother up behind him. The gang then rode rapidly
out of town, going in a westwardly direction.

After getting out of Northfield the outlaws gal-
loped hard for a mile, and then stopped for a few
minutes to dress their hurts. It was afterward as-
certained that every man in the party was wounded
more or less severely, some of them being merely
punctured with small shot. This was the result of
Mr. Stacy's double-barrel shot-gun, which he had
no time to charge with large shot. At Dundas,
three miles from Northfield, they stopped again and
made another application of cold water and band-
ages. One of them was so badly hurt that another
of the band got on the horse with him to hold him

2 1 2 THE BORDER O UTLA WS,

on, the riderless horse being led by a comrade. Thus
adjusted the six rode away again. On the road
they met a man by the name of Empey, hauling a
load of hoop-poles. As he had one fine horse they
knocked him into the ditch, cut the horses out of
the harness and went ahead a little way, when "they
had to pull up again to dress their wounds.
Starting on again they stopped another farmer, but
concluding that his horses were not as good as some
of their wounded ones, let him go. At this time
Frank James was wearing a bandage around his
leg outside his trousers, and Jim Younger had
a cloth around his arm and was holding one
hand in the other, the blood dripping from his
fingers, while his horse was led by a comrade. This,
of course, explains how it happened that they got
away no faster. Had they abandoned the worst
wounded ones to their fate, there is little doubt but
that the others would have gotten away easily
enough. As it was, the story of the chase abounds
in incidents almost too marvelous for belief.

Every point, including St. Paul and Minneapolis,
was immediately notified of the robbery, by tele-
graph, and police officers, detectives and sheriffs
posses were sent out after the fleeing bandits, in such
numbers that it was thought impossible for any of
the outlaws to escape.

Very soon rewards were offered for the apprehen-
sion of the desperadoes, which stimulated the al-
ready active hunt. The State first proffered j^i,000

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 213

for the arrest of the six bandits, which offer was
changed to ^1,000 for each of the gang, dead or aUve ;
^700 was offered by the Northfield bank, and ;^500 by
the Winona & St. Peter railroad.

A posse of fourteen men overtook the bandits on
the night of the nth in a ravine near Shieldsville,
and fell back after a fight in which one of the robbers'
horses was killed. The dismounted rider was imme-
diately taken up behind one of the others and the band
took to the woods. More than 400 men turned out to
cut them off. They got into a patch of timber at Lake
Elysian and were run out of it the next day, and
though the scouting parties increased to a thousand,
two days later the robbers had been completely lost.
They aimed to go south-west and follow the timber
which reaches to the Iowa line, but on the 13th all
six were surrounded in the timber near Mankato and
all bridges, fords and roads guarded, so that it was
thought they could not escape. At two o'clock in
the morning four of them came out, ran the guard
off Blue Earth bridge and crossed over, and left a
regiment of pursuers behind. Next night, two of
them, Jesse and Frank James, broke through a pick-
et line on one horse. They were fired upon, and,
abandoning the horse, took to a corn-field. While
riding double, a ball fired by one of the pursuing
posse, struck Frank James in the right knee and
passing through, imbedded itself in Jesse's right
thigh, producing painful wounds. They stole two
grey horses that night from a man named Rockwell

214 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

and went into Madelia in the morning and bought
some bread ; then they took to the prairie and struck
out for Dakota. The two grey horses ridden and the
overcoats worn by the James Boys left the pursuers
an easy means of keeping track of them. Both were so
badly hurt and so stiff that when they went to a
farm-house and forced the farmer to swap horses
with them at the muzzle of the pistol, they had the
greatest difficulty in climbing up on a fence to get on
the horses* backs. For saddles they had bags
stuffed with hay. Yet they got clear away eventu-
ally. A posse from Yankton had a fight with them
about eight miles out of town, and after having one
man wounded, gave it up as a perilous business.
The two, soon after, raided a stable, captured two
horses, and again outran pursuit.

Near Sioux Falls they met a Dr. Mosher, and
made him dress their wounds and change horses and
clothing with them. That is the last that was seen
of them by their pursuers^ they being then in Sioux
county, Iowa. They were traced further south to
where their horses gave out, and they hired a man
to take them on their way in a wagon. Again they
were heard of still further down, evidently making
for Missouri. Every sheriff and marshal along their
line of retreat, was constantly in receipt of letters
from Missouri and Kansas, threatening assassination
if they arrested the two robbers, and finally the fu-
gitives were lost track of entirely. It is now known
that these two, Jesse and Frank James, continued
their journey by wagon directly to Mexico.

THE YO UNGER BR O THERS. 2 1 5

The other four, Cole, Jim and Bob Younger and
Charley Pitts, passed through the town of Mankato
on the night of the 13th, and got into the woods
west. They robbed a hen-roost, and were just in the
act of cooking breakfast, when a posse, who had dis-
covered them, made a charge and drove them out
of camp, but without getting sight of them. The
worst luck for the robbers was that they had not eaten
breakfast, the chickens being left in camp, already
picked. Jim Younger afterward said he felt real
mean when he was robbing that roost. Large bands
of farmers and citizens followed close on their trail,
yet the bandits showed such consummate woodcraft,
that for two days the pursuers thought the four were
only three. One was barefoot, and at every camp-
ing-pJace they left the ground littered with bloody
bandages. Finally all trace was lost of them again,
but on the morning of the 2 1st one of the outlaws
went to a farm-house, eight miles west of Madelia,
and bought some bread and butter. The early hour
of his visit and the stiffness of his actions caused a
prying young fellow at the house, named Oscar Su-
born, to take particular notice of the man. He dis-
covered that the stranger had big revolvers, and that
he, with three others, left the road and started west
across the country. In less than an hour the boy
had taken the news to Madelia. It was yet early in
the day, and in fifteen minutes' time, after getting
word, Sheriff Glispin and others set out on horseback-
For a couple of hours parties were continually start-

2 16 THE BORDER O UTLA WS.

ing off, as fast as they could be equipped with arms
and horses. Meantime the four stiff and foot-sore
wayfarers were trudging along across the prairie to-
ward the timber skirting the Watonwan river. Just
at the Hanska slough they were overtaken by the
sheriff and advance guard of three or four men, who
rode up within one hundred yards and ordered them
to surrender. The quartette paid no attention to the
summons, but plunging into the slough, waded
across. The slough could not be crossed by a horse,
so the sheriff had to ride around. The robbers con-
tinued to hobble along, as best they could, toward
the river, and had made about two miles before the
sheriff headed them off They kept straight on for
the timber, and the sheriff's party opened on them
with rifles. The robbers returned the fire, the bul-
L^ts whistling so close that the officer and his depu-
ties hastily dismounted and the sheriff's horse was
wounded. The robbers got into a belt of timber,
and, going through to the other side, saw a hunting
party in a wagon, which they made a rush to cap-
ture. The men in the wagon instantly presented
their shot-guns and the robbers, taking them for pur-
suers, went back into the brush. It so happened
that the patch of timber they had struck was only
about five acres in extent, and had bare, open ground
all around it. Before they had discovered the dis-
advantage of their position the people began to flock
in from all directions, in wagons, on foot, on horse-
back, equipped with shot-guns and rifles. They soon

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS.

217

established a cordon of one hundred and fifty men
around the patch and began shooting into it to drive
the game out. As the robbers paid no attention to

FIRING INTO THE WOODS.

this, Sheriff Glispen called for volunteers to go in
and stir them up. The following went with him:
Col. Vaught, Jas. Severson, Ben Rice, Geo. Brad-

2 1 8 THE BORDER O UTLA WS,

ford, Chas. Pomeroy and Capt. Murphy of Madelia.
These seven, formed in Hne a few yards apart and
moved cautiously through the brush. The hiding
place consisted of about five acres of thick timber,
with considerable willow about the marshy parts, but
not sufficiently dense to offer any considerable pro-
tection.

After the volunteers had advanced into the brush
a distance of fifty yards Charley Pitts jumped up in
front of Sheriff Glispin and leveled a revolver which
exploded almost at the same instant as the sheriff's
rifle. The robber ran a couple of rods in a cornering
direction and fell dead. The three Younger Brothers
were discovered a moment later, and, as soon as they
saw they were in for it, stood up and opened fire.
One of the posse was slightly wounded and another
had a watch knocked into flinders. Six of the posse
returned the volley, th^ sheriff being busy reloading^
and so well directed were their shots that Cole and
Jim dropped on the ground, groaning with the pain
of shattered bones. Capt. Murphy fired rapidly with
a Colt's revolver; Rice and Severson had carbines,
while Vaught, Bradford and Pomeroy attacked with
double-barrelled shot guns.

While discharging his pistol Capt. Murphy was
struck by a 44 calibre ball, but fortunately the bullet
hit a pipe in his vest pocket which so spent its force
that the only result was a painful bruise. After the
first skirmish the bandits retreated a little further
which, while hiding from the attacking party, exposed

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 219

themselves to a large body of men stationed on the
north side of the thicket; a volley of gun and pistol
shots drove them back again to within twenty yards
of the seven volunteers. Cole and Jim were now
entirely helpless, in fact Jim was suffering so badly
from the wound in his mouth that he had been unable
to assist his brothers in defending themselves.

Bob, with one arm hanging broken by his side, stood
his ground between the other two, and continued to
blaze away with a revolver in his left hand, aiming
first at one end of the line, and then at the other,
then at the centre, but apparently, trying rather to
scare the men off than to hit anybody. One re-
volver being exhausted, he was handed another. As
the posse kept on shooting, however, he finally called
out to let up, as the boys were " all shot to pieces."
The sheriff made him throw down his pistol and
walk forward into the line, when he. was secured.
Out of all the shots fired at him only one had taken
effect, wounding him slightly in the side. The
broken arm he had carried all the way from North-
field. The prisoners were secured and taken, with
the dead bandit, to Madelia, and placed under the
surgical care of Drs. Overholt and Cooley. They con-
fessed that they were the Youngers, but always re-
fused to give any information as to their confederates.
Cole had a rifle-ball under the right eye, which para-
lyzed the optic nerve, and has never yet been extrac-
ted. He also had a large* revolver bullet in the body
and a shot through the thigh, which he got at North-

220 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

field, and was wounded altogether in the fight eleven
times. Jim was looked upon as a hopeless case by the
surgeons. He had eight buckshot and a rifle ball
in the body. An ugly wound in the shoulder had been
received at Northfield, and he had lost nearly half
his jaw by a minie bullet. Bob was the only one
who was able to remain on his feet at the surrender.
The wound he had received at Northfield had shat-
tered his elbow so as to leave his arm and hand stiff
forever. All the old wounds were almost festering
for want of attention. After they had rested and
had their wounds dressed, every effort was made to
get them to tell who were the other two, but without
avail. They were always on their guard. One day
a man went in to them and said word had just been
received that their two comrades, the James Boys,
had been overtaken, and one killed and the other
wounded and captured.

" How do you know they are the James Boys ? "
said Cole.

** The wounded man confessed."

*' Which one was killed ? "

" Frank."

" Which one, I say ? The big one or the lade
one ? "

*• The big one."

" Did they say anything about us? "

" No."

*' Good boy to the last ! " — the old guerrilla ex-
clamation to show that a man was game. And that

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 221

was all that could be got out of them. They were
ready to talk about the "big one" and the "lit-
tle one," but that was all. No names were in their vo-
cabulary. They would not tell who their dead
comrades were. The two killed in town were posi-
tively identified, however, as Clell Miller and Bill
Chadwell. Miller first came into bandit fame in
connection with the Corydon bank robbery, and was
afterward with the band at the Otterville and Mun-
cie robberies. He was a hard fighter under Quan-
trell. Chadwell was said to have been driven out of
Minnesota for horse-stealing once. His father is
reported as having identified his body. Other re-
ports have it that his family belonged in Kansas.
The one killed at Madelia was Charles Pitts, or more
properly Charles Wells. His chief record was made
at Baxter Springs and Otterville.

Worn out, festering with desperate wounds, ex-
posed to terribly inclement weather, camping without
blankets in the cold nights of a Northern autumn,
and above all, not having had a full meal in two
weeks, the Younger brothers gave an exhibition of
endurance in this retreat which must be taken as an
illustration of unparalleled heroism, which only the
most remarkable constitutions could survive.

After the death of Chadwell and Miller they were
carried into 'an empty store on Mill Square, where
they remained for some time the object of popular
gaze and attention. Chadwell's death wound was
located about one inch to the right of the sternum,

222 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

tearing away his lungs and passing out at the back
below the shoulder-blade. Clell Miller was struck
by a minie ball which penetrated the left breast just
below the clavicle. Besides this wound he was
struck in the shoulder and face by a charge of shot,
evidently fired from Stacy's gun.

The captured Younger brothers were taken to
Madelia where they received surgical attention at the
Flanders House. Cole and Jim were placed in the
same bed, while Bob was accommodated in another
room. Their wounds, though of a serious character,
were pronounced not dangerous. During their stay at
Madelia they were daily visited by hundreds of men
and women, many of the latter bringing testimonials
of regard for the heroism displayed by the stricken
bandits. Cole Younger, though badly wounded, re-
ceived his visitors in a most affable manner, and all
the brothers demeaned themselves in such a way
as to win the respect of all who called, each having
some kind and cheerful words with which to answer
even impertinent questions. After some telegraphic
correspondence between the Governor, who was at-
tending the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia,
and Capt. Macy, his secretary, an order was re-
ceived to place the prisoners in the county jail at
Faribault, the county seat of Rice county, and to
convey the remains of the dead bandit to St. Paul,
which was accordingly done, the dead body being
given to the Surgeon General of the State for em-
balming.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 223

After the Younger brothers were incarcerated in
jail, several detectives from northwestern cities, and
James McDonough, chief of the St. Louis police,
met in St. Paul and went by special train to Fari-
bault to interview and identify the prisoners. The
entertaining trio had so far recovered as to be able
to receive their visitors in excellent style. When
the party entered the jail they found Cole and Bob
smoking and reading the daily papers. Jim, howev-
er, was still suffering severely from the wound in
his mouth. A very interesting conversation of more
than two hours duration was had, in which no infor-
mation was gleaned of importance.

Miss Retta Younger, a sister of the bandits, and a
lovely lady of refinement and unexceptionable char-
acter, seventeen years of age, visited the brothers
directly after their capture ; her grief and refined
deportment gained for her the sympathy of every
one, and the impression she created was of the most
favorable nature. Mrs. Fannie Twyman, an aunt,
was also with the brothers, and she, too, met with
the highest esteem from the citizens of Faribault.

The Grand Jury that was summoned returned four
bills of indictment against the captured bandits, and
Cole Younger was specially charged with murdering
the Norwegian, which bill was found on the testimony
of two witnesses, who swore they saw Cole commit
the deed.

On the 7th of November the district court con-
vened, Judge Lord presiding. The prosecution was

224 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

represented by the prosecuting attorney, George
N. Baxter, Esq., and the prisoners had for their
counsel Thomas Rutledge, Esq., of Medalia, and
Bachelder & Buckham, of Faribault. It was the in-
tention of the Youngers to plead ''not guiliy," but
when they were forced to stand a trial on the charge
of murder in the first degree, in order to avoid capi-
tal punishment, they entered a plea of " guilty."
Had the charge of murder been confined to Hay-
wood, the brothers would have stood atrial, because
they could have proved, positively, that neither of
them fired the fatal ball at the cashier, and as a con-
viction could only have resulted in a life sentence,
they could have afforded to take the chances.

After entering the plea of *' guilty," Judge Lord
ordered the prisoners to stand up and receive sen-
tence. The order of the court was that each of the
brothers should be confined in the State penitentiary
at Stillwater, for the period of their natural lives.
When this sentence was pronounced, the young and
beautiful sister almost fainted ; recovering her
strength she fell on Cole's neck and gave expression
to such intense suffering of mind that nearly every
one in the court-room was moved to tears. Sheriff
Barton could hardly persuade the devoted sister to
abate her manifestations of grief. Thenceforth she
did not leave her brothers until they were conveyed
to the penitentiary, to which place she accompanied
them, and when circumstances compelled them to
part she was fairly overwhelmed with sorrow. Her

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 225

love was fully reciprocated by the erring brothers,
and such an attachment could not fail in creating a
strong bond of sympathy between the citizens and
the unhappy sister.

A PROPOSITION TO MURDER JIM
YOUNGER.

The wound received by Jim Younger in the fight
at Northfield, while in no sense dangerous, was the
most unfortunate blow that struck the bandits. The
hemorrhage from his shattered mouth was so pro-
fuse, that a trail of blood was left behind him, easily
distinguishable by the pursuers. Two miles from
Dundas and a little more than one hour after fleeing
out of Northfield, the bandits stopped at a farm-
house and, borrowing a pail, they repaired to the
spring where the wounded men were bathed and ev-
ery effort was made to stay the bleeding of Jim's
mouth. Water, however, seemed to aggravate the
difficulty. His linen duster was torn into bandages,
but the wound being difficult to bind, the cloths
were soon saturated and had to be thrown away, fur-
nishing another indication of the retreat. The hem-
orrhage continued until Jim became so weak that it
was necessary for Cole and Bob to ride beside and
support him in the saddle. This retarded the fugi-
tives for several days, while the woods were fairly
swarming with their pursuers.
15

226 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

On the 13th, while the party were hobbling
through swamps and finding every avenue guarded,
Jesse James — so it is reported by an ex-guerrilla
who has maintained relations, for many years, with
the James and Younger Boys — spoke to Cole Youn-
ger about as follows :

" Cole, we are in a bad fix, and there is only one
way out, so it appears to me. Our trail is so plain
that a blind man can follow it ; if we are surrounded
it means death to us all. It's a terrible thought, but
the circumstances are terrible. Jim cannot live; he
is almost dead now. We can't continue our retreat
with him ; we can't hide, and to carry him along
with us will only result in certain death to the whole
party. None of us could consent to his falling into
the hands of the men now hunting us, and therefore,
everything considered, I think it would be right to
dispose of him, thereby ending his sufferings whfch
must finally end in his death ; we could then travel
faster and, I think, escape."

Cole and Bob Younger looked at Jesse for some
moments before replying ; that they were mad there
could be no doubt. Finally Cole replied:

" Jesse James, you are a cold-hearted villain ; a
very monster that I can never again associate with.
Now, here, let us separate. If Frank (James) shares
your sentiments, or Charley (Pitts) entertains such a
wish, take your own route and never meet me again.
To kill my brother ! why, I'll stay by him till he dies
and then I'll carry his dead body with me as long as
my strength makes it possible."

THE YO UNGER BROTHERS, 227

Frank James expressed some dissent from Jesse's
proposition, as did Charley Pitts, but it was finally
agreed that the James Brothers should go their way,
as Cole and Bob could no longer endure Jesse's com-
pany. It was thus the party separated, Pitts remain-
ing with the Youngers.

The fraternal devotion of Cole and Bob Younger
never needed stronger manifestation. They did re-
main with their stricken brother ; carried him through
swamps, over streams, into the deepest recesses of
the forest, and when their own wounds, deep and
terrible, had become so festered, and their limbs
stiffened, that further progress was impossible,
they laid their precious charge down tenderly upon
the leaves and there remained, exhausted and pros-
trate, until the capture was consummated. What
jioble hearts to be concealed beneath the exterior of
these outlaws I

AN INTERESTING CORRESPONDENCE
FROM COLE YOUNGER.

Since the arrest of the Younger Brothers more
than a hundred attempts have been made by book-
writers, to secure a history of the noted outlaws from
their own lips. These efforts were made, principally,
by correspondence, but not a few sanguine authors
and reporters have visited the penitentiary and used
all the force of persuasive eloquence, and proffered

228 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

money considerations to the Youngers for a recital
of their interesting exploits. The manner in which
these influences resulted, is told in Cole Younger's
first letter, which is given in full herewith.

Being acquainted with so many of the old chums
of the Younger and James Boys, who knew.my pur-
pose of preparing a history of the famous bandits,
time and again I was assured by them, that a letter
to Cole Younger would be answered. At length I
wrote to warden Reed, of the Minnesota peniten-
tiary, requesting his influence with the Youngers, in-
ducing them to write to me. In due time the warden
replied that the inflexible rule of the three brothers
was to make no reply to any communication indicat-
ing a purpose like the one I manifested. But being
more especially desirous of demonstrating my dis-
position not to do the incarcerated brothers any in-
tentional injustice, I wrote, addressing each of the
Youngers in person, acquainting them with my pur-
pose and requesting an answer.

The reply received is as follows :

Stillwater, Minn., Oct. 20, 1880.
J. W. BuEL, Esq.,

Dear Sir : — Your letter was received some days ago.
The reason I did not answer soon was owing to the fact
that when we were first captured, I received a great many
letters from different parties all wanting to write a history of
my life, and to be just to all I replied to none. But as
yours is the only letter of the kind I have received for a
long time, I have concluded to write you.

Without intending the least disrespect, permit me to say :
positively, I will have nothing to do with writing a history of

TB£ YOUNGER BROTHERS. 229

any kind. Now if you have determined to prepare such a
history — and I presume you have — I will aid you only so
much as to refer you to those who served with me in the
Lost Cause. You will find the names of all of them in
Edwards' book, entitled " Shelby and his Men." Most of
these men still Hve in Jackson, Cass, Johnson and Lafayette
counties ; I am willing to abide by any statement they may
make concerning me.

As for anything since the war, a true statement would fall
flat. I am aware that my name has been connected with
all the bank robberies in the country ; but positively I had
nothing to do with any one of them. I look upon my life
since the war as a blank, and will never say anything to
make it appear otherwise. The world may believe as it
pleases.

I presume that you are a professional writer, and, like
many others, have been led to believe by sensational news-
paper reports, that there are historical facts sufficient con-
nected with my life to make an interesting book, but it is a
mistake, unless nine-tenths of the matter is fiction.

As to the facts connected with my career in Minnesota,
I will refer you to those equally well qualified to give them ;
the sheriff of Watawan county. Sheriff Barton of Rice
county, the clerks in the bank at Northfield, and Warden
Reed, of this place. They could give you all the facts you
could possibly get from me. I should not object to a visit
from you, but will tell you in advance that I will give none
of the details of my past life. I would as willingly assist
you as any person, but my answer is alike to all. I am one
who never insinuates ; I use nothing but plain words. As
for the names of the two men who were with us at North-
field, they will ever remain unknown to the world, so
far as I am cojicerned.

Very respectfully,

T. C. Younger.

This letter, while affording little information or
encouragement, was, nevertheless, so respectful in its

230 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

tone, that I immediately answered it at considerable
length, repeating my earnest desire to do all the
brothers justice, which I feared could not be done
without some necessary statements from them. I
proffered space in my book for any epistolary vindi-
cation they might choose to make, and then sought to
impress upon them the importance of accepting the
offer. I referred to a great many matters of interest
to the public and gave my assurance (which I trust
has in no sense been violated) that I should treat
them in the fairest possible manner, but that in the
absence of positive testimony the circumstantial evi-
dence I was compelled to use might do them griev-
ous wrong, a result I was exceedingly anxious to
avoid. To this communication I received the follow-
ing courteous and very gratifying reply :

Stillwater, Minn., Oct. 31, 1880.
J W. BuEL, Esq.,

My Dear Sir : — Your letter of the 24th inst. came to
hand in due time, and through the kindness of Warden Reed
I am permitted to answer the same. I am glad to learn
that you receive my refusal to assist in preparing a history
of my life in the spirit I intended, for I am sure I meant no
discourtesy.

I observe by your letter that you still entertain the opin-
ion that there are historical facts connected with my life
worthy of record in print, but I assure you that such an idea
is erroneous, at least that is my opinion. You had better
confine yourself to the war record as long as possible, for
when you leave that it is like launching a boat into the
ocean without a rudder, compass, or lighthouse, the voyage
becomes doubtful.

You announce your desire to question me concerning the

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 231

James Boys. Of course I have no idea of the nature of
your questions, but if they involve information respecting
what they have been accused of since the war, then I will
make no answer. If either of them ever trusted me with a
secret, there is no power on earth that could induce me to
betray that trust — nor that of any one else. No matter
how much I might condemn the act, or how bitter enemies
we might have become afterward, it would be all the same.

You speak of seeing George Shepherd. He surely told
you that Jess (Jesse James) and I were never friends, for he
knows all that prevented us from settling our difficulty, in
'72, on the field of honor, was the intercession of Frank
and others. Frank and I were always good friends, but we
have seen Httle of each other since the war. He was a
brave soldier, a true friend and a gentleman. Now don't
obtain the idea from this that I wish to leave an impression
that Jess was all to blame in our differences, or who was in
fault, he or myself I am sure I would not lay all the bur-
den of blame upon him now, as he is dead or worse than
dead. I never, for a moment doubted the fact of George
Shepherd shooting him.

You speak of writing Shepherd's history. I have no
doubt that he had more ups and downs during the war than
any other man connected with Quantrell. I have been in
some very close places with him myself We were together
most of the time until the fall of '63, when I took my com-
pany to Louisiana. I have not seen him but twice since
the first of January, 1866, and then but a short time. I
know nothing of his career since tl-^e war. He is the quick-
est man on earth ; a stranger might take him for a coward,
but in that he would be mistaken, for Shepherd is a brave
man. You have, probably, learned that he is no friend of
mine, or I have been told by others he was not, but I have
no idea what he has against me. I was very much sur-
prised to learn that he was trying to injure me after I was
down, unless he thinks I am like Conrad, in Byron's Cor-
sair:

" Fallen too low to fear another fall,"

232 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

That may be true, but I hate to think of being assisted
in my fall by one with whom I have periled my hfe, and for
the same cause. If he thinks he has grounds for becoming
an enemy of mine, it must be the result of newspaper re-
ports, for if he was connected with any of the bank robber-
ies, he knows I was not present, and if he was not there,
what right has he to declare who was ? But enough of this,
for I still wish him well, according to his deserts.

I am very thankful for your kind offer to let me have space
in your book, should I wish to say anything in my own de-
fense. I have nothing to say, unless it would be a request,
using the language of Othello:

*' Speak of me as I am, nothing extenuate
Nor set down aught in malice."

If you choose you may use a letter I wrote to my brother-
in-law, Lycurgas Jones, of Cass county, in November, 1874,
and published in the Pleasant Hill Review.

You request my opinion of all the books pretending to
record the incidents of my life. With the exception of Maj.
Edwards' history all the others are humbugs.

In relation to Walley I will say : if I were what the
i\'orld paints me, there could be no excuse except cowardice
for my neglect to kill him. During the war I did every-
thing in my power to get hold of him, but failed. I went
into Kansas City, Independence, and other places, when
they were garrisoned by from three hundred to a thousand
Federals, in search of Walley, but could never find him.

When I returned home from the war I found a widowed
mother, with httle children to take care of, and to be able
to assist them, I buried everything connected with the war.
But I was forced to leave home again, and then I could
have killed Walley nearly any time, but only by assassina-
tion— slipping to his house and shooting him through the
window. Some people might have perpetrated such a deed,
but I could never pollute my soul with such a crime. I
challenged him during the war, but he paid no attention to
it, hiding from me all the time in the most cowardly man-
ner. I could not shoot him like a dog, especially when I
knew he had a wife and children.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 233

There is one thing I wish you would note respecting the
character of the guerrillas. It is the popular impression
among people of other States that we were sneak-thieves
like the bushwhackers of Virginia, Tennessee and Arkan-
sas, who hid in the mountains and salHed out during the
night to kill old men and rob defenceless women and chil-
dren. This you know is a fallacy and an unjust stigma up-
on the guerrillas.

If you wish to know how I treated citizens during the
most furious days of the war, I will refer you, for that infor-
mation, to the Union men in Cass, Jackson or Gentry coun-
ties, or personally, to Martin O. Jones, or Sampson, the
Jew. in Independence. You are acquainted in Jackson
county and know these men to be honorable and prominent
Unionists. The only bulldozing I ever did was in making
men who remained at home during the winter of '62 get
wood for the women and children ; for the wives of Union
as well as Confederate soldiers.

The question has been asked tho^jsands of times : " Why
have the Youngers been protected and befriended so long
by the people in the western counties of Missouri? " There
are two reasons: First, because they never believed we
were guilty of the crimes charged upon us ; and second,
because I befriended them during the war. At the most
critical period of the great strife, in 1862, we had five dif-
ferent farms in Cass and Jackson counties, with corn cribs
full of corn. When food became difficult to obtain, I told
all the poor people to help themselves and take what corn
they needed, without charge. I made no distmction then
between Federals and Confederates. Wash. SaUie was at
the county farm, adjoining ours, at the time ; you probably
know him ; he will confirm what I say, and will tell you that
we had five thousand bushels of corn at that farm which I
distributed to the poor without distinction. There are
many mothers, wives and daughters still Hving who will
credit me with an honorable part during the war, and of
risking my life in the defense of their fathers, husbands and
brothers. I never, under any circumstances, refused to aid

234

THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

a friend, regardless of political predilections, a claim which
not one of my old comrades will dispute.

I have written you more than I intended when I com-
menced. I will ask you to pay no attention to what I have
said, until all my assertions are corroborated by other
sources, satisfactory to yourself; then use the facts as you
deem proper.

I was a soldier and fought to hurt, but I never molested
non-combatants. T. C. Younger.

A PERSONAL INTERVIEW WITH
COLE YOUNGER.

The lengthy communication of October 31st, from
Cole Younger, determined me upon a visit to Still-
water for the purpose of having a personal interview
with the noted brothers, and in accordance with
this decision I left St. Louis on the 5th of November
and arrived at my destination on the morning of the
7th. After introducing myself to Warden Reed,
that very affable prison official conducted me at once
to a reception-room where, after a very short wait,
Cole, Jim and Bob Younger walked in, by whom I
was greeted very cordially. My first tacit observa-
tion was, " did I ever see three finer looking men ? "
Cole is the largest, being about six feet three inches
in height, but all the brothers measure considerably
over six feet, and their bodies are knit together with
that smooth compactness which indicates the
strength of steel. They were models of form, and if

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 235

I were a woman I should have no hesitancy in pro-
nouncing each of them decidedly handsome. But
better than all this, they bear themselves like perfect
gentlemen and never fail, so I am told, in producing
the most favorable impression upon all their visitors, of
whom they have not a few. Cole is the spokesman
of the trio, and in the beginning it is well to admit
that a shrewder questioner or witness never made use
of brain and tongue than he. Physiology and phre-
nology both unite in adapting him for the bar ; as a
lawyer he would undoubtedly have made a phenom-
inal success; the magnificence of his physique and
sharp wits, which manifest themselves in cunning
speech and comprehension and quick ideas, leave no
doubt of what his career as an advocate would have
been. His first words were:

" Well, I learn from your letters that you have de-
cided to write a history of the James and Younger
Boys."

"Yes," said I, "such has been my purpose for
some years past, and much of the work is already
completed; what remains to be finished I have left
until some very necessary information may be gath-
ered from you."

" I am very glad to see you," he responded ; "but
I fear that resolutions, which I have long since taken,
will prevent me from making your visit a profitable
one."

I rephed: "The object of my visit does not con-
template the forging of secrets from your breast;

236 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

from the tenor of your communications I judged
your character; that there were many things which
were with you inviolably sacred ; I was also assured
that no trust confided to your keeping would ever
be vioalated. Upon such subjects I have no wish to
question you, but only upon such matters as regard
yourself, the war and other things, to speak of
which you will not compromise your manhood or
honor."

" I cannot see what interest, then, an interview with
me would possess more than that with any other of
the ex-guerrillas, many of whom are still living," he
replied.

I answered : *' The relations to the public are differ-
ent, and then there are some things of which you
might honorably speak, chiefly concerning yourself,
that would be of special interest to the thousands
who have read of your exploits."

** Well," said he, " propound your questions, and
what I can conscientiously answer I will, but when
you tread upon sacred grounds I shall be quick to
infornxyou."

Q. In the first place explain, if you can, some of
the causes which produced the guerrillas of Missouri.

A. It would require a history to answer that
question properly. The people of western Missouri
are, in some respects, very peculiar. We will take
Jackson county (where I was born) for instance. In
that section the people seemed to be born fighters,
the instinct being inherited from a long line of an-

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 237

cestors. It would have been a good idea if, in your
book, you had given a short history of that county ;
the facts might easily be collected in Independence
where many old settlers still reside, who are familiar
with some of the bitter antagonisms which distin-
guished the early settlement of that district.

Joe Smith and Brigham Young laid out Independ-
ence, but very soon thereafter enough citizens of the
county collected to drive them off, after several stub-
born fights. The Mormons withdrew from the State
and settled their community at Nauvoo, Illinois, but
in a few years afterward about fifty of them again
came into Missouri and settled in Platte county.
They had scarcely established themselves, however,
before another company of Jackson county citizens,
chiefly from around Independence, organized to drive
them off. Among these determined citizens were
Richard Fristoe, my grandfather. Wood Nolen,
Smallwood Nolen and Sam Owens. While crossing
the river in a hand-ferry-boat, the ferryman, who
had been bribed by the Mormons, succeeded in
turning the boat over midway in the Missouri river.
A large number were drowned, but the four I have
mentioned succeeded in swimming ashore.

Independence was, for a long time previous to
the war with Mexico, headquarters for Mexican
freighters. The freight passing between Mexico and
Missouri was carried on pack-mules, many Jackson
county men being engaged in that business.

It was in Jackson county chiefly, also, that Col.

238 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

Doniphan recruited his famous regiment for the
Mexican war and made that wonderful march known
in history as De rando del muratOy (the journey of
death). After subduing New Mexico, Doniphan
marched to Chihuahua, which then had 40,000 in-
habitants, and raised the United States flag over the
citadel ; and from this latter place he continued his
march to the Gulf of Mexico.

Independence became also the headquarters and
fitting-out post of the Forty-Niners when the great
pilgrimage to California began. Majors Russell and
Waddell, the greatest overland freighters the world
has ever produced, lived in Independence.

In the war of 1856 Jackson county, and the settle-
ment about Independence especially, was more
largely represented, perhaps, than any other section.
This diabolical war, distinguished by the most atro-
cious cruelties the conqueror can inflict upon his
captive, prepared the way, and created the guerrilla
in 1862. Natural fighters, conducting a war of spo-
liation and reprisal, — through the brush, — trained to
quick sorties and deadly ambuscades, how easily
they drifted as their instincts incHned, and became
guerrillas by an irresistible combination of circum-
stances, such as I have explained.

Q. Your answer is very comprehensive and inter-
esting. Now, will you be kind enough to tell me
what finally became of the "Black Flag" which
Quantrell carried ? Geo. Shepherd gave me a very
interesting history of that flag, which I shall relate in

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 239

my book, but he was unable to tell me what eventu-
ally became of that ominous symbol.

A. Jim Lane carried a black flag until the fall of
1863, when we captured it, and sometime afterward
we sent it to Sterling Price. I think both flags were
subsequently cut up and made into over-shirts which
some of the boys wore.

Q. Do you know where Quantrell is buried?

A. He sleeps in the Catholic grave-yard at Louis-
ville, Ky.

Q. Do you know whether or not Jesse and Frank
James are full brothers?

A. Surely their mother is the same, and I presume
their father was also the same, but he was dead long
before I knew the family.

Q. Will you explain the causes and circumstances
which led you to Northfield; also, explain, please,
how you became separated from the two comrades
who succeeded in escaping? I have been told that
the shooting of Jim Younger, in the mouth, caused
such profuse hemorrhage that the pursuers could
trail you by the blood ; that one of the two who es-
caped insisted on killing Jim in order to destroy the
trail, and that it was this proposition which caused
the separation.

A. Positively, I will have nothing to do with writ-
ing or furnishing any information concerning the
Northfield robbery, or any other robbery. I do not
say this through any unkindness; I have made the
same reply to life-long friends, among whom were

240 THE BORDER OUTLAWS,

two brothers-in-law. I should say the same to sistei
Retta, whom I love better than all the world, if she
should ask me the question.

Q. How long was each of you in the surgeon's
care after your capture ?

A. Jim and I are still receiving surgical attention,
and will be the remainder of our lives.

Q. How often have you and your brothers been
wounded ?

A. I have been wounded altogether twenty times;
eleven of these wounds were received at Northfield.
Jim was wounded four times at Northfield, and six
times in all. Bob was never wounded until the pur-
suit in Minnesota, where he was struck three times.

Q. Can you tell me who was in command at Inde-
pendence and issued the order that thereafter guer-
rillas taken by capture would not be treated like or-
dinary prisoners of war? Shepherd says he is not
certain, but thinks it was Maj. Blunt.

A. It was Jennison, Colonel of the 15th Kansas
cavalry.

Q. What are your respective duties in the peni-
tentiary ?

A. We have no special duties. Jim and I being
on the hospital list do very little, while Bob performs
various duties. I occupy much of my time in theo-
logical studies for which I have a natural inclination.
It was the earliest desire of my parents to prepare
me for the ministry, but the horrbrs of war, the
murder of my father, and the outrages perpetrated

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 241

upon my poor old mother, my sisters and brothers,
destroyed our hopes so effectually that none of us
could be prepared for any duty in life except re-
venge.

The tear which stole into Cole's eye told how
much he suffered in the remembrance of those sor-
row-laden days when war drove happiness eternally
from the Younger household. Out of deference to
that honorable feeling, I could not question him fur-
ther upon such an extremely unpleasant subject.

Q. How do you regard your treatment in the
prison ?

A. I will say that since our capture we have met
with uniform kindness, and while in the penitentiary
our relations with the officers have been cordially
pleasant, and for their considerate and kind dispo-
sition we feel profoundly grateful. There has never
been so much as a hard thought between us. While
I think of it, I should like to ask a favor: In your
last letter you seemed to intimate that I had self in
view by referring to the liberality with which I dis-
tributed corn to the poor in 1862-3. Now the favor
I ask is this : In the first place, many of my old com-
rades are married and settled down in Missouri,
where they are living peaceful lives. I want it un-
derstood that all these men fought for principle, not
for plunder, and that they were true-hearted, honor-
able soldiers, fighting for what they esteemed was a
righteous cause. In relation to me giving corn, and
also pork and beef, to the poor during that hard
16

242 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

winter, when food was so difficult to obtain, I will
only say that I was following an example set by my
blessed and sainted mother, whose charitable heart
never failed to respond to distress. These facts I
desire you to make understood in your book.

Q. How much land did your father own at the
time of his assassination?

A. He had 3,500 acres, a greater part of which
was under cultivation, with barns, houses, etc. All
this property went with the ravages of the war. My
part has long since been spent in keeping out of the
clutches of mobs.

I thanked Cole and his brothers for the marked
kindness they had shown me, and after again ex-
plaining the possible necessities, owing to conflict-
ing and current errors, of my connecting them with
crimes of which they were perhaps as innocent as
myself, we shook hands cordially and I withdrew.

After my return to St. Louis I instituted inquiries,
by letter, in order to receive a denial or corrobora-
tion of Cole Younger's statements, respecting his
liberality and conduct during the war. I communi-
cated with several Union men, all of whom, while
pronouncing Cole a desperate fighter, yet accorded
him full credit for his magnanimity in helping the
poor, relieving distress and affording every possible
protection to women and children, regardless of po-
litical sentiments.

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 243

HOW A DUEL TO THE DEATH WAS
PREVENTED.

The position taken by Cole Younger with respect
to talking upon incidents subsequent to the war,
prevented me from obtaining all the information I so
earnestly sought. That portion of his letter refer-
ring to a proposed duel between himself and Jesse
James, which was prevented by Frank James and
others, possessed for me considerable interest, and to
learn the facts leading to so desperate a conclusion,
I again visited Kansas City and secured an interview
with George Shepherd, in which he gave me the en-
tire story, as follows :

" When I left Kentucky aftei the expiration of
my term of imprisonment, I visited my sister at Lee's
Summit, in Jackson county. On the day following
my return, which I think was early in 1872, Jesse
James, hearing of my arrival, came ever to see me.
In the course of our conversation he said:

" * George, I saw Cole yesterday.'

" * Well, how is he and what did he say ? ' I replied.

"Jess looked a little serious, and responded :

" ' He told me to tell you that under no circum-
stances did he ever want to see you again ; Cole is
bitter against you, George.'

" My answer was : ' I don't know what he has against
me, but you can tell him he need not trouble about
meeting me, or put himself in a place to see me if he
don't want to.'

244 ^^-^ BORDER OUTLAWS,

" Two days after this meeting I went up to see old
Silas Hudspeth, near the Six Mile district. I was
ignorant of the cause which had disturbed Cole's
friendly relations with me, and I was determined not
to make any special effort to find out. I reached
Hudspeth's house some time after dark, and riding
up to the front gate, I called out, ' hello ! ' The old
man came to the door and I told him who I was ; he
drew back a step and spoke to some one in the
house, after which he invited me to get down and
come in. Just as I stepped on the porch. Cole,
speaking from the inside where I could not see him,
said : ' Shepherd, I am in here, you ain't afraid, are
you?*

" I replied : * That's all right ; of course I'm not
afraid,' and then I walked in. Cole was sitting in a
chair in one corner of the room, and I at once saw
he had a pistol. We spoke very little, confining our
conversation to the old man. When it came bed-
time, Hudspeth told us to occupy a bed together.
After we undressed and lay down, I saw Cole reach
up under his pillow and draw out a pistol which he
put beside him under the cover. Not to be taken
unawares, I at once grasped my own pistol and
shoved it down under the covers beside me. To
save my life I couldn't think of any reason Cole
could have for becoming an enemy. We talked very
little, but just lay there watching each other. He
was behind and I on the front side of the bed, and
during the entire night we looked into each others*

THh YOUNGER BROTHERS, 245

eyes, and never once moved. It was the most
wretched eight hours I ever spent in my Hfe. Of
course, I wouldn't percipitate a fight or shoot him
without cause, so I waited, determined only to pro-
tect my own life. Singularly enough. Cole was ac-
tuated by the same ideas.

" As quickly as dawn began to appear, I got up and
dressed, as did also Cole ; he never for one instant
took his eye off me, but followed my actions and
kept within an arm's length of me continually. You
can imagine, how pecuhar I felt ; if I could have con-
cluded what produced his anger, then I would have
known how to act, but my ignorance of the cause of
his offense, and finding him apparently watching for
a chance to kill me so dead, instantly, that I could
not return his fire, made me wretched beyond ex-
pression.

" Old man Hudspeth finally got up and prepared
breakfast, he being an old bachelor, and when we
sat down to the table. Cole broke our suspense by
remarking to me : ' I heard, yesterday, that you
intended to kill me on sight; have you lost your
nerve ? *

*' My surprise, I know, was indicated by my looks.
I replied : * In the name of God, who told you such
a thing? Why, I never for a moment even harbored
a hard feeling toward you. Who told you that,
Cole ? '

" ' I met Jess yesterday, and he told me that you
sent that message to me by him,' Cole responded.

246 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

"Then the whole thing appeared plain to me. I
had learned at Lee's Summit that Jesse James bore
Cole a mortal hatred, and he had become a bearer of
exasperating falsehoods between us so as to provoke
a quarrel that would end in one of us being shot.

** I told Cole how infamous the lie was and then re-
lated to him what Jess had told me, conveying his,
(Cole's) wishes not to see me. Of course, full ex-
planations followed, and then Cole was one of the
maddest men I ever saw. He despised Jesse James,
but the primary cause of the difficulty between
them was never told me.

" We remained at Hudspeth's house until nearly ten
o'clock in the morning, and as we were getting ready
to leave, Jesse and Frank James and John Younger
came riding up the road and hitched their horses to
the fence with the intention of coming in ; Cole,
however, met them and I saw at once that there was
a cloud of difficulty in the horizon several times
bigger than a man's hand. As they advanced to-
ward each other. Cole drew his pistol and threw the
muzzle directly in Jess' face, calling him, at the
same time, all the abusive names he could think of.
We finally parted them, or rather, quieted Cole, after
which Jess and Frank rode off in one direction, while
Cole and John Younger took the opposite.

** Shortly after this occurrence the James Boys
went to Louisiana and were followed, in a few weeks
afterward, by Cole and John Younger. I don't
think the Youngers knew where the James Boys had

THE YOUNGER BROT}IERS. 247

gone. Anyhow, Cole and John decided to visit
John Jarrette, who was living at a point in Louisiana
I don't care to mention. As they came riding to-
ward Jarrette's house, it chanced that the James
Boys were there and saw them. Immediately Jess
and Frank seized their double-barreled shot-guns
and, running out of the house, they took positions
behind two trees, as if intending to murder the
Youngers. Cole saw and recognized, them. Now,
Frank James was a friend of Cole's and he did
everything in his power to quiet Jess, but the reason
he seized his gun and joined Jess, was in order to
help his brother if both Cole and John should at-
tack him.

"There never was a more fearless man than Cole
Younger, and Jesse James knew that if he tackled
him, it meant a fight to the death. Cole, with his
pistol in hand, dared Jess to fire at him, and then
gave him a challenge to come out from behind the
tree and fight him at five or ten paces with shot-guns
or pistols. Jess showed some disposition to accept
the challenge, and it did look as though there would
be one or more funerals in the woods, maybe, before
dark. Fortunately for both of them, Frank James,
John Younger and Jarrette succeeded in preventing
what would have been a deadly meeting."

Being un-able to obtain an answer to the question
from the Youngers themselves, after the conclusion
of Shepherd's story, the writer asked him for an
opinion respecting the guilt or innocence of the

248 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Youngers as to the charges of bank and train rob«
beries made against them.

His reply was as follows: "Speaking of Cole
Younger, I have*io hesitancy in saying that, outside
of the affair at Northfield, I don't believe he was
ever connected with the James Boys, or that he ever
participated in any of the robberies. This much, I
know ; I have heard the James Brothers propose
raids of that kind to him, asking him to join them,,
and every time, in my presence, he not only refused
absolutely, but manifested a feeling of insult and
pronounced the schemes outrageous, even going so^
far as to express a hope, that if they perpetrated
such robberies, they would be caught and punished
as they deserved. I also know that he was not at
Russellville. As to the Otterville train robbery, I am
aware that Hobbs Kerry's confession, which seemed
to be corroborated by the attack at Northfield after-
ward, surrounds Cole by very strong circumstantial
evidence of guilt, but I have been told by one who
knew all the parties implicated in the robbery, that
Cole was not there."

The writer then asked the further question :

" Tell me, please, if Cole and Jesse James have
been such implacable enemies, how it happened
that they joined together in the scheme to rob the
Northfield bank ? "

Shepherd made response : " Well, that is a ques-
tion which I should like as much to have answered,
maybe more so than yourself. I feel certain, from

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS. 249

facts learned since that attack, that they were never
reconciled to each other, and how it happened they
rode together in that raid, puzzles me more than I
can tell you. I mean to find out, some time, how-
ever."

ATTEMPTS TO LIBERATE THE YOUNGER
BROTHERS.

Considering the cunning and notoriety of the
imprisoned bandits, it is not astonishing that at-
tempts to liberate them should be made. More
than two score of the old guerrillas are still living,
all men of remarkable courage, and their devotion to
one another recognizes, in a measure, the binding ob-
ligation of the Black Oath, though the desperate
days of its constant use are over. Aside from the
strong bands of friendship forged by the direful ne-
cessities of war, in which Cole Younger was such a
consummate hero, there are other considerations
which create a sympathy on the part of hundreds of
western Missourians for the incarcerated outlaws.
It has been reported, but upon authority which, ta
say the least, is far from conclusive, that a large sum
of money was raised by voluntary contributions for
the purpose' of bribing the penitentiary officials ta
permit an escape of the Youngers ; one publication
fixes the sum so raised at ^70,000, but this is too ab-
surd for any rational person to credit.

250 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

Some time in 1877 there was an attempt to release
the bandits, but it was so clumsily arranged that
there is grave doubt if either the Youngers or the
prison authorities ever knew of it. The circumstan-
ces, which were published about two years ago in a
country paper of north-west Missouri, are, as far as
remembered, about as follows : Canvassing as a book-
agent for " Edwards* Noted Guerrillas'* in the north-
western part of Missouri, was an ex-guerrilla whose
admiration for Cole Younger amounted to infatua-
tion. He placed so much confidence in the ability
of the Youngers to effect an escape from any place
of confinement, that it was his frequent boast, to
those about him, that the Stillwater officers would
very soon be treated to a first-class surprise. But
when he saw month after month pass away, with the
Youngers still deprived of their Hberty, he began to
consider the means employed to hold them in cap-
tivity. In the latter part of 1877, this enthusiastic
admirer of his imprisoned comrade chanced to meet
a friend who had also marched under Quantrell's
black flag, and was then pursuing a peripatetic call-
ing, but not for philosophic purposes. The two, af-
ter exchanging the formulas of friendship, very
naturally began a discussion of the Youngers* im-
prisonment. They remained together for several
days, devoting their entire time to propositions look-
ing to a release of their friends.

After proposing and debating more than a score
of schemes, the two anxious ex-guerrillas concluded

THE YOUNGER BROTHERS, 251

to adopt some bold measure, as they could depend
upon the Youngers in every emergency however
dangerous. Their decision was that each should
leave Missouri and proceed directly to Minnesota ;
they were to assume false names; appear as strang-
ers to each other, and then commit some crime that
would cause them to serve a short term in the peni-
tentiary. The most reliable friends of the Youngers
were made acquainted with the plan intended to be
put into execution, and were advised to hold them-
selves in readiness to lend any necessary assistance.
The faithful couple, who were ready to suffer any
punishment, if there were any hope it would result
in the liberation of their captive comrades, went into
Minnesota by different routes, and as per their ar-
rangement, one stole a watch and the other purloined
some article of small value. The result of their
thefts, however, was far from what they expected.
The one who took the watch was sentenced to the
penitentiary for one year, while the other, though
very anxious to accompany his companion, and mak-
ing no defense whatever, was committed to the
county jail for a short period. This unforeseen
termination of their trials completely destroyed the
purposes of the scheme. The one sentenced to the
penitentiary found, upon entering that penal institu-
tion, that there were no possible means of communi-
cating with the Youngers, owing to the rigid discip-
line of the prison, and he was, therefore, forced to
serve his full time, at hard labor, without even the

252 THE BORDER OUTLAWS.

consolation of conveying his well-intended purpose
to his captive friends. After his liberation from the
penitentiary, the ex-guerrilla returned to the same
county from whence he departed with a determina-
tion to release Cole Younger, especially, and sorrow-
fully repeated the result of his abortive attempt; no
persuasion, however, could induce him to explain the
details of his scheme, the reason evidently being,
because of an anticipation that it would some day
be renewed with better success.

I mlMaI'

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Full text of "The border outlaws : an authentic and thrilling history of the most noted bandits of ancient or modern times : the younger brothers, Jesse and Frank James, and their comrades in crime"

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