424
The Green Bag,
who has incurred the enmity of Musgrave some years before. After committing this crime, they started across the country, pur sued by the officers of that county. Through the section of country which they passed — miles away from any rail road — was operated a daily stage line from the town of San Antonio to White Oaks, which carried mail and express. They "held up " the eastbound stage on this line and robbed the mail and express. The stage was driven by a young man named Carpenter, who was of more than ordinary intelligence, and who, I believe, is now teaching school somewhere in Texas. It was about nine o'clock at night, but ex tremely bright moonlight. The westbound stage would not pass that point until about three hours later, so after robbing this stage the outlaws made themselves quite at home with the driver, ate his lunch and conversed with him quite freely; they wore no sort of disguises, and did not in any manner attempt to conceal their identity. They stayed with him until the westbound stage came along, which they also held up and robbed. This stage had a driver and one passenger, both men of ordinary intelli gence, and of good reputation for truth and veracity. After robbing this second stage they stayed for some thirty minutes longer and mingled freely with the other two men, who, of course, had excellent opportunity to observe them. When they left they took all of the stage horses, and left the drivers and passengers on the plains some ten miles from the nearest house. The subsequent trailing showed that they went direct from the point where they robbed the stages to the stage station, where there was no one excepting the wife of the keeper, a Mexican woman. She afterwards stated that three men came to
the station about one o'clock in the morning and stopped for a few minutes. She saw them plainly by the light of a large fire place. From there they went south into Grant County, and a few weeks later a fight took place between them and the officers, and one of what was supposed to be the same outlaws, was killed. Some months afterwards, Carpenter, the stage-driver, was in El Paso, Texas, and saw on the streets a man whom he recog nized as one of the men who robbed the stage, who was thought to be " Black Jack." He at once informed the United States officials, and the man was arrested and brought to the jail at Socorro, New Mexico. Naturally the arrest of so impor tant a prisoner caused great rejoicing and the utmost activity on the part of the Fed eral officials to see that he was punished for his many misdeeds. It was some months before he could be brought to trial, owing to the lapsing of a United States term of court, and during this time he continued in jail. His case was finally set down for trial and at the last moment Judge F and myself were ap pointed by the Court to defend him, as he was entirely without means. After seeing and talking with the pris oner, we became convinced that the Gov ernment was mistaken, and that they had the wrong man. He told us a " straight forward story" as to his whereabouts and doings. On the night of the robbery he said that he was on a freight train, with a certain conductor, naming him, between two points in Arizona, which was several hundred miles from the scene of the rob bery; that the next day he started to work for a contractor in Phoenix, Arizona, giv ing his name. Our appointment was made at rather a
