Saved by an Outlaw.

Bush Advocate, Issue 353, 14 August 1890, Page 3

Saved by an Outlaw.

An American. Story.

. I -had ridden out ( tp a, ranche owned by a man named Blake, abou,t ,tw.eiatv miles, ; frpro, ,my, place, for the purpose of looking at a lot ; of imported sheep he had , fra,-, jjale^ and was returning wnen I met a Mexican with ft broken, ing along the road, who told ni6 that a bull had .char.ge^ him , <tys ' day befdre and fliing him into 4| water- Jbiole, breaking his ., arm ancj bruising 1 : him severely' all bverj The bull was a wild one i rom the mountains!,' and dangerously 'savage, You may not be aware of the fact^ but seine years a'gd— s'& or 2() riovv, — there was a large drove of cattle stampeded nft&W : -'-]fltft&' liy'the Indians and driven into the moim* tainsj',iwhe*eithey • escaped,' i afid fi w course of time grew perfectly. wijdj fpr, they 1 were of-^fcrbrefed 'quite; unsuited to this country. They are, v very.; shy,. and av'e rarely^to^m/ v t6 leave the mountain heights ; but a: bull sometimes, .wihen'^diritPn' o^ from his herd by a stronge rival, will descend to.l the, '/Valleys, and? often prove a" dangerous foe toj encounter,, even pn.&orseb'ack.i Tfcej Mexican warned me that the one he had been attacked by, -was; still in the neighbourhood, and that it would stand me well, to .keep a look out for him! I had' ridden on for a mile or two when I dismounted to drink pf : a little; running stream tliat crossed the road, and to eat my lunch. My horse I; left standing without taking the precaution of tying him. He was a young mustang, as nervous as a woman,' and, without any, apparent cause that I coulid discover,, threw up hisj head all of a sudden, ,aji,d broke 1 down the valley in a mad , gallop, ; carrying, of c6urse v iri^ saddle,' with Iriy' belt ccfntainihg 'my 'pistols, which I. had' rather foolishly removed from my waist an hour or two before and hung from .the horn of my saddle. There was nothing for it but to follow - the ' horse on' foot, so off I ran in as bad a humour as you can' imagine, for I was already fatigued by my long: ride, and a tramp of perhaps miles was v anything but inviting. I trudged on; for ; an hour or two, ; until my feet were cut and 1 blistered' by the sharp rooks, and sat down; to rest near a\ clump- of cotton wood 1 trees, one of great size and the rest of them mere saplings. At that moment I heard a loud roar, and a; orash. in >a bush ; behind me, and! out rushed at a terrific pace, a large! black >uii r charging straight at: me. ", ! ' . I had only, .jiis't: time &>l throw; myself to one side flat on the ground, .as he' thundered'-' by 1 me^' ; My next; !mave was to : make 1 f oivtttef clump pf ; cottonwbods^ which X 1 'succeeded * in , Caching! .just, iflsi itie-" ( M 1 'turned ; again; iMy hat 4a& Mien 1 iisT : fan , jaad thie'ihe animal ribw*^atftMc&ed | With a ferooity andmaddetiedtfage | *]iajti showed-, nte how little ! n**rcy Voi^id be, shown. the »X)treer of it •whe^ ■ Having torn tlie' hat tO/ ; pieaes withi horns" and ipofs,, ancL, having smelled. me out, lie cpminencsd a circuit round the -treps, .stamping, pawing, and bel- *■ lowing . frightfully. ; .With,.- , his blboAflhot 1 eyes and loagy s,harp liojrns, }»e ilppfeed like, a demon. I %rae quite unarmed, haying >y;spine uiiliickly . c chanpe , neglected to, put m my knifo pn leaving home, .and mYpiHtiils, as', I said Woi;©,,. being an my saddle : , and I was wearied aln»ost to death. . . , . :; ,••■■■■ The situation .was ft, desperate one, and my. only chance consisted in dodging the bull found the trees Tintirhe 'should be tired out ; and this was', indeed, a faint hope, for the animal seemed fresh and warranted to outlast the strength j>i ten men. The bull charged attain and again, sometimes coming against the tree with such force that he fell on his knees, sometime bending the saplings behind which I stood until his horns almost reached me, ' :. There was not 1 a branch ot tne large tree low enough for me •to seize and climb up, ; and I had no time in which to scale it between the bull's charges. How long this awful game of "touch-and-go" lasted I cannot tell,' for after the first- excitement of self-preservation passed off. weariness again took possession of me, and it required all the insfcinct and love of life in me to keep me on my feet. Several times the bull Iflft me for a few seconds, racing suddenly away, bellowing Jiis malignant discontent tif my' refusal to come forth and be trample and gored to death ; but before I could cross over to a better position he always came back at full speed. My tongue began to cleave to the roof of my mouth, my eyes grew hot and misty, my knees trembled under me, while fl ringing in my ears warned me that nature was exhausted, and I felt it impossible to hold out until dark. At length I grew, desperate, and determined to make a rim for the opposite covert ■tffc. jaoment the bull turned from

me again. I felt sure I waji doomed,} and. .tlj^glit.iotlt until t actually began to welcome the ide^ of the struggle ending in any way The bull seemed to know I war worn ois,' aj^vgiWiiMiore rapic and fierce in his charges ; but jusf when I was going to sit dowr .un^or tfye great .tree au^, let.,h|m do his vroxst, ! I heard th'o 'rattle M a horse among the rocka above] and a shout that soundud to me like the voice; iof : an! ; angel. Theri came the barking of a dog and the, reports of of a stock whip, but the bull, with his "devilish eyes fixed on me, never moved. Up came a horseman at full speed, and crack ! fell the, lash on. the bull's blacli; hide, Wnile the blood spurted out in a long streak. The animal turned savagely and charged the hwseman, •belldwing' 'with <: 'astonished rage and pain, but the horse, wheeled round just enough to' baffle :h?m—^ mpxerrrand again the lash descended, cutting like a long, flexible razor. The infurii .ate.d >{uU..w<fts x .not to; .be with, a whip— He charged again and again. But he had met his match,' for, right a^ left,. , <&? .B^dedj; the wiry Spanisn mare turned, sometimes on her hind, and sometimes on.her fore-legs. . ,st. jwas, ,|;|ie . mosli magnifieent' exhibition of equestrianism I ever saw, and I actually forgot my. fatigue, and ■. (exhaustion while I watched it. My rescuer, now shouted something, leaped] from his horse^and strode forward! to meet the bull with an open knife! between his teeth. As the bull] lowered his head to charge, he| seem^dL Uonlcatbhtf Hin^crby > the ! horns. There was a struggle,, a cloud of dust, a stamping like two strong men wrest-' ling. I ceuld not see clearly, but the next moment, ttie bull was on his back, with the blood welling! from his throat, and his limbs, quiverjnj#i4;,seathv, ; >The'i'tranger, : covered with dust and blood, cume, up to me then, saying, apparently 5 as unconscious of triumph as if he ! had been killing lioatf in a slaugh-ter-house, " He's dead enough now, sir; he won't trouble anybody any; more !" I walked two , or three, paces tdwards'tHeWad^east, w,hen! my senses failed me, aud I fainted. 1 When I came tu myself my horse was standing, near me, tied to a: bush, and toy •str'arige' rescuer had ; withdrawn a few feet and was: watching me intently. I went up. to him, and thanking. him,for r the' service tfehflerea 'me'/'iriqu'iM the! name of him to whom I owed my ; life. The man laughed a little,, and then replied V t;it Well, I don't; mind telling you under the circum- ; stances. I am — " No, I'll leave; his name untold— he was an outlaw and a fugitive from justice ; but he certainly Bayejdj,,me : from a cruel death, and heVas'th'e finest horseman I ever saw.