Jesse had been hurrying toward Brownsville by stage while Dodge,
Kaffenburgh, and Bracken were landing at Point Isabelle, where they
were kept under close surveillance by Sergeant Tom Ross of the
Rangers. Thence they took the train to Brownsville, registering at
the Miller House under the assumed names of C. F. Dougherty, A.
Koontzman, and E. M. Barker, all of Oklahoma. But, although they
knew it not, Sergeant Tom was at their elbow, and had Dodge
attempted to cross the border into Mexico he would instantly have
been placed under arrest.

As Brownsville was within the Southern District of the Federal
Court of Texas, Jesse decided not to arrest Dodge until he should
actually attempt flight, and when Dodge and his companions, on the
following morning, February 15th, entered the stage (the same upon
which Jesse had arrived) and started for Alice, Jesse and Tom Ross
procured the best horses they could find and started after them,
keeping just in sight of the stage. Dodge's intention in making
this move was to take the Mexican International Railway at Alice
and cross over to Mexico via Laredo.

Jesse and Ross covered the seventy-four miles from Brownsville to
Santa La Cruz Ranch by four in the afternoon, which was fairly
strenuous work for a New York detective, and here found themselves
so sore and exhausted from their ride that they were glad to hire a
pair of horses and buggy with which to complete the journey to
Alice. Luckily they were able to get into telephonic communication
with various ranch owners along the road and arrange to have fresh
relays of horses supplied to them every twenty miles, and here also
Jesse called up Captain Hughes at Alice, and suggested that he