Part 3

It was a bitter cold night in the month of February, 1867, that a band of six persons, each of whom had a special grievance to revenge, knocked at the door of Dr. Samuels' residence and demanded immediate admittance. Jesse was in a bed up stairs, but he was the first to hear and understand the peremptory challenge, as it were, of the men outside. Hastily drawing on his pantaloons and boots, he grabbed his two heavy pistols and looked out of the window where, by the light refracted by the snow, he saw six horses and only a single man. He knew then that the house was surrounded and all chance of escape lay in a bloody fight. He silently descended to the first floor, where Dr. Samuels was rattling the door and explaining to those awaiting admittance that the lock was out of repair so that the key would not work readily. This was a ruse, however, to secure time for Jesse who, Dr. Samuels hoped, would be able to escape through a back window. Locating the voice of one of the men who was threatening to break in the door, Jesse fired through the panel and a stifled groan told him that his aim had been perfect. On hearing the shot, the other five rushed to the front of the house. Jesse threw the door partly open and the light from the snow made the men outside easy targets for his unerring aim, while he was so hidden by the door and darkness within that the attacking party could not fire with the least accuracy. In half the time it has taken the reader to even scan this report three of the six men were lying dead in the snow and two others were desperately wounded, while the other fled in mortal terror.

Suffering, as he was, from a very high fever, Jesse lost no time in mounting his horse, and with a hurried good-bye, he again rode into the wilderness, leaving his mother and her family with the dead and wounded. It was a ghastly scene, there upon the white-shrouded ground, one man dead on the doorstep, two others stiff and frozen in their own blood which crimsoned the yard, while the groans from the wounded made the place more hideous. Dr. Samuels notified his nearest neighbor as soon as possible and with the assistance he secured, the two wounded men were taken into the house and cared for, while a lonely vigil over the dead was kept until morning. A large crowd collected at the homestead on the following day and removed the bodies, while more than fifty well mounted citizens went in pursuit of the youthful desperado, but after a week's fruitless search they returned to their homes and quiet again brooded over the distressed neighborhood.

PLUNDERING A KENTUCKY BANK.

The bloody record of the James Boys had been almost forgotten, for they had not been seen in Clay county for many months and no specially reckless deeds had been committed to bring back a remembrance of them; when, suddenly, the town of Russellville, Kentucky, was thrown into a greater excitement than it had ever before experienced. The James Boys had paid the place a visit and left a souvenir of their desperate valor. On the 30th of March, 1868, Jesse James, accompanied by four comrades, George Shepherd, Oll. Shepherd, Cole Younger and Jim White, dashed into the town like a hurricane, yelling and firing their pistols until every one was frightened from the streets. They then rode to the bank where four of them dismounted and entered, with drawn revolvers, so intimidating the cashier that he opened the safe to Jesse James, while Cole Younger gathered the money that was lying upon the counter. The amount appropriated by the bandits was $14,000, which they threw into a sack and then leisurely departed. Everything connected with the robbery showed thorough system and a management which could be attributed to none other than the fierce Missouri free-booters.

When the excitement and surprise had somewhat subsided the sheriff summoned twenty deputies and started in pursuit. The chase continued through Kentucky and western Tennessee. Telegrams were sent in every direction with the hope of intercepting the robbers, who, finding themselves close pressed, scattered, as was their custom, and all, save George Shepherd, eluded pursuit and gained the marshes and dense coverts of Arkansas, where it was impossible to trail them. Shepherd was captured two weeks after the robbery in a small drug store in Tennessee and taken back to Logan county, where he was convicted and sentenced to the penitentiary for a term of three years.

Oliver Shepherd, a brother of George, who was also connected with the bank robbery, was afterward found in Jackson county, Missouri, and a requisition being first obtained, a dozen men attempted his arrest. But Oll., as he was called, was made of that sterner composition which would not brook a curtailment of his liberty, and he threw defiance at the officers of the law. Then began a battle of extermination. The officers had armed themselves with carbines because they knew that to come in range of the old guerrilla's pistols would be death to many of them. The hero of a hundred desperate conflicts felt that his time had come, so, bracing himself against a large tree, he stood and received the fire of his slayers at a range of nearly two hundred and fifty yards. His pistols were useless, although he fired every shot, fourteen rounds, at the officers, who, from behind trees, shot seven terrible slugs into his body before he fell; even then, like Spartacus, he struck out towards his foes in the last throes of death.

BANK ROBBERY AND MURDER.

After the affair at Russellville the James Boys appeared twice in their old haunts in Missouri, but spent nearly a year in Texas and Mexico, in remote districts, where they were free from the interference of officers anxious for their capture. It was not until the latter part of 1869 that they resumed criminal operations, their plans being laid to rob the bank at Gallatin, Missouri. In this scheme they were assisted by the three Younger brothers, whose career for consummate daring and recklessness is fully equal to that of the James Boys.

It was on the 7th of December that a body of seven thoroughly armed men, superbly mounted, galloped into Gallatin and commenced firing their pistols indiscriminately, shouting most terrible oaths and fearful threats. After alarming the residents of the place and preventing resistance, Jesse James and Cole Younger dashed into the bank, and at the muzzles of drawn revolvers, they compelled the cashier, Capt. John W. Sheets, to deliver the keys of the money department of the safe, the main door being open. After rifling the bank of $700, Jesse and Cole whispered a few words together, put the money in a bag, and then one of them, but which of the two it is not known, deliberately shot Capt. Sheets dead. The reason given for the commission of this crime was that Capt. Sheets had, during the war, led a party of militia against the guerrillas, in which conflict Bill Anderson was killed, and that the killing of Sheets was in revenge for Anderson's tragic death.

Capt. Sheets was a very popular man in Gallatin and the surrounding neighborhood, and when the news of the terrible tragedy and robbery spread, nearly the entire county arose in arms and demanded the blood of the assassins. Several bands were organized and started in pursuit, each taking a different route, with the hope that one of them might be able to apprehend the bandits before they could get out of the county. One of these bands, numbering twelve citizens, overtook the robbers on the edge of Clay county and a running fight ensued, in which one of the citizens was wounded slightly and the horse of another killed. These casualties ended the pursuit and the bandits reached Jackson county in safety, where they disappeared.

THE MYSTERIOUS HIDING PLACE IN JACKSON COUNTY.

In perusing books and newspaper articles recording the adventures of the James and Younger boys, the reader must have been impressed with the somewhat singular assertion that pursuit of the bandits generally ended by their sudden disappearance in Jackson county, Missouri. I will confess that I have often wondered how it was possible for a body of men to mysteriously disappear in a certain locality and thereby end a close pursuit. A gentleman who has been intimate with the James Boys for a period of nearly twenty years and with whom I am intimately acquainted, volunteered to me the long-wished-for information, which he gave as follows, omitting only the exact location. I will use his own words as nearly as possible:

"You know," said he, "that Jackson county is one of the most rugged and broken districts in Missouri; it not only abounds with bluffs, but also, in at least a few places, with almost impenetrable thickets, fit only for the abode of catamounts and foxes. One day I was riding through Jackson county, I will not tell you where, when suddenly I was confronted by Frank James. He greeted me cordially and then said: '----, I have every confidence in you and I know you would not betray us to save your right arm; therefore I invite you to our retreat; come with me!' I followed him in a bridle path for nearly a mile, when we came to a precipitous bluff, the base of which was completely hidden by a thick growth. There was an entrance between the growth and bluff, where any one would least suspect it, because, at the mouth are two bold rocks, which are apparently attached to the bluff itself; this delusion is accomplished by keeping the interstices filled with fresh brush so laid as to appear like a natural coppice. This passage-way leads about fifty feet, to a large fissure in the side of the bluff, resembling a vestibule; from this we stepped into a large cave, quite roomy enough to contain comfortably more than a score of men and horses. I was astonished at the completeness of the arrangement of things in the cave. There was a cooking stove, the pipe of which extended up and was lost in the top of the cave. Frank James told me that the smoke from the stove passed into a fissure of rock which evidently opened into another cave, as no smoke could ever be seen issuing from the bluff. He then took me over to another part of the cavern, where there was a clear spring of beautiful water, and over this was another fissure from which there was a cool draft of air which thoroughly ventilated the entire cave. I could see that many of the conveniences of the place were due to no little labor. A part of the cave was ceiled nicely with grooved pine lumber so as to prevent dampness, and in this division was a large heating stove, and about a dozen beds, all supplied with neat bedding. In the rear of the cave, which was, perhaps, one hundred feet deep by sixty broad, were twenty-one stalls for the horses, and over the stalls was a large feed bin filled with oats and corn, but no hay, as the latter was too bulky to convey readily into the cave. But what surprised me most was the means of defence. There was an arsenal of fire-arms and a magazine for ammunition, while the approach to the cave was commanded by a fierce, breech-loading ten-pound cannon, which was kept constantly loaded with buckshot, and looked out towards the entrance in such a way that one man could defend the place against a hundred, for a discharge of that cannon would sweep everything out of the passage. The place is absolutely impregnable, even if it could be found, which it would be exceedingly difficult to do.

"I would not have told you this except for the fact that the cave is now abandoned and may never be occupied again, but yet there is a certain obligation, from which I do not feel myself wholly relieved, that causes me to keep the location of the cave a secret. Frank James is in the East, and Jesse James--well, I don't know what has become of him, but I hope he is living in safety and happiness, as I believe he is, because, with all their crimes, the James Boys have been good friends to me."

A TERRIBLE FIGHT IN MEXICO.

After robbing the Gallatin bank, the James Boys left Missouri and went to Texas, where they remained a short time and then crossed the border into Mexico. It has been suspected that they drove a herd of cattle across the border with them, but of this there is no ready proof, and the crimes of some greasers may have been attributed to the bandits. In the month of May, 1860, Frank and Jesse James rode into Matamoras and, as there was a fandango advertised to take place at a public house on the night of their arrival, they decided to attend. Accordingly, when the night shadows fell, they paid the price of admission and entered the hall, which was rapidly filling up with swarthy senoritas and hidalgoes. From the belts of the latter protruded the glittering handles of bright, keen stilettos, in preparation for the affray which is always anticipated.

The dance began about eight o'clock, with much spirit, and the whirl of the graceful girls soon excited a desire on the part of Frank and Jesse to participate, although they were not familiar with the movements and figures of the Spanish dances. Nevertheless they essayed an attempt, which only served to excite the ridicule of the Mexicans who, by gesture and speech, went so far in their sport and mimicry of the outlaws that at length Frank James knocked down one of the boldest. This act came near proving disastrous to both the boys, for the moment the Mexican fell to the floor another powerfully built hidalgo struck Frank a blow on the cheek which sent him spinning into the laps of two girls who were seated on a bench awaiting partners. For a moment he was so stunned as to scarcely know what to do, but Jesse saw where his aid was most needed and the next instant the powerful Mexican fell with a bullet in his brain. A general fight then ensued in which Jesse and Frank rushed for the door, but their passage was impeded; so nothing remained for the boys except to clear a way by shooting those who stood before them. Frank received a thrust in the shoulder from a stiletto and Jesse's right fore-arm was punctured with a similar instrument, but the boys fired rapidly and with such effect that four Mexicans lay dead and six others were dreadfully wounded, some mortally. Jesse was the first to break through the doorway, and as he did so he turned at the very instant a dagger, in the hands of a strong Mexican, was directed at Frank's heart, but ere the hand fell to its purpose a bullet from Jesse's pistol entered the Mexican's eye and he dropped dead at Frank's feet, striking the dagger deep into the floor as he fell. This fortunate shot enabled Frank to escape from the building and as the Mexicans had no arms except stilettos, they were powerless to continue the fight, but many of them rushed to their homes to procure fire-arms and horses, and the place was swarming so rapidly with blood-craving hidalgoes and greasers that the only avenue of escape lay in the river. They accordingly rushed toward their horses which were hitched in the woods near by, but just before reaching them three powerful Mexicans suddenly sprang upon Frank James, who was a little in the rear, and attempted to bind him with a stout cord which they threw over his shoulders. Fortunately, in running he had picked up a large bludgeon which lay in his path, and shaking himself loose from the grasp of his assailants he laid about him so briskly with this formidable weapon that in a moment the three Mexicans lay stunned on the ground at his feet, then hastily joining Jesse, who had already mounted and was holding his horse for him, he sprang into the saddle, and putting spurs to their restless steeds they plunged boldly into the Rio Grande and swam to the other side, while the Mexicans were riding about in every direction trying to find the bandits whom they did not imagine would dare to take to the river.

The boys made good their escape, but the wounds they had received in the fight were of a most painful nature and required careful attention. Frank's was the most severe, and had not Jesse bandaged it with the greatest skill the outlaw must have bled to death before obtaining medical aid, for one of the veins in his neck had been severed. The two reached Concepcion, a small town in Texas, about one hundred miles from Matamoras, where they remained in charge of a surgeon for nearly three months before their wounds had healed sufficiently to permit them to travel.

PLUNDERING AN IOWA BANK.

In the spring of 1871 Jesse and Frank James secretly returned to their haunts in Jackson county, Missouri, where they remained for some time arranging for an expedition into Iowa. Their plans being perfected, they, with five other bandits, started north, riding by night, until they reached Corydon, the bank in which place they had previously decided to rob. At ten o'clock in the morning the seven desperadoes made a furious charge into the center of the town and commenced a fusilade of firing, threatening to kill every person found on the streets within five minutes afterward. None of the citizens thought of offering any resistance, and dashing up to the bank, three of the robbers dismounted and rushed in with cocked pistols, and demanded of the cashier every cent the bank contained. Finding himself powerless, and realizing that death would be his certain portion if he refused to comply with the immediate demands of the desperate outlaws, the cashier opened the safe and permitted them to appropriate nearly $40,000. The money was placed in a sack, which they invariably carried with them for the purpose, and then the seven desperadoes rode rapidly out of the city, firing their pistols indiscriminately as they swept through the streets.

The citizens were, of course, intensely excited, and after the disappearance of the robbers a hundred persons volunteered their services to the sheriff to assist in the apprehension of the bold plunderers. Efforts at capture were made by a large body of men, but like all similar attempts, the result was nothing. They were followed into Missouri and telegrams sent to every town in the State, but, like imps of darkness, the seven dare-devils disappeared and were not again seen for several months; but it is now known that they were lying quietly in their impregnable haunt in the eastern part of Jackson county, waiting for a return of quiet.

ANOTHER BANK ROBBERY IN KENTUCKY.

In the latter part of 1870, Jesse and Frank James visited Kentucky, where they had a large number of friends and relatives, who admired their bravery and condoned their crimes. They remained here until in the early part of the spring of 1874, when they and the Younger boys conceived a plan for robbing the bank at Columbia, Kentucky. On the 29th of April of that year, the three Youngers and the two James Boys entered Columbia about the same hour from five different roads, so that there was not the least apprehension excited. Just before three o'clock in the afternoon the five desperadoes rode up to the bank together, while Frank James and Cole Younger leisurely dismounted and entered the bank, where they found the cashier, Mr. Martin, the president, Mr. Dalrymple, and another gentleman engaged in a conversation. Without losing any time or creating any suspicion from the citizens of the place, the two bandits drew their pistols and going behind the bank counter, leveled them at the heads of the cashier and president, and demanded the keys to the safe. Seeing, at a glance, however, that the safe was secured by a combination lock, they commanded the cashier to open it under penalty of immediate death if he refused. Martin was a brave man, and instead of being intimidated, tried to raise an alarm; but at the first outcry Frank James thrust a heavy navy revolver into his face and fired, killing him instantly; at the same moment Cole Younger fired at the president but, luckily, that gentleman struck up the pistol, and running into the back office, escaped with his life. The two robbers hastily gathered the money that was in sight, (about $200,) and gaining their horses the five rode out of the town at a rapid pace.

Fifteen men, headed by the sheriff, went in pursuit of the desperadoes, and chased them hard into the eastern part of Tennessee, where the trail was lost in the Cumberland range. Again the bandits doubled on their tracks, after the pursuit was abandoned, and went into the western part of Texas, where they mingled with the lawless elements of the border.

Every attempt at their capture had proven fruitless, and for the time being, the provincial banks were kept well armed in anticipation of a raid. The James Boys were too crafty to appear again in the counties where their terrible deeds had excited the people to desperation. They waited until the memory of their crimes had been partially forgotten, and then planned new schemes of pillage.

ROBBING OF THE CASH-BOX AT THE KANSAS CITY FAIR.

On the 26th of September, 1872, the people of Kansas City had an opportunity for considering the cunning and bravery of the James Boys, from immediate circumstances which suddenly involved the city in a furore of excitement. It was on Thursday, the "big day" of the Kansas City Exposition, when nearly thirty thousand visitors were assembled to see the races, and particularly to witness Ethan Allen trot in harness against a running mate. The crowd was immense and of course the gate receipts were correspondingly large. About four o'clock in the afternoon Mr. Hall, the secretary and treasurer of the association, counted up the receipts of the day, which were nearly ten thousand dollars, and placing the money in a tin box kept for the purpose, he told one of his assistants to take it to the First National Bank where, although it was after banking hours, arrangements had been made to make the deposit. No thought was entertained that any attempt would be made to steal the cash-box while so many people were constantly on the highway leading to the city, and the young man started off whistling gaily, carrying the treasure box by a wire handle in his right hand. As he reached the entrance gate, where more than a dozen persons were coming in and going out, three men on horseback (Jesse and Frank James and Bob Younger) dashed up to the young man with such reckless haste that a little girl was badly trampled by one of the horses; at the same moment a pistol shot was fired and Jesse James jumped from his horse into the confused crowd and snatching the cash-box from the hand of the affrighted messenger, he leaped into the saddle again and the three highwaymen disappeared, with a clatter of fast-flying feet, like the sweep of a whirlwind. For several minutes it was thought that the little girl had been struck by a pistol ball, but after she was carried home it was ascertained that her injuries, which were not fatal, were caused by the horse of one of the robbers knocking her down and trampling upon her hips.

The news of the robbery spread over the city in a few minutes, and Marshal Shepherd sent out some of his detectives, while several gentlemen mounted fleet horses and used every possible endeavor to capture the robbers. The trail led over the hills east of Kansas City and about ten miles into Jackson county, where every trace was suddenly blotted out. The outlaws had reached their favorite haunt where no pursuer had ever been able to find them. The writer was a reporter on the Kansas City _Journal_ at the time of the robbery and reported the details as here related.

PLUNDERING THE STE. GENEVIEVE BANK.