Thrilling adventures among the early settlers, embracing desperate encounters with Indians, Tories, and refugees; daring exploits of Texan rangers and others .. . had availed himselfof; and when the Indians came to the opposite bank, he was safeiiTDon the other side and out of their reach. A DESPERADO AMOITG THE MAIL BAGS-THE STAGE-DRIVERS STORY. Fourteen years ago I drove from Littleton, a distance of forty-two miles, and, as I had to wait the arrival of two or three coaches,did not start until after dinner ; so I very often had a good distanceto drive after dark. It was in the dead of winter
Thrilling adventures among the early settlers, embracing desperate encounters with Indians, Tories, and refugees; daring exploits of Texan rangers and others .. . had availed himselfof; and when the Indians came to the opposite bank, he was safeiiTDon the other side and out of their reach. A DESPERADO AMOITG THE MAIL BAGS-THE STAGE-DRIVERS STORY. Fourteen years ago I drove from Littleton, a distance of forty-two miles, and, as I had to wait the arrival of two or three coaches,did not start until after dinner ; so I very often had a good distanceto drive after dark. It was in the dead of winter, and the seasonhad been a tough one. A great deal of snow had fallen, and thedrifts were plenty and deep. The mail that I carried was not dueat Littleton, by the contract, until one oclock in the morning; butthat winter the postmaster was very often obliged to sit up a littlelater than that for me. One day in January, when I drove up for my mail at Danbury, thepostmaster called me into his ojffice. 296 A DESPERADO AMONG THE MAIL BAGS. Pete, said he, with an important, serious look, theres somepretty heavy money packages in that bag ; and he pointed to the. PETE, SAID THE POSTMASTER, THERES SOME HEAVY MONEY PACKAGES IN THAT BAG. bag as he spoke. He said the money was from Boston to someland agents up near the Canada line. Then he asked me if Id gotany passengers who were going through to Littleton. I told him Idid not know ; but suppose I havent ? said I. Why, said he, the agent of the lower route came in to-day,and he says that there have been two suspicious characters on thestage that came up last night; and he suspects that they have aneye upon the mail, so that it will stand you in hand to be a littlef;areful.* He said the agent had described one of them as a short, thick-setfellow, about forty years of age, with long hair and a thick, heavyclump of beard under the chin, but none on the side of his face. Hedidnt know any thing about the other. I told the old fellow Iguessed
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectfrontierandpioneerli
