A Narrow Escape
One humid August night Arizona Rangers were seen chasing an unidentified adult female along the railway heading towards the Maricopa Wells stagecoach junction. Word of this excitement made its way to US Deputy Marshal White, who was still mending wounds he had received weeks earlier.
Deputy White limped his way to the stable and mounted his horse. White headed to the train station presumably in an attempt to get ahead of the ruckus and set in wait for the mysterious lone rider being chased by the Rangers. He dismounted his stead and headed towards the tracks on foot. In the moonlight he could see the lone rider opening distance on the posse of law men that chased her.
The pursuing Rangers split into two groups of three or four men and dismounted their horses upon their arrival at the train station. The sound of a locomotive could be heard in the distance so they knew time was of the essence.
The Rangers looked through the local hotels and saloons desperately searching for their fugitive, but their search turned up nothing. As the train pulled into the Maricopa station the Rangers focused their efforts on the train and its passengers. The Rangers held the train for upwards of an hours searching for the mysterious woman.
Somewhere around midnight the Rangers had exhausted their search and decided to call it off. As they started away from the train station a young railway worker asked if there was anything he could do to assist them. One of the Rangers thought it might help to have a look at the trains passenger list.
None of the names on the trains roster stood out except one. Ethan Whites name was on the roster of people who purchased a ticket to board the train that was had pulled away from the Maricopa station not more than 10 minutes earlier.
The Rangers headed towards Ethan Whites house to investigate this peculiar bit of information as they knew Deputy White was in no condition to travel and was actively working the kidnapping case of Rose Marie Parker. As the Rangers arrived they observed Ethan limping from his stable aided by a young girl. The Rangers found it odd that Deputy White was in stocking feet and was wearing mere undergarments as he staggered into his house.
As they approached to knock on the door the laughter of a girl was reported to have been heard from inside the residence. Ethan White came to the door wrapped in a blanket holding a bottle of whiskey. Ethan smelled of the drink and appeared to have been under its influence. When questioned by the Rangers, Ethan stated that he had been out feeding his horses and knew nothing of a young girl. Ethan seamed perplexed by the trains roster, as well, and dismissed it as a mistake.
It was explained to Deputy White that the Rangers has an investigative lead in the Parker kidnapping, a woman. They explained tat they had been on her scent for some time but she had always eluded them. They told Ethan that they had chased her to the train station where she disappeared.
Deputy White abruptly bid the Rangers a good night and closed his door on them. Nothing else was heard as they rode away.