A BRAVE WOMAN. She is Carried Away by Outlaws. HER SUCCESSFUL ESCAPE. The Ruffians Shot With Their Own Weapons-A Thrilling Ride.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 210, 9 July 1887, Page 3

A BRAVE WOMAN. She is Carried Away by Outlaws. HER SUCCESSFUL ESCAPE. The Ruffians Shot With Their Own Weapons-A Thrilling Ride.

Men are accustomed to look upon women as frail, tender and without pluck, but the bravery and heroism of the female sex when forced to face the inevitable, shine forth in instances which men may have equalled but never excelled. In June, 1878, three ruffians, one of whom was a half-breed Indian, rode up to the pioneer cabin of Henry Clark, situated near the State line beween Kansas and Nebraska, due north of Smith Centre, and on the bank of tho Republican river. It waB about 10 o'clock in the forenoon, and Clark was in Marysville, Kan., on business, leaving the wife, who was a robust woman of 25, alone on tho place. Hospitality is the rule in the West, and when the men asked for breakfast she could not well refuse, although she made up her mind at first glance that they were bad men. They said they were looking for stock, and seemed to be posted as to Clarks absence. All were heavily armed, and rode good horses. While Mrs Clark was very much frightened and annoyed at their presence, she made a pretence of being cool and brave, and this probably put the climax off for some time. She prepared a good breakfast, and the men sat down to eat, but it was easy to see that they were not hungry. They only made a pretense of eating, and when they got up two of them seized her and rushed her out doors, and the third, who had already mounted, received her on his suddle. In speaking of this act, Mrs Clark explains. " I had been expecting just such a move, and was in a measure prepared for it. I knew they meant me evil, and I was glad when I saw they were to t ike me away. We had no neighbour neaier than three miles, and I felt that only in being taken away from the house was there any chance of rescue from their clutches. Men were constantly ridkjg about the country looking for land or stray stock, and I had strong hopes of meeting some party before we had gone far. Therefore, when they seized me I made but little resistance, and, apparently to their great surprise, I did not scream nor faint.' The men rode off at a gallop up the river, skirting the edges of the timber, and in about three-quarters of an hour reached a cabin which had been abandoned early in the spring by a family named Miller. The settler's wife died, and he had removed to Red Cloud. The cabin was a small and snug affair, having a heavy door with a bar to it, and the windows provided with almost bullet-proof inside shutters. The men rode straight to the cabin and dismounted, Mrs Clark being assisted off the saddle before the man who rode tho horse with her got down. As she struck the ground she grabbed for the butt of a revolver which stuck out of the holster of the man who helped her down, and what happened in the next two or three minutes she relates herself : " I was and am a fair shot with rifle or revolver. I first seized the weapon with the idea of commiting suicide, but changed my mind in an instant, pulled up the hammer, and shot the man in the leg before i he had taken his hands off me. Then j I da- ted for the cabin, carrying the smoking weapon in my hand. The half-open door was only ten feet away, and I was inside and had the door bar in place in a few seconds. Indeed, the man whom I had j wounded had scarcely cried out before I was in the house. My action was so sudden and unexpected that not a hand was stretched out to stop me. Fortunately for me, the bar stood on end just behind the ' door, and as I slipped it into place I felt that I had been saved. Two or three years of pioneer life give a woman courage and confidence, and I knew I had disabled one of the men and had five bullets left for the other two/ The wounded man received the bullet in the left leg just at the knee, and made a | serious matter of it. He fell to the ground | and cursed and groaned in a terrible way, and vowed that the woman should be ! burned at the stake to pay for his injury. His companions were at first inclined to ridicule him and to admire the pluck of the woman, but when they realised that he would probably lose his limb, and that the trio had a peck of trouble on hand, their anger became frightful. They made a rush for the door, evidently expecting to easily lay hands on the woman and drag her out, but they found it barred. When they turned to the windows they found them also well secured. It became plain to them that she meant determined resistance, and they gave up thejx efforts and retired to consult. From what Mrs Clark overheard she was convinced that the two men wanted to help the wounded one off and leave at once, but he obstinately refused to move an inch until he had been revenged on the woman. He called their attention to the fact that it was a lonely neighbourhood, not likely to te visited by any visitors before night, and that they could batter in the door and secure their victim. When they referred to his wound as evidence of her bravery, he fiercely shouted : " D-n her, it was an accidental shot. She's got my revolver, but she won't dare fire it to save her life. Get a log and bust in that door. " The men hunted about until they found a large limb which had been trimmed up, and they seized this and made a rash for the door. The woman knew just what they were preparing for, and she softly unbolted one of the blinds and swung it back until she could see them. One Or the panes of glass was gone ? and she rested the revolver in this} openihg, took deliberate aim at the man nearest her, and when she pulled the trigger he fell down and expired with scarcely a kick, having been shot through the heart. The other immediately ran away, but took a circuit and came back to the wounded man. Then the cursing, raving, and storming were renewed, and the wounded man propped himself up and emptied the contents of the Winchester and his revolver into the door and window blind. Mrs Clark had warning, and she eat down on the floor in a corner. Some of the bullets fell inside, but she was in a safe place. When the wounded outlaw had exhausted his ammunition he called upon his companion to beat the door in with a rock lying near by, and threatened him with death if he did not. Mrs Clark was looking out of the window, and she says : " The man was thoroughly afraid of me, more so than his friend, and he refused to obey, saying there had been nonsense enough, and he would now help the other away. He stood looking toward the cabin as he talked, and I saw the wounded man slip a cartridge into his revolver, and raise the weapon and fire. The bullet was meant to kill, but it did not even wound, and tho man turned, drew his own weapon, and fired three bullets into the would-be assassin's body, causing his death in a minute or two. He did not go near the

body, but waved his hand to me as a token that I was not to be disturbed, and then got the horses together, strapped the rifles to the saddles and rodo away as hard as he could go." The woman soon left the cabin and took her way homeward, but was met by her husband and three cattle hunters about a mile away. The three latter pursued the fugitive for miles, securing two of the horses, and exchanging several shots, but he finally gofc safely away.— " New York Sun."