dark until daylight. Ken Smith was on our front
porch with a shotgun and pistol. Don Huddle was on our back porch, also armed
with a shotgun and pistol. And Ben Daniels was across the street from our house
armed with a rifle and pistol. But nothing happened until the third night.
Uncle Mark was right about the gang
striking at night. But he was wrong about how they would do it. They didn't
sneak into town. All six of them rode into town about two o'clock in the
morning. They rode at a gallop right down Main Street shooting out windows in
the Marshal's office and places of business. They exchanged shots with deputies
on patrol, but nobody was hit. It is almost impossible to hit a man hunched
over in the saddle on a galloping horse. And it is also almost impossible for the
man on the horse to hit anything while riding at a gallop.
The gang stopped when they reached the end
of Main Street on the east side of town. They got off their horses and took
cover by the livery stable and blacksmith shop. They had Main Street on the
east side covered this way. A gun battle began to rage between the deputies and
outlaws.
The deputies guarding the three homes heard
the shooting. They believed the outlaws were cornered, so they left their
posts. Uncle Mark and the five deputies came out of his office right after the
shooting started. They mounted their horses and rode down to the other side of
the railroad tracks. The outlaws were shooting blindly down the street.
Deputies were shooting back from behind empty beer kegs, a water trough, and
from doorways of buildings.
Then Uncle Mark saw the deputies who were
supposed to be guarding the three homes come running down Main Street. That was
when Uncle Mark proved he was a very smart law officer. He figured this
shooting was just a diversion to draw the deputies away from the three homes.
He guessed that Cal Roberts had left part of his gang at the end of Main
Street, while he and the rest of his gang were circling around the outskirts of
town and going back to the west side. Uncle Mark had a terrible decision to
make in a second. But he knew as a lawman his first duty was to protect Judge
Potter. He ordered two deputies named Johnson and Stevens to follow him. They
rode at a gallop to the Judge's house.
Judge Potter and
his wife had been awakened by the sound of gunfire. They got out of bed, put on
their robes, and went into the parlor. Judge Potter called to the deputy who
was supposed to be guarding the front porch. He received no answer. Then he
went to the back porch and discovered that deputy also gone. He armed himself
with a rifle and sat in the parlor with his wife. He was watching out the front
window when he saw two men ride up and dismount in front of his house. They
kept their heads down and it was too dark for the Judge to recognize them. They
walked to the front porch. The two men were Cal Roberts and Jack Austin.
"Are you all right, Judge?"
Austin called through the front door. "Mark Trainor sent us to check on you. The gang is bottled up on the east side of town."
Judge Potter didn't recognize the voice but
assumed my uncle had sent two deputies after discovering the others had left
the Judge's home unprotected. He opened the door. Austin grabbed the rifle away
from him and used the butt of it to knock Mrs. Potter unconscious.
"Get the rope," Cal Roberts said,
holding a pistol against the Judge's head. "We don't want any shootin ' to attract attention."
Austin ran to his horse and came back with
a rope. The outlaws had planned carefully. The rope had a hangman's noose on
the end of it. He put the noose around Judge Potter's neck and tightened it.
" Goin ' to
hang you, Judge," Roberts said, "just like you would like to hang me. Goin ' to
hang you on that tree in front of your house. Then I'll get them other
two and hang them too."
Uncle Mark saw the two horses in front of
the Judge's house and he and
porch with a shotgun and pistol. Don Huddle was on our back porch, also armed
with a shotgun and pistol. And Ben Daniels was across the street from our house
armed with a rifle and pistol. But nothing happened until the third night.
Uncle Mark was right about the gang
striking at night. But he was wrong about how they would do it. They didn't
sneak into town. All six of them rode into town about two o'clock in the
morning. They rode at a gallop right down Main Street shooting out windows in
the Marshal's office and places of business. They exchanged shots with deputies
on patrol, but nobody was hit. It is almost impossible to hit a man hunched
over in the saddle on a galloping horse. And it is also almost impossible for the
man on the horse to hit anything while riding at a gallop.
The gang stopped when they reached the end
of Main Street on the east side of town. They got off their horses and took
cover by the livery stable and blacksmith shop. They had Main Street on the
east side covered this way. A gun battle began to rage between the deputies and
outlaws.
The deputies guarding the three homes heard
the shooting. They believed the outlaws were cornered, so they left their
posts. Uncle Mark and the five deputies came out of his office right after the
shooting started. They mounted their horses and rode down to the other side of
the railroad tracks. The outlaws were shooting blindly down the street.
Deputies were shooting back from behind empty beer kegs, a water trough, and
from doorways of buildings.
Then Uncle Mark saw the deputies who were
supposed to be guarding the three homes come running down Main Street. That was
when Uncle Mark proved he was a very smart law officer. He figured this
shooting was just a diversion to draw the deputies away from the three homes.
He guessed that Cal Roberts had left part of his gang at the end of Main
Street, while he and the rest of his gang were circling around the outskirts of
town and going back to the west side. Uncle Mark had a terrible decision to
make in a second. But he knew as a lawman his first duty was to protect Judge
Potter. He ordered two deputies named Johnson and Stevens to follow him. They
rode at a gallop to the Judge's house.
Judge Potter and
his wife had been awakened by the sound of gunfire. They got out of bed, put on
their robes, and went into the parlor. Judge Potter called to the deputy who
was supposed to be guarding the front porch. He received no answer. Then he
went to the back porch and discovered that deputy also gone. He armed himself
with a rifle and sat in the parlor with his wife. He was watching out the front
window when he saw two men ride up and dismount in front of his house. They
kept their heads down and it was too dark for the Judge to recognize them. They
walked to the front porch. The two men were Cal Roberts and Jack Austin.
"Are you all right, Judge?"
Austin called through the front door. "Mark Trainor sent us to check on you. The gang is bottled up on the east side of town."
Judge Potter didn't recognize the voice but
assumed my uncle had sent two deputies after discovering the others had left
the Judge's home unprotected. He opened the door. Austin grabbed the rifle away
from him and used the butt of it to knock Mrs. Potter unconscious.
"Get the rope," Cal Roberts said,
holding a pistol against the Judge's head. "We don't want any shootin ' to attract attention."
Austin ran to his horse and came back with
a rope. The outlaws had planned carefully. The rope had a hangman's noose on
the end of it. He put the noose around Judge Potter's neck and tightened it.
" Goin ' to
hang you, Judge," Roberts said, "just like you would like to hang me. Goin ' to
hang you on that tree in front of your house. Then I'll get them other
two and hang them too."
Uncle Mark saw the two horses in front of
the Judge's house and he and
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