ON THE PACIFIC SLOPE.
Immediately after the Russellville robbery, Jesse James appeared
once more in his old haunts in Missouri. But his physical system
had been greatly taxed by the tremendous strain to which it had
been subjected. Twice already had he received bullet wounds through
the lungs which would have killed any man less extraordinarily
endowed with vitality. Scars of twenty wounds were on his person,
and yet the man who had gone out from home as a boy; entered into
close affiliation with a band of the most daring and desperate men
ever organized in America; sustained his part with them, and even
surpassed them all in the daring feats they accomplished ere yet
the "manly beard had shaded his face," after having passed through
more exciting scenes than any living man, and participated in more
terrible encounters than most men, yet survived, and though his
terrible wounds had weakened his frame, yet his wonderful courage
and tremendous reserve of vital forces were such as to insure his
final restoration to complete health.
He had traveled on horseback from the little town of Chaplin, on
the eastern verge of Nelson county, in Central Kentucky, to the
western border of Missouri, in the space of a few days subsequent
to the 20th of March, 1869. Jesse James was seen in Clay county,
Missouri, in the first days of April of that year, and was seen
at Chaplin on the 18th of March. That he was at Russellville the
evidence seems to be clear; and that he led a most exciting retreat
from that place, through the hill country of Kentucky, until he
reached the banks of the Mississippi, is one of the facts of his
history. It was his genius which enabled his confederates to escape
from a determined pursuit of resolute men. Once on the west bank of
the Mississippi, to use a Westernism, "he was on his own stamping
ground." He knew every "trail" across the swamps of Southeastern
Missouri, and every pathway in the tangled brakes over the rugged
hills of the southern counties of that State, were as familiar to
him as the woodlands about the old farm in Clay county. He knew
more--that there were scattered through the country from Chaplin
to Kearney, a route of more than five hundred miles in length, men
with the reputation of respectable members of society, who always
had a warm welcome for him and his daring men. Who, then, could
pursue and capture him? There is no room for wonder that Jesse
James escaped the irate Kentuckians, who followed his trail from
Russellville to the banks of the Mississippi, and finally lost it
among the rugged hills and vast forests west of the river.
Jesse's extraordinary journeys under such circumstances did not
tend to the restoration of his physical system, which had been
greatly shattered by the terrible wounds which he had received at
the close of the war, in an encounter with a company of Federal
soldiers in Lafayette county.
In those days the friends of the Jameses were numerous in the State
of Missouri; for at that time scarcely any one believed that they
had developed into brigands. Among those who advised with Jesse
James at that time was his physician and friend, Dr. Joseph Wood,
of Kansas City. It was the opinion of this physician that the
condition of his patient imperatively demanded a change of scene,
and a more genial climate to insure his restoration.
In accordance with this advice, the patient set about his
preparations for a voyage by sea, and a sojourn on the Pacific
slope.
Toward the close of May, 1869, Jesse James left the home of his
mother near Kearney, Missouri, for New York. Here he spent only a
few days. On the 8th of June he embarked on the steamship Santiago
de Cuba, bound for Aspinwall, crossed the Isthmus to Panama,
and there again took a steamer for San Francisco. The spoils of
Russellville allowed him means to gratify every desire in the "City
of the Golden Gate," and he remained there for some time.
Meanwhile Frank James, who was not deemed able to make the long
ride, in the flight before the officers at Russellville, was
secluded for a time in the house of a respectable citizen of
Nelson county, Kentucky. But it was not deemed best that Frank
should linger long in that part of the country. A friend provided
a close carriage, and a few weeks after the Russellville robbery
Frank James was very quietly driven northward one evening, passing
by Bloomfield, through Fairfield, by Smithville, and on through
Mount Washington to Louisville. Here he remained a few days, and
then took the cars for St, Louis. Arrived in that city, Frank
put up at the Southern Hotel, registering as "F. C. Markland,
Kentucky." The name was one he had used before when he did not
desire that his real name and character should be known. Here
he met two or three of his old comrades, and he spent several
days very pleasantly with them. Meanwhile he communicated with
his mother and apprised her of his intention to go West across
the Rocky Mountains. Mrs. Samuels met her son at the house of a
relative in Kansas City, where he remained for two days, and then
bidding farewell to those who had always been true to him, he took
passage for California, where he arrived some weeks before the
arrival of Jesse. Frank did not remain long in San Francisco, but
proceeded very soon to San Luis Obispo county, and paid a visit
to his uncle, Mr. D. W. James, who was at that time proprietor of
the Paso Robel Hot Sulphur Springs, a much frequented resort of
invalids in that county. The friends of the Boys, and Jesse James
himself, in a published letter, claim that Frank went by sea to
California, and that he sailed from New York on one of the vessels
belonging to the Pacific Mail Steamship Line. But this story was
doubtless set afloat to mislead the public concerning the movements
of the Boys. The above account we have from a gentleman who was at
that time a friend of the Jameses, and who traveled with Frank from
Kansas City to San Francisco. He knew the desperado well, and had
daily conversations with him on the journey.
After spending some time at the Springs, Frank James proceeded
to the ranche of Mr. J. D. Thompson, with whom he had a previous
acquaintance, gained while that gentleman was visiting in the
States. The noted ex-Guerrilla remained at the Laponsu ranche for
many months, and until after the arrival of Jesse.
The two brothers met at Paso Robel. Here they remained for several
months. In the autumn they went out to the mining districts of
Nevada.
It appears, from information in the possession of the writer,
that the Boys behaved themselves with much circumspection while
they were the guests of their uncle. Their evil propensities were
suppressed, and no one who came in contact with the quiet, sedate
Frank, and the genial, companionable Jesse, during those days,
would have suspected that these brothers were the most daring and
dangerous men who had ever yet defied the powers of the State, and
disregarded the demands of society. Some quiet weeks had been
passed. The weak lungs of Jesse had healed, and the lame hip of
Frank was well again. The climate had wrought a wonderful change in
their physical systems. Jesse had grown robust, and possessed all
the powers of physical endurance which have been since tested and
proved incomparable.
The quiet life at Paso Robel began to be irksome to the men whose
lives had been passed amid the rudest shocks and the wildest storms
of excitement and passion. They would go out among the miners and
have a little fun while prospecting there. In Nevada, society was
in its rudest stages of development. The country was filled with
adventurers from every country under the sun. In the camps of the
miners and prospectors were desperadoes from all regions, and a
visitor to these places who wanted to fight only had to say so, and
there was no delay in getting accommodated. It was then flush times
in the Bonanza State.
Frank and Jesse went up to the mountains to take a look at the
country. They formed some acquaintances among the adventurers, and
they found several old acquaintances from Missouri and Kentucky.
The rude life of the mining camps was more congenial to the
disposition of the men who had rode with Quantrell than the refined
society found about a fashionable resort for invalids; and the
restless raiders liked well to linger in the tents of the miners
among the lofty summits of the Sierras. For a while they passed
their time very pleasantly in such associations. They prospected
some, and played sportsmen in the intervals of time so spent.
But their pleasant days in the Sierras were doomed to draw to
an abrupt close. There was a new camp formed at a place called
Battle Mountain. It will be remembered that we are writing of a
period when the rich mineral discoveries of Nevada had drawn a
miscellaneous population from the four quarters of the globe. Camps
and towns sprang up like Jonah's gourd--in a night, and disappeared
with the noonday sun of the morrow. Battle Mountain was "a rattling
place;" the people who had pitched their tents there had come in
search of gold. Many of them were old pioneers, accustomed to
hard knocks and sudden surprises. Others were "hard visaged men,"
who knew how to flee before the avengers of blood--a knowledge
gained during years of practical experience. They were quick with
the knife, and "lightning shots." They were inured to scenes of
danger, and were not liable to suffer from sudden surprises. Frank
and Jesse James, accompanied by two old Missouri acquaintances,
concluded to pay a visit to Battle Mountain, "to shake up the
encampment," as they said. They found spirits there who were
congenial and some who were uncongenial. At last they brought up
at a shanty where women, whisky and cards united their attractions
to allure the old pioneers and chance visitors. The Jameses do not
drink, but they claim to be "handy with the pasteboard." Here they
engaged in a game of cards with two notorious roughs and blacklegs;
and their companions also found a pair of gamesters, ready and
anxious to join them in a "bout of poker."
For a time the game proceeded without anything occurring to disturb
the amicable relations of the players. At last one of the old
Missouri friends of the Jameses detected his opponent cheating in
the game. He charged him with it, and the other denied the charge
and demanded a retraction. Of course nothing of that sort could
happen. The gambler retorted by drawing a knife, and the other
snatched a pistol from his belt. Jesse James, who was sitting at
a table a little distance away, saw the danger of his friend, and
in an instant, just as the gambler was in the act of striking the
Missourian, he threw his pistol out and shot the blackleg through
the heart. As he turned, the man who had been sitting opposite to
him, engaged in play, had a pistol leveled at his breast. Jesse
brought his pistol around with a swing, and another gambler fell
without a groan to the earth--dead!--shot through the brain. By
this time the utmost confusion prevailed. Lights were overturned,
and the place was shrouded in utter darkness in an instant of time.
There was a crowd of twenty or thirty men in the shanty when the
firing commenced. Every man was armed, and all had their weapons in
hand. Jesse cried out:
"Stand aside! Be ready!" The other three men of the party
understood what he meant. It was for them to get out, and they
rushed for the door. A pistol would flash and a heavy body would
fall with a thud to the ground. When the door had been gained by
his companions, Jesse, who had covered their exit, sprang forward
to escape from that pandemonium of darkness, suffering and death.
Pistols were popping and knives were clashing in a horrid din. The
maimed, writhing in agony, mingled their groans and curses in the
awful uproar. By the flashing of pistols, Jesse saw that Frank
and his two friends had made their exit, and were firing into the
crowd as opportunity offered, taking care to not shoot toward him.
He determined to leave the shanty, but two burly roughs, with huge
knives, stood in the way. A pistol ball quieted one of them, and
almost before the flash of his pistol had faded away, and before
the other could think of using his knife, Jesse sprang upon him and
dealt him a fearful blow on the head with the butt of his pistol.
The gambler sank with a groan to the earth, and with a spring Jesse
joined his friends on the outside. By this time a light had been
placed on a barrel behind the slab which served for a counter.
Three men were seen weltering in their own blood--dead. Four others
were lying writhing in pain, and all were gory from the blood which
flowed from ghastly wounds.
[Illustration: Fight in a Gambler's Den.]
The crowd saw all this at a glance. The dead and the wounded in the
shanty did not include any of the strangers. The crowd yelled
for vengeance on the authors of the bloody tragedy. There was a
shout that awakened the mountain echoes for miles around, as the
infuriated pioneers and gamblers surged out of the shanty.
Meanwhile the Jameses and their friends had retired a short
distance from the place to ascertain the extent of the injuries
they had received in the melee. It was a cloudless night and the
stars shone brightly. The leaders of the mob soon discovered the
four Missourians, and ran, yelling, toward them.
"Back, you d--d miscreants! Stand back, I say!" cried Jesse James.
But they rushed forward at the top of their speed.
"Boys, we are in for it," said Jesse, quietly. "All right, be
ready." Then he shouted:
"Come on, d--n you! Just come ahead and be killed!" He had no more
than ceased speaking when they had approached near enough to open
fire.
"Wait, boys! Steady! Every shot must tell! Now!" And as the sound
of the last word died away, there was the report of four pistols,
almost simultaneously discharged, and four men fell badly wounded;
once more the four deadly pistols were discharged, and two more
of the howling mob sank down in their tracks. The others paused.
But they gave the Missourians a parting salute as the latter moved
rapidly away. That salute seriously wounded one of the friends
of the Jameses, and carried away a portion of Jesse's hat brim.
But they escaped, aided by the night, and hastily returned to
Winnemucca. Here they learned that intelligence of the terrible
dark seance at Battle Mountain had preceded them, and that it was
not a safe place. Aided by friends, they remained in seclusion a
few days, waiting an opportunity to get away. During these days of
retirement they made up their minds to return to the States east
of the mountains, and when they met a favorable opportunity they
embraced it, and in another week after their departure they were
secure among friends near their old haunts in Missouri, ready to
plan still more startling campaigns than any which they had yet
undertaken.