Popular showman killed, Khali Rosehall connected?
By Jose Chavez
Late last week a train belonging to the performer Thomas Green, better known as “Six Shot Tom”, was robbed east of Tumbleweed. Thomas was a performer who hosted popular Wild West and Minstrel Shows. He was known not only for his impressive gunslinging skills but also for his eccentric showmanship and flippant flaunting of wealth. Despite being the son of former slaves, his upbringing was quite the lavish one on account of his father Henry Green’s close friendship with his former master, resulting in him being offered a sizable portion of land as well as a well-paying job in the wake of the civil war.

From a young age, Thomas Green showed a great deal of skill in gunslinging winning various quickdraw and sharpshooting competitions and tournaments. It was at the age of 24 he decided to become a showman. His performances were often praised for their flashy nature, the charisma of Thomas himself, and the “authentic” performances in his minstrel shows. He did have his critics, however, who often accused him of exploiting the economic state that many racial minorities find themselves in and exploiting this by offering them good pay to perform for him.

Green argued against these critics, saying that he was offering his performers a chance at a better life as well as the opportunity to learn how to become a skilled marksman. This was necessary not only for the often death-defying stunts performed on stage, but also to aid in the appearance of the performers being true gunslingers. To accomplish this, Thomas Green would often go out hunting bounties with his performers which helped grow his legendary status. On top of these hunts, he would also travel with an abundance of wealth and valuables, making no attempt to hide his route or method of travel as a way to lure bandits to attempt to ambush them so that Green and his employees could fend them off and prove their legitimacy as true gunslingers and marksmen.

Unfortunately, this choice proved fatal during the early hours of the morning of Friday last week. Around midnight, a farmhand working late at Ridgewood Farm described seeing what looked like a small group of men standing at the edge of the cliff to the west of the farm. Initially, he thought nothing of it, but about an hour later he and other residents of the farm reported gunshots coming from the cliff as the group atop it was seemingly ambushed, a tactic not uncommon for Thomas Green’s security, while the screeching of a rushing train coming to a sudden stop echoed through the night.

The gunfight persisted for two hours, during which the Residents of Ridgewood farm took cover inside the farmhouse. “We didn’t have a good choice of options.” explained a farmhand who wished to remain anonymous. “If we went out west towards Tumbleweed, we’d be going towards the gunfight. If we went East the closest town with actual lawmen is Blackwater, that ain’t even in this state!”

In the wake of the firefight, the train was found full of bodies, including that of Thomas Green himself. Curiously, the only thing taken by the thieves was a horse recently purchased by Green. The horse formerly belonged to Khali Rosehall, an outlaw who is slowly but surely growing in notoriety. It doesn’t seem like there’s enough evidence to definitively pin the robbery and subsequent massacre on him, but it is likely that the possibility may send a few posses out west in search of his sizable bounty.

Are you awakened by strange noises in the middle of the night? Do you experience dread when criminals hide in your basement or attic? Have you or your family ever seen a criminal or crime? If the answer is yes, don’t wait another minute. Get to your nearest telegraph to contact the professionals at the Herald today! Our courteous and efficient staff is ready receive your telegram 24 hours a day! No matter how unbelievable the story, we’re ready to believe you!

Cowpoke gets killed attempting to deliver the mail
By Caylen V. Hornby
This paper has documented the difficulty of getting mail in the remote reaches of Ambarino in the past and brings to you another reason you may not receive your mail if you live in snowy isolation. The U.S. Post Office relies on freelance cowpokes to get mail to harder to reach residents and when those freelancers fail, the mail often never gets delivered. Early this week, one such freelancer was killed on his route. “He delivered mail to two residents but was ambushed on his way to the third,” authorities said, “looks like he was killed quickly.” A mail bag with undelivered items was found in Cattail Pond, indicating the thief either tossed the bag there or perhaps somewhere in the Beartooth Beck. A member of the Federal Marshal’s office told me on the condition of anonymity that the Marshals rarely investigate such mail thefts. “Oddly enough, the thieves usually deliver the mail and we can’t quite figure out why,” my informant said. However, this time the mail was discarded and damaged, which may force the Marshals to investigate.

“A lot of folks hem and haw about the Post Office wanting it closed, but it’s in the damn Constitution! So we take it seriously!” said Lew Hickleberg of the U.S. Marshals in an official statement. For the time being, authorities are asking freelance cowpokes to undertake mail jobs with a posse of gunslingers. “Folks often think delivering the mail is a boring job that any dullard could do, but you gotta have an eye for danger and quick draw,” he elaborated. However, Sadie Adler, who often gives out contracts for mail deliveries, said she cannot be picky. “You see many people coming out here? I ain’t gonna turn a man down ’cause he don’t have back up,” she said. A bill was introduced into Congress that would increase the pay of those willing to deliver the mail, but that bill died in committee.

Three way shoot out over alleged rare recipe
By Daisy Fairman
Several cowpokes were peacefully hunting in Big Valley along Little Creek River when a few of them noticed a couple of folks brewing some moonshine. Three of the hunters descended on the moonshiners, killing the two men at the location. The three hunters then entered into a standoff, drawing a pistol in each hand and aiming them at each other. The men reportedly began arguing aboutwho the rare recipe found at the moonshiner camp belonged to. Witnesses said that while it may have been a tense situation for the three in the standoff, it was rather comical from an outsider’s perspective. “These three fellers just kept waving their pistols around, pointing at one guy then the other and then back,” the witness laughed before sighing, “one of them could have easily just killed the other two instead of just playing cowboy.”

Another witness reported that a forth participant briefly joined the standoff, “a woman walked up with her own pistols and jumped in with a smile, until some gentleman talked her out of the silly predicament.” The three continued yelling at each other and waving their pistols around. One allegedly yelled that he wish he had crossbows just before the three men opened fire on each other. Another cowpoke said, “they died all dramatic like, as if they didn’t realize they were dying.” The cowpoke then walked past their dying bodies, took the rare recipe before he walked off.

Adventures in bird watching
By Nick McCrary
Pearl Kemper of the Five States Bird Watching Society has announced that their first event was a success. Over the week several people joined her in watching birds in their natural environment. Miss Kemper chose the best photograph taken over the week to be featured in this article. Over the week several birds were spotted and photographed by amateur and experienced bird watchers alike. The featured photograph was taken on a rainy day just as a pelican took flight.

Congratulations to Lola Ferris for such a stunning photograph. Miss Kemper has announced that for this coming week, she is calling on bird watchers to explore the state of New Austin. She encourages cowpokes to observe all types of birds across the southern state, however, the winning photograph must be of a hawk in New Austin. Miss Kemper will choose the best photograph which will be featured in next week’s article.

Outlaws try to hide out at the edge of New Hanover, but the Grey Cowboy finds them
By Van R. Seldon
Annesburg deputies responded to the sound of gunshots North of the town near a camp site known as Willard’s Rest. By the time they arrived, however, the gunshots had ceased. The lawmen looked around and saw dead men laying around the area. There was a set of horse tracks found leaving the area, but the trail was lost at the Kamassa River. As the lawmen began throwing the bodies into a wagon, a man stirred. The deputies nearly shot the man in surprise, but quickly realized the groggy individual was no threat to them. The man said he was the leader of the group and that they were ambushed by a man in grey. The description provided by the man was consistent with reports of the so called Grey Cowboy.

The man began getting nervous as the group got closer to Annesburg, but the deputies at the time believed it was the result having witnessed his friends being killed in front of him. Once the deputies began identifying the bodies they realized their error. “Those we could identify were known criminals, though mostly guilty of committing petty crimes,” said one of the deputies. “However, they are known associates of a murderer, who we let slip through our fingers!” The deputies quickly went to the gunsmith who provides lodging to visitors, however, the gunsmith said the man never came to him. Witnesses reported him fleeing into the woods. Given that the Grey Cowboy often leaves gang leaders alive offering them a chance to change, the leader of his gang being left alive seems to confirm his involvement.

Treasure hunter killed and eaten by alligators
By Aloysius Levron
An unidentified man was spotted wandering the bayou while staring at a piece of paper. It seems likely that the man was searching for treasure, a common occurrence in the bayou. “This man, like others, was not careful,” said a local, “he seemed to forget that the bayou was dangerous.” The man appeared to look toward a small island in the bayou before mounting his horse and riding deeper into the bayou. The man remained staring at the map when his horse became agitated and bucked him off. The horse swam away as the would be treasure hunter managed to swim to one of the small islands. “He was screamin’ and hollerin’ but he made it, for awhile” the witness chuckled as he spoke, “but another ‘gator was waiting for him.” The man was attacked and pulled into the water. “I fired my gun to scare ’em off, but it happened to quick.” The witness said there was a great deal of thrashing, making it impossible to get off a clean shot. By the time the thrashing ended, the man was dead. “Should remind folks not to run nilly willy through the bayou. Respect this land and you might just survive. Don’t and you gonna be food.”

Several dead when bounty hunters are ambushed north of Saint Denis
By Mathilde Orry
A group of bounty hunters were ambushed on their way to Saint Denis, forcing the driver of the bounty wagon to crash, freeing the wanted men. The bounty hunters tried to fight the ambushers off, however several folks were traveling the road at the time, which made it difficult for the bounty hunters to easily find their attackers. The attackers reportedly had no concern for the life of innocent folks and shot indiscriminately. Four innocent people were killed and one of the bounty hunters, the others took cover as their targets fled. They were unable to pursue.

History made on the baseball field
By Ivy Seager
Lizzie Arlington became the first woman to compete in men’s professional baseball this week when she held down the Allentown Peanuts in the 9th inning, after being brought onto the field in a carriage pulled by two white horses. Having joined a minor league team early this year, Arlington was set to make waves. The Reading Coal Heavers signed her months later and put her in her first game this week with a 5-0 lead for the Coal Heavers. Spectators watched eagerly, especially many women in the crowd, as Arlington took the mound. In short order the historic moment nearly became one of disappointment. Arlington walked a batter and allowed two hits, loading the bases. The next three batters were retired one after another, however, to end the game and secure the victory. Good for Lizzie!

Officials from Spain and the United States meet to discuss and end to the Spanish-American War.
By Humphrey Harker
While officials are keeping quiet about it, informants on both sides have told me that Spain and the United States are negotiating an end to the war. This has been a long time coming, with both sides realizing this war was over nearly as soon as it began. Those close to Senator Thaddeus Waxman have even suggested that Waxman is already leveraging his successful campaigns during the war to improve his political career. While some may see this war as a boon to their prospects, the loss of life cannot be ignored. Many died so that Waxman and others could posture of promotions. Hopefully Americans remember this hard lesson and never again let politicians go to war for their personal benefit.

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