Reset Password
Reset Link Sent
| Blogs > rm_wlkuschick > BILLY BEARS POETRY BLOG |
THE HIGHWAY MAN
|
THE HIGHWAY MAN On the dusty plain the highwan road hard hoping to intercept the stage at Dry Gulch. His black stallion responded his gallop strong, nostrils flaring. Deep breaths pushed him . The bit rested in his mouth not hurting the but guiding him onward. Shadows grew as the sun dropped covering the rocks in the trail. Onward rode the highwayman His mind never leaving his mission. So bold was he a loner of power and a sure shot... His colt pistol at his side had served him well. Many a Yankee Had fell victim to his aim. He rode with a band of twenty who all fought with honor. Twenty men fighting as they went, hitting northern supply routes in Virginia. There targets were railroads, banks, storage facilities and places of worth to the north. There exploits were legendary in the south and a curse to the north. The end of the war left these men without a country an no homes to go to. They decided to head west. Ten of the original twenty chose this course. Splitting up the Rebs went their own ways. Uncertain were both groups about their future. The group heading west needed a leader who was smart, honorable, a natural in tight situations. They called him the Highwayman. . Yancy had a certain magic about him that his men believed in The trip west would be full of challenges. Yankee soldiers were everywhere and had to be avoided. Fighting them with ten would be suicide. They must pass unnoticed Three thousand miles to gold rich California. Thieves , cutthroats lined the trails hunting the weak an unprotected immigrants heading west.. Yancy and his men chose a place in the<b> mountains </font></b>west of San Diego. The town today is called Julian. This was a wild place after the war, bears as big as buffaloes roamed the region. Mountain lions were always a threat their speed and jumping ability made them quite fierce. There were thieves. The ten traded shifts between mining and guarding They built a small shack crude by any standards it provided a small sense of security to the men. There hard work was rewarded by the vein of gold which was the purist of all gold mined in California it tested at 95 percent pure. Their find soon became public and everyday became dangerous. The men were at war again and survival became paramount.. Yancy was out hunting deer fresh meat always a treat. He had drifted far from the cabin when he shot a large buck. He field dressed it packed on the extra and headed home. He reached the ridge above the cabin and saw billowing smoke coming from the structure. He charged the burning gallop at a full gallop. He saw none of his men but their horses had been shot .His worst fears were realized. His men were burned alive in the cabin and the mine had been destroyed by dynamite.. All the mined gold was gone. Claim jumpers he thought and he was right. He traveled to Riverside and a new claim was enforced registered by the stage line.. Yancy saw the stage in front of him. He drew his colt and got closer. The first shot killed the guard. The second the driver. Yancy got next to the stage jumped from his saddle. He halted the stage a took the strong box., Shooting the lock he gathered the bars and disappeared into the forest. There were ho one alive to identify him. For months he robbed the stages. Nobody was ever able to describe the Highway man. Posted by Bill Kuschick at      |
Become a member to create a blog
