THE SHOOTING OF J. MCCULLOCH

 On the morning following the robbery, an examination of the immediate¹ vicinity about where the train was stopped, resulted in finding where the robbers had tied their horses, and there, lying on the ground, was found the following letter:

 

Kansas City, July 12.

 

Charlie—I got your letter to-day, and was glad to hear that you had got everything ready in time for the 15th. We will be on hand at that time. Bill will be with us. We will be on the train; don't fear. We will be in the smoker² at Winston. Have the horses and boys in good fix for fast work. We will make this point again on the night of the 16th. All is right here. Frank will meet us at Cameron. Look sharp and be well fixed³. Have the horses well gaunted, for we may have some running to do. Don't get excited, but keep cool till right time. Wilcox or Wolcott will be on the engine. I think best to send this to Kidder. Yours time and through death.

 

Slick.

 

After receiving the first particulars of the robbery by telegraph, I went to Kansas City, and from thence to various points in the vicinity, for the purpose of prosecuting⁴ an investigation⁵ with the view of discovering, if possible, who the outlaws⁶ were, where they came from, whither they went, and how the authorities prosecuted⁷ the pursuit. From these efforts I am prepared to state, with circumstantial [Pg 156]positiveness, that Frank James and Jim Cummings were the parties who planned, and with the aid of their confreres, executed the robbery at Winston, and that the proof may not be wanting, the following several facts are recited:

 

A few weeks ago I received a letter from Frank James, acknowledging the receipt of a copy of "Border Outlaws," which I sent to him by a relative. Shortly after its receipt, this same relative, who is known to be in communication with Frank James, visited St. Louis and confidentially⁸ conferred with my publisher upon the advantages which we might mutually reap by a sudden stimulation⁹ in the sale of "Border Outlaws," for which he was then acting¹⁰ as agent. His proposition embraced a statement that Frank James and Jim Cummings were at that time in Missouri planning a campaign; that a large robbery would soon be consummated¹¹, attended with some startling results. All these facts he agreed to furnish us the very moment the robbery should be completed, comprising the names of those engaged, how they had organized, where assembled, cause for their acts, etc., provided my publisher would give him a certain sum of money. The incentive¹² on our part to comply with his proposition was in securing this reliable information, which might be added as an appendix to a new edition of "Border Outlaws," and issued contemporaneously with the first newspaper reports, thereby¹³ creating a largely increased demand for the book. Of course there appeared so much doubt involved in this singular proffer¹⁴, and the [Pg 157]proposition within itself being of such questionable¹⁵ character, that it was rejected with little consideration of the probability of a robbery such as was declared about to take place. At this time, however, the assertions then made assume an interest which throws much light upon the problem, "Who committed the robbery?"

 

But this is not all the evidence I am in possession of respecting this latest adventure of the old gang. In pursuing my investigations¹⁶ I visited Olathe, Kas., twenty miles south of Kansas City, and there found a gentleman well known in that town, who had met Frank James walking on the south side of Olathe's public square, well-armed, on the 10th inst., or only five days before the robbery occurred. It was not a mistaken identity, for the gentleman in question was raised within four miles of the present residence of the James boys' parents, and was for years upon terms of the greatest social intimacy¹⁷ with them, attending the same school, participating in the same sports, and in later years meeting with them as old acquaintances. Being well acquainted myself in Olathe, I can positively¹⁸ state that this information regarding the presence of Frank James in the town referred to is true beyond all doubt. But what his business was or when he left, I could not ascertain¹⁹.

 

Within eighteen hours after the robbery, Mrs. Samuels appeared in Kansas City, evidently for the purpose of collecting such information as might be useful to Frank James and his confederates. She talked freely of the robbery, but protested, with repeated[Pg 158] declarations, that both Frank and Jesse were dead, going so far in her assertions as to say that Frank died three years ago of consumption, in Texas. What she hoped to gain by a claim so easily disproved it is difficult to conjecture²⁰.

 

From the best evidence attainable²¹, the gang who robbed the Rock Island and Pacific train, among whom were Frank James, Ed. Miller²², Jim Cummings and Dick Little, after leaving the train, mounted their horses and rode southwestwardly until they reached the outskirts²³ of Cameron, when they turned and took to the brush again, making directly for the Missouri river, which they crossed near Sibley's landing, and on the following evening, the 16th, they certainly passed through Sni-a-bar township of Jackson county, and, taking a southwestwardly course, continued on to the Indian Territory. The party, however, did not remain intact, but divided up into couples, so as to destroy the trail which so large a number as seven riders would have made conspicuous²⁴. They were at no time so far apart, though, but that a prearranged signal would have concentrated the outlaws.

 

It is a singular fact that with all the atrocious crimes credited to the James boys and their confederates, there was not so much as one dollar of reward offered at the time of the Winston robbery, although at one time the rewards offered by the State and railroad and express companies aggregated²⁵ $75,000. During Gov. Hardin's administration nearly all the rewards offered by the State were withdrawn,[Pg 159] then the private corporations that had suffered so seriously at the hands of the bold knights²⁷ of the road withdrew the incentives²⁸ they had advertised, after which Gov. Phelps wiped out the few figures remaining.

 

On the 26th of July, eleven days after the train robbery at Winston, Governor Crittenden visited St. Louis and called a meeting of leading railroad officials in the gentlemen's parlor²⁹ of the Southern Hotel. The call was responded to by representatives from nearly all the principal roads running into Kansas City and St. Louis, and upon assembling plans were thoroughly³⁰ discussed for the apprehension³¹ of the notorious outlaws who have wrought³² such injury to Missouri's reputation. The session lasted for nearly four hours, though there was the greatest unanimity³³ of feeling and disposition³⁴, and at its conclusion the Governor expressed much gratification at the results. The power of the Executive is limited by law, so that he could not offer a State reward sufficiently³⁵ large to accomplish the arrest of such notorious desperadoes as the James boys and their gang are known to be, so he conceived the excellent idea of calling upon the interested railroad corporations for needful assistance. The result of this conference was the immediate issuance of a proclamation by Governor Crittenden, in which an aggregate²⁶ reward of fifty-five thousand dollars ($55,000) was offered for the capture of the seven train robbers, or five thousand dollars for the arrest and conviction of each one of the robber gang. This proclamation was supplemented [Pg 160]by the offer of an additional reward of five thousand dollars each for the arrest of Jesse and Frank James, and delivery of their bodies to the sheriff of Daviess County, and a further reward of five thousand dollars each for their conviction.

 

The public which, generally speaking, believe that Jesse James was never shot by Geo. Shepherd, credit the assertion made by many that both Frank and Jesse were engaged in the Winston robbery, but whatever the impression, this belief is undoubtedly³⁶ without foundation. The most intimate acquaintances of Jesse James, those who have seen him many times during the past year, are ready to make oath that he is a paralytic³⁷ from the effects of Geo. Shepherd's shot; in fact, in a demented, helpless condition.

 

At one time arrangements were about perfected, through the outlaws' cousin, by which I was to have a personal interview with Frank James, each of us to be accompanied by a friend, but owing to some engagement, which was never explained to me, that meeting never occurred. Frank, after receiving a copy of "Border Outlaws," expressed a desire to make a statement, with the understanding that I would embody³⁸ it in all subsequent editions of the book; this I agreed to do, but I am now convinced that the intended interview was not granted because of the engagement which was kept at Winston.

The End
 

1 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

2 smoker   

n.吸烟者，吸烟车厢，吸烟室

参考例句：

• His wife dislikes him to be a smoker.他妻子不喜欢他当烟民。
• He is a moderate smoker.他是一个有节制的烟民。

3 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

4 prosecuting   

检举、告发某人( prosecute的现在分词 )； 对某人提起公诉； 继续从事（某事物）； 担任控方律师

参考例句：

• The witness was cross-examined by the prosecuting counsel. 证人接受控方律师的盘问。
• Every point made by the prosecuting attorney was telling. 检查官提出的每一点都是有力的。

5 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

6 outlaws   

歹徒，亡命之徒( outlaw的名词复数 )； 逃犯

参考例句：

• During his year in the forest, Robin met many other outlaws. 在森林里的一年，罗宾遇见其他许多绿林大盗。
• I didn't have to leave the country or fight outlaws. 我不必离开自己的国家，也不必与不法分子斗争。

7 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

8 confidentially   

ad.秘密地，悄悄地

参考例句：

• She was leaning confidentially across the table. 她神神秘秘地从桌子上靠过来。
• Kao Sung-nien and Wang Ch'u-hou talked confidentially in low tones. 高松年汪处厚两人低声密谈。

9 stimulation   

n.刺激，激励，鼓舞

参考例句：

• The playgroup provides plenty of stimulation for the children.幼儿游戏组给孩子很多启发。
• You don't get any intellectual stimulation in this job.你不能从这份工作中获得任何智力启发。

10 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

11 consummated   

v.使结束( consummate的过去式和过去分词 )；使完美；完婚；（婚礼后的）圆房

参考例句：

• The marriage lasted only a week and was never consummated. 那段婚姻仅维持了一星期，期间从未同房。
• We consummated an agreement after a year of negotiation. 经过一年的谈判，我们达成了协议。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

13 thereby   

adv.因此，从而

参考例句：

• I have never been to that city,,ereby I don't know much about it.我从未去过那座城市，因此对它不怎么熟悉。
• He became a British citizen,thereby gaining the right to vote.他成了英国公民，因而得到了投票权。

14 proffer   

v.献出，赠送；n.提议，建议

参考例句：

• He rose and proffered a silver box full of cigarettes.他站起身，伸手递过一个装满香烟的银盒子。
• I proffer to lend him one.我表示愿意借他一个。

15 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

16 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

17 intimacy   

n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行

参考例句：

• His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。
• I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

18 positively   

adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实

参考例句：

• She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
• The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。

19 ascertain   

vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清

参考例句：

• It's difficult to ascertain the coal deposits.煤储量很难探明。
• We must ascertain the responsibility in light of different situtations.我们必须根据不同情况判定责任。

20 conjecture   

n./v.推测，猜测

参考例句：

• She felt it no use to conjecture his motives.她觉得猜想他的动机是没有用的。
• This conjecture is not supported by any real evidence.这种推测未被任何确切的证据所证实。

21 attainable   

a.可达到的，可获得的

参考例句：

• They set the limits of performance attainable. 它们确定着可达到的运行限度。
• If objectives are to be meaningful to people, they must be clear, attainable, actionable, and verifiable. 如果目标对人们是具有意义的，则目标必须是清晰的，能达到的，可以行动的，以及可供检验的。

22 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

23 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

24 conspicuous   

adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的

参考例句：

• It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显，抽烟对健康有害。
• Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。

25 aggregated   

a.聚合的，合计的

参考例句：

• He aggregated her to a political party. 他吸收她参加一政党。
• The audiences aggregated a million people. 观众总数达100万人。

26 aggregate   

adj.总计的，集合的；n.总数；v.合计；集合

参考例句：

• The football team had a low goal aggregate last season.这支足球队上个赛季的进球总数很少。
• The money collected will aggregate a thousand dollars.进帐总额将达一千美元。

27 knights   

骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马

参考例句：

• stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
• He wove a fascinating tale of knights in shining armour. 他编了一个穿着明亮盔甲的骑士的迷人故事。

28 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

29 parlor   

n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅

参考例句：

• She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
• Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店？

30 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

31 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

32 wrought   

v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的

参考例句：

• Events in Paris wrought a change in British opinion towards France and Germany.巴黎发生的事件改变了英国对法国和德国的看法。
• It's a walking stick with a gold head wrought in the form of a flower.那是一个金质花形包头的拐杖。

33 unanimity   

n.全体一致，一致同意

参考例句：

• These discussions have led to a remarkable unanimity.这些讨论导致引人注目的一致意见。
• There is no unanimity of opinion as to the best one.没有一个公认的最好意见。

34 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

35 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

36 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

37 paralytic   

adj. 瘫痪的 n. 瘫痪病人

参考例句：

• She was completely paralytic last night.她昨天晚上喝得酩酊大醉。
• She rose and hobbled to me on her paralytic legs and kissed me.她站起来，拖着她那麻痹的双腿一瘸一拐地走到我身边，吻了吻我。

38 embody   

vt.具体表达，使具体化；包含，收录

参考例句：

• The latest locomotives embody many new features. 这些最新的机车具有许多新的特色。
• Hemingway's characters plainly embody his own values and view of life.海明威笔下的角色明确反映出他自己的价值观与人生观。