views. They were of course pleased with the road and liked to travel
over it, but that toll gate was as "a dash of cold water in their
faces." They called it Dick Wooten's highway robbery scheme.

After Uncle Dick's road was completed and the stage coaches began to
travel over it his house was turned into a stage station and you can
guess that Uncle Dick Wooten had many a stage story to relate to the
"tenderfoot" who chose his house to order a meal or sleep in his beds.

Kit Carson was one of the lifelong friends of Uncle Dick and two men for
whom I have great respect. They were both friends to the Indians and
both have told me that they would never kill an Indian. The Arapahoes
knew Uncle Dick Wooten as "Cut Hand" from the fact that he had two
fingers missing on his left hand. This tribe had a great veneration for
the keeper of the tollgate, and he was perfectly safe at any time in
their villages and camps. One of the dying chiefs made as a dying
request, that although the nation be at war with all the whites in the
world, his warriors were never to injure "Cut Hand," but to assist him
in whatever way they could if he needed them. Uncle Dick Wooten's
Christian name was "Richen Lacy Wooten" and lived at Independence,
Missouri, before venturing to the frontier.

Before I leave Uncle Dick to go on to another journey across the Old
Santa Fe Trail I will relate the story of the death of Espinosa--Don
Espinosa. The Mexican aristocracy are called "Dons," claiming descent
from the nobles of Cortez' army. We will see how cleverly Uncle Dick won
the reward of $1000 offered by the governor of Colorado for the life of
the bandit, dead or alive.

Espinosa living with his beautiful sister in his isolated farm house