The Capture of Black Bart by Norman H. Finkelstein

Author:Norman H. Finkelstein
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Published: 2019-12-29T16:00:00+00:00

5

CLOSING IN

This fellow [Bart] is a character that will be remembered as a scribbler and something of a wit and a wag.

—WELLS FARGO REWARD CIRCULAR

The clues Jim Hume discovered about the road agent’s identity and techniques did not bring Wells Fargo any closer to capturing him. Jim had many cases to solve, and the pressure of constant travel made him “dusty, tired, worn-out and ill tempered.” On his way to investigate yet another robbery, his stage was held up. A newspaper commented, “This method of turning the tables was certainly a bold stroke. The thieves have particular reason to feel proud, as Mr. Hume is one of the coolest and bravest men in the State.”

During another trip in the Arizona Territory, Jim again found himself on the other side of a gun when two masked men held up the stage he was on, traveling between Contention and Tombstone, Arizona. The stage did not carry a treasure box or mail, but the robbers did take Jim’s two fine revolvers and some cash. Wells Fargo offered a reward of $300, but the bandits were never found. One newspaper headline declared, A WELL-KNOWN DETECTIVE FINDS SOME HIGHWAYMEN HE WAS NOT LOOKING FOR.

Bart was not the only stage robber plaguing Wells Fargo, but at least Jim could identify which robberies were Bart’s work by the following:

The white flour sack over his head had holes cut out for the eyes.

Bart crouched in front of the lead horses to avoid being shot.

Bart carried a double-barreled shotgun.

He always brought an old ax to smash open the treasure box.

He cut the US Mail sacks in a unique upside-down T.

He was not heard from during the winter months.

In addition, Jim had a very accurate physical description of Bart that he’d pieced together from ordinary people who, like Mrs. McCreary and others, innocently fed and hosted the polite stranger. People who met Bart along the way told Jim that he carried a good-sized blanket roll, which Jim suspected contained a broken-down shotgun. They also gave Jim a detailed description of the clothes Bart wore. He was “dressed in steel-mixed coat and vest, checked wool shirt, blue overalls outside and red duck pants underneath: kip boots badly worn and run over on inside: dirty light-colored felt hat: silver watch and heavy link silver chain.”

Jim circulated Bart’s description to law officers and Wells Fargo agents in 1880, even providing a name. The wanted robber, the circular stated, was Harry Barton. That was one of the aliases Bart used when he registered in a hotel. The circular duplicated Barton’s handwritten signature, which closely matched the writing on Bart’s earlier poetry. Jim interviewed rural residents who came in contact with Bart shortly after a robbery. The day after the September 1, 1880, robbery of the Weaverville-to-Redding stage, Bart was at the house of J. T. Adkinson, where he was treated to breakfast and lunch. The next day, Bart was seen on the road by a railroad worker. After a September 16 robbery, Bart was seen in Jacksonville, Oregon.

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